Beach Time in Tenacatita

January 15, 2025 

After my parents left we started to explore more of the area that we are anchored close to. 

Beach time has become an almost daily component to our lives.

Now that we have had more time to explore all of the beaches, and to dig holes and build sand castles on each one, we have learned that the black sand that we had assumed was part of all of Tenacatita, is actually localized to only one of the three beaches.  It is the largest of the three beaches and the black sand is quite obvious on the surface in the dry upper part of the beach.  Lower down it is not obvious until one starts to dig, when it can be found at varying depths, but usually within the top six inches. Over on the other two beaches we have dug quite deep down and have never found black sand. 

We now spend most of our beach time on the smaller, more western beaches.  The beach that is right beside the lagoon entrance is a perfect child-friendly beach. It is one hundred percent sand with a long shallow drop off and quite small break.  The other section has a larger break, which is great for learning to surf.  

A wall of rock divides these two beaches, and along these rocks the land hermit crabs seem to live, and it is amazing just how many crabs there are.  

At first it is easy not to see them, as they are all quite small and they quickly tuck into their shells when approached, and one could easily walk by them without ever seeing their movements.  But if you stop and watch, they very quickly start to move about again and suddenly there is movement everywhere.  The most amazing thing about them is that they are expert rock climbers.  It is amazing to stand and watch them scampering up the rocks, finding the little crevasses, and tackling the overhangs.  They are surprisingly agile and when they do fall, they simply tuck in and roll. 

We have started to take our boogie board into shore and ride the break that is at the entrance to the lagoon.  At certain tide levels it provides quite a long break that people enjoy on both boogie boards or surf boards. 

Jason used one of our inflatable kayaks to surf the waves and actually got quite good at surfing and avoiding being flipped, although the kayaks are challenging to keep tracking straight at that kind of speed.  It was good fun. 

Falcon had fun riding in the kayak and on the boogie board with Dad, and he also loves to ride the small waves with his own little boogie board.