Warning: If you don’t share my passion for patterns on rock faces, you might like to give this post a miss. I’m probably guilty of the imitative fallacy in attempting to create in my reader sighs of ecstasy to mirror my experience.
I’m back on the job with a series which has been languishing since December 2015. McKenzie is my 26th Eurobodalla beach: I’ve now visited about a third of the beaches my shire has to offer. The last time I visited McKenzie was probably 30 years ago, on December 25th, the inaugural “Just a vegemite sandwich for Christmas lunch, as long as there’s a surf” celebration.
This morning the sun is bright and the sky blue, with just a few clouds and initially a slight crispness to the air. It’s a small beach and exactly as I remember it, enclosed in a hug between two headlands. One end is sunny, the other in the shade. I opt for the shady end first, mainly because the other end is overlooked by a couple of houses. I crunch through deep shell grit, popping the occasional seaweed bubble. You could easily forget that the coast road swoops past just behind the sand as you become mesmerised by the patterns on the rocks. I find myself muttering ecstatically every time I turned my eyes in a different direction – not only rocks but rockpools, the blue sea, the green weed, and that Australian autumn air on my skin. I’m wary near the cliffs: the tumble of rocks is a warning.
The south end of the beach isn’t as dramatic in its patternings, maybe because sun bleaches colour, maybe because my appetite for visual wonders is sated. As I walk across the sand, I see remnants – the inside and the broken shell of a sea urchin; the curling track of a shell-creature; and an operculum, once doorway to the home of another shell-creature. By the time I leave the beach to buy a stove, pick up twin portraits from the framer, price carpet to protect against dog-grime, and acquire touch-up paint for the mini-scratches on the car’s paintwork, the sea and the beach are both occupied by pleasure seekers. Lads lie on their boards, waiting for a wave and children sit at the waterline collecting shells. I’m leaving the beach in good hands.
Lucid Gypsy said:
I can’t help wondering who designed those rock patterns, they make me very happy 🙂
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morselsandscraps said:
Artist: Mother Nature, in collaboration with Time and Ocean!
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Suzanne said:
There are some good photos here. I particularly like the set which starts with photo No. 8. They look a bit like aboriginal paintings yet have that quality of the scientific observer – looks like you are on your way to finding your groove as an eco-photographer. 🙂
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morselsandscraps said:
Those photos show the signature patterning. I struggled to describe – I tried runes, hieroglyphics and cuneiform, but none fitted. Aboriginal painting maybe. Or reminiscent of Lascaux. Thank you for eco-photography comment. At the moment an ecophotographer is desperately needed with power to change the Adani decision. Amok Island saw his murals as a possible contribution to conservation.
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Suzanne said:
Yes there is much to be concerned about in today’s world. Finding the place where you can operate is essential.
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Heyjude said:
I am so glad you have got back to your beaches. I can never have enough of them. I really must start exploring around me, while the tourists are not here.
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morselsandscraps said:
School holidays here, and there were maybe a dozen people on the beach. I’m glad to be back on my beaches – a very different one yesterday.
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Heyjude said:
Rather different to my part of the world. The Easter holidays are very busy down here, should be a respite though now until half term at the end of May.
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Paula said:
I can see you are still doing beach calligraphy 🙂 After visiting the Northern Hemisphere for such a long time makes you appreciate home more, doesn’t it? 🙂 I love your rocks and shells. I just wish I can see them in full resolution – beautiful, palpable images.
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morselsandscraps said:
Sorry Paula. I have to collage, otherwise each post would be endless. And yes, I am appreciating home so much, although it took me a while to disconnect and reconnect. Who could resist beach calligraphy – thank you for remembering.
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restlessjo said:
With you every step of the way, Meg. I love a headland hug. 🙂 🙂 Many of the close ups are not dissimilar to those I could find on my local beaches. We’re not so very far apart, are we? 🙂
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morselsandscraps said:
This beach was an absolute delight – even more so if it’s close to you and yours. I’m beginning to wonder about geology again.
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Tish Farrell said:
What a heavenly beach, Meg. A rock pool full of clouds. There’s a challenge for the shrimping net!
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morselsandscraps said:
A net full of cloud – that’s got my imagination going.
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Tish Farrell said:
🙂
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