The Geordie Tourist.: Beach

Muggy Skies and Beach Days.

Beach 02:35

It’s been a while since I had a little beach visit. Now probably doesn’t seem like the best time to go considering the freak weather we seem to be having. I mean I know April is known for showers, but I doubt they mean snow showers.

I didn’t let it get me down though. Between the heavy rain and spats of sunshine, a walk along the sand didn't seem so bad, I jumped in the car with my best bud Nic for a day of ‘whatever the hell we fancy’. You ever have those days when you just want to go somewhere and you don’t really plan it out, it just kind of unfolds as the hours pass by. Yeah one of those days…

We walked along Tynemouth beach. I tried to be all arty and clever by taking photos of shells. Judge them for yourself, I think I need a bit more practice. There was a ship on the horizon in the distance and it’s pretty much been the backdrop to every picture I took. I’m not complaining though, it was a good focal point. (Look at me trying to be all professional.)

When the cold got too much we headed to the Bluereef Aquarium to let our inner child out. Nic is obsessed with sea life and well, who would say no to looking at brightly coloured fish and strange creatures?

We stopped for lunch at Brown's Salt House too.

After that we headed over to Cullercoats Bay for a quick wander before returning to the car where the 4hr parking ticket was about to run out. I couldn’t believe how fast the time went.

They tide was out and I love how the grittiness of the black looks against the sand. Obviously we had to take the compulsory foot selfie. I promise I own other shoes besides these grey converse that are in every picture. (They're just my favourites.)

We reminisced about school trips and sitting on the massive steps. We walked along the peer, Nichola pretending she was on a catwalk. Me, trying not to get too close to the edge. (I hate heights.) There’s no denying the views from up high are something else though. I love the little houses and how seaside village they look.

The sky looked crazy, almost as if it was falling down. Maybe that's just my mad mind talking. The effect looked cool though. My little boat friend in the distance.

It was a great little day. I love being next to the coast and just listening to the waves and having a leisurely stroll. It's relaxing and calm and seems to make my worries just float away. You know I'm a nature freak so maybe that has something to do with it.

I urge you all to get out there and explore, if it's sunny, great, if not, wrap up warm. It will definitely be worth it...

Where is your favourite beach spot in the North East?

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A Visit to King Edward's Bay.

Beach 04:01

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Explore Cullercoats Bay.

Beach 02:48

Cullercoats Bay is the beach of my childhood. I remember days out with school, the picnics and the cold water as we played for hours on end, jumping over the waves. I remember the steps and the little lagoons that would form by the entrances of the caves that are there, the games of mermaids that I would play with my cousins. I honestly hadn't been in years, but when it was finally October and thus dog friendly I just had to go and walk on the sands again.

The place is gorgeous. You have big cliffs at one side, and there are caves that if you’re brave enough, you can have a little wander inside. I’m not sure if they go that far, but still. There are a couple of piers that you can walk along. The view from them is quite amazing. They have the huge steps next to the life guard hut and honestly just thinking about the place always fills me with nostalgia. I think it’s my most perfect favourite beach spot in the North East. It’s simple and easy and just…well I could go on and on, but I won’t.

So I went with Lillian (My mother) and we took Poppy so she could just run around and play with the other doggies. Anyone else that has a pooch will know the struggles when you go on to a beach. It’s like doggy day care. Every dog and their mother are out and sometimes when you have a runaway dog; it’s a bit of a nightmare. Poppy is much better now though, and comes back when we call…most of the time.

We wandered on the beach for a while before stopping off at Beaches and Cream for a hot chocolate. Oh My God! I’m dying to go inside Beaches and Cream and just go crazy with my camera. The place looks fabulous, even the pastel bunting outside has me all giddy. One of these days I will do it. I just have to.

The weather started off pretty cloudy, and then by mid-afternoon it was like a summers day. We went for chips and then explored some of the rock pools for a bit. I love a bit of rock pooling. I just don’t think there’s an age when you don’t like it anymore. In fact I refuse to believe it.

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Tynemouth: The Outdoor Pool and Other Stories.

Beach 07:03

Way back in January when I started writing this blog, one of the first posts I wrote was about a trip to Tynemouth that I took with my best pal Nic and my pooch Poppy. Fast forward eight months or so, and were in exactly the same place, but only not.

It’s strange, you can visit somewhere, and then go back even just the very next day and it most probably won’t be the same experience. There will always be something different. Maybe you go to a different part of the beach (which we did) maybe the weather was different. (It was) My point being that, no two days are exactly the same and even if you go to somewhere that you've been before, chances are you’ll see something you missed the first time around.

It’s still the time of year when the dog can’t venture onto certain parts of the beach so for the most part we just took a stroll along the path instead. We came to the massive ruined swimming pool. (You know the one.) Even in its abandoned state, I can’t help but fall in love with it.

I remember ages ago we visited once when it was getting dark, the tide was quite far in and just walking around the outside of it was so scary. The water was black and murky and I imagined all sorts of horrible creatures lurking inside of it. (That’s the beauty of it though.) I love the ruins, the flaky paint. I like watching over the sides as the waves crash against it. It’s soothing in a weird kind of way.

I had this idea in my head that it would be amazing if the pool got renovated. I can’t imagine anything better than a pool at the beach. (It just blows my mind if I’m honest.) So I decided to have a little look online and I stumbled upon a page for the Tynemouth Outdoor Pool. It turns out that there’s an ongoing project to try and help bring the pool back to its former glory. You can get involved too, whether volunteering your services, or some spare change etc. It’s worth a read, seeing what is actually going on, what the Friends of the Tynemouth Outdoor Pool hope to achieve. It all sounds rather exciting. They have a Twitter and Facebook if you want to keep up with their progress etc.

After the excitement of the pool, further along we found a little abandoned spot where Poppy could just run around and be a dog for a bit. Nic and I just sat on the rocks and felt present in the moment. Life is full of these moments. Most of the time we’re too busy to realise that, but every once in a while it’s just good to sit back and take it all in.

From where we were we had a great view of the Tynemouth Castle and Priory in the background and you could also see King Edward’s Bay. I, up until that moment didn't know there was such a thing as Tynemouth Priory. You can bet that we walked straight over there when we were done, to see what it was all about.

I've also never set foot onto sand at King Edward's Bay whilst we're on the subject. A new fish shack has just opened up there too which I'm dying to check out.

You can see what happened when we visited the Tynemouth Priory and Castle tomorrow.

Have any of you been to Tynemouth recently?

What do you think about the outdoor pool getting an overhaul?

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