Sand Patterns at Waulkmill Bay 1-7

Each tide brings fresh patterns in the sand, and the way the ripples form depends on how fine or coarse the composition of the sediments, the force of the waves hitting the beach, the currents, and the way that the waves are reflected back from the rocks around the shore. So each bay has its characteristic natural patterns in the sand, and here at Waulkmill Bay on Mainland, Orkney, facing Scapa Flow, the grain size was very fine indeed, and the sand very pale, and the ripples very different from any that I have photographed elsewhere.