In the late 1880s, after settling in Florida, Heade painted a series of "reclining" magnolias. In these canvases, he contrasted the milky-white petals and glossy, green leaves of the indigenous "Magnolia grandiflora" to the rich texture and color of the velvet. One critic likened these sensuous works to "odalisques on a couch."

Unlike Heade's unusual choice of the marshes, this landscape is a more traditional one, but he portrayed the passing effects of a rain shower in a highly original fashion. He minimized the contrast of values and loosened his paint handling to suggest the transient effects of light and atmosphere, something he would explore in depth in his marsh scenes.

A masterful evocation of the coast shrouded in fog, this painting deviates from the typical horizontal emphasis of Heade's seascapes and marshes. The title, probably not original, is misleading, as the boat has been carefully beached and secured to a stake on the shore.