Whether it’s a solitary or a communal pursuit, being stoned on the beach is one of the most sublime and satisfying joys of summer. I don’t recommend toking up on the beach itself: the wind, the wet, and the sand can make for a prolonged and fumbling firing-up process. Then there is the need for discretion if others of a different cultural bent are around. It’s easier, more comfortable, and more prudent to inhale on the way there. Recommended time: about five minutes before you hit your destination. That allows for the buzz to gently envelop your consciousness. By the time your feet hit the ground, you should be in a mild and pleasantly altered state of awareness. The experience is equal parts cerebral and sensuous. The interplay of the land (be it sand or stone), the air (still or windy), and the water (becalmed or full of surf) may provoke in some an inspissated state of self-examination; in others, an animated flight of free-association. I’ve known and enjoyed both. Over a hundred years ago, a New England graybeard recognized that there were varieties of religious experience, that spirituality is not by nature monolithic. So it is with pot. A long walk along the expansive beach in Ogunquit, Maine, at low tide is especially conducive to sustained thought — whether it’s about Kierkegaard, the Go-Go’s, or your love life. At Coast Guard Beach on the Cape Cod National Seashore, it’s best to go Therouvian, giving yourself over to nature: become one with the crashing surf, the soaring gulls, the scuttling sandpipers. (Watch out for those August undertows and riptides. They can seriously compromise mellowness.) It’s harder to generalize about Napatree Point in Watch Hill, Rhode Island: the view — with Block and Fishers Islands blurry on the horizon and the suggestion of Montauk Point to the southeast — suggest that a greater world lies beyond the cozy waters you may be floating in. Make of it what you will. Think big thoughts. Relax.

Coast Guard Beach is one and a half miles east on Nauset and Doane Roads (on road to beach from Salt Pond Visitor Center). Look for brown-and-white signs.

For Napatree, follow Route 1 South to 1A and follow that to Watch Hill. There are parking lots near the village where you can pay by the day. No street address is given, because cars aren’t allowed. This slender strip is a delicate half-mile refuge for a variety of birds and animals. Humans are allowed, but use the utmost care and consideration when treading the sands.

For Ogunquit, take Route 95 to Exit 3. Sign says last exit before the toll. A stoplight directly faces the chamber of commerce. Take a left onto Route 1. At center of Ogunquit, take a right onto Beach Street. Call (207) 646-2939.