All along the section of Barton which is exposed directly to the rasping sea the cliffs are slowly making their way back to the waters from whence they came. As well as the sea the recent rains cascade down the 40 million year old deposits, easily cutting channels through the sticky clay. In other places the water has mixed with the clay which now oozes like a lava flow towards the beach. It's a good time for fossil hunting and the area is well known for its broad range of shells and sharks teeth, amongst other things. The mud slip landscape can pose hazards at any time of the year, with people frequently requiring rescue from a dangerous situation, but the wet season is by far the most hazardous. Care should always been take. A few weeks back the cliffs were right angled to the beach, now they slump at the base with great heaps of oozed mud. Slumps in which one could easily loose a boot or find themselves stuck knee deep. I eye them with suspicion as the waves rolling in forced me closer to them. The tide is in and there is hardly any beach and in places none, making you to run, during the waves temporary retreated, to the next stretch of beach. The sky is a beautiful blue today, a deep and intense blue. It's not completely empty, with decimated clouds above and more menacing formation on the horizons. This is an interlude, there have been a couple today between rain or hail episodes. Still, enjoying while it's here.
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