I was enjoying my daily walk on Long Sands Beach when I overheard a couple questioning each other about what they could possibly do on a foggy, damp day at the beach.
They seemed saddened at the thought that their vacation would be interrupted by what they considered to be bad weather. The weather people had predicted two to three days of heavy fog – after an entire month of rain.
I interrupted the visitors’ conversation by stating that they were very lucky to have a vacation when a coastal fog was in. They took me to task by asking what they could do, so I offered my advice.
Get here real early in the morning right before the sun breaks away from the horizon. Find where the water meets the shore and follow its sound and smell. It might be a bit damp, but don’t be afraid to get a little wet. Remember, you are on the coast of Maine and you are supposed to get wet.
Now walk the beach and listen to the music of the coast. The ocean sounds totally different in the early morning, especially in the fog. The dense atmosphere makes everything echo.
Your footsteps sound different on the sands of a foggy morning. They echo like the sound of forest leaves fighting for space with each other during a summer storm. If there are other people on the beach, notice that they end up walking in unison. No one ever steps out of time.
When you hit the parts of the beach that have rocks, you will hear the sound of conversations. The larger rocks scream their song in total unison with the pounding waves; the little pebbles laugh as the ocean tickles them over and over again. It is their time on the beach then. We are only allowed to listen.
The gulls on a foggy beach quietly bide their time when the sun will burn off the fog and people will return to feed and play with them again. I always feel sorry for the single gull that sits on one leg and stares into the ocean, wondering why it is all alone.
By this time, I was either scaring the hell out of these people or I was interesting them with my tale. However, it was soon time to go on my way. I said farewell to my two new friends and started to walk down the sands.
As I was leaving, I heard the man call to me and ask if they would see me on the beach tomorrow morning. I turned around, smiled and told him that they probably would. I also asked them not to talk to me or anyone else because that time was not our time on the beach. It was the beach’s time to enjoy itself.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
