Crosby

After a slow start we drove into town to re-stock at Morrisons. It was supposed to be four items: a basket will do. However, the basket, not to mention what it hung from, was near to struggling by the time we reached the checkout! The queues were looking a bit slow so we opted for self service checkout but we needed help from a human three times. It appeared that the person was not best pleased at having a chat session interrupted by mere customers!

Amongst the items we bought was a baguette for lunch. Back at the boat we filled the bread, sorted drinks and other items before setting out once more, out to the coast. Our aim was to start from the car park at North Crosby beach, walk along the dunes northwards until we reached Bergers Bench and then return.

It was a really sunny and a gentle breeze kept temperatures just right for both walking and sitting. The car park, which somehow we had thought was free, was only £1.90 for four hours, just about right.

Out to sea ships regularly crossed in front of the Burbo Bank Wind Farm. Later, as visibility improved even better, we could juts make out the three other wind farms further out to sea. Burbo, after an extension with larger turbines, now has 56 units.

The Coastal Path beckoned.

As we started off along the tarmac track we could see that much of the beach was covered in rubble - red brick mostly, we some pieces of stone and concrete thrown in for good measure. Later, as the track turned to a narrow path in the dunes, similar material poked its way to the surface.

The dunes still had a rich variety of different flowing plants, typical of a sandy coastal strip.

We continued towards Hightown until well after normal lunch time and found a bench.

At the time we were rather unsure whether this was actually our planned destination (GPS said we were quite close) but it provided an excellent place to sit, admire the view and, possibly to read, even look at emails (shh!!) More ships came and went and we even found out how to track them on various web sites.

We wondered if this indentation in the dunes, was the Bergers Bench.

We were quite amazed as we watched the tide, just how quickly the sandbanks emerged from the sea. By now, what had looked like random poles in the water, could be seen to mark a shallow channel for small boats.

After we arrived back at our start point we went just a little further to get down onto the beach. This part is very shallow and sandy so soon stretches right out, with some of the 100 Gormley statues - Another Place - way out. The ripples in the photo above: sand or water?

The statues have been in place here for around 12 years - they are older than that as they had temporary exhibition in several places in continental Europe - to think that the local authority initially want to reject them but now they are here permanently and attract probably more visitors than anything else in town.

Wind, sand, tide and all the  other elements take their toll and most are now well encrusted. One, however, seems to think it is time to retire!

Just inland there were brightly coloured kites flying - it seems that they are in aid of a Childrens Hospital.

And now back to the rubble. When we returned to the boat, Christine researched the history and was surprised how much there was to read. The main section of the beach was in danger of erosion even in the earlier part of the 20th century. During the war, the local authorities were faced with having to dispose of considerable quantities from old, mainly slum, properties that were badly damaged by bombs. The answer was to dump then on the top of the beach at Crosby where, ever since then, they have prevented the coastal path from being washed away. A decade or so later, similar problems were being encountered just to the north, nearer to Hightown, and so the same approach was used. Recycling can take many forms!