In July last year we discovered the delights of Northumberland. We've been to a good few places around the country on holiday but had never been to the land of castles and dark skies, and we loved it. So, we returned for a second week in September, then booked again for July this year. And today was travel day.
On our way north last year we stopped off at Beamish - the museum not the village of course. I'd never been there and Donna was only a youngster when she came with school, so having threatened to visit on numerous occasions we decided that as we were passing within 5 or 6 miles it would be a detour worth taking. But, as we didn't want to get stuck in the traffic heading north we limited ourselves to a 3hr visit, heading back onto the A1 around 3pm. However, 3hrs is simply not enough time to get to look around the whole site so we left the colliery and village until this visit. The ticket was a year pass so no more cash to cough up which is always a bonus.
We left home around 9:45am and although we were delayed a little in numerous roadworks, we arrived at Beamish around noon. So, time to venture down around the old colliery and in and around the village that would have been built around collieries in times gone by. As with our last visit, it was very informative and enjoyable, and just to see the way people lived around 120 years (give or take) ago, and the hardships they faced really brought the place to life. We didn't have time to venture around the rest of the site, but as we'd seen it last year it wasn't a massive loss. You do really need a full day there to get to see and enjoy it all.
Around 2:15pm we set off and back onto the A1, and yes more roadworks. It took us well over an hour to get to Alnwick where we did our shopping before heading across country to the coast, and our ultimate destination; Beadnell. We spent around 30 minutes unpacking then made ourselves comfortable with a hot drink and newspapers in hand. Feet up for an hour.
The skies were a mix of blue and grey, the weather just couldn't make it's mind up so we went out for an hour walking up and down the beach, trying to decide whether or not we were going to get a good soaking. Look one way and the odds were even, the other and they were long odds. Thankfully a few spots of rain but we were lucky in that we stayed warm and dry. Just a pity that in July you have to walk on the beach of an evening in a number of layers to keep warm! But then again, what do we expect in the UK?
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