The annual operation to crane the boats back into Tenby harbour waters took place today, on a misty morning at the seaside town.

The sight of the vessels being lifted back into the sea, traditionally draws spectators viewing from vantage points around the picturesque harbour, and is seen as a date in the calendar to mark the official start of the holiday season in the seaside town, despite the lift this year falling after the Easter holidays.

The lift was due to take place on Wednesday, but owing to the windy weather and a large sea swell, the operation was rescheduled for Thursday, April 11, with crane arriving at Tenby harbour at around 5 am, and the exercise completed by late morning.

With the weather being so choppy over the past couple of weeks, boats over to Caldey Island haven’t been able to run as frequently, since the Island opened for the season last month.

Ahead of the lift - the annual ‘Blessing of The Boats’ service took place at St Julian’s Church (known as the ‘little church on the harbour’) last month.