The beach after the storm
Nov 13, 2022 08:35:59 #
Even though the Atlantic side of Florida escaped the huge damage seen on the Gulf Coast with Hurricane Ian, we did have coastal erosion from the winds. That was accentuated with this week's Hurricane Nicole, which only gave us 50-60 MPH winds but caused additional shoreline and beach erosion. My favorite beach is at nearby Patrick Space Force Base - no apartments, homes, or condos, and therefore very few people.
This storm washed quite a bit of sand from the beach but apparently left it deposited just below the low tide line in, creating a narrower but shallower beach. The sea grapes did their job in preventing major loss of dunes, but the first foot or so of sea grapes was sacrificed. Now that high tide covers the entire beach we may see continued loss of sand. I am not sure how this may impact the success of the sea turtles that return every year to nest here.
These photos were taken on the evening of November 11 with an iPhone 14 Pro. All photos are straight from the iPhone with no edits. It was almost sunset, and the weather was spectacular. The reason people become snowbirds.
Unfortunately, the Space Force has closed their beach for now, and most of the wooden dune access points - crossovers with either stairs or ramps - sustained some damage. Most were roped off, and I observed the MP at one beach parking area running people off. I found an access point by the officer's club that people were using to access the beach. It was not damaged, but the washed-out sand resulted in a drop of about 18 inches from the bottom step to the beach. I figured the MP would soon get to this area and tell everyone to leave, which he did. It was sad to be run off - it almost felt like a pilgrimage to a holy site - a few people coming to the beach and just standing, seeing and feeling the change to the beach.
This storm washed quite a bit of sand from the beach but apparently left it deposited just below the low tide line in, creating a narrower but shallower beach. The sea grapes did their job in preventing major loss of dunes, but the first foot or so of sea grapes was sacrificed. Now that high tide covers the entire beach we may see continued loss of sand. I am not sure how this may impact the success of the sea turtles that return every year to nest here.
These photos were taken on the evening of November 11 with an iPhone 14 Pro. All photos are straight from the iPhone with no edits. It was almost sunset, and the weather was spectacular. The reason people become snowbirds.
Unfortunately, the Space Force has closed their beach for now, and most of the wooden dune access points - crossovers with either stairs or ramps - sustained some damage. Most were roped off, and I observed the MP at one beach parking area running people off. I found an access point by the officer's club that people were using to access the beach. It was not damaged, but the washed-out sand resulted in a drop of about 18 inches from the bottom step to the beach. I figured the MP would soon get to this area and tell everyone to leave, which he did. It was sad to be run off - it almost felt like a pilgrimage to a holy site - a few people coming to the beach and just standing, seeing and feeling the change to the beach.
View to the south from the crossover.
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Sea grapes held tight to the sand and limited the amount of the dune that was lost.
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Nov 13, 2022 09:06:36 #
The sand comes, the sand goes.
Mother Nature redecorates over time.
Mother Nature redecorates over time.
Nov 13, 2022 10:49:05 #
Longshadow wrote:
The sand comes, the sand goes.
Mother Nature redecorates over time.
Mother Nature redecorates over time.
Apparently the folks who build right on the dunes don't realize that... Over time the entire barrier island here shifted back and forth.
Nov 13, 2022 11:07:15 #
sb wrote:
Apparently the folks who build right on the dunes don't realize that... Over time the entire barrier island here shifted back and forth.
Or disappear.....
Nov 13, 2022 11:26:07 #
Nov 13, 2022 11:42:29 #
Very nice. Nice sand beaches are always subject to change as nature dictates over time. Thanks for sharing.
Nov 14, 2022 06:07:00 #
Nov 14, 2022 07:29:41 #
Nov 14, 2022 09:11:23 #
Nov 14, 2022 11:07:39 #
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