Had a great dinner last night at the Cottage Inn, Dunstan. Dominic had a seafood mornay followed by a sticky toffee pudding and I had a venison steak - yum.
It seems the other walkers that we met are not German but Dutch. My mistake as I was going on their accents but when I heard them speak it was clearly Dutch.
Today we walked from Dunstan/Craster to Seahouses - about 18km. We were smart enough to ask the locals before we set off, if there was a way we could bypass Craster as we had seen from the map that we could probably take a public path (love the English public rights of way) to Dunstan Square and thence directly to the coast. This brought us out just south of Dunstanburgh Castle of which I know absolutely nothing but will look it up.
Walking around the western side of the castle brought us to the coast again where the high cliffs protecting the castle from seaborne attack were quite impressive. As we walked along through largely unremarkable farmland and dunes we met a few people, all of whom gave us friendly greetings and some were up for a slightly longer chat. We also passed by a couple of golf courses but not many people playing.
By the time we reached Beadnell we were ready for lunch but had to traverse most of the village before we found the pub. After a long drink we had a great hamburger with trimmings. On the menu we also saw something we had seen somewhere else but didn't know what it was "Prawns + Marie Rose". We asked the barman and it turns out that Marie Rose is not the name of a mystery ship (vis Marie Celeste) but simply a particular cocktail sauce. When we had just about finished our meal the barman brought us a sample of prawns and the subject sauce - very nice.
The last part of the walk today, from Beadnell to Seahouses, followed the road and we easily found our accommodation where we were glad to zonk out for a while. We will have to go out for dinner later but need to clean up first.
Wednesday 30 April 2014
Tuesday 29 April 2014
Warkworth to Craster 29th April (day 3)
Dinner last night was Veg curry at the Hermitage Inn in Warkworth. Interestingly, this can be served with rice (of course), or with chips, or half and half. We opted for the rice having had chips at lunchtime.
After a good sleep and breakfast at 7:30 we set off at about 8:40am for a longish walk to Craster. We had been warned of some planned deviations to the path near Alnmouth but they actually began just out of Warkworth - doh! When we got to the place where we were supposed to detour there was no detour in place. Since our next leg, from Alnmouth to Craster was fairly long we had a light lunch at Alnmouth before continuing.
The walk, both before and after lunch, could have had some stunning sea views but, unfortunately, there was a thick mist all day.
We were both pretty footsore by the time we got to Craster after walking about 20km but we still had another 1.5km to go before our overnight lodging in Dunstan.
Lots of birdie activity along the way - Robin Redbreasts asserting their territorial rights, Seagulls nesting in the cliffs, the ubiquitous Blackbirds, and plenty of others.
Looking forward to a night in after dinner and put the feet up.
After a good sleep and breakfast at 7:30 we set off at about 8:40am for a longish walk to Craster. We had been warned of some planned deviations to the path near Alnmouth but they actually began just out of Warkworth - doh! When we got to the place where we were supposed to detour there was no detour in place. Since our next leg, from Alnmouth to Craster was fairly long we had a light lunch at Alnmouth before continuing.
The walk, both before and after lunch, could have had some stunning sea views but, unfortunately, there was a thick mist all day.
We were both pretty footsore by the time we got to Craster after walking about 20km but we still had another 1.5km to go before our overnight lodging in Dunstan.
Lots of birdie activity along the way - Robin Redbreasts asserting their territorial rights, Seagulls nesting in the cliffs, the ubiquitous Blackbirds, and plenty of others.
Looking forward to a night in after dinner and put the feet up.
Monday 28 April 2014
Day 1 Proper
We woke up to a fine day and had a nice breakfast before starting out to walk from Ellington to Cresswell (1.8 km) where the days walk proper starts. It was a cool grey day but no rain and only a light, but cool, northerly breeze.
The first part of the walk was along the road before we cut through the sand dunes and then onto the beach which was much easier walking than the dunes. Met the odd dog walker along the way and they all seemed pretty friendly. The country side is pretty flat for this first part and not a lot to see apart from odd pairs, and larger groups, of geese doing whatever geese do in springtime. Walking alongside farmland there was often the exuberant song of a skylark to please the ear. Blackbirds and crows are also pretty busy.
After we got back onto the road we were passed by a cyclist. A little while later we encountered him with his bike upside down trying to fix a puncture. After a chat we went on our way and then he caught up to us again and asked us to hold his bike while he tried to get more air into his tyre. We did see him once more ahead of us and he was trying a motorist's pump but obviously to no avail as he was last seen pushing his bike in the direction of Amble.
We passed the Drurige Bay Country Park along the way. This is a large wetlands nature reserve and, judging from the facilities, quite popular in the summertime but not so at the moment.
After passing the small fishing village of Low Haughton, we did not have much further to go before we reached Amble which is quite a thriving holiday destination and has port and boating facilities too. I have a memory of holidaying at Amble with my parents when I was a lad. We stayed in a converted bus which was parked among caravans in the sand dunes. I don't really remember much more about it.
On reaching Amble we had lunch and then a nice coffee at a different place before continuing to our first destination - Warkworth. On the approach along the road towards Warkworth, alongside the estuary of the Coquet River, there was a fine view of Warkworth Castle which was the ancestral home of the Percy family. I took a pic but it will have to wait until I can update the blog with it. Another walk up hill brought us to our overnight stop which is a nice B & B. Later on we will have to descend the hill again to the town to get some dinner, and then back up for a good night's sleep.
The first part of the walk was along the road before we cut through the sand dunes and then onto the beach which was much easier walking than the dunes. Met the odd dog walker along the way and they all seemed pretty friendly. The country side is pretty flat for this first part and not a lot to see apart from odd pairs, and larger groups, of geese doing whatever geese do in springtime. Walking alongside farmland there was often the exuberant song of a skylark to please the ear. Blackbirds and crows are also pretty busy.
After we got back onto the road we were passed by a cyclist. A little while later we encountered him with his bike upside down trying to fix a puncture. After a chat we went on our way and then he caught up to us again and asked us to hold his bike while he tried to get more air into his tyre. We did see him once more ahead of us and he was trying a motorist's pump but obviously to no avail as he was last seen pushing his bike in the direction of Amble.
We passed the Drurige Bay Country Park along the way. This is a large wetlands nature reserve and, judging from the facilities, quite popular in the summertime but not so at the moment.
After passing the small fishing village of Low Haughton, we did not have much further to go before we reached Amble which is quite a thriving holiday destination and has port and boating facilities too. I have a memory of holidaying at Amble with my parents when I was a lad. We stayed in a converted bus which was parked among caravans in the sand dunes. I don't really remember much more about it.
On reaching Amble we had lunch and then a nice coffee at a different place before continuing to our first destination - Warkworth. On the approach along the road towards Warkworth, alongside the estuary of the Coquet River, there was a fine view of Warkworth Castle which was the ancestral home of the Percy family. I took a pic but it will have to wait until I can update the blog with it. Another walk up hill brought us to our overnight stop which is a nice B & B. Later on we will have to descend the hill again to the town to get some dinner, and then back up for a good night's sleep.
Day 1 - Sort of
Forecast to be raining and it was. Checked out of the hotel at about 11:30 and headed via metro to the bus station. When the bus arrived we asked for through tickets to Ellington - as advised in the bus info office yesterday - only to be told by the driver (who lives in Ellington) that there aren't any buses from Ashington to Ellington on a Sunday - so much for our preparation yesterday. Anyway he said we could get a taxi from Ashington, which we did after the hour-long bus ride. We got to the Plough Inn at around 1:30, we're allocated a room and then straight down for lunch - a choice between roast pork and roast beef. After lunch we went for a walk through Ellington which used to be a coal-mining village until about 2005. At one time the mine extended about 13 km under the sea until a flood occurred from a neighboring mine which then forced the closure of the whole shebang. There is a monument to the miners beside the Colliery Institute.
Since the Inn doesn't do meals on Sunday nights we went across the road to the local shop where we were able to get a prepared sandwich - all we needed for dinner after the substantial lunch.
The forecast for tomorrow is for finer weather but it doesn't matter if it rains as long as it is not horizontal.
Saturday 26 April 2014
Newcastle
Arrived in Newcastle with Dominic yesterday by train from London. Uneventful trip except at the start when trying to print out our prepaid tickets and the machine could not connect to the server. In the end we travelled using the sheet I had printed out at home. Athe other strange thing is that they will not tell you which platform the train is going from until about 15 minutes before departure. This is probably to stop people from getting on the train before they are ready.
Arrival to Newcastle was into a typical English rainy afternoon. We. Located a hotel (Sandgate Signature) which I is just across the road from the Newcastle football club stadium. Although not very far we considered a taxi was justified due to the weather and the (Geordie) taxi driver agreed with us.
We are just up the road from Newcastle's Chinatown so we wandered down there later on and had a nice Chinese buffet dinner.
Slept well and woke to a reasonably fine day. We had worked out that we need to get a bus from the Haymarket Bus Station tomorrow to where our walk starts so we took the Metro from just across the road to the Haymarket Metro to suss it out for when we have to lug suitcases. Without the luggage it would be much quicker to walk but we ain't going to walk it tomorrow.
Spent some time walking around the shopping area, including the Grainger Market which I remember from when I was little.
When we got back to the hotel I took this photo from our window. It looks out over apartment blocks being built for student accommodation and there are many more going up in different parts of the city centre. (The photo will be inserted later - don't ask!).
Went for another walk down towards the river, passing sections of the old town walls on the way. These were built way back in the 13th to 15th centuries to save the city from attack and continued lot work until breached during the English Covil War in about 1644. Lunched at the Quayside pub down on the quayside (who would have thunk) and then watched the opening of the Gateshead Millenium bridge. Pity they don't let you on it during this process as it would be a spectacular high-speed bike ride up around the nicely banked curve.
During the day I also called one of my cousins (Brian) and set things up for when we return to Newcastle after our walk. Just after we started out on our second walk of the day his brother Alan called me and it was good to have made contact after all this time. We have arranged to have dinner with them all on 5th May so that should roll a few years away.
Arrival to Newcastle was into a typical English rainy afternoon. We. Located a hotel (Sandgate Signature) which I is just across the road from the Newcastle football club stadium. Although not very far we considered a taxi was justified due to the weather and the (Geordie) taxi driver agreed with us.
We are just up the road from Newcastle's Chinatown so we wandered down there later on and had a nice Chinese buffet dinner.
Slept well and woke to a reasonably fine day. We had worked out that we need to get a bus from the Haymarket Bus Station tomorrow to where our walk starts so we took the Metro from just across the road to the Haymarket Metro to suss it out for when we have to lug suitcases. Without the luggage it would be much quicker to walk but we ain't going to walk it tomorrow.
Spent some time walking around the shopping area, including the Grainger Market which I remember from when I was little.
When we got back to the hotel I took this photo from our window. It looks out over apartment blocks being built for student accommodation and there are many more going up in different parts of the city centre. (The photo will be inserted later - don't ask!).
Went for another walk down towards the river, passing sections of the old town walls on the way. These were built way back in the 13th to 15th centuries to save the city from attack and continued lot work until breached during the English Covil War in about 1644. Lunched at the Quayside pub down on the quayside (who would have thunk) and then watched the opening of the Gateshead Millenium bridge. Pity they don't let you on it during this process as it would be a spectacular high-speed bike ride up around the nicely banked curve.
During the day I also called one of my cousins (Brian) and set things up for when we return to Newcastle after our walk. Just after we started out on our second walk of the day his brother Alan called me and it was good to have made contact after all this time. We have arranged to have dinner with them all on 5th May so that should roll a few years away.
Tuesday 22 April 2014
Second start
Well, after the previous attempt had to be aborted due to Pat becoming ill and spending weeks in hospital etc, I am giving it another try. Of course Garth and Dominic did get away to do parts of what was planned in the last one but, apart from a weeks break in Tasmania in October 2012, this will be my first big excursion out of Sydney and Australia in quite a while. While I am out of the country either Garth or Dominic will be making sure that Pat is cared for rather than have her stay alone.
The details of this trip are not the same as the last one but there are some elements of overlap. The basic plan is:
The details of this trip are not the same as the last one but there are some elements of overlap. The basic plan is:
- I leave Australia on Thursday 24th April to fly to the UK to meet Dominic who will already be there.
- Dominic and I train up to Newcastle-upon-Tyne and a day or so later we start a supported walk up the Northumberland Coastal Path from Ellingham to Berwick-on-Tweed. This is 6/7 days after which we return to Newcastle.
- After picking up a car and visiting various folks around the Newcastle area (rellies, old friends) we head south, pausing in Sheffield to pick up some knife handles, to Nottingham to meet up with my old University of Nottingham boss and friend Eric Foxley.
- After Nottingham we head down to Hampshire to meet up with some ex-Kenya friends Ian and Jean Wilkinson.
- With the Wilkinsons we will journey to Abingdon on 10th May where we will meet up with the rest of our Kenya ex-pat group for a reunion lunch which should be lots of fun.
- On 11th May I leave the UK to fly to Florence while Dominic leaves on the same day to fly back to Australia.
- In Florence I have a two-week woodcarving course and will be staying with Italians. I have been learning some Italian but how much I will remember is anyone's guess. It should be an interesting experience anyway.
- At the end of my two-week course Garth arrives from Australia and he and I will drive to Maremma for a few nights when we will do some Tuscan sightseeing and then journey by, as yet, unknown routes to rendesvouz in Venice for the start of a cycle trip from Venice to Florence. We are hoping to catch a stage of the Giro d'Italia near Trento while meandering towards Venice.
- On getting back to Florence, Garth will head for Paris where he is meeting up with a friend who will be there for a medical conference and I return back to Australia, arriving on the 11th of June.
- Garth will be going on to meet up with other people in France before heading to the UK for some cycling and the start of the Tour de France.
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