Port Maitland Beach - our front yard
Beach Changes
Here it is February, and we finally got a bit of snow – a 10 inch or so dumping of wet snow! This is great for x-c skiing and for snowshoe walks, but not so good for walking the dog, so Norma and I took Finn to the beach for a run.
What struck me is how much the beach, or at least our front yard portion of it, changes during the winter. With the high tides (25 feet or so daily) and little seaweed, we get what geologists call Equilibrium beach profiles. That is, the equilibrium beach profile results from steady wave forcing during the seasonal cycle. Summer wave conditions move sand onto the beach. Winter storm waves move sand offshore. The image shows rocks poking out of the sand and the pools around the rocks as the sand got ripped away by forceful tide and waves driven by our recent storms. In the summer, the sand will be deposited back in as it is more gently carried by tide and lower normal wave action.
Amazing when you think of all the sand that is moved, and the forces of nature that keep it going. Of course, with climate change, if the ocean level rises, things could change as the stone barrier you see in the background is the only thing between our ponds and the ocean. For now, all is good, though, and we’ll be back and see the beach as it changes during the year.
