Cumulus clouds speckle the sky above, the deep blue of an afternoon’s sky in the full grasp of summer. Below a sky made from aqua and cotton wool sits Saundersfoot Harbour, Pembrokeshire. Trailer sailors and outboard motor-bound day boats bob idly in the low tide, moored and anchored offshore. The gentle enclosed waters offered by the harbour walls ripple serenely with the placid ebb current. The Harbour Team Master and workers of the team mill around the births, clip boards in hand as they inspect the infrastructure.

A short walk down the slipway brings you to a deep yellow-grey blanket of sand, the waters of Bae Caerfyrddin meeting in a welcoming embrace. Time and tide wait for no man, yet in the picturesque backdrop of the harbour, she seems to slow. The noise of holidaymakers and shoppers interlaced with local guides and residents is subdued by the enclosed walls of the harbour, the tourist trap village overtaken by Summer tourists enjoying the array of shops, bars and beachfront adventures offered, all encapsulated within the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park and Coast Path.

The delicate sound of gentle waves cresting is matched only by the birdsong overhead, and of the seagulls baying for food and attention. In that instant  I am alone with my thoughts, a single buoy and rusted chain lay half-buried in the sand, a staple sight and remnant memory of a previous launch, and of the existence of people outside this moment of calm solitude.

Only Happy Days,

~ A ~