I scheduled my usual winter week in Northumberland a week earlier than normal to pick up the best tides. This meant I couldn't stay in my favourite cottage but I found a delightful place in Low Hauxley which was only 100m from the beach. There were building works across the way which could have been a nuisance but weren’t at all. In fact the chaps working there couldn’t have been more helpful when I needed help clearing snow and de-icing my car.
As soon as I arrived I was out to capture sunset which was fine except that there really wasn’t much of one and I definitely didn’t spend enough time studying the wave patterns. It shouldn’t therefore have been a surprise when my wellies were filled with sea water within 15 minutes of my arrival. My feet spent the next 3 days gently steaming whilst they dried out fully.
My other disaster was on the last day when I decided to visit Warkworth Beach with it’s rolling waves and ripply patterned sand. It was very cold and snowing and as I had slipped the previous year on the long steep path leading to the beach I opted out. I then thought it was a good idea to head inland to a waterfall and walk where there was no snow. To cut a very long story short I was forced into a ditch by a large white van that was driving far too fast for the conditions and as I instinctively tugged on the steering wheel my car glided gracefully into a grass verge from which there was no escape. Fortunately there were very helpful locals on hand to get me out but that was the end of my travels for the day. I slithered back to Low Hauxley and stayed firmly on the beach.
I did manage to visit new locations as well as my old favourites and the weather was very kind to me considering what it was like elsewhere in the UK. As I wanted to work with mostly high tides a trip to Lindisfarne didn’t happen and neither did I get to Bamburgh, Harkness or anywhere to the south. However, there was plenty to keep me going at Amble beach, Cocklawburn, Rumbling Kern, Low Hauxley and Cresswell Beach.
