One of the things I find appealing about the Dune Ridge to Beverly Dr. trail system is that you get to experience two very different ecosystems in a single 3 mile loop. The Dune Ridge and Beverly Shores trails traverse mature dunes, supporting a well established forrest habitat before descending into the marsh itself.

In this post I show some high lights from my recent hike along the Ridge part of this fascinating loop.

Remnants of the recently lush forrest underbrush are still standing strong.

The trail has plenty of steep climbs in soft sand, and at the higher elevations you get spectacular views down into a portion of the Great Marsh. With the leafy foliage gone you see parts of the marsh which are nearly impossible to spot in the spring and summer.

Mosses and Lichens are easy to overlook, but viewed close up they are a source of an incredible variety of interesting shapes and textures.

Bursting Milkweed pods are still easy to spot. But their textures and colors are quite different from early autumn.

So many plants disperse their seeds on the winds, bundles of delicate fibers acting almost like sails. This time of year you can easily observe the underlying structures that hold the seeds in close until it is time to release them.

The marsh half of the loop is covered in the post Ridge to Road – II.