Well you can't come on holiday and not go to the coast, can you?
Ok we weren't exactly close to the coast, in fact we were an hour and a quarter away, but in the grand scheme of things that isn't too far is it? So as the sun was shining this morning, and expected to be the case on the coast, we packed up the car and by 10am were on the road.
Our direction would be eastward, and over to the north-east coast, just north of the famous city of Newcastle; and to an area where we had never been before. We arrived just north of Whitley Bay, at a local beauty spot; St Davids Lighthouse. And yes, even this time of the year on a 'lockdown' weekday it was busy. We'd timed out visit just right as for part of the day the lighthouse is inaccessible other than by boat. However there is a small causeway that links it to the mainland and can be traversed at low tide.
I'd seen a YouTube vlog a while ago that mentioned how the lighthouse has a good side, and a less good side, and you could see that when you walked around it as one side is brilliant white, the other, lets say less so. A tad more weather beaten. And the bonus here is that around this time of year, if you are lucky you will see seals. And even though the tide was out, you could see some sunbathing on the rocks about 200m away as well as all sorts of sea birds enjoying the rich pickings amongst the rocks.
After having our packed lunch we then set off up the coastal path to Seaton Sluice, an interesting little place with lots of industrial heritage. Not what you would call a pretty seaside village, but with plenty to see and a gorgeous wide beach stretching out to the north it has it's attractions. Just a pity that on the horizon you see the industrial port of Blyth, a bit of a spoiler.
By the time we got back to the car it was around 3:30pm and time to head off back to the cottage. There was a bit of a detour on the way back as we headed inland off the A69 to seek out Whelbirksks Ice-Cream Parlour; a little gem in the area with many flavours of ice-cream and a lovely orchard to sit in whilst you enjoyed your treat. Just a pity that there was a brisk cold wind whilst sat there, so a little challenging when eating ice-cream.
We arrived back to the cottage a little after 5pm, we had walked 6.5 miles today so looking forward to a shower and to put our feet up.
Comments
Post a Comment