Yes it is the storm at Whitby. I do get homesick for Whitby, though I know it is not my hometown. But walking down to the quay early morning and watching the waves break across the pier gives you an awareness of the sea. I still have that childish notion that the sea is going to tip over into space as our planet whizzes around.
I am frightened of the sea but it's beauty as a storm roars through needs to be contemplated with awe.
You will see the piers and then two fisherman walk along even as the waves tower above and think how foolish they are. I remember in another storm how idiotic people were wandering along the stone jetties, and some had even been trapped in a safety hole in the wall. Firemen and Lifeguard men had to come and rescue them and guide them to safety.
I have almost been drowned in the sea, as children we were allowed to go off ourselves down to the beach, and one embarrassing time I had a ring round my tummy in the water. When somehow the ring managed to find the equal weight of my body and I turned and turned and turned head over heels in the water. Luckily someone saw me and I was rescued.
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| Safe Harbour |
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Lobster pots  The constant force of the sea wears away the coastline, and this also happens in Whitby. the little small black mark, St Mary's church to the right of the Abbey ruins is perilously near to the cliffs and already the graves are beginning to tumble down. |
There aren't similar places in the world to English east coast villages, perched near slowly eroding cliffs. I think there must be many towns at risk now, along with monuments and churches.
ReplyDeleteI think it is mostly houses close to the cliff edges Andrew. It is scary to see roads coming to an abrupt ending. The Abbey was apparently quite a away from the sea but over the centuries the sea has crept nearer.
DeleteI can never understand why people feel inspired to go close to danger - something atavistic, maybe. Also, reporters are sent to cover disasters, disregarding all advice to stay away.
ReplyDeleteNonetheless, the footage at Whitby was most interesting, particularly of the roiling, boiling sea.
I am not sure what makes them do such a stupid thing, bravado, look at me in the face of danger?. The sea is magnificent it should be respected.
DeleteNothing like watching a really rough sea - and being astonished by it's power - as long as you are standing somewhere very safe!
ReplyDeleteI'm just reading a crime fiction book where burials are being moved from a churchyard about to topple into the sea, makes a good story.
Yes it makes a good story Sue, though a bit gruesome if you can see the bones sticking out of the cliff side.
DeleteYes, I was surprised to see people out there near the stormy sea. I would never chance it.
ReplyDeleteThose piers look so dangerous as well, especially the little crossing bridge Ellen.
ReplyDeletePeople are astonishingly foolish. I think it comes from a sense of invincibility. I think of the people savaged by buffalo at Yellowstone Park. Despite the warnings, every year some ignorant soul thinks that it won't happen to them. They try to pet them and....well, the videos are quite a watch. I always think of the danger that foolish people put their rescuers in.
ReplyDeleteYes it is stupidity. When the weather turned bad these last few days, the Welsh mountain Snowdon or Yr Wydaffa as it is now called, hundreds had to be taken off the mountain, as of course did Mount Everest have the same problem. People trying to do the 'impossible'
DeleteThat was a nice video. It really showed the power of the high seas. Still, I would not want to be standing out on that pier in that kind of weather -- I'd have been sitting at the bar in the Royal Hotel waiting for it all to be over!
ReplyDeletePeople are so silly. what if a gigantic wave came along they wouldn't stand a chance. Being bigger than nature is something humans are good at.
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