There’s nothing like a trip to the beach. Even if it’s too cold or stormy to go for a swim, there’s likely to be something interesting that’s washed ashore. Let’s take a virtual trip to the seaside and check out these weird finds.
“A picnic table that’s been swallowed by the beach and snow along Lake Superior.”
The beaches all around the largest, and nothernmost, Great Lake can get some harsh weather in winter. Oftentimes, the beach is a few feet higher than in the summer just because of the snow.
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“Driftwood Shelter on Beach, Vancouver Island.”
Some enterprising soul has piled up all of the driftwood at this beach and turned it into what appears to be a serviceable shelter.
“This mussel-covered shoe washed up on the beach.”
I can’t explain the natural forces at play that would cause a bunch of mussels to call this shoe home. All I know is that it’s pretty cool.
“What kind of explosive is this? Found washed up on a beach.”
Before you ask, don’t worry — this was safely handled by a bomb squad. It’s probably a German grenade from World War 1.
“Ice formations at the beach.”
The infinite possibilities of temperature, water, and wind can do some fascinating stuff to the ice that accumulates on beaches in the winter.
“Found on Oregon coast beach.”
No one quite knows what this is, but it could be a pike pole that’s been modified with squishy balls at each end.
“This fossil I found by the beach.”
It’s wild to think that the world is so littered with fossils — signs of life from a far-distant past — that you can literally find them almost anywhere.
“Found on Georgia, USA beach at low tide.”
This is known as sea pork, which is an organism related to corals. These invertebrates have been populating the world’s oceans for hundreds of millions of years.
“The way these eroding red cliffs stained the beach after heavy rainfall.”
It’s wild how oxidization, or rust, is such a potent dye. Once it leaches out, it has a way of staining everything around it.
“At the beach in southern California.”
It looks like a whole new species, but it’s actually just a cluster of barnacles with a feather randomly attached.
“Some beach sand in Ecuador is magnetic.”
Just like iron filings, portions of this Ecuadorian beach can be picked up with a strong magnet.
“This deteriorating combination lock I found at the beach.”
This would serve as effective advertising for the manufacturer of this lock, if only we knew who made it.
“This bridge to nowhere.”
It’s hard to ascertain a purpose for this weird bridge at high tide. But at low tide, it provides a route over a small stream.
“Chunk of iron found on a Lake Michigan beach.”
This appears to be a part from an old cast iron stove. Maybe it even washed ashore from an old shipwreck.
“A piano washed up on a beach near Santa Cruz.”
Santa Cruz is now known for two things: surfing and, uh, pianos washing up on the beach. Just look — even the strings are still intact.
“Found this battery at the beach that collected minerals and debris at the ends.”
It’s wild that something as corrosive as a battery can become teeming with life under certain oceanic circumstances.
“What is this thing I found on a beach in northeast England?”
The person who found this was hoping it was a valuable chunk of ambergris, but it’s more likely fossilized coral.
“These two pieces of wood attached by a nylon strap.”
This is a set of (likely homemade) wheel chocks. They help keep your trailer in place while you’re unloading your boat.
“Weird squishy glob. Found on a beach in Islamorada.”
This is a reminder that it might not be a good idea to pick up random beach detritus. It’s a bladder from a Portuguese man o’ war jellyfish. This person is lucky it isn’t the jellyfish itself.
“Metal sphere with [Russian] writing found on a Bahama beach.”
This may have actually been used in the Russian space program, as it appears to be a tank than contained high pressure nitrogen for use in a rocket motor.
