uncovered

17th January 2017, Embleton Bay, 8am

The spring tide has uncovered these WW2 remains.  A lot more structure is now visible than I've ever seen before. This is S end of Embleton Bay but it's now obviously a D shaped concrete sandbag construction exactly like the one at the summit of the concrete road between Dustan Steads and Dustan village.

The concrete sandbags used to construct the pillbox lie just where they were placed in 1940.

This anti-tank block has been uncovered too.  The graffiti is as fresh as the day "Thomas" wrote his name in the wet cement with his finger.

I wonder what it said?
I wonder who he was?

Here's a poem/song I wrote imagining Embleton Bay through the eyes of a young soldier posted here in 1940 when invasion was a real threat...

A Letter Home

It’s winter 1940, in a bunker’s where I stand

I’m staring out the window at a mile of golden sand

There’s a castle in the distance, it’s really rather grand

A castle in the distance, and a mile of golden sand

I’ve been posted here with Geordie, he’s a canny little man

He’s got a Ukulele and we’re going to start a band

And he says “one day we’ll make it big, and tour throughout the land”

From our castle in the distance, to the mile of golden sand

How’s my brother Tommy? He turns 18 next Jan.

They say this’ll all be over, at least that’s how it’s planned

But if he does get posted, where could be so grand

As a castle in the distance, and a mile of golden sand

On a Sunday (like today is) we’d be sat with you and Gran

Having meat and veg and roasties, and peaches from a can

Well Geordie’s made a cup of tea, it’s the finest in the land

From the castle in the distance, to the mile of golden sand

When all of this is over, we should come back with the ‘van

There’s some spots to put a wind-break up, wouldn’t it be grand

To be here in the summer, imagine me all tanned

With a castle in the distance, and a mile of golden sand

But they say look out the window, watch the sea beyond the strand

It’s a canny wee bit scary, the thought of fighting on the sand

But we talk about our folks back home and we know we’ll make a stand

For our castle in the distance, and our mile of golden sand

All the dramatic weather of the weekend has faded to grey...

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