This past Saturday we took another ride out to Long Island. This time to the sea. The last time I was at the ocean I was on the beaches of Malibu when I lived in LA. But I didn’t go to the ocean very often. It just wasn’t my thing. But lately, something has been calling me to explore nature here. There is so much that’s new to me; salt marshes, dunes and sandy trails on the bluffs, not to mention the shorebirds and mysteries within the sea itself. I’d done some research and it seemed Sunken Meadow State Park would be a fairly short ride from Manhattan to seek out the environment I was interested in exploring. As we drove closer to Long Island Sound, the air became cooler, more breezy and a marine layer lingered in the air. It never occurred to me that the east coast had a marine layer. I guess I just never really thought about it sine watching the weather reports on KTLA.
We parked the car and walked across a boardwalk towards the ocean. There were barely any people here since it is still off-season. I imagine this will all change in a few months. We walked along the shore and I remembered how difficult it is walking through sand. Up ahead were the dunes. There was a path leading up to them, so we followed it. Here we discovered many birds including a very chatty brown thrasher. This world seemed very different as I walked around and listened for birds. On the other side of the dunes was Sunken Meadow Creek. Here an osprey flew back and forth feeding chicks high up in a next. I’d never seen them so close before, and they didn’t seem bothered by our presence. As I along Sunken Meadow Creek I took photos of the different types of rocks, shells, plants and grasses. I noticed mussels in the sandy mud which I later learned are Ribbed Mussels and not the ones humans typically eat. Those are Blue Mussels. Next, we crossed the bridge over the creek onto a trail that took us through a wooded area along the top of the bluffs overlooking Long Island Sound. It was such a beautiful trail. When we finished the loop, I wanted to take one more walk around the dunes and back across the beach near the ocean. There was an area roped off to project shore birds, Piping Plover and Least Tern. Just as we were getting closer to the boardwalk, a male Piping Plover darted across the sand. It was such a treat to see one of these endangered birds.
We had a lovely day, and the fresh sea air was something special. I can’t wait to come back and explore again.
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