Goodbye to Northumberland

Our week on the Northumberland coast has come to an end - but what  a week it’s been. We’ve seen and done so much - far more than I’ve been able to show on blip. And so I hope you will forgive me if I continue where I left off yesterday……. 

Sunrise over, we head up to Spittal Beach, just south of Berwick. We’re searching for more rock formations and are just in time before the sandstone outcrops are covered by the incoming time. Two days ago, we had the crispy mille fuille layers lower down the coast, but here the swirls are sandstone smooth. The structures and patterns are just gorgeous, desert landscapes in miniature. And the beach itself is stunning - wild waves roaring in against the darkest sky. Amazingly, we’ve just had flurries of short lived snow. 

It’s then on to the mysterious Duddo Stone Circle. It’s a fair walk across farmland, the path often muddy through far better than we’d feared, the five stones clearly visible on a small hill in front of us. Ancient circles are always powerfully mysterious, and though Duddo only consists of five stones it has a fascinating quality all of its own. 

Millenia of erosion have carved the sandstone into weird and wonderful shapes. Some describe them as like rotting teeth, but to me they seem more like gnarled and ancient hands reaching from the earth. 

http://www.stone-circles.org.uk/stone/duddo.htm

Finally, we return to the causeway. We want to witness it flooding with the oncoming tide. For the most part we’re alone, joined briefly by a van whose driver wants to know  whether he has time to get across - despite the fact that the ‘safe time’ has passed. I’m so relieved that he decides against it! 

I love watching the water visibly moving in to cover the road with surprising speed. Our car is parked on one of the turning spaces, and not a moment too soon, we move it off the causeway and just watch. The light is wonderful, glowing off the distant sand dunes, and flocks of birds fly back and forth across the water, catching the sun in their wings. 

It’s time to go - our last Northumbrian adventure over. It’s lunch time and we return to base for a long overdue breakfast/brunch; we need to rest and catch up on some sleep! 

Thursday sees us make our long way home in trepidation of the forecast snow predicted to bring chaos to the roads.  It’s definitely snowing when we drive over Shap Summit - apparently one of the highest points on any motorway in the UK - but for most of the journey it’s just unpleasant heavy rain. We’re just grateful that the weather gods have left this weather for our journey home! 

So thanks for following our week away, and for indulging the daily sets of images. It will come as no surprise that here’s another one! It’s an eclectic mix: the Duddo Stone Circle, the flooded causeway, a flock of flying waders, Spittal’s wonderful sandstone sculptures and a final view of Northumberland’s waves. I’ve completely lost all ability to decide on a main! 

Now it’s time to recover and catch up with your journals!