We take all interested guests on a razor clam dig, once a week---always a much lauded experience---but it's fair to say that the play-dough-like consistancy of Alaskan beach mud calls out loudly for tactile engagement of other kinds. Here, Kaillee Skjold and Josiah Martin take a brief moment off from clam digging to construct a sand castle---with a moat and the decorative value of snail shells thrown in for good measure.
Last year, my kids and I found three baby sharks caught in a tide pool, waiting for the cold waters of Cook Inlet to come back and give them a chance at life. My children stood guard as the sea gulls circled hopefully above, the salty sweet smell of kelp filling the air around us.
There is no such thing as a "casual" walk on the beach, here by the waters of Cook Inlet, no matter which beach you visit. It is a richly meditative experience, each and every time, and certainly one not to be missed.
