The Tide Is High

I went to Heybridge aiming to be there at high tide. Last time I was there it was low tide and the waders that I wanted to photograph were puddling in the mud at the water's edge, too far away for decent shots.

Silly me. Hardly a wader in sight, the mud was completely covered by water. A couple of birders I met told me that the water birds go to feed in the fields, or roost, when the tide is in. I had quite a long chat with them, they were looking for a shrike that had been seen. Not a red-backed butcher bird that I have heard of but a great grey. We then watched a trio of Apache helicopters fly over and had an interesting aviation discussion.

My pic is a view of The Hythe at Maldon with St. Mary's Church and sailing barges moored on the quay. In the past, Thames Barges would leave the Hythe carrying foodstuffs and bedding straw to London returning with cargoes of horse manure for the district farms. Fishing vessels left their moorings in search of eels, plaice, sole, whelks and winkles in the estuary.

I stayed until the birds started to return but by then the light was poor. It was lovely being alone on the sea wall, seeing the sky full of Brent geese and listening to them calling gently.