In Holywell Again

 In Holywell Again. June 17th

A local walk again, inspired by several gadgies suffering aches and pains andwanting an easy walk close to home. Nothing wrong with repeating walks.

We  had breakfast in the Earsdon Garden Centre which is on the stretch of old road between Holywell and Earsdon. There s room for several cars þo park on this bit of old road.

It  is possible to do the walk without a map but it is covered by OS Explorer 316 Newcastle upon Tyne.

                                  Roadside parking near the Earsdon Garden Centre

Booted and breakfasted we set off up the road towards Holywell. Once over the Holywell Bridge we took the footpath on the left, crossed the Seaton Burn on the footbridge and turned left into Holywell Dene walking on the south bank.

There are a couple of steps going up and down in the dene.

The dene is an attractive woodland following the stream, there is some evidence of its industrial past  but today it's just a sunny stroll through the trees. After a mile and a half we reached the Tyne and Wear Heritage trail, this short section being a dismantled railway line. Just before an old bridge we turned right and followed a footpath back down to the stream, now on the north bank.

                                           Take the path on the right.

We stayed on the wooded north side until we reached the road going to Hartley West Farm. 

Here we crossed the stream again and after a short distance climbed out of the dene to the road  (B1325) which took us to Hartley.

        Seaton Burn near Hartley West Farm.

We crossed the road by the Delaval Arms, a 17th century building, now a pub, which has the Blue stone outside.

The Blue Stone outside the Delaval Arms. Thought to originally mark the centre of the Saxon Village.

We followed the path down to the coast (mile 3), turned north and walked the cliff edge round Collywell Bay to Seaton Sluice. We called a Herbie and made use of benches looking out on Charley's Garden.

(Apple pies, cookies and sweet and savoury from Mrs A)

Charley's Garden is a stack, in living memory attached to the land and also a garden, but no longer.

Moving on we passed the King's Arms and followed the footpath down to the harbour, crossed the water by the footbridge and headed back towards the dene.

                                    Seaton Sluice mermaid

              Seaton Sluice harbour. Once a thriving port exporting coal and glass from the nearby bottle making plants. All gone. The sluice, also gone, was designed to hold water back to scour the harbour when the gates were opened.

4

 The Cut, blasted out in 1760 to form a small harbour with easier access than the actual harbour.

Crossing a field we followed a footpath on the bank of the burn. Reaching a fork we took the path on the right and climbed up to what appears to be an old wagonway, a path banked up from the surrounding fields.

The path goes south west for a little over a mile, crossing the Tyne and Wear Heritage Trail and reaching the Holywell Pond Nature Reserve.

Sadly the hide at the pond has been vandalised but is currently being restored.

                      Holywell Pond Nature Reserve.

Leaving the ruined hide we were soon back in Holywell village. We took the path down by the bridge again but this time turned right and followed paths on the edges of fields to Holywell Grange Farm. Just beyond the farm we turned left, crossed fields and were back at the cars. Then we went home!

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The walk is about 8.5 miles, easy going, sea views, arable land.