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Seal
...............the missing Tyneside blonde? There was no sign of Lowry or Russians village on Holy Island, but then the Causeway could have been closed when they tried to visit. Holy Island has probably been passed 200 or 300 times in my life on the A1 just to the west and this seemed like a good opportunity to venture that last 5 miles from the main road. The causeway was due to close at 2.00 pm and not re-open until after dark, so we made plans to go across early in the day. It all looks fairly serene at low tide, but in the height of summer you could imagine Mr Tourist panicking as he attempts to get back to his static caravan at Haggerston Castle or the like and makes serious misjudgement as to the waterproof capability of their vehicle………….and becomes more acquainted with a bright yellow chopper than was planned.
It was a Thursday, it was still winter and the kids weren’t on school holiday, but it was still fairly hectic on the approach to the village. We detoured past the official car parks and headed straight into the village to seek our accommodation and a more convenient parking place. We’d opted to
stay at the Crown & Anchor, the pub in the main village square. There are only two pubs on the Island - The Ship and The Crown - so it’s probably not a good plan to get barred from one or both! It obviously wasn’t opened for business when we arrived, so we parked up in the square and wandered off towards the Castle. The Castle is a 15 minute walk and be warned, there are no toilets……….so if you are planning to visit, act accordingly. The Island was a bit of a circus while the Causeway was open and it must be absolutely crazy in the summer, but you could see the mass return to the village and the car park as the deadline moved closer.
The Castle was extensively refurbished in the early 20th century by Edward Luytens on the orders of Edward Hudson (owner of Country Life Managzine), essentially as his private residence and for holiday entertainment purposes. The property now belongs to the National Trust. The main advantage of the visit is to take in the panoramic views from the battlements across the Island, towards Ross Sands and Bamburgh and then inland to the snow
Lamb
.............one of the Island's new arrivals covered Cheviot Hills. We retreated back around the harbour and across via the Priory towards our home for the night. The Crown has 4 rooms above the small bar and dining area - ours had a good view of the Priory. The bar was closing between 3 and 6 pm, but we were informed that should we wish to avail ourselves as residents we were welcome to pull a couple of pints ourselves and settle up later……..with memories of brewery trips in Greymouth flashing back, I surveyed the hand pulled offerings only to find that the Hadrian & Border’s Tyneside Blonde has run out and the Causeway had thwarted another delivery.
We decided against an extensive afternoon session and set off for a long walk to the northern points of the Island. The masses had gone, the village was deserted, The Ship had also closed for the afternoon and we probably only saw 7 or 8 people all afternoon………we thought we might spot the odd seal, but were surprised to see 2 deer skipping about the distance. The beaches on the Island are not up to the fantastic standard of the nearby mainland offerings and all seem to suffer
badly from debris washed up by the winter tides. The rock formations are a bit not so Giants Causeway basalt blocks. We walked back via the bird hide by the lake - nothing very exciting to see or so we thought - until an experienced twitcher surfaced with his telescope and pointed out what was actually on the lake and the vicinity. We skirted the coast following the old rail tracks that took the lime from the quarry to the kilns below the Castle. The old limekilns are liberally scattered along the Northumberland coast - the Holy Island versions are probably the biggest and best preserved.
The tide was well and truly in now and the handful of boats on the harbour were no longer stranded in the mud. A small number of other vessels were beached in amongst a Holy Island practice of using an old overturned boat as a storage shed. The National Trust use a more modern version just below the Castle as offices and displays. We climbed above the harbour and long past the War Memorial into the churchyard by the Priory. The Priory Centre had closed with the tide, but the gate of the
actual Priory had been left open…….we overheard a conversation of disappointment later in the evening, where someone couldn’t get in to see the Priory - they had clearly only walked up the Centre access and seen the Closed sign. We retreated back to our room.
As the Tyneside Blonde had been lost for the evening, we popped round to the Ship for opening time. The Ship seemed a bit more upmarket……..the prices at the bar and the menu……….certainly seemed to reflect wht they perceived as their status. After a couple of pints of Blessed Bitter…….which was very probably just rebranded Hadrian & Border’s Farne Island bitter, we retreated to the more homely and friendly atmosphere of the Crown. The value for money was also significantly better. As a note in the visitor book said…canny pint, canny people……..and they weren’t wrong. The food was good and the Secret Kingdom went down better than anticipated. The Crown seems to be where the locals and workers drink, which probably tells you all you need to know about where to take your refreshment on the Island.
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