Hauxley

 

I reached Hauxley again today, but this time I started from Alnwick and used the cycle path along the Aln Valley Railay to connect with NCN1 at Hipsburn. Parts of this route were on main roads. but traffic on a Sunday was fairly light, so didn't cause much of a problem.

 

Along the coast there was a bit of a tailwind on the way out, and a headwind on the way back. Otherwise it was calm, dry, and mostly sunny. There were several walkers and cyclists enjoying the weather, and Amble was busy with the Sunday market on the quayside. Everyone seemed to be in a good mood.

  

We regularly walk the path along the Aln Valley Railway, but it's a long time since I've cycled it, so that was a bit of novelty. To reach the railway on the return journey I had to climb the gradient from Hipsburn, past Alnmouth Station to Bilton. I anticipated that this would be too difficult for me to ride up. and expected a walk. But in the event I managed it. So that was a pleasant surprise. Also, hedges have now burst into life but they've been trimming them on the road to Warkworth Beach. As a result a wartime pillbox has been exposed. I've passed this numerous times, without noticing it. There are surprises even on familiar parts of a route.

 

Seahouses, Spindelstone, Lucker, Ellingham, Beadnell

 

My book of suggested rides rates today's loop as "Easy". 

The Easter weekend is coming up and there was quite a bit of traffic near the coast, but almost all of the ride was on very quiet back roads. Indeed one section is hardly a road at all - more of a farm track. I thought I must have had drifted off my intended route, and double checked. I don't think I had made a mistake though.

As far as gradients go, it was mostly gently rolling countryside. Rolling enough to give the impression that I was practicing some gentle climbs without becoming much of a challenge. The only exception was between Ellingham and Chathill. Near Preston there's a drop to cross Long Nanny, then a climb back up again. But that was just a quirk. 

At Spindlestone the bridge across Waren Burn is currently closed to traffic. For a moment I thought I'd made a mistake when I ignored the Diversion signs. But there's a temporary footbridge, so it wasn't a problem on a bike. 

It would be perverse not to mention that the route passes Bamburgh Castle. But a series of less famous landmarks also deserve a mention. It's worth looking out for Spindlestone Ducket (pictured), St Hilda's Church at Lucker, St John the Baptist at Ellingham and the Corrugated Iron building at Chatton (which I think was a Reading Room). I deviated from the recommended route for a coffee stop at Beadnell. So I can also include St Ebba's Church and the old AA box on the B1340. There's probably more.

The day was dry and sunny. The wind was cold, and quite strong near the coast, but inland it was never much of a problem. 

"Easy" really doesn't do justice to this route. I'd be doing it again. And I don't object to paying for a Car Park. But the charges for a few hours at Seahouses are pretty steep. Next  time I will try to find an alternative starting point.

 

 

Hipsburn to Druridge Bay and back

 

The NCN1 cycle path along the Northumberland coast is fairly level. I'm not keen on hills, so for me that's part of the appeal. But the off-road section between Lesbury and Warkworth is 30m or so above sea level. That means a short climb from the River Aln at Lesbury. Then at Warkworth the route drops to cross the River Coquet, rises to pass the Castle, then drops again to river level on the way to Amble.

This is a regular route for me, and on a return jouney, that means there are four climbs to negotiate. These days I expect to manage the climb at Hipsburn without getting off and pushing. But until today I've never managed all three at Warkworth. So it was a highlight on today's ride to manage all four climbs on this route without getting off and pushing. That's the first time I've done it.

There was a noticeable wind today, but it was blowing mostly from the west, and quite gusty. So not a great problem in practice. 

At the end of March I've reached my highest monthly mileage this year. Neither my frequency of rides, nor my average speed is quite where I hoped, but both have increased. As well as the successful climbs, today's ride has bumped up my Eddington Number. The sun shone, and the air was warmer than it has been recently. So a very pleasant day.

Hipsburn to Dunstan and back

It's seventeen years since I rode National Cycle Route 1 from Newcastle to Edinburgh. This year I'm gradually revisiting the Northumberland section. Last time I covered this in one go, in one direction, over a few days. Now I'm now riding it in both directions, in short sections, over several months. 

Bit by bit I've already covered quite a lot of the section between the Tyne and Seahouses. Some of it I've ridden in both directions, and some of it several times. However, there are also some parts that I have yet to revisit. Today I was able to plug one of the local gaps by riding from Hipsburn to Dunstan and back.

It was a bit of a grey day. A cold wind was blowing off-shore, but that only had a noticeable effect on progress when the route departed from the coast. I expected the climb out of Alnmouth to be a bit of a challenge. In the event I was pleased (and quite surprised) to manage it without having to get off and push. The rest of today's route is fairly flat. So this was a relatively speedy ride (by my standards).

Between Boulmer an Howick there's a choice between an on-road and an off-road option. I've ridden parts of the off-road option in the past, and walk it quite often. I cleaned the bike yesterday and at this time of year I'd expect the off-road option to be quite wet and clarty. Also, at this time of year, on the roads, the volume of visitor traffic is only just starting to build up. So today I decided to stick with the on-road option in both directions.

I didn't have anything that resembled a plan, but there were several alternatives for a refreshment break when I felt like one. The Arch Cafe just outside Craster is more-or-less at today's half-way point. So that seemed a sensible choice. It turned out to be a good one.

In sumamry, a very pleasant ride. But lacking in anything that I need to bring to the attention of the world. Except for this UFO Monitoring Station just outside Alnmouth.

 

 

Millfield, Ford, Crookham, Branxton, Mindrum

 

Maelmin Henge is just outside Millfield. It's a reconstruction of the nearby Milfield North Henge: one of several henge monuments in the Till Valley that date from the Later Neolithic and Early Bronze Age.

Today's ride started in Millfield, then passed through a series of small settlements: Ford, Crookham, Branxton and Mindrum.

Apart from Maelmin Henge I took in the site of the Battle of Flodden, which was fought outside Branxton in 1513. The Church of St Michael and All Angels at Ford dates from the 13th Century, and was heavily restored by John Dobson in 1853. There has been a mill at Heatherslaw since 1291. The current one was restored and re-opened in 1975, but was closed today.  For more local history I could have made a brief diversion via the 14th Century Etal Castle. But enough is enough.

Part of my route followed NCN68 - the Pennine Cycle Way. The two sections on the A697 were both very brief and traffic wasn't a problem. The rest of the ride was on quiet country lanes. 

Once again I chose a route that is more hilly than I'm used to. On my personal scale of difficulty I couldn't rate this as an "Easy" ride. Others describe it as "Moderate", but I'd have to rate it as more difficult than that. "Challenging"  would be putting it too strongly. I'd like to rate it as "Satisfying", but for now, I think I'll settle on "Demanding".

Around Warkworth

 

Yesterday I came across a  book of Cycle Routes in Northumberland and Tyneside. It's given me ideas. Some of them are routes that are new to me. Some are variations on routes that are already familiar. 

Today I tried a variation on my regular route between Hipsburn and Warkworth. Normally I follow NCN1 there and back, but this variation takes me further inland. 

One of the highlights is this ford west of Warkworth. I've ridden through this before. But that was some years ago and at the time the river was much lower. I wasn't going to attempt it today. For a while I thought I would have to turn back, but then I realised that there's a footbridge a hundred yards or so downstream. So I used that and continued on. 

My plan would then have taken me through Guyzance and Shilbottle. However, it was turning out to be quite a bit more hilly than I'm used to. So I decided to take a shortcut through Sturton Grange.

Despite the shortcut, this looks like a route that's worth another visit. It crosses an area that I don't know well. It's an area that's worth exploring. It won't do me any harm to get more practice across landscape that is less than flat. And it's an attractive route along quiet country roads.

Amble to Cambois

With a diversion through Newbiggin today's ride took me from Amble to Cambois and back along NCN1.

The cycle path isn't far from a number of former collieries and colliery villages. At each end are ports used for export of coal. Between Hauxley and Cresswell is a series of nature reserves created from the results of coal mining. East Chevington nature reserve was passed to Northumberland Wildlife Trust following opencast restoration. Hauxley Nature Reserve was originally part of Radcliffe open-cast mine. Druridge Pools are a former opencast coal mine. Cresswell Pond is the result of subsidence from collapsed mine works.

Cambois is a former colliery village on the north side of the River Blyth. The colliery closed in 1968. That left access to a deep-sea port, a skilled work force, a rail network and coal was still available from nearby collieries. So from 1970 aluminium ore from overseas was landed here and taken by rail to a smelter at Lynemouth. Electricity was generated at Lynemouth power station, which burnt coal from Lynemouth and Ellington Collieries.

Lynemouith Colliery closed in 1994 and Ellington Colliery in 2005. Lynemouth power station could continue to burn coal sourced from elsewhere, but from 2004 biomass was introduced into the mix, and the power station has relied entirely on biomass since 2015. However, the Lynemouth smelter was now un-economic, and it closed in 2012. Alumina is still imported, and transferred by rail to Lochaber Aluminium Smelter near Fort William on the west coast of Scotland. Lochaber is powered by a hydro-electric scheme.

Lynemouth Power-station now supplies the national grid. But the former coal yards are no longer needed. In 2021 plans were approved for a factory on the site that would manufacture batteries for electric cars. However, construction ceased in 2024 as a result of funding difficulties. In 2025 plans were approved for a datacentre on the site.

This isn't the most beautiful part of Northumberland, but a memorable experience today was watching a family of deer at Druridge Bay Country Park. Happily grazing alongside the cycle track, they were clearly aware that a couple of us were nearby, but they seemed quite relaxed. Eventually they wandered off. The track through the country park is well-used by walkers and cyclists and presumably the deer get used to seeing people. There are different ways of adapting to the area's complex industrial history.

Till: we meet again

 

 

Part of the rationale for getting a folding bike was that I could avoid climbs by putting it in the boot of the car and heading out for flat rides in areas that are less hilly than our immediate surroundings. The plan has worked, but after a few months I felt ready for something a bit more demanding. At the weekend I tried routes around Wooler, but the weather wasn't great and that turned into a short, cold ride with showers of rain and hail. 

Three days later the weather today was a big improvement. So I headed back to Wooler to attempt something more ambitious. I began by revisiting Weetwood and Fowberry. Instead of turning back I then headed for Chatton. Then on to Chillingham, where I had a break outside St Peter's Church. I continued south, almost as far as Old Bewick. Then back via Lilburn Tower. I wanted to avoid riding along the busy A697 so I had intended to head north through Haugh Head. However, I missed the turning. A short stretch along the A697 wasn't as bad as I feared, then I was back on quiet country lanes and the Pennine Cycleway through North Middleton, and Coldgate Mill.

Highlights of the ride were the quiet roads, a variety of fords and old bridges, and great views across lovely countryside. The hedges haven't started to blossom yet, but spring is definitely in the air. I couldn't have asked for better weather. I was looking for something a bit more demanding than usual, and this certainly wasn't as flat as I've been used to. But for a ride of just over twenty miles, it felt more demanding than I intended. I'm not ashamed of getting off and pushing. But really, a bit more practice across similar terrain  is called for. 

Bridges

 

It's been a bit of a gap since my last ride because I've been busy decorating. In the process of clearing the room I discovered a leaflet of cycle routes around Wooler. That sent a pretty clear signal of where I should head for my next ride. So today I headed for Wooler.

The point of a folding bike was that I could stick it in the boot of the car, or take it on public transport to places that weren't hilly. So I'm getting used to easy flat rides. Wooler isn't like that. Some of the routes suggested in this leaflet are described as "strenuous". But I picked one that was described as "moderate". I expected something a bit more demanding than what I'm used to. What I didn't anticipate were the hailstorms.

I was mostly riding on quiet country lanes. There were more dog-walkers than traffic. Most of them said "hello" or "good afternoon". Which was nice. One said "What a lovely afternoon". She wasn't being ironic. I wonder what weather they've been experiencing recently around Wooler.

In summary: Several nice bridges, including Weetwood (thought to have been built in the 16th century, with alterations in 1775) and Fowberry (pictured). More gradients than I'm used to. Interesting weather. In the end I cut it short and only covered 10 miles of a longer route. Still, it was a good ride.

Northumberland Coalfield

 

 

Today I covered a slice through the Northumberland Coalfield. Starting in Newbiggin-on-sea, riding through Ashington to Pegswood then returning through Bothal and Woodhorn to Newbiggin. 

NCN 155 runs from Newbiggin-on-sea to Morpeth. The whole route is less than 8 miles long, but I only followed it for about 5 miles, as far as Pegswood. That section is pretty flat. The only real challenge is following twists and turns through Ashington. On the route back, for variety, I deviated from NCN 155 to visit Bothal then Woodhorn.

Newbiggin-on-sea has history as a fishing port and colliery town but today it mainly has the character of a small seaside resort Today was a sunny Saturday. It followed what feels like endless days of rain. Despite the cold, lots of people were out. Newbiggin-on-sea claims to have the longest promenade in Northumberland and it was buzzing with activity.

A short section of NCN 155 took me to Ashington. Until the 1840s Ashington was a tiny hamlet. But it lies above several layers of coal seams. In the second half of the 19th century the Duke of Portland built housing to attract people to come and work at his multiple local collieries. Ashington expanded rapidly to become the "world's largest pit village". The coal industry declined rapidly in the 1970's and 80's but the long parallel rows of colliery housing remain. The loss of employment hit the town hard, and parts still show the scars. But former industrial land has been reclaimed, private housing has expanded. Ashington station reopened to passenger services at the end of 2024. It feels as though a different town is emerging.

Next, on to Pegswood. This is a small pit village, with a similar history of growth, decline and recent regeneration. Perhaps the most striking feature is this sculpture, officially called 'Fire', but also known as "Robin of Pegswood", it depicts a bronze figure on a steel girder firing a miner's shovel as though it was a bow and arrow. The landowner, Welbeck Estates, has associations with Nottingham. Hence the link to Robin Hood.

My next destination was Bothal, a small estate village that lies deep in the valley of the river Wansbeck. The village history has always been closely tied to the families who owned the estate. The castle (pictured top) contains the administrative offices for the Welbeck Estate, which owns virtually all properties in the village.

It's a steep climb out of Bothal, but there's no shame in pushing. On to Woodhorn, where the colliery closed in 1981. The site is now home to Northumberland Archives and the Woodhorn Museum which depicts the work and lives of local mining families, and art created by the Ashington Group of painters. The pithead gear is currently covered in scaffolding as repair works start thanks to a grant from Historic England of almost £1million. I would have liked to take a closer look but I wasn't prepared to pay the entrace fees. So I pressed on to Newbiggin-on-Sea, where I pootled around the back streets, doing a bit of exploring before calling it a day.

The weather was cold, but not too cold. There's still a lot of water on the fields and some on the roads, including one quite exciting splash though a deep flood. However, today's blue sky was a very welcome change. Total distance covered was just over 15 miles.

Four stations

 

Starting and ending in Embleton, on today's ride I covered 18 miles. If I'd followed this route a century ago I would have ridden past four stations.

1. The first would have been Christon Bank Station. This lies just outside Embleton but for some reason was named after a nearby farm rather than the village. It opened in 1847 and closed in 1965. In addition to a limited volume of passenger traffic the station also carried whinstone from the nearby Embleton Quarry. The two were linked by a narrow gauge tramway. More details <here>.
2. The second would have been Fallodon which opened in 1847 and closed in 1934. Only a mile or so from Christon Bank, this was another complete station with two platforms, name boards and a station house. But it was never intended for the general public. They used Christon Bank Station. Fallodon was solely for the use of the Grey family, their guests and their servants. The Grey family also had a private station at Little Mill: four miles south, close to the other family seat at Howick Hall. At the time, the proprietor of Fallodon Hall was Sir George Grey, who was Home Secretary. The passage of the Newcastle & Berwick Railway Bill through Parliament was eased by providing him with a private station and the right to stop any public train. More details <here>.
3. The third was Chathill Station (pictured above). This opened in 1847. At the time there four passenger trains called every weekday in both directions. Now there are only two services each way on a weekday and none on Sunday. The station building is now a private house. It is listed, Grade-2, but the station is unstaffed and has no ticket facilities or other amenities.
4. From 1898 Chathill Station was the south-western terminus of the North Sunderland Railway. This was built to serve the harbour at Seahouses. The line was rarely profitable and a proposed extension to Bamburgh was never constructed. It was taken over by the LNER in 1939, and closed in 1951. Seahouses station was then demolished. The site where it stood is now the village car park and (importantly on a cold day) also houses the public toilets. For a view of how the North Sunderland line looked about 100 years ago (with its one loco and three coaches) see the Pathe film <here> and more information <here>.

We've had a lot of rain recently. Fields are flooded and ditches over-flowing. But the weather today was an improvement. Some mist, and a noticeable headwind on the return journey. No proper rain, patches of blue sky and even a little sunshine were very welcome. 

Multi-modal

For today's ride I drove to Ashington, took the new Northumberland Line Train to Newcastle then rode back to Ashington Station - mainly along NCN72 (Hadrian Cycleway) and NCN1 (Coast and Castles).

As the train left Ashington there was light rain, but by the time it arrived in Newcastle the sun was just about breaking through. The rain held off until the ride was over and I was in the car heading for home. The sun didn't last though. By the time I reached Whitley Bay there was quite a dense sea fret.

I anticipated the Sunday Market on Tynemouth Station, which provided a good choice of fast food for lunch. I should have anticipated the Sunday Market on Newcastle Quayside. That was really busy, which was nice, but it slowed progress for a while.

I then discovered that my maps of this part of the National Cycle Nework are out of date. There have been some significant improvements since the last time I rode this route. The result was that I drifted away from the correct path on several occasions. Initially I was inclined to blame gaps in the signage. On reflection, a more positive perspective would be to think of this as a great route, with plenty of interest to explore. I have a perfect excuse to repeat the adventure and update my mapping.

Without the unplanned diversions I had expected a ride of just over 30 miles. In practice I covered just over 33 miles. I arrived home tired, but happy after a very satisfying day.

Misty ride

After several days of wind and rain we had a change of weather this morning. No rain. Little wind. Instead it was cold and misty. The ride from Hipsburn  to Amble seemed like a sensible choice because it's mostly off-road. At Amble things were going well, so I continued on to Hauxley. That clocked up just over 14 miles in total, as well as traversing Amble in both directions.

There's a one-way system in the centre of Amble. As a result anyone following the National Cycle Route from South to North will take a less interesting route than those travelling North to South. If they stick to the cycle route they will miss the harbour, Amble's main shopping street, the Town Square, part of the Amble Bord Waalk art trail, and some evidence of Amble's fascinating history. To my mind these are worth a detour.

On the way back to Hipsburn I had a brief chat with a working party from the Walk Wheel Cycle Trust (formerly Sustrans). They had been tidying up the hedges and clearing the path. Important work, for which I thanked them.

Warkworth Cemetery

The wind can be strong near the coast, so its direction makes a difference. Today I faced a fairly strong head wind on the way out. And a tail wind on the way back. A cold wind on the back is nicer than a cold wind in the face.

My ride passed through Warkworth. I was already aware of Warkworth Cemetery and its 19th century chapel, but I had never visited. It lies alongside NCN1, almost hidden behind trees, at the top of the hill on the road to the beach. My return journey was going more quickly than expected, so I went to have look. 

Discovering the view across the town was a highlight of today's ride.

Amble to Lynemouth

 

The section between Newcastle and Berwick-on-Tweed is said to be the most popular part of the Coast and Castles Cycle route that connects Newcastle, Edinburgh and Aberdeen. If that is true, it's for good reason. The 60 miles from Amble to Berwick delivers what it says on the tin. It's full of unspoilt coastline, small fishing ports, the tidal island of Lindisfarne and a choice of castles. The 15 miles between Newcastle and Whitley Bay includes a couple more castles and another five miles of coast. Not as unspoilt as the section further north, but full of interest.

But what about the 30 miles (or so) between Whitley Bay and Amble? That's roughly a third of the distance. It's not as picturesque as the other sections, and it's certainly not unspoilt. But I think it's under-appreciated. It has a complex history. It's full of interest, and I'm now equipped to explore it in some detail. There's no shortage of potential destinations.

Today's ride covers part. At 25 miles it was my longest ride, so far, on the new bike. That was pretty much the point of it. But along the way I enjoyed passing a deer in the woods at Druridge Bay Country park and watching it watching me as I rode past. I found the footpath to Low Chibburn that I missed on a previous attempt. I enjoyed my break at the Drift Cafe in Cresswell. And the late afternoon sun was lovely.

Preston Tower

 

My ride today was from Embleton to Preston Tower, and back. 

The earliest records of Preston Tower date from 1415 and 1499, but Peter Ryder believes that it was originally the defensible south end of a 14th century hall house.  By 1719 it was no longer used as a house, and the tower needed a new roof. In 1799 the house alongside the tower burned down and had to be rebuilt. In 1864 the tower was restored and the clock inserted by Henry Robert Baker Cresswell.

It wasn't a day to hang around, but there are information panels outside, and apparently there's a display inside the tower which sound as though they are worth a return visit.

A lapse of concentration on the way back meant that I missed a turning so the return journey was a bit longer than planned. That resulted in ride of a little over ten miles. Back at Embleton the Old Vicarage is another 14th century house, with a tower constructed c.1390. It was extended by John Dobson in 1828 for Rev. George Grimes. I believe it's now a private house, so can only be viewed from a distance.

Hipsburn to Amble and back

My second ride of the year was on familiar ground. I enjoy the route between Hipsburn and Amble. It's mostly off-road with views of the coast and River Coquet. Usually I meet a few walkers and cyclists, but it's never been busy. 

The section between Warkworth and Amble is mostly a shared-use path that follows the River Coquet. The section between Hipsburn and Warkworth is mostly a shared-use path alongside the A1068 coast road. Navigation through Warkworth is straightforward in both directions. Navigation through Amble is another story, but more of that some other time.

Today the weather was clear and sunny, with temperatures hovering just above freezing. There was some frost and ice on the path. Enough to justify taking things carefully in places, but nothing too problematic. I covered just over 11 miles at a sedate pace.

The sharp-eyed will notice that I've replaced the G-Line standard G-One tyres with Marathon Plus. Between Hipsburn and Warkworth the shared-use path is almost entirely separated from the road by a thorny hedgerow. People say the thorns cause punctures and in my experience the reputation isn't entirely undeserved. I've used Marathon Plus in the past and had very little trouble with thorns. This is likely to be a favoured route in future - so we'll see how these cope.

First ride of the year

 

On thursday I had to take the car to Newcastle for a service so I decided to take the bike for it's initial check at the same time. This was originally planned for Monday but had to be rescheduled after heavy snow.

While I waited for the car to be ready I rode into town, and dropped the bike off. I pottered around for a bit, had some lunch, then collected the bike. I rode down to the quayside then along the Tyne. 

Only eight miles, in total, but it's a start. I had been a bit apprehensive about the weather, the traffic and finding my way round. But all went smoothly. The bike and the car are both fine.