Morecambe

Extract from The New Travel Book -
North of Watford Gap - John Brown

I parked the car at Hest Bay, and went for a stroll along the low headland.

Looking across the bay to the Lakeland hills it was easy to see the danger that lay within this bay. When the tide is out, the mile upon mile of sand must be a temptation, even to experienced walkers - Off to Morecambe

Twenty years or so had elapsed since I last drove into Morecambe. I confess, despite the obvious adverse publicity that this seaside town has received over the ensuing years, I was determined to view it with an open mind. Morecambe Bay was barely visible sat below a brooding sky that completely obliterated the Lakeland hills. The tide was in, and the sea, a grey-green soup, was lashing the harbour walls, while the rain formed a horizontal sheet, making the walk by the sea wall, just a little challenging. Morecambe Bay, was described by Eric Mitchell in his book of the same name, as 'a great inner sea, low tide reveals a tawny desert 120 square miles in extent. Crossing the Sands – and the estuaries of Keer and Kent – was once part of a daring west coast route linking Lancashire with its northern territory of Furness' . It is certainly a dangerous place, cast your mind back to 2004, and you will recall just how dangerous, when thirty Chinese cockle-pickers were cut off by the rapid incoming tide at Hest Bank. A massive rescue bid involving the RNLI, coastguards and the RAF was rapidly launched. Sadly sixteen men and two women lost their lives that night.