Coastal Wetlands Meet Tidal Bay

Winyah Bay, South Carolina

These places, where the fresh water meets the ocean, are the birthplace of so much life, and always a location of great shapes. This black marsh grass (Juncus effusus (Bullrushes)) is endemic to this area. I have not seen it in the wetlands south of Charleston.

The coastal plains to the north and south of Charleston, with their unique soils, winding slow rivers, and tidal ebb and flow, proved to be uniquely ideal for the growing of rice, a crop that thrives with successive immersions. This propensity changed the history of the USA, particularly with respect to racism.

Graphically, I love the fractal shapes at the top, surrounded by the band of bright green, surrounded by the dark, then meeting the ocean. I find the abstract shapes in these wetlands to be endlessly fascinating, and can spend (expensive) hours flying over them and looking for the next.