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September 2007
I had wanted to visit and photograph Blackchurch rock on the north Devon coast ever since I first saw a picture of it on a rock climbing website several
years ago. It's a beautiful looking natural structure, jutting out of the beach in the tidal zone, with the layers of the rock tipped up at about 45 degrees.
A couple of these layers have partially fallen into the sea, so it really does look like a church.
After the long drive down to Devon, I parked my car in the car park at Covelly. I was planning to do a quick recce that evening, and then take photographs
the following day. However, as I sat in my car, glad that my long journey was over, I made a spur of the moment decision. If I was going to walk the 3km
to Mouthmill beach, where Blackchurch rock can be found, then maybe I should make a proper trip of it. Take my tent and wild camp overnight to be able to
photograph both the dusk and dawn light. So I stocked up with supplies in the Clovelly visitor centre and started my way down the coastal path.
The walk wasn't particularly strenuous but with the tent, sleeping bag and a big bottle of water in my rucksack, it was a lot more tiring that I imagined it
would be. However, when I saw the beach from the cliff-top just come into view, I felt my heart beat get faster in anticipation.
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Blackchurch Rock, Mouthmill Beach, Devon. |
I finally arrived at the beach and dropped all my gear with a huge sigh of relief and throbbing shoulders. Full of anticipation and excitement, I rummaged
around in my rucksack to find my camera and quickly made my way out to the edge of the water. The tide was receding but was not quite far out enough to
enable me to get a clear shot of Blackchurch rock with the already low sun streaming through the gaps in the rock. I took a few photographs and then decided
to set up camp before it got too dark. At high tide, the sea comes all the way up to the cliff face, so camping on the beach was out of the question or I
would be flooded and washed away overnight. However, the cliff wasn't too high and someone had conveniently built a small wall at the top of it that could act
as a windbreak for my small tent. So I quickly pitched up in a corner by the path down to the beach and headed back to the shoreline.
The beach is covered in huge rounded pebbles and amazing rock strata that lies across the length of the beach from one side of the bay to the other, creating
very useful lead-in lines with small rock-pools forming as the tide ebbs. But as the sun rapidly set, the sea was still not far out enough to enable me to
capture the photograph I was after. So after a beautiful sunset and afterglow, as two fishermen made their way onto the beach, I headed back up to the top of
the cliff to get my head down ready for an early start capturing the sunrise.
My mobile rang me awake at 5am. I lay there for a second, not wanting to open my eyes, and for a moment I wished for grey leaden skies so I could go back to
sleep. But as I unzipped the entrance to my tent just a little, I could already see the sky beginning to lighten as a clear day dawned. Immediately, I forgot
my tiredness, jumped out of bed and headed back to the beach for the dawn. The light was truly amazing. The sky was lightening to a pale blue with a small band
of pale pink just above the horizon. It was one of the most beautiful, yet subtle, dawns I had ever seen. However, overnight the tide had come in and had only
started it's retreat a little while ago, so the Blackchurch rock photograph I was after was even further away than it had been the evening before. But that
didn't stop me from firing my shutter. The scene was amazingly tranquil. Knowing that the majority of people were missing the beauty that was unfolding in
front of me made me feel very privileged.
However, soon the sun had risen too high in the sky and forced me to put my camera away. So I packed up my tent and headed back to Clovelly for a filling
breakfast.
After several years of waiting and planning, I never got the photograph I was after. But at least now I have a better idea of how to get it next time.
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