Watching car wheels spinning on the steep and icy exit to the car park gave us pause for thought regarding our prospects later. We had woken to a superb but very icy morning and had just parked in the Wits End car park at Sandsend just north of Whitby.
Whilst the tide was far enough out, not wanting to be caught out like yesterday, we chose beachcombing first and a walk along the old railway line later. Again the dominating sound was the roar of the huge waves as they crashed onto the beach. The air was full of spray making for misty views along the beach to Whitby and its abbey set high above the town on the east cliff . We wandered down to the tide edge, the smooth glistening sand providing superb reflections for photography. We always enjoy exploring Sandsend beach as it is a wonderful source of pebbles and treasured sea glass as well as having an excellent wave cut platform under the cliffs. On here we regularly find amonites set into it often coated with iron pyrites or fools gold. On the cliffs today we were delighted to spot the irridescent blue and rich amber colours of a kingfisher which delighted us even more by plunging into a rock pool and catching a fish which it quickly dispatched and swallowed whole. We followed it along the cliffs for 100m or so, enjoying the spectacle of several more fishing attempts. At one point I attached a short telephoto lens to the camera and enjoyed photographing the huge waves racing across the bay, their crests streaming out behind them, blown by the northerly wind.
Leaving the beach in plenty of time today, we climbed up to the old railway line. The plan was to find a pleasant spot for lunch but the weather had different ideas. Clouds had blown in and before long we were walking in flurries of snow. Walking as far as the blocked off tunnel we were able to shelter under its overhang for lunch. Making our way back, the sky along the horizon began to clear, raising our hopes of photographing the full moon rising above the harbour.
By the time we returned to the car park it had had thawed somewhat facilitating our exit. Back in Whitby, we retired to Bothams for tea and stickies while we waited for the appointed hour. Annoyingly thick cloud had blown in and, instead of clear skies for moonrise, we had heavy, wintry rain. There was nothing for it but to retreat to the hostel
Venturing out later to dine at The Marine, the sky had cleared and there were excellent views of the full moon over the abbey with Mars adjacent to it. This week is the closest approach of the planet to Earth. December's full moon is known as The Cold Moon, a Mohawk name that conveys the frigid conditions at this time of year, when cold weather begins to exert its grip.
The Cold Moon, Mars above and to the right.
