The bravest of the brave...

Today was a Sunday afternoon spent in the company of the virtuous Mr Smith of the Blip parish.

First stop was Aberlady bay at slack water to have a wee look at the old wrecked X-craft. These have been Blipped numerous times, but still provide a great purpose for a walk.

The X-craft were the mini-subs used during WW2, most notably against the Tirpitz.

I'm a bit of a World War 2 bore buff; not so much interested in the set-piece battles, but rather the effect it had on the common man, and how many Allied soldiers of modest means committed acts of the most outstanding valour.

Four men would have been in this type of sub as it slid beneath the waves in a dark fjord, sneaking past German defences in order to lay mines on the hull of one of the largest battle-cruisers in the world. As the tide went out one craft was even temporarily wedged below the Tirpitz as her hull rested on the seabed. I'm breaking out in a cold sweat just thinking about it.

brave, brave men.
The Tirpitz raid