Crosby Beach and The Iron Men, January 2020

 The first sunset of 2020 down on Crosby beach with IronMenCrosby. Still air and a slight haziness bring a feeling of quiet calm to the scene.

The first day of January was fine and clear. Down on the beach during the afternoon there are more people than on a summer day, all taking advantage of the fine weather to take some fresh air and exercise on this New Year's Day. 
Late afternoon and the tide is on its way out and has left large pools of standing water on the beach which make good reflections for the pictures.

The sun sinks down through a hazy sky, with solid cloud on the horizon. The Welsh hills are invisible in the haze. A golden disc of the sun slowly disappears into the haze leaving a deep orange glow in the sky. The sea is quite calm again, the surface rippled with a light wind and seagulls are paddling in the pools stamping their legs in the hope of bringing worms to the surface.

Mid month and another evening at Crosby beach, totally different weather to that on New Year's Day It is windier than I thought it would be and the sea is quite rough. It was high tide around 14.30 so the sea is just on its way out, the waves still around the base of the nearest iron men, the noise and roar of the waves is quite loud. At the water’s edge gulls are lined up again doing their little dance with their feet in the hope of attracting worms. 

The air is very cold and the bluish light reflected off standing water on the beach makes it look colder still. There is some colour in the sun before it sinks into a cloud bank over the Welsh hills, the light of the sun glitters off the crests of the waves as they break near the beach and I manage a few good images before the light fades with little colour, the air being quite clear tonight.

Down on Crosby beach tonight as the sun sinks behind a cloud bank over the Welsh hills, the air filled with the roar and glitter of waves on the wind tossed sea. Gulls dance at the water’s edge, the air is chilled and the water a cold blue in the evening light.

The morning of the 23rd January dawned grey and cloudy but by ten the clouds had started to break and the anticyclonic gloom and mist of the last few days rolled away leaving a clear blue sky with just a mist on the distant horizon and sharp bright winter sunshine, a perfect day for some morning images down on Crosby beach.

The calm outgoing sea is a wash of pale flat blue under the dome of a cerulean sky. Sunlight dances and shimmers off the sea and is reflected off the standing water in the tide ripples on the wet sand, wavelets lap at the shoreline and the iron men cast long shadows across the sand. Out at sea the mist lingers around the base of the wind farm columns and obscures the distant Welsh hills. Along the tide line a scattering of mermaid’s purses amongst all the razor clam shells.

Monday 27th January

The afternoon has turned dark and threatening as clouds sweep in from the west. A slight gap in the clouds reflects the light of the setting sun and catches the waves at the water’s edge, adding a touch of sparkle to the otherwise grey scene at Crosby beach.

Next day the weather is very wintery, with sudden squally showers of hail and rain whipping through, driven by a strong, cold north westerly wind. Mid afternoon the clouds break allowing some sunshine and I head down to the beach just after four pm. It is noticeable how much later the sunset is than at the start of January, almost an hour of extra daylight at the end of the day already.

Down on the beach the NW wind is very cold, the tide is just on its way out and the beach is very wet with standing water formed by both rain and the outgoing tide, ruffled with fast moving catspaws across the surface. The sun is just about to descend behind a band of solid cloud over Wales, but I manage to capture some pictures before it disappears, rays of light beaming out across the sky and clouds and sparkling off the wet beach. A bank of cloud moves swiftly overhead its bottom edge highlighted in pinks and oranges by the setting sun. The air is full of the sound of the sea, the roar of the waves at the water’s edge and the calls of gulls as they glide by, riding the wind. A group of Knots rise and fall along the tide line.

Looking back as I leave the beach shortly after sunset I capture this line of gulls gliding in the wind as it rises over the dunes, effortless flight in the evening light.