“To stand at the edge of the sea, to sense the ebb and flow of the tides, to feel the breath of a mist moving over a great salt marsh, to watch the flight of shore birds that have swept up and down the surf lines of the continents for untold thousands of years, to see the running of the old eels and the young shad to the sea, is to have knowledge of things that are as nearly eternal as any earthly life can be.” ― Rachel Carson

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colonyternsflightRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — common tern colony

Race Point Beach in Provincetown, MA, on the tip of Cape Cod, is very much at the edge of the sea. The day I visited, last September, a hurricane was coming up the coast and expected to cause big weather the next day;

shorebirds and planes alike were scurrying, the planes taking off one after another from the small Provincetown airport —

— the birds, many in flocks of hundreds and thousands, flapping just offshore or making a feast of the many small dead fish washed up on the beach …

shearwaterscloseoceanshorebirdsRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — Thousands of shearwaters — a bird I’d never seen before — flew south in a super-flock that persisted for a half hour

shearwatersonecloseoceanshorebirdsRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — shearwaters

: terns

There were birds that most likely wouldn’t have been here had not the storm been brewing, like ruddy turnstones:

ruddyturnstonebirdbRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — ruddy turnstone

ruddyturnstonebirdfrontRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — ruddy turnstone

ruddyturnstonebirdwithsanderlingsRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — ruddy turnstone with sanderlings

Not sure whether this is a juvenile sanderling or juvenile red knot — the folks at Birds of the Eastern US thought perhaps a red knot:

juvenileredknotmaybehorebirdRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — juvenile sanderling or possibly juvenile red knot

These are the poor fish washed up by the thousands:

Just saw scads of shorebirds here! So many sanderlings, gobs of gulls, tons of terns, plenty of plovers —

colonyblackwhitesanderlingsmovementRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — a bunch of black and white sanderlings

blackwhitesanderlingsRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — sanderlings in loose formation

lineblackwhitesanderlingsRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — even more sanderlings in a row

largegullsmallsanderlingsfunnyRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — the gull is big, the sanderlings are small

gullsoneheadupsidedownRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — gulls … one with its head upside down

beautifulgullRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — quite a beautiful gull (maybe a juvenile great-backed)

threecommonternsbirdsalmostadultandjuvenilesbRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — three common terns of different ages

youngsemipalmatedploverploverbirdbbeachRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — semipalmated plover

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A few other beach sights:

yellowpurplecrabclawRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — crab claw

motorhomesgullsRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — motor homes on the beach with gulls — you can get a Self-Contained Vehicle permit to park here

beachshorelineRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — shoreline

beachgrassesRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — walking out to the beach

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The visitors’ center is simple, and remote.

visitorscenterRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — Race Point Visitors’ Center

dressingroomdilapidatedfenceRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — dressing rooms at Race Point

mapRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — where Race Point is on Cape Cod

trailmapsignsRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — You can head to the beaches or walk or bike on the Beech Forest Trail

bikesafetysignsRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — But if you decide to bike, bike slow and safe!

Part of the Beech Forest Trail, which we didn’t have much time to explore this trip:

Even in mid-September, there were flowers, fruits, and fungi to see:

cranberryfruitleavesRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — cranberry foliage and berries

CytisusScopariusScotchBroompodsbRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — Scotch broom (*Cysisus scoparius*) with pods

sumacRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — sumac foliage and fruits (maybe *Rhus glabra)*

bearberryredberriesreindeerlichenRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — bearberry (*Arctostaphylos* *uva-ursi)* with berries and reindeer lichen (*Cladonia* sp.)

goldenrodRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — goldenrod (*Solidago* sp.)

beachplumfruithangingRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — beach plum (*Prunus maritima*) hanging

yellowamanitamushroomRacePointBeachProvincetownCapeCod18Sept2017 — yellow amanita mushroom

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But the shorebirds were really the show today, as the storm began to blow in. That’s one of the reasons beaches are endlessly fascinating: every day is noticeably different from another. That’s true, of course, anywhere, but it’s so obvious on the shore, on the edge.

I wonder where all those birds are now.

Race Point: The Surf Lines of the Continents

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