During my youngest daughter’s weeklong visit, she made it known that she wanted to spend some time near the water. Now Maryland where she lives has its own ocean, but perhaps she was interested in water connected to the Pacific Ocean since she spent her first eighteen years on one side of that ocean or the other.
We started the week with a family lunch at my sister’s house. A day or two later, we drove down to the Edmonds waterfront for a walk along the boardwalk to Marina Beach Park and lunch at Anthony’s HomePort.
We were barely out of the car, though, when we saw …Gasp! … a large expanse of sand and seaweed where the sea should have been.
On our next beach outing, we met daughter #2 and my sister at Harry’s, a beach café on Alki.
Once again, the tide was out … way out. (Can you see the cruise ship, the Grain Facility, and the Space Needle?)
Before the week was up, my daughters and I took the ferry to Kingson as foot passengers.
We were familiar with the beach near the Kingston ferry landing. It’s quite narrow … unless the tide is out. While waiting for the ferry to unload and load again, we got some hot drinks and walked around town. The bay in this photo was the most dramatic example of the low tide.
There’s something comforting and also awe-inspiring about the workings of nature—the regularity of the seasons and tides, and also their quirks. The tides go in and the tides go out. You can count on it. The earth turns, and the moon travels across the sky. But the moon also waxes and wanes. And during Mother’s Day week when daughter #3 was here, the moon was full. The “Flower Moon” the Algonquin people call it.
A full moon would account for high and low tides. But that week, the earth, the moon and also the sun were aligned, exerting a stronger than usual gravitational pull on the tides. And thus, our exceptionally high and low tides.
Gotta love (and hope for) the truth buried in the metaphor.
What? Did I miss my own metaphor?
Sounds like you fit a lot of fun into their visits!
It was wonderful to spend time with my daughter from the other coast and also those I love who live closer.
Always a fan of the water. I could not get over how strong the Pacific is after growing up on the Atlantic.
The Pacific isn’t so strong where we live. We’re sheltered by the Olympic Peninsula. It’s a ferry ride and about a two-hour drive to the “real” coast of the Pacific.
The treasure trove uncovered by the low tides on the Oregon coast was one of three key experiences that inspired my first tall tale, “How Dachshunds Came to Be; A Tall Tale About a Short Long Dog.” My visit coincided with a couple of the lowest tides of the year. Naturalist signs were conveniently placed where visitors could identify what they might see at the various levels of the tides. And with the gift of vacation time, I could leisurely look for the different sea creatures. Magical.
(The other two experiences were watching a pod of gray whales off the coast and daily seeing darling dachshunds. But those stories are for another time! 😎 )
I so enjoy your writing Nicki~ Thank you.
From childhood I’ve been enjoying seeing the creatures exposed during a low tide. I didn’t get any photos this time, but there were some great shots of colorful starfish, crabs, and such on Facebook.
Thank you for describing the three experiences that inspired your first book. When real-life experiences mix with imagination, we have a story.
The planets and moons have been doing this for ages. It makes us feel so insignificant in the scheme of things.
We’re such a small part of the greater universe. We do our part and trust that the tides will continue flowing in and out for a long, long time.
It all looks so beautiful to my midwestern eye. I’m glad you enjoyed your time with your daughter and that the tides did their special thing for you.
Nicki, thank you for taking us along on your family outing. I’ve never seen a low tide like what you’ve shown. Interesting “passengers” on that railing! I hope they also enjoyed the ride. I’m glad you had a great Mother’s Day.
I love seagulls. They’re so patient and omnipresent. Do you remember the seagulls in Finding Nemo? They were so funny.
We did have a nice Mother’s Day, lunch at my sister’s house with two of my daughters, my grandson, and my nephew. Then we called the other daughter and my granddaughter. I forgot to take any photos that day.