Dr. Beach's Top 10 beaches for 2008

Travel

Dr. Beach, a Florida International University professor whose real name is Stephen P. Leatherman, picked Caladesi Island State Park as the best beach in the 2008 ranking for his annual list. Caladesi beat out beaches in Hawaii, along the Eastern Seaboard and in California for this year's honor.

No. 1: Caladesi Island State Park, a barrier island along the Gulf of Mexico on Florida's West Coast in Dunedin, Fla., is an island getaway, according to Dr. Beach. Most beachgoers reach the island by a 15-minute, $9 ferry ride.

This is Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, shown in 1998, along the Outer Banks, near Buxton, N.C. The beach has been named a runner up in Dr. Beach's annual list. (The lighthouse was recently moved further inland to save it from the encroaching Atlantic.)

A couple watches the water at Main Beach in East Hampton, N.Y. The beaches here are long, golden and clean.

Sarasota's Siesta Key beach is known for having the whitest and finest sand in the world.

Hanalei Beach, Hawaii. Hanalei is located along the banks of the Hanalei River on the north central coast of Kauai. Hanalei Bay is a beautiful crescent shaped beach that is carved into the base of a steep cliff on one side and it narrows into a rocky point on the other side.

The Lightkeepers Cottage and Cape Florida Lighthouse at Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park.

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No. 1: Caladesi Island State Park, a barrier island along the Gulf of Mexico on Florida's West Coast in Dunedin, Fla., is an island getaway, according to Dr. Beach. Most beachgoers reach the island by a 15-minute, $9 ferry ride.

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