Читать книгу Hiking & Backpacking Big Sur. Your complete guide to the trails of Big Sur, Ventana Wilderness, and Silver Peak Wilderness онлайн

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WHERE RIVER & SEA COLLIDE

The opposing forces of the Carmel River and Pacific Ocean form a unique ecosystem at Carmel River State Beach. Longshore currents deposit sand on the beach at the river mouth, forming sandbars that periodically dam its flow. The water that accumulates in the lagoon and surrounding marsh is a mix of freshwater and saltwater, creating a rare habitat. In the 160 miles between San Francisco Bay and Morro Bay, coastal salt marshes occur only at Elkhorn Slough, Pescadero Marsh, and here. It takes heavy rainfall to flood the river and once again break through the sandbars, allowing the lagoon to drain into the ocean.

Among Monterey County’s prime birding locations, the lagoon and marsh shelter a wide variety of waterfowl and songbirds during their migration along the Pacific Flyway. Pelicans, seagulls, and several duck species bathe in the brackish water, while great blue herons, egrets, sandpipers, and plovers work the shallows for food. Red-winged blackbirds enact courtship displays atop tule reeds at the edge of the marsh. In the evenings, cliff swallows swoop down from nests south of the lagoon to nab flying insects. Also watch for the occasional northern harrier, black-shouldered kite, or red-tailed hawk, which soar over the wetlands in search of prey.