The barren sandspit to your right was once the site of the Coast Guard Beach bathhouse and its asphalt parking area. Today they are gone, erased by the forces of the sea.
In February 1978, the same winter storm that brought a famous blizzard to Boston caused unusually high tides and waves here. Gradually the water level rose until all you could see were the tops of the dunes. In just 48 hours, the ebb and flow of the tides carried away the buildings, parking lot, and dunes.
We are reminded that the ocean landscapes are transitory. Under the influence of water and wind, the sands continually move. Spits form and elongate, inlets break through the spits, dunes grow and migrate inland, and the contours of the beach change slightly with each breaking wave.
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