The river was shrouded in mist as I drove to Newnham at 7-o'clock on Friday morning. The bore wasn't due until 7.51, but I'd expected there to be quite a crowd there and wanted to give myself plenty of time to park at the quieter end of the town and stroll down to the river bank.
Once there, I joined a group of hopeful onlookers, including a veteran bore spotter, who hoped that this Cornish lass - more used to waves crashing onto Fistral Beach - wouldn't be too disappointed with today's sight. I assured him that I wouldn't. As he took a photo of me, he explained that the size of the bore doesn't just depend on the height of the tide; the volume of water coming downstream, wind direction and tidal surges all play their part.
At times, the mist almost totally blanketed the river and I could only just make out a group of surfers as they chose their spot to catch the wave. Then, thankfully, the mist began to lift. Five minutes later than predicted, a distant roar heralded the bore's arrival and I had my first glimpse of the famous wave.
Closer and closer it came, and finally - as it passed between me and the rays of the morning sun, I snapped this photo.
I admit that, as waves go, this was hardly a big one, but as a tidal phenomenon it was well worth the wait. Indeed, I'd already made plans to return to the river on Saturday, this time with my family.
Several people had told me that the bore becomes more spectacular as the river narrows, and Wikipedia informed me that Minsterworth was best of all.This time the sun shone brightly and the crowds were enormous, so much so that we struggled to find a good parking place. Thankfully, I was able to squeeze Bluebell into a lay-by on the A48, only a few minutes' walk from the river. We chose our spot on the grass bank... and waited. Again, about five minutes later than predicted, the bore came into sight, but this time there was no wave and none of the waiting surfers got their hoped-for ride. Still, it was fairly impressive.
For reasons that I've been unable to fathom, Blogger won't show the critical moment of the splash and has suppressed the sound. I'll keep working on it, but here's a short clip...
Two more daytime 5 star bores are due this year, on March 21st and 22nd, plus several 4 star ones. I'm tempted to return to Minsterworth to see whether the wave breaks on these occasions — as it may be seen doing on a few YouTube videos.
Several people had told me that the bore becomes more spectacular as the river narrows, and Wikipedia informed me that Minsterworth was best of all.This time the sun shone brightly and the crowds were enormous, so much so that we struggled to find a good parking place. Thankfully, I was able to squeeze Bluebell into a lay-by on the A48, only a few minutes' walk from the river. We chose our spot on the grass bank... and waited. Again, about five minutes later than predicted, the bore came into sight, but this time there was no wave and none of the waiting surfers got their hoped-for ride. Still, it was fairly impressive.
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| The Bore approaches... |
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| ... and SPLASH! arrives. |
Two more daytime 5 star bores are due this year, on March 21st and 22nd, plus several 4 star ones. I'm tempted to return to Minsterworth to see whether the wave breaks on these occasions — as it may be seen doing on a few YouTube videos.
Didn't you take your surfboard with you Angela? Maybe on Saturday eh?
ReplyDeleteShirley Anne x
I haven't been on a surfboard since I was a teenager - and that was a wooden one. These days I'm more than happy simply to watch from the foreshore or river bank. Kayaking the bore looks good fun, though.
DeleteIncidentally, whist reading up about bore tides I noted that they get an impressive one at Arnside. That's not far from you, is it?
Not really Angela, Arnside is close to 100 miles north by road. The River Ribble has large inrushing tides and I suppose at this time of year most dramatic. I was once on a boat that had been taken by surprise as the tide went out (it was that quick) and it ended up beached on its side. Four hours later it was righted within minutes. The Ribble is south of Blackpool, about 40 miles north and flows out of Preston. The tributary river called The Douglas is the one we were headed to when we got caught by the tide. That river is just north of Southport at Hesketh Bank and Tarleton.
DeleteShirley Anne
Presumably my visit to you in March will be too late to see the bore. A pity.
ReplyDeleteLucy
Sadly, there are neap tides during your next two visits, so the bore won't be worth seeing.
Delete