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| Beach Buoy finished work at 3 pm. The Sun had made an appearance and it had tempted him to head for the beach before the darkness came to claim the day. A relatively short drive from the riverside factory where he works saw him arrive in Seaton Carew. As he drove to the house to collect Stubborn Dog he noticed a man pulling what looked like a long dog lead, tug of war style. Beach Buoy's first thought was that the man had somehow volunteered to take Stubborn Dog for a walk. It soon became clear that the man was pulling a cable through a manhole and his colleague was at the opening of another; it was'nt Stubborn Dog after all. Beach Buoy collected Stubborn Dog. There would be no beach boots today, after yesterday's soaking. They now had protected wreck status as they dried slowly in an embarrassed corner. They reached the Beach Car park at 3-35pm. Four Council Bin Wagons waited in line to head back to the depot. Beach Buoy and Stubborn Dog headed for the promenade and its beach access. Some sort of photo / video project was taking place on the promenade. A young lady was the centre of attention. |
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| They headed for the water's edge. As they did so, small spots of rain fell. It was hard to say where from. Yes of course it came from the sky but the sky above was clear. It must have been carried by the slight but chilly breeze from the North. |
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| They headed South. A Labrador Dog appeared from the dunes and made a bee-line for the Sea. It went running in, oblivious to Beach Buoy's and Stubborn Dog's nearby presence. In a flash it was out, wet and heading back to the dunes and presumably its unseen owner? The Sea rumbled, but for some reason the sound seemed much more distant than it looked. Once the waves had broke onto the beach, the sea would run in almost silently, like some overflowing bubble bath. As the walk progressed the water's edge and dune edge became one. Earlier tides had eroded much of the dune edge, leaving marram grass roots exposed and bare. Beach Buoy collected a couple of stones for his dune stack, half expecting the stack to have disappeared into the Sea. The stack was safe. He had chosen a spot a few metres back from the edge of the dune incase the sea should do just exactly what it had done. |
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| To the West; a sunset, industry and a decaying Oil Rig. Gulls passed overhead heading out to Sea. Goodness knows just where they were heading for the night? The Sea was so rough. |
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| They headed back as the tide attempted to claim the beach and the dunes once more. |
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| A ship sailed into the River Tees and the safety that it provided. |
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| The waves came and Beach Buoy went, Stubborn Dog followed reluctantly. The orange of the sunset turned to pink then to grey. A slither of a moon hung in the sky like a silver closed bracket...) Beach Buoy binned the beach clean. As the van door slid open the Church bells rang for 4-30pm; it was 4-27pm. Time to go. BEACH BUOY. |
