What is a Wind Shadow?
A wind shadow is a place where the wind doesn’t reach. There is a calm, sheltered zone on the downwind side of all obstacles, a…
Tag: beach
A Plein-Air Artists’ Manual
One of the great joys of natural navigation is that it intrigues such a wide variety of people, something it shares with food. We can’t…
Plants Change Near the Coast
The closer to the coast we get, the tougher it is for plants. Once you can smell the sea only maritime species thrive in the…
Nature’s Clues and Signs – Thorney Island
I’m just back from a wonderful walk, exploring the unique landscapes of Thorney Island in southern England. Most of Thorney Island is a military base,…
Why The Coconut Palm Points to the Sea
The coconut palm tree (Cocos nucifera) does something that very few trees do. It leans into wind. Most trees have trunks that will bend away…
The Sorting by Sea Currents
Sea currents sort objects according to size, shape and weight. There is a documented case of left Wellington boots from a lost container washing up…
Pacific Island Navigation
There was a near perfect ripple map on a very windy West Wittering beach yesterday. The different wave patterns on each side of an island…
The Beach ‘Step’
The ‘step’ is the line where the beach gradient steepens and the water suddenly gets a bit deeper. It is marked by a line of…