Brancaster Staithe

 

 

‘Staithe’ is an Old English word for  wharf  –  a quay used for the loading and unloading of cargo.  Initially Brancaster was a busy  fishing harbour specialising in shellfish, but in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries it became noted particularly for  in the shipping of coal, grain and malt  (it was reputed to have the largest malthouse in Europe).  With the demise of sailing vessels and the development of other forms of transport, Brancaster fell into decline.  There is now only a small fishing fraternity  and the harbour is  devoted primarily to  a large number of pleasure craft

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Wells-next-the-Sea harbour

 

 

 

Wells-next-the-Sea was once a busy port, especially in the nineteenth century.  It  boasted a fishing fleet that fished off Iceland,  imported coal for the industrial area of the north east and was a major supplier of malt to Dutch and London breweries.  A reminder of the past  is still evident in the granary, pictured in the first photograph.  The granary ceased production in 1990 and has since been converted into luxury flats. Wells is now primarily known as a seaside resort, but it still has a small fishing industry specialising in whelks, crab and lobster.

Marshes at low tide

Brancaster erosion

 

The beach at Brancaster has many ‘moods’.  At low tide all appears calm and peaceful but the speed with which the rising tide approaches can be extremely dangerous, leaving happy paddlers cut off from safety.  In stormy weather the boisterous and sometimes violent North Sea attacks the vulnerable stretches of the coast and there is a constant battle between land v sea.

 

Beach in October

 

Beach in October

Where land and level acres of sea merge
seamlessly, waves hypnotically lapping,
endlessly oozing over ridged flats
scattered with brittle quills,bleached shard,
skeleton shells, oceanic detritus.

Drifting awareness of keening gulls,salt on the tongue.
As life blurs into the vast movement
of an ever widening scene, this brief,
vital moment in time imprints
deeply into the palimpsest of the mind.

Margaret Gill

Thornham Salt Marshes

Thornham Harbour, North Norfolk (see  https://lagill6.wordpress.com/2017/10/21/thornham-harbour/ ‎) is located on a narrow strip of coast designated both as an Area of Natural Beauty and as a Site of Special Scientific Interest.   The reed beds, salt marshes, freshwater lagoons and beaches provide important habitats for wildlife.

Click on an image to enlarge

 

 

 

 

 

Thornham Harbour

Once an active small harbour, Thornham Harbour, North Norfolk, has become a mooring at the end of a muddy creek.  From the harbour to the sea is a 20 minute walk across salt marshes at low tide, although with spring tides, there is extensive flooding.  In addition to its legitimate trading purposes, in the eighteenth century the harbour became notorious for its smuggling activities  –  wool, tea, tobacco, alcohol etc.

 

 

(See also   https://lagill6.wordpress.com/2017/10/23/left-high-and-dry/ ‎)