On the coast again, Hurrah

 On the coast again, Hurrah. May 22nd

I love coastal walks, me. And this is one we walked in November 2025. The walk starts from that wonderful castle, Bamburgh, sitting on the Whin Sill in Northumberland, defying invaders and starring in films. To get there we drove to High Newton on the Sea, parked and caught the bus to Bamburgh.

If you want to do this, check the bus first. Run by Border buses it's  number 418 and runs between Alnwick  and Wooler.  From High Newton to Bamburgh takes about 20 minutes. And the driver is very friendly.

And if you want a map it's: OS Explorer 340 Holy Island 

The car park at High Newton, plenty of space and free. A couple of minutes walk to the bus stop in the village square.

We got off the bus in Bamburgh, opposite the cricket field which is below the castle. In a recent article on small cricket grounds published in one of the heavies, Bamburgh was considered one of the best.

Bamburgh castle. Celtic origins, later built by the Normans and even later rebuilt by William Armstrong, engineer and weapons magnate. The family still own it I believe. It has been used in two versions of MacBeth, The Tempest and many other films and TV shows. " Six and out" if you hit the ball over the castle on to the beach.

There is a coffee stall , barely visible, at the left hand side. WE sat at tables in the sun before setting out.

There is a path at the north end of the castle that leads to the first dunes of the day. It goes behind the castle on the seaward side, close to the visitor car park and it is part of the King Charle III/English coastal path. For about three miles we followed the path through the dunes until we reached Seahouses. The dunes are not very high but there are a lot of short ups and downs.

At Seahouses, popular little visitor town with a deserved reputation for fish and chips we took to the road and went down to the south side of the harbour. At mile 4, overlooking the harbour we made use of benches for a Herbie.

                                        "The Rescue" in Seahouses.

 The harbour at Seahouses. Billy Shiels runs trips out to the Farne Islands, home to thousands of puffins, gannets and others, along with seals.

Continuing on the King's footpath on a track close to a caravan site we eventually descended to the sandy beach. Fortunately it was firm, soft sand can be worse than soft snow.

An amazing meteorological experience: There had been a cool southerly breeze so far, but suddenly the temperature shot up, rather like opening an oven door, the wind, coming off the land, was very warm.

At mile 6 we left the beach and walked through Beadnell to the harbour. Beadnell Harbour has some really well preserved lime kilns, and some benches for a short rest. Nearly 7 miles.

Beadnell Lime Kilns. They were used to convert limestone into fertiliser, using coal to break up the heated rocks.

Leaving Beadnell we walked on the beach around Beadnell Bay. Fortunately the wonderfully namd Long Nanny burn was very low so there was no need to head inland to the footbridge, we just got wet boots.

We left the bay at Newton Links, mile 9, and followed the footpath round the coast, passing Football Hole, until we reached Low Newton.

Low Newton by the Sea a Nation al Trust property. Mostly holiday homes. In the right corner, out of sight, is the Ship Inn, great pub frequently mentioned in the heavies when the list coastal pubs you must visit.

We went up the road to High Newton, took the path across a field to the village and decided to rehydrate in the Joiners Arms, using the beer garden on a warm day.

A lady member of the team said that in her opinion "gadgette" was not a suitable name for female walkers as it implied they were small. A bit of research by a male in the team, using AI, came up with alternatives: Gadgess or  "a strong mountain walker - hill witch". I like it.

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The walk is about 11 miles, easy going and good sea views, and castles.

 

Walking from Wylam again

 Walking from Wylam again, and why not. May 15th

The weather here has not been as nice as it could be. Several gadgies are away on their adventures and the few who remain are having a walk that has been covered several times before. The walk starts in Wylam, easily reached by heading west on the A69 until the slip road for Wylam and drive carefully through the village. Just before Wylam Bridge turn into the large free carpark. 

The map for the walk is OS Explorer 316 Newcastle upon Tyne. Not essential. 

The Coffee Tree on the main street makes a fine breakfast.

Parking at Wylam. Plenty of space and free. 

Leaving the car park we headed for the River Tyne, took the footpath under the Wylam Bridge and walked on the north bank of the river until we reached the Hagg Bridge. This bridge, an arch suspension bridge known locally as Points Bridge was built in 1876 for the railway from Newcastle. Once over the water the line joined the track to Carlisle.

                              Hagg (Points) Bridge. Now a footpath and cycle track

                               River Tyne from the bridge, vsry quiet today.

Once over the river we followed the footpath on the south bank for about a mile and a half to the Tyne Riverside Country Park.

On the way we passed the Spetchells, a series of ridges made from Calcium Carbonate, spoil from a nearby factory that produced fertiliser and explosives during WW2. The ridges are now a nature reserve, complete with trees and creatures.

                        White footpath up the Spetchells (The name comes from the previous name of the section of riverside)

            There is a cafe, toilets and play areas at the country park but we soldiered on, crossing the narrow bridge back to the north bank of the river and the village of Ovingham.

Walking clockwise round the church we came to a stile, scrambled over it and headed for Whittle Dene.

St. Mary the Virgin, Ovingham. Late Saxon, 11th century origins, with 13th C rebuilds  and Victorian restoration. The tower is probably the oldest part, some of it being built with stones from nearby Roman sites.

 Soon we were in Whittle Dene. There are the remains of several houses and hints of old industry but mostly it is a gentle climb through woodland to the A69

.                     In Whittle Dene.

Reaching the A69 we followed a footpath for a short distance before making good use of the bridge over the road.

Into a field and then on to what was once the A69 before the modern dual carriage way was built. Several rather grand houses later we turned, went under the bridge, turned left and walked along the road to the village of Horsely. Hunger calls, we Herbied in a cosy bus shelter which also had a book exchange cupboard. There are more of them around, good idea.

At the east end of the village we spotted the finger post (mile 6) telling us Wylam was 1.5 miles away. There is a narrow fenced footpath before reaching open fields.

The horse on the right is a small cob.

Leaving the footpath we crossed, in a south easterly direction, navigated a couple of stiles and a footbridge  before reaching the road back to Wylam. Then we went home.

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The walk is 8 easy going miles, river bank and woodland.

A coastal walk again

 A coastal walk again. May 8th

After several country walks and a slog round Prague I've been looking forward to being beside the seaside. An old favourite, from Warkworth to the mouth of the River Aln and back through the dunes.

Take the Northumberland Coast Route to Warkworth, turn left as you approach the church and park by the riverside.

It's possible to do the walk without relying on OS maps but the one that covers the area is OS Explorer 332 Alnwick and Amble.

                         Car parking by the River Coquet is free.

There is a good cafe, Bertrams on Bridge Street but on this sunny morning a small team of gadgies opted to get on with the walk. Leaving the car park we took the riverside footpath to the bridge.

There are two bridges, one is a 14th century structure with a gate at the south end. It was used until replaced by the modern bridge next to it built in 1965.

St. Lawrence church Wark worth. Mainly Norman

Just a little section of the ancient bridge. The sign in the top left corner is on the road to the beach.

             The gate at the south end of the bridge.

Once across the bridge we took the road towards the beach. Should you wish to shorten the walk there are a couple of car parks near the caravan site and some toilets too.

Heading for the dunes, passing the golf course we turned right and walked along the track almost to the mouth of the river.

Coquet Island in the distance

               Mouth of the Coquet.

Joining the beach we headed north. Soft sand making boots sink in but nearer the water the sand is firmer for easier walking.

Three miles of golden sand, littered with lumps of coal washed out of nearby seams. As has been said before if Northumberland had sunshine the beaches would be lined with hotels and sunbeds. Small mercies!

A man and his dogs and all that beach to play on.

After a couple of miles walking the beach there is a choice. Climb up the grassy low cliff and walk through the caravan site before returning to the sands, or continue on the beach and negotiate the rocks. Not too difficult but can be a scramble.

The final section of the beach has a roped off area for nesting birds, none present today. 

At the River Aln, oppositec Alnmouth we turned inland and scrambled up to the cross.

The cross stands on the site of  St. Waleric's church, a 12th century house of worship that was destroyed in the great storm of 1806 which also changed the course of the river. Once the village church, now just a memorial on the opposite side of the Aln.

Close to the church hill is the ruin of a mortuary chapel. It looks old but was built in 1870. It offers some shelter for a Herbie, A shareless Herbie today. 

            Mortuary chapel from 1870. Convincing arch, lookls Norman.

Moving south along a good track we passed the ruins of the guano shed. Built in the 18th century to store imported guano which was used a s a fertiliser. Before the great storm of 1806 Alnmouth was a thriving sport.

                               The Guano shed

The path stays close to the beach, above the water. When it reaches the Warkworth golf course it turns closer to the water, passing under a footbridge.

The bridge takes gol;fers from one tee spot to the next. Attached to the central pillar is:

 a bell. Walkers are asked to ring it to warn players of their approach. It works if you are going in the opposite direction from us. We had already crossed the fairway.

From this point the footpath fo;lows the edge of the course until it joins the path to the beach. We turned right and were soon back at the medieval bridge and car park and home.

The walk is about 9 miles. Easy going on sand and track.