I do like to be beside the seaside

One thing I'll say about this inclement weather we've been having is that you really appreciate good weather when you get it.  Yesterday we had been planning to have a trip up to London and take in an exhibition but when the sun came up and it was as clear as can be we decided to go to the coast.  It was still a cold day but lovely and sunny.
We went to Walton on the Naze on the Essex Coast.  It is rather a kiss me quick kind of a resort. It actually has some fantastic architecture but it's a little neglected these days.  Here are some of the beach huts.  I love them.   They look a bit like a shanty town but they're bright and cheerful.

 The big attraction of Walton for us however is not the pier and the sticks of rock but the Naze.  It is a peninsula of a about 3 miles that has cliffs and salt marshes.  It is scientifically very important as some of the first fossils ever discovered were from the cliffs and as well it is a fantastic place for bird watching.
Brent geese overwinter there in their thousands.  I suspect they have nothing to do with the London Borough of Brent as when Trev spoke to them in a cockney accent they looked at him with cool disdain.

We were particularly taken by Sanderlings.  They can fly and swim but they choose to run up and down.  They feed from the water's edge and when an extra large wave comes they all run away from it.  Most amusing.
We finished up after our walk having a cup of tea underneath Walton Tower.  Here it is casting huge shadows.  It looks particularly Middle Earthish blocking the sun

Unfortunately the Naze seems to have a desire to become sea.  The cliffs are tumbling away as you can see and there are marshes within  the sea wall so who know what will happen to it.  But for now it is a lovely place to spend a winter's afternoon