Getting to the Shore

This episode provides some hope for the reader as the entire duration of the book is spent trying to get closer and reach the coast, however when they eventually get there it is a bit of a let down as there is no exciting climax when they arrive, much like the rest of the book. I think McCarthy is doing this to portray how bleak their situation is that not even the sign of the coast can give them hope and motivation anymore. The fact that there is no stopping on their journey and even after they have got to the coast could present the road as a metaphor for their journey through life, because it never stops and can be unexpected and surprising. 
The episode gives us a sense of time passing without their actions being documented, with the use of shorter paragraphs and phrases such as 'long days' and 'two days later', showing a long time has passed in a few pages. It is unnecessary to document what they are doing during this time as everything they do is repetitive and monotonous so the only parts described are those of importance.
The man and the boy barely speak during this time, but the man apologises for the disappointment on the boys face when he sees the ocean is not blue, showing he feels responsible for what he thinks he should have seen and blames himself for everything where the boy is involved, feeling guilty for all the strain their relationship has held.
The way McCarthy describes their actions is list-like and very precise, he also continues to not use punctuation and other grammatical structures. By doing this, the text is stripped of anything it has, very much like how the boy and the man are alone without any of their possessions and makes it simpler to read.
This is a key episode because the novel is centred around getting to the coast and this is the event where they actually get there. Everything they have been working towards is now within their reach.