Wreck at Benacre
On the beach,
Sideways and hull-down,
Trying hard in the Winter sun
To gleam and be alive,
A strange boat
Stranded in the storm,
Gradually tilts and gives up hope.
One thin line
Strains to the hidden anchor
Just off-shore.
The screw has gone,
Small splits appear,
Sprung boards allow the salt water
A first, tentative grip,
Bringing her to her knees
On the beach.
Foreign, she is,
From up the coast.
Compact, head-butting
And easily rolling
Over the unforgiving
North Sea's tricky underwater map.
Shifting sand,
Covering and uncovering
Rusting defences
Slowly eroding in the salt water.
Either the sea,
Intolerant of error,
Will break her
Or the salvage crew,
Wearily tramping the sand,
Will take her.
Slowly stripping her bare,
Her interior secrets
Exposed and vulnerable.
Next week, next month,
The beach will have returned
To wildness and to peace.
A place of detritus,
The bones of fish,
Dead gulls and trees
Along the littoral.
From "A Kind Of Heaven" by Richard Maslen.
Some Favourite Websites For October 2026:
Logs Logs Logs – Family Firm delivering kiln dried logs to Norfolk and Suffolk, including Norwich, Diss and Woodbridge
Logs available in tipper loads and bulk bags for wood burning stoves, open fires and pizza ovens. In addition supplying firewood in bulk bags to Essex, Cambridgeshire, London and beyond.
European Rail Campaign (UK) – The Campaign for Better Rail Links to and from the UK and across Europe
In view of the need to reduce people’s carbon footprints rail is seen as an environmentally friendly option for many journeys across Europe. The Euro Rail Campaign sees a need for better rail services between the UK and Europe as well as improved connecting services across Europe. Research has shown that international passenger transport can be competitive with air transport for journey times of up to 6 hours or distances of up to 800 kilometres. Explore more about what this organisation does
Chris Pretty Mountaineering – Rock Climbing/Mountaineering Instructor and International Mountain Leader
Chris aims to give you an experience which ensures you are taught to the highest national standards and to ensure that you actually learn the skills required to rock climb, trek, navigate and otherwise move around the mountainous environment autonomously. The teaching is delivered by an expert team who are tried and tested in both their personal skills and their ability to teach and ensure learning with an emphasis on personal progression.
George Borrow Trust – Explore about the well travelled 1800s poet George Borrow
The George Borrow Trust aims to advance the education of the public in the life and works of George Borrow in particular, by means which preserve, exhibit and study his writings and works and other material objects connected with or tending to perpetuate his memory or to throw light on his life and work.
Halesworth Millennium Green – The largest Millennium Green in England
Halesworth Millennium Green is a magical place to explore in all seasons and weathers. Come and find your favourite corner amongst the meadows, woodlands, rivers, ponds, heathland, orchard and along the historic route of the old railway and the even older navigation.