Скачать или смотреть Marooned On Cramond Island

About 50 years I became trapped on Cramond Island in the Firth of Forth. A few of us - the boys in the band - crossed the causeway that is exposed at low tide and arrived on the island with the full intention of staying overnight.

But what started out as a bit of fun swiftly changed. Darkness fell, the tide came in, and it got cold. It was no longer funny. In fact it all got a bit serious. And because the causeway was now under water there was no way back until the water once again receded. We spent the night in the grim brick ruins of a Second World War gun emplacement, and lit a small fire to keep the cold at bay.

In this video I make what is the only other visit I've made to Cramond Island, where I talk of the past and chat about various things.

The causeway leading from the shore to Cramond Island is just short of a mile long. It doesn't look it, but it is, and this distance has to be factored in to your calculations with regard to having a safe visit to the island and being able to return before the tide comes in. I checked the website Tide Times, and planned to cross to the island before the lowest tide. Because after the lowest tide, well ... ... I suppose it's pretty obvious really ... the tide starts to come in. This was brought starkly home to me on walking along the promenade after visiting the island. A couple and their dog were sat on rocks, totally oblivious to the fact that the encroaching tide was just about to cut them off. Thankfully, they noticed just before an emergency had to be declared. You should never mess around with tides, for time and tide wait for no man, and each year any number of people have to be rescued from Cramond Island itself after being cut off and trapped by rising water.

The is a notice board at the shore end of the causeway giving safe crossing times for each day of the year. DO NOT MESS AROUND WITH TIDES.

The video ends with a song, whose title can either be 'Everything's Broken' or 'Things Always Change'.

All music by Eddy Burns.