Weather Report Overcast with sunny periods. Dry - well I at least avoided the forecast showers and the wind finally died away. Prompt departure as the campsite gates opened at 7am. Hurried (within speed limit of course) down to Alnwick where I spent best part of an hour taking photographs particularly of the castle and river. Also of the flat where I lived briefly in 1975. Leaving Alnwick I took the road heading south west through delightful moorland scenery. In a couple of miles I pulled off and parked close to some crags where I used to lunch while teaching in [View Full Entry]

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Weather Report Wind, wind and more wind ! Very rough night - surprised tent still in one piece. Encountered quite a few showers although some sunny spells. Apparently the campsite experienced frequent showers so I made the right decision to go inland. Set-off about 7:15 and found my way to Chillingham - home to the famous wild cattle. Unsurprisingly the grounds were not open at that time and despite peering under / through / over a number of hedges could find no sign of the beast. Continued onto Charlton Moor which is a small upland area north of Alnwick between the [View Full Entry]

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Weather Report Windy, windy, windy ! Showers. Incredible wind from the west threatened to remove camp site into the North Sea and send my tent into orbit. Most of the evening and continuing into the early hours of the following morning was spent hold on to the tent frame. Drove out to Wooler and spent twenty minutes wandering around the small market town. Drove short distance west of the town to Yed Gefrin the site of a seventh century palace and religious centre. Not much to see - a good imagination is required. Then drove into Wooler Common along a steep [View Full Entry]

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Weather Report Dry with prolonged sunny spells - surprisingly good. Wind increasing later. Headed north along the coast past Bamburgh and its majestic castle before dropping down to the attractive and little visited Budle Bay. From there headed west of the A1 and explored the little known Kyloe Hills. Very attractive with sensational views east to the coast and west across central Northumberland to the Cheviots. Continued north west and made my way to Ford where I took some pictures of the castle and then drove via Heatherslaw Mill to Etal a pretty village with the remains of a mediev [View Full Entry]

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Weather Report Dry, warm with long sunny periods. Telephoned the people who run the trips to the Farne Islands about 8AM and booked myself on the all day trip. Drove the two miles to Seahouses, parked and walked down to the quayside where I paid for my boat ticket and boarded the ship. Well small fishing boat would be more accurate. The islands are only a couple of miles offshore but we took the scenic route looking at cliffs, bird and seal colonies. After about an hour we landed on Staple Island where we were to stay for a couple of [View Full Entry]

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Weather Report Well it started off mediocre, deteriorated by mid-afternoon and by late afternoon the rain, wind and low temperature would have done justice to winter. Really miserable. Decamped and set off from Barnard Castle shortly after 8am. Made for Hamsterley Forest and took some photographs in that area. Then came the nearest I have been to an accident. Fortunately descending a winding hill at snails pace I came around a blind bend to find a vintage car coming towards me on my side of the road with horse and rider on the far side. The vc and I managed to [View Full Entry]

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Weather Report Yet another overcast humid day. Dry and warm(ish) but again little sun and generally poor light. Finally decided that should do something about car tyres that were beginning to resemble racing slicks. Drove into Bishop Auckland and found the local Kwik-Fit. An hour later I was less affluent but endowed with better grip ! With my new car I spent what was left of the day exploring Allendale which is not only an attractive part of the Durham / Northumberland border but was once a significant industrial area with lead mining being particularly important. Also of course it w [View Full Entry]

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Weather Report Overcast to start with deteriorating quickly to low cloud and drizzle. Eventually lifted although most of the day was cloudy with little seen of the sun until late afternoon. Warm(ish). Not for the first time set off for Alston and changed direction. Saw a sign indicating Grasmere Reservoir only a mile or so off track so took the invitation and headed up there. Surprising at an hour before 8am the centre was open. It was primarily aimed at the fishing fratermity so perhaps that was not surprising. There were already a few working along the banks of the attractive [View Full Entry]

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Weather Report Little Change … overcast with sun eventually breaking through. A little less humid. Set off for Durham arriving shortly before 830. parked in the park and Ride and took the bus (£1.70 !!!!) into city centre. Wandered through the small centre taking some pics although this is very much an area ruined by traffic. Get it out !!!!! Walked along the more peaceful river bank and then onto the cathedral which of course I have visited many times. Photos not allowed - I guess you can appreciate their reason so I paid the £3 and walked the 309 steps [View Full Entry]

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Overcast start - and not just because of the laptop. Have not heard the forecast so unsure what the day holds. First part proved to be overcast with occasional light drizzle - nothing serious. Gradually warmed up and sun broke through in the early afternoon. Set off towards the coast and wandered across the southern part of County Durham and the outskirts of Darlington. Reached the coast shortly before midday - well Teesside to be precise. This in fact is one of the most industrialised parts of the country with the ICI chemical works dominating the scene. In the midst of [View Full Entry]

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