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On this week's Open Country Helen Mark explores the Isle Of Man.
As an Island race the Sea holds a place in every Britons heart.
The experience may be
almost mystical or even miserable but few of us remain unmoved by
the sound and sight of the waves. This week's programme explores
our relationship with the sea through the eyes of a distinct set
of islanders, people who live on a distinctive island - the Isle
Of Man.
David McWilliams is blind. He lost his sight in
an accident as a young boy forty years ago. He loves the sea and
sails regularly with "Sailing for the Disabled ". They
have a beautiful yacht the "Pride of Mann" moored in Douglas
harbour and take disabled people of all ages sailing out into the
Irish sea.
David has sailed for years and has been out in all weathers, even
crossing over to Cumbria and Scotland. He feels perfectly safe attached
by a harness to the safety rail and has even piloted the yacht.
He says sailing is a great "leveller" and he gets an enormous
sense of satisfaction from competing against able bodied people
on an equal footing. It isn't just the competitive streak that attracts
David to the sea, he says the sound and smell of the sea as well
as the feel of the wind on his cheek enables him to enjoy the sea
in a special and fulfilling way.
The west coast of the island is especially good
for spotting basking sharks and Helen joins Pauline Oliver and Maura
Mitchell on the coast at Niarbyl , a natural harbour between Peel
and Port Erin.
Basking sharks use the waters off the coast for feeding and breeding.
Sharks up to forty feet are quite common although when Helen was
there, they proved to be illusive. Maura has been diving off the
coast regularly since nineteen sixty seven and often swims with
the sharks. They feed off plankton and so are benign creatures which
are harmless to people. Maura and Pauline love the sea and would
feel incomplete if they could not visit the sea everyday. They point
out the beauty and clarity of the sea around the island and eulogise
about the diversity of sea life that inhabits the coastal waters.
Steven Buttery is in his seventies and was born
within sight of the coast in a terraced house in Douglas. He has
explored every inch of the seas surrounding the town in various
craft, first as a small boy in a canoe and later in boats of all
shapes and sizes.
He was for years, a crew member of the lifeboat and tells Helen
of his experiences, some amusing but some dangerous and life threatening.
His matter of fact manner in the face of danger and contained stoicism
seems in keeping with a man of the sea but even Steven feels a physical
sense of loss if he is deprived of the sea's company for too long.
He tells Helen of his habit of holidaying on other islands and driving
all the way around the coast. A strange ritual of feeling his way
around, testing the boundaries and defining the edges.
Finally back on the "Pride of Mann" Helen
meets skipper Arnie Don. Arnie has been skipper for four years and
he tells Helen of his morning trip, taking disabled kids for a sail
around the bay. He recalls the smiles of their faces as they head
out to sea and the sheer exhilaration the kids and Arnie feel
as they share in the special experience of skimming over the waves
in a boat under sail.
Email Open Country: open.country@bbc.co.uk
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