Lossiemouth and its Halyard Symphony
Heading towards Lossiemouth, I wandered down a sandy path to the beach. The wind had picked up slightly and, the sand shifted in sheets along the bay. I saw a wrecked boat at the foot of the rocks and wondered, where had it set sail? I imagined a lively lady with a wild tale to tell and, this seemed like a stark reminder of a savage sea.
There are caves in the rocks directly below the lighthouse and I had heard that one of the caves used to be lived in. I think about living in a cave, what was it like? Did the cave dwellers live with the land rather than upon it? Moving towards the town, I slowly strolled along the west beach passed the caravan park, café and, sailing club, The Lossie coastline has a baron edge-land and it’s not quite urban or coast but something in-between.
I picked up my pace and headed towards the harbour. As I got closer, I heard the sound of halyards tinkering in the wind. I like the word ‘Halyard’, it’s the name of the rope that hoists a sail, yard, or flag. In the past, sailors shouted ‘hold up the yard’ or ‘haul yards’ and, that’s how it got its name. When I reach the harbour, I stopped to chat with a man who was working on his boat. I asked him what he was doing? And he said, “ I’m packing up the mast and mainsail for the equinox storm, it happens every year.” I looked up at the blue sky and, the sun was shining. The harbour waters were dark and deep and, the atmosphere was pleasant. I began to question the fair-weather change…
The weather did change!
That night, I awoke to the wind howling against my window, however, in the morning, the sun was shining but the gale was still blowing. I got up early and walked down towards the harbour to listen to the noise of the Halyard Symphony.