It’s June and things are warming up around here. Last weekend we saddled up for a bike ride to the beach, where we enjoyed a picnic lunch and some treasure hunting before heading home.
There are seemingly endless ways to spend an afternoon at the beach. Here are a few of our current favorite ways to explore nature while we’re there – no tools required:
Do some wildlife watching.
There are all kinds of sea birds to check out. And much smaller critters along the shore. It’s fun to hunt for animal tracks in the sand, too. Take pictures so you can look up your discoveries in a field guide later.
Go treasure hunting.
The beach is rich with all kinds of natural treasures. We love searching for shells, feathers, sea glass and rocks. Sometimes we arrange our collection in the sand and leave it behind for someone else to stumble upon later.
Play with seaweed.
The Big Explorer loves using strands of seaweed as a broom, “sweeping” the sand along the shore.
Make drip castles.
Sometimes it’s fun to try building something other than the traditional sand castle. I especially love making drip castles because it’s messy.
Explore tide pools.
The kids have requested that we go tide pooling at least once this summer. No two adventures are ever the same and we’re always discovering something new. Just remember to do your exploring at low tide.
Need a few more ideas? Barb from the Handbook of Nature Study has put together a great beach activities board on Pinterest.
What’s your favorite way to explore nature at the beach?
Can't believe it took us so long to learn about drip castles! Our time on the beach is about to grow exponentially now that the 4 year old is so fascinated by treasure hunting.
I used to love making drip castles. Fun! Looks like a great day at the beach (are there any other kinds?)
We certainly enjoy it – and it sounds like you do, too. 🙂
You can never go wrong when you bring your child to the beach. Kids love the beach! Lots of fun and simple activities awaits at the beach.
I know what a special place the beach is for you & your family, Dawn! So glad to hear you shared the picture of our sand crab find with the kids. 🙂
So many great things to do at the beach. <br />I love that you posted that picture of a sand crab. I was just trying to explain those to the kids this week. We don't have them here but I would catch them by the bucketful when I was a kid in Cali. I showed them your pic. So fun!<br />And drip castles… got to love drip castles.