A study of waves

Having spent the last two months in the Algarve on the southern coast of Portugal we have started our Spring migration north – along the west coast.  It’s quite different along this coast as the prevailing winds and tides have created a wild and rocky coastline which is quite spectacular.

The weather has not been too kind to us since turning north (warm but wet & windy) so we have been ‘treading water’ a little waiting for the weather further north to improve.  In doing this we have stopped at some lovely spots on the coastline, one of which was Praia de Sto. Andre.  We arrived on a rare sunny day and took a stroll on the beach, the huge rolling waves were quite spectacular – especially the pure white spume and the beautiful translucent turquoise of the water as the waves rolled over. Although I have taken some pictures, and relatively poor quality video, they don’t do the spectacle justice but should give you an idea of what we were experiencing.  The waves must have been about 25 feet high!

Another phenomenon was the sea water flooding into the shallow lagoon.  As the waves rolled up the beach, higher and higher, the water would surge into the mouth of the lagoon - like a mini Severn Bore.  It was obviously a visitor attraction as quite a few people were watching this.