From Lindisfarne I took a local bus south to the little town of Bamburgh, dominated by its massive castle and gifted with miles and miles of wide, golden sand beaches. I had a lovely single room in a hotel, high up under the eaves and with a view towards the 12th century Church of St. Aiden, and beyond that the sea. How lucky I am!
After checking in, I stepped out onto the main street, lined with small hotels, pubs, restaurants, and pretty stone cottages that once housed fishermen and their families and which are now largely converted into holiday homes. I walked just a few blocks down the street to this amazing view of Bamburgh Castle.
I had already planned to save my tour of the inside of the castle for the following day, so I walked to the playing field and green, just before the castle, turned left and headed towards the sea with exceptional views of the castle as I passed.
Soon I left the field and was traipsing up and down over small grassy dunes, with the castle behind me and the sea ahead.
Upon reaching the golden sands of the beach, I turned to the south to appreciate this amazing view of the castle and of the long beach stretching ahead, with rain falling in the far distance and a tiny glimpse of Inner Farne with its bright white lighthouse lit by the sun.
I began to walk south, passing in front of the castle and heading towards closer views of Inner Farne.
The clouds and light kept shifting, and the strong wind behind me sent thin rivers of dry sand racing and swirling ahead of me, creating ever-changing patterns of gold against the darker wet sand.
I continued to walk south, exhilarated by the wind, the sea, the light, and the joy of walking.
After several kilometres, I moved closer to the waters edge, looking out towards Inner Farne where St. Cuthbert lived in isolation for many years near the end of his life.
I continued south, and soon began to see the village of Seahouses in the distance, another several kilometres away. You can walk almost the entire 5 km distance from Bamburgh to Seahouses on the beach!
At this point, I turned and headed north back up the beach, and after about a kilometre I was soon appreciating new views of the castle, back-lit by the sun, as I approached.
I decided to climb up into the dune and was delighted to find these gorgeous yellow clematis growing wild amidst the grasses.
I continued along the top of the dunes until I reached a trail that dipped down and led to a small water meadow.
Then I climbed up again, towards the castle, and found a trail that led around the base of the castle walls from the southern side to the western-facing side. There, the stones of the wall and castle were being warmly lit from the low, late-afternoon sun.
The trail ended at the large green playing field where I had started my walk …
and I had to cross the whole of the wide field before I could fit the entire length of the castle into my camera’s field of view.
Feeling a little tired, but very happy with my day, I headed back to my hotel and indulged in the rare treat of a restaurant dinner before retiring early. Tomorrow, the inside of the castle! Good night.
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