We got back from a week at the beach yesterday. Here is a photoset of some of the pictures I took. I didn't actually take too many with the digital camera, since we experienced most of the picturesque places by kayak or canoe, and I didn't want to risk soaking it. I did take the holga out on our canoe expedition, so maybe some of those shots will come out well.

Highlights include: kayaking in the Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge, where we spotted terns, herons, egrets, oystercatchers, ibises, and more; canoeing in the Alligator River NWR, on a gorgeous water trail where we spotted a young black bear; Jockey's Ridge State Park; and of course swimming in the ocean. On a day when the water was exceptionally warm and full of jellyfish (including one more than 10" in diameter), we saw a huge waterspout not far down the beach--it was tall and white over the water, then it hit the beach and sent a cloud of sand way up in the air. Everyone just stood on the beach (or floated in the water) and watched it, once it dissipated and the lightning started we all figured it was probably not safe to stay out there.

The outer banks are both lovely and depressing--bursting with the natural beauty of so many different ecosystems, but the horizons are lined with ugly monopoly-board houses, and the beaches littered with spent fireworks and soda cans. Being there, emotions see-saw quickly--admiring the full moon over the water, while trying to block out the very bright light needlessly shining from the top of a beachfront hotel, driving down the highway watching pelicans fly in formation, while passing store after store selling the same cheap beach junk (ugly tshirts, trinkets, towels, and rickety beach chairs, seriously, how many of these stores do we need?). I think it's possible for people to enjoy the beach without destroying it, unfortunately, there aren't very many beaches in NC today that even have natural sand and dunes (most of them bulldoze the sand in from other places, and artificially form dunes to protect beachfront houses). Thank goodness for the national parks and other refuges and sanctuaries, and for the good people who work to preserve them.