Sea Glass and Driftwood

Since there has been so much rain in Southern California this year, the beaches are experiencing much more runoff from the hills and water channels than usual. Lucky for me, it is creating or uncovering a lot of sea-tumbled glass and driftwood. This past weekend, in between storms, there was a clear day when we went for a beach walk along with Daisy Doodle. Did I mention that Daisy's happy place is the beach, where she can run free, play with other dogs, and chase the seagulls? Well, that's another story...

The weather was beautiful, and we walked (slowly because we were finding so much glass and driftwood) about 4 miles up and down the beach. If you've never hunted for sea glass, believe me, it is a hunt. I've met more people on the beach that tell me they NEVER see sea glass. Your eyes must adjust because you are scouring through piles of rocks, shells, sand, and other discards from the ocean. The best place to find it is in piles of gravel or, as my daughter calls it, "seashore rubble." Daisy is standing in the middle of it in the picture above. I have yet to train her to find glass, but she does love to keep us company when we are searching. Another issue with finding glass is the lighting; it makes a big difference in spotting it. If it is a cloudy overcast day, it is much harder to find, and as my husband always reminds me, there has to be glass there to see it 😂😂

Here are some pictures of the type of gravel piles to look for when you are walking the beach:

Once I zoom in, it is easier to see the glass, especially if it is a bright color like the turquoise chunk below.

When you are walking the beach hunting for sea glass, you really need to have your eyes focused on finding it. In this first picture, I've circled it to give you an idea of how hard it is to see sometimes. Look through the photos below and see if you can spot the sea glass, sometimes, it is much easier than others, and most of the images below contain more than one piece.

The two pieces in my hand were harder to see on the ground because they blended in so well with the gravel. Both pieces had been tumbling around for a while; as you can see, there are no sharp edges, and both are pretty big, thick chunks of glass. This is an example of the glass I love to use in the suncatchers I make. 

Here is an example of the driftwood that is piled up due to the storms we have had.  There is so much of it and I just want to bring it all home.  

There is something else I love to look for and collect while walking the beach - Heart Shaped rocks. I have quite a collection of them. Can you spot the one in the picture below?

I've found lots of small ones and some big ones, too; the largest is about 20 lbs. My daughter carried it all the way back to the truck during one trip; I would never have been able to get it back without her. My husband has hauled several large ones back to the car too. I'll share how I use them in the garden in another post soon.

Until then, happy hunting!

Lisa

#Sea Glass #Driftwood  #SeashoreRubble  #HeartShapedRocks  #BeachLife #SouthernCaliforniaBeach  #Beach  #Sea  #PacificOcean  #DoodleDogs  #SweetPeasandSteel #SunCatchers