Welcome to Kiawah
"Prize the natural spaces and shorelines most of all, because once they're gone, with rare exceptions they're gone forever."
Richard Louv
This week Anne's challenge, shoreline, is especially close to my heart. Those who follow me know I live on a barrier island surrounded by the sea. There are very few occasions when I miss my daily beach walk. I have more images of our shoreline than I care to count, many of which I've previously posted, so how was I to limit my response?! I chose the easy way out and decided to use only images captured during August 2024. It was still a challenge to limit myself but I've done my best! My opening image above is one of my favorite entrances to the beach and was made just this week. As you can see, because most children are back in school the beach is nearly empty. It was also mostly empty in my next image due to an impending storm. Only die-hards and shorebirds braved the wind and coming rain.
Storm Comin', Kiawah Island
"There's nothing more beautiful than the way the ocean refuses to stop kissing the shoreline, no matter how many times it's sent away."
Sarah Kay
Speaking of shorebirds, somehow our shoreline is never without avian visitors. Most prevalent are the various gulls along with pelicans and in-season less common shorebirds such as red knots, oystercatchers, skimmers....well I could go on and on. For those interested here is a link to the database of the incredible birds that frequent our island: Birds of Kiawah Island. Two typical August days' images follow as evidence😊.
Birds and Boats, Kiawah Island
"Every ocean has a shoreline and every shoreline has a tide that is constantly returning to wake the songbirds in our hands..."
Andrea Gibson
Frenzied, Kiawah Island
"The larger the island of knowledge, the longer the shoreline of wonder."
Ralph W. Sockman
While our birds vary with the season, they are always present. On the other hand, it is rare to see children on the island except for summertime and holidays. Both are times for visitors, and our population increases accordingly. Many of our full-time residents spend summer elsewhere, both to avoid the heat and the influx of visitors. Personally, summer has always been a season I enjoy, and the presence of children has always been part of the fun. Here are two examples of their influence.
Shoreline Art, Kiawah Island
"In every outthrust headland, in every curving beach, in every grain of sand there is the story of the earth."
Rachel Carson
Go Fly A Kite, Kiawah Island
"The beach has all the knowledge and wisdom of the sea..."
Mehmet Murat Ildan
Of course, fun need not be confined to children. Here on Kiawah the sands of our shoreline are quite flat and very firm. Walking along the shoreline is easy and typically quite breezy no matter how high the temps may be. So too, the ability to stand among our gentler waves for fishing and the rare ability to bicycle along the water's edge - a favorite pastime for many of us.
Young Fisherman, Kiawah Island
"(...) and of course the sea, always different, always the same."
Bethan Roberts
Biking The Shoreline, Kiawah Island
"There is pleasure in the pathless woods, there is rapture in the lonely shore, there is society where none intrudes, by the deep sea, and music in its roar; I love not Man the less, but Nature more."
Lord Byron
As August, and correspondingly summer, draws to a close here in the U.S., the crowds will thin and eventually disappear. As much as we love our visitors and the fun of summer days along the shore, for most of us the peace and quiet of the seasons that follow are the greater treasure. Here on Kiawah full-time residents return and our shoreline once again offers peace and solitude for those who treasure it. We locals call it "taking back the beach" - as illustrated in my final image below.
Taking Back the Beach, August 29, 2024, Kiawah Island
"I could never stay long enough on the shore; the tang of the untainted, fresh, and free air was like a cool, quieting thought."
Helen Keller
I have no doubt Anne was looking for a bit more variety with her challenge and am confident she will find plenty of it in your responses. Please be sure to link them to her original here, and to use the Lens-Artists Tag to help us find you. We thank John for last week's Cool Colors challenge, as well as all of those who responded with such wonderful variety. Finally, we hope you'll join us next week when Ritva once again leads us. Until then as always please stay safe, be kind and enjoy the journey.
Looking for more information on joining our challenge? Click here.
No comments:
Post a Comment