By Megan Lierman
Ten years previously, my esteem affair with the ocean started. My sister got married in Scotland, and alongside with company and family, I flew to Edinburgh with my then two-365 days-aged son and my husband. I became in a excessive-risk being pregnant and became unable to hike the Scottish Highlands with the the leisure of the neighborhood, so my mom and I took my son to throw rocks in the loch shut to my rental cottage. It became there that we chanced on our first pieces of classic pottery and glass shards, and I chanced on my first bottle. I grew up spending time shut to Kachemak Bay and on the shores of Lake Iliamna in Alaska, however it beneath no circumstances at all dawned on me to search things as antagonistic to shells and driftwood. Now after I trek, I build apart time or invent rapid detours to salvage modern coastal areas to skills the fun of the hunt!
Kauai, Hawaii
Glass Seaside on the island of Kauai has been a accepted build apart of residing of mine for the last ten years. When my youngest son became two months aged, we flew to Hawaii to employ the last month of my maternity leave on the island, and I took him to this seaside with me. The predominant time we went to Glass Seaside, the sand became lined in puny, vulnerable down glass pieces; all I aloof at the time became a minute jar of sand. Since we trek to Kauai one one more 365 days, I in actual fact admire made many trips to the seaside with my son. As soon as, after a colorful storm, we made the trek back and forth from our rental apartment and chanced on quarter-sized, jewelry-quality pieces of glass one day of the shore; I had below no circumstances viewed the seaside lined in that many colorful pieces of glass. One other time I went, I saw locals snorkeling for glass, and they had a colorful plastic salvage tubby of improbable pieces, however the seaside had been picked orderly of larger pieces by the purpose we showed up. With this seaside, the tides in actual fact attain alternate the landscape of the seaside with each tide cycle. Customarily there is glass and now and as soon as more there isn’t, it’s a ways a risk.
Glass Seaside is located in Port Allen, on the south side of Kauai. Head south on the Kaumualii Motorway. Take hold of a left on Waialo Road real earlier than McDonald’s, then take one other left on Aka Ula Aspect dual carriageway. You’ll be in a in actual fact industrial build apart of residing and likewise you’ll mediate you’re in the inappropriate build apart of residing…help going past the gigantic tanks on the simply, and the dual carriageway will veer simply. If it has been rainy and stormy, the dual carriageway from this point could be washed out and very rutted (watch out with your rental automobiles!). Park at the slay of the dual carriageway where you look the seaside. Warning: I below no circumstances trek to this seaside alone because of the the industrial, somewhat secluded build apart of residing.
A tiny farther down the Kaumualii Hawaii, you’ll look indicators for the Salt Pond Park, which is a public seaside with companies and mountainous snorkeling. My son took his snorkel gear out and chanced on a handful of larger, less-vulnerable glass, which he proudly brought help to me.
Transferring to the east of the island, I got misplaced as soon as and stumbled upon the Hanamaulu Seaside Park on the help side of the airport. At this seaside, I chanced on some coral and older, however mostly unfrosted glass and pottery pieces.
One other seaside I went to on the south shore didn’t admire any glass, however after the storms, I chanced on four colorful urchins that had been entirely gorgeous. As we walked down this identical undisclosed seaside just a few years later, I saw one thing reflecting the solar. When I got closer, I saw a glint of gold and after a tiny bit digging in the compacted sand, I uncovered a wedding band. I translated the engraving with my restricted Spanish and with a tiny bit online research, I became in a local to salvage the couple that misplaced this band. The couple lives in Santiago, Chile, and the husband misplaced his wedding band whereas swimming on their honeymoon a 365 days earlier. The wedding band has since been reunited with its owner!
Sidney, British Columbia, Canada
About a years previously, my son had a hockey event in British Columbia. Per hockey coach guidelines, he had to be at the rink an hour earlier than the first game of the day for warmups. I appeared at a scheme of the nearby build apart of residing and saw that there became a tiny bit seaside and boardwalk in downtown Sidney, so I grabbed a cup of coffee and made up our minds that I’d originate my morning with a stroll shut to the ocean at sunrise. The sunrise became breathtaking and as soon as the solar became up, I became in a local to factor in glass on this tiny patch of sand to the simply of the pier, which I later learned became called Glass Seaside by locals. I climbed down the bank and saw mostly browns and whites of diversified frost phases. I didn’t take bigger than just a few pieces from this seaside as I’ve began to be somewhat selective with what I take dwelling, however I enjoyed shopping for treasures rather than sitting in a cold rink for one more hour.
To refer to with, head into downtown Sidney on Beacon Avenue. There’s a roundabout with just a few parking spots (which could be in total tubby later in the day). The seaside is to the simply of the pier. You’ll look a pier to the left, a boardwalk pier and a scuba diver statue to the simply; the seaside is nestled in the middle.
Cornwall, England
In 2018, my sister and I went to hike the Cornwall Bound from St. Ives to Penzance. I greatest agreed to hike 7-11 miles a day if she allowed me to beachcomb alongside the manner, which intended that our mountaineering originate instances had been based entirely on the tides so as that we could also hit particular beaches shut to low tide. Whereas quite shut collectively, the beaches in the nooks and crannies of the coastal dawdle offered vastly different treasures. One seaside became stuffed with nothing however cuttlebone which became weird, and others had been real pristine sand.
We approached Sennen Cove from the north and hit Gwynver Seaside first. There, I chanced on just a few pieces of glass and a few stress-free shells. On the slay of that seaside, we had to climb help up and over the rocks to hit Sennen Seaside. The seaside had just a few more stress-free snail shells, scallop shells and limpets, alongside with just a few pieces of glass. But whenever you happen to in actual fact are hunting for glass, stroll thru town to the harbor and salvage the boat launch—to the left of the launch, there is a rocky, mini jackpot of glass and pottery. (Whereas in this build apart of residing, take time to whisk the grounds at The Land’s Cease Resort—whenever you happen to’re mountaineering the coastal dawdle, it’s a ways a must-want to take this route).
Sennen Cove became the last build apart of residing with glass unless we got to Penzance the following day. We’d heard that St. Michael’s Mount shut to the city of Marazion became a must-look. tourist trek back and forth build apart of residing as successfully as a build apart of residing where we could also salvage sea glass. And I’m not going to lie here—by this point I became so over strolling in each single build apart of residing that I suggested we take a cab to St. Michael’s Mount. My sister agreed that our ft had had ample, and we didn’t want to add one other eight miles. The Mount is accessed by a causeway, or a stone footpath that is exposed greatest at low tide; at excessive tide, St. Michael’s Mount appears to be like to be as an island and is out there by boat. We hit the tides simply, and as soon as we arrived, we walked the causeway after which started our search glass. There became heaps of glass to the left of the causeway path, however the glass became minute and mostly a form of inexperienced, brown and white. In other words, I wouldn’t stroll ten miles to procure there as soon as more, however I’d finish by if I had been in the build apart of residing.
If heading to Penzance, we extremely recommend The Artist Verbalize for lodging, and invent certain to admire at The Cornish Barn restaurant in the resort. For assistance planning your strolling adventure on the Cornwall Bound, contact Come upon Walking at encounterwalkingholidays.com/cornwall-strolling-holidays-flit-path.
Glass Seaside, Fort Bragg, California
For my birthday just a few years previously, my husband got tickets to Napa for me and my buddy. We made up our minds that since we had been flying that a ways (from Alaska), we could as successfully lengthen our trek back and forth for just a few extra days so as that we could also trek to Fort Bragg in Mendocino County, California. Flying into San Francisco on an overnight flight, and after waiting an hour for misplaced baggage and getting a free rental automobile upgrade, we hit the Pacific Flit Motorway, heading north.
After doing a tiny bit research, we had deliberate to entire at Bowling Ball Seaside on the manner, however for the lifetime of us, we couldn’t salvage the seaside access parking. Aggravated that we couldn’t salvage the entrance to Bowling Ball Seaside, we ended up turning accurate into a build apart of residing called Moat Creek, and whereas we didn’t look the bowling ball-formed rocks, we chanced on heaps of pieces of abalone strewn alongside the seaside. After selecting up one of the well-known shimmery rainbow shell bits, we hit the dual carriageway. By the purpose we pulled into our lodging (The Redwood Flit Inn), it became after shadowy, so we shared a bottle of wine, some cheese, fruit, and meats we’d bought at a nearby market and prepared to hit the seaside the following morning.
The seaside is strolling distance from the inn, so we made up our minds that we’d dash to the seaside to procure a tiny bit exercise, which could allow us to scope out the seaside scenario. Leaving the inn early, shrouded in morning fog, we headed toward the seaside. As soon as at the seaside, we stopped to factor in around. Seeing heaps of smaller, tumbled pieces of glass, however colorful that taking glass from the seaside is miserable by some locals, we left empty handed. As a replacement, we made up our minds to continue our dash on the coastal path alongside the cliffs. Since the tide became going out, we made up our minds that we’d climb down the rocky cliffs to factor in what construct of treasures they held; we had been rewarded with heaps of successfully tumbled glass of all colours, and mussel shells galore. We had no agenda for this trek back and forth as antagonistic to to factor in a build apart of residing on Earth that I had greatest viewed in photos. As we had been leaving the cove to climb help to the coastal path, I chanced on a coronary heart-formed, tumbled white half of glass and I slipped that in my pocket as a memento.
Prince William Sound, Alaska
As an Alaskan, loads of my company admire boats and/or planes, which allow for us to salvage areas not reachable by automobile. Whereas exploring the Prince William Sound in Southcentral Alaska, we’ve chanced on pristine sunless sand beaches that rival anything Hawaii has to give, beaches stuffed with dried starfish and shells, and a secret Glass Seaside.
My buddy and I stumbled upon Glass Seaside sometime as soon as we made up our minds to salvage an island we’d viewed many instances from the boat. Her husband drove shut to the seaside and dropped us off, with orders to return after he had caught some fish or little for dinner, so we knew that we had just a few hours to factor in what the island held.
Our beginning point had thousands and thousands of shells littering the seaside, and as we rounded the bend, we saw that the seaside became stacked with sand dollars in all stages of their lifestyles cycle. Rounding the a ways corner or the island, we came to 2 rocky beaches that we felt had been ripe for glass…and our instinct didn’t fail us! This seaside has given us glass in all shades of inexperienced, teal and blue, some colorful egg shapes, and a inexperienced glass “gumdrop.”
Assorted mountainous locations in Prince William Sound to search sea glass treasures are areas aged to admire bustling cities, however which could be in actual fact abandoned. We’d heard of the kind of build apart of residing, and even heard that there aged to be a pub subsequent to the creek you need to look from the shore, and that you need to dig bottles from the creek bed. Armed with rakes and shovels, we chanced on the build apart of residing described to us, and we started digging in the creek bed. Now we admire chanced on a form of bottles dating from the mid 1800s to the 1920, which could be in actual fact proudly displayed in our window sills.
On the seaside where the creek discharges, we’ve chanced on damaged pottery, more bottles and jars, pieces of painted china dishes, perfume bottles, bottle stoppers, and even a marble! Whereas these treasures aren’t as frosted as we like for sea glass, they’re mute stress-free treasures to admire.
What’s for your beachcombing bucket list?
What’s on the tip of your list for a beachcombing trek back and forth? Here are the tip five sea glass and seashell seaside destinations from our reader poll.
Study about more of Megan’s beachcombing adventures
- Beachcombing Vacation build apart of residing: Prince William Sound, Alaska
- Bucket List: Nome, Alaska
- Bucket List: Seaham, England
Study more in regards to the explicit beaches and destinations for sea and seaside glass, seashells, fossils, rocks, and more seaside finds around the sector. Articles ›
This text appeared in the Beachcombing Magazine September/October 2020 topic.