Ross Back Sands

Ross Back Sands, Looking towards the Farne Islands, Northumberland
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Lindesfarne Bay

Although it’s only Thursday; today is the last day of my holiday. Tomorrow I’ll be leaving the rest of my family here, whilst I travel back home by train. All this so that I can make it back in time to fly off on my next holiday! But that’s another story!

The beach was bathed in bright sunshine, whist the sky over the Farne Islands had turned almost black.

As the weather isn’t great, I decide to stay at the cottage today and get a final bird watching fix. So whilst everyone else heads off in different directions I head down to the bird hide. Here I spend the morning watching the tide slowly come in. This does push a few waders towards me, but in truth there aren’t that many out there. But when the birds don’t deliver, there’s always something else to see.

Ross Back Sands, Looking towards Lindesfarne, Northumberland
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In the centre of the bay I can make out what looks like a mound of rocks. But when I look closer, the rocks seem to be on the move. What I can actually see are hundreds of seals, resting on the sand. Here they stay until the water finally covers them and they can swim away.

The peace is suddenly shattered by a helicopter flying out towards Lindisfarne. My immediate thought is that it must be an air ambulance or a police helicopter responding to an emergency. Indeed as I scan the island I can see a couple of police cars near the castle. But something isn’t quite right as the people getting out don’t look like medics or police officers. One is clearly a woman, trying to stop her skirt flying up. I suddenly remember someone mentioning that Prince Edward was supposed to be visiting Lindesfarne this week. If this is him arriving, they don’t really need any crowd control measures. I can’t see anyone apart from the police officers.

The Lindesfarne Causeway, Northumberland
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Just as I’m getting used to the peace and quiet again, I hear an approaching vehicle. That’s odd, because I’m nowhere near a road, just a farm track. I peer out of the hide to discover a couple of English Nature wardens. They seem surprised to see me. This is apparently because the hide has only just been opened and no one really knows about it yet. Lucky me!

I finally returned to the cottage because I was hungry. The weather was also deteriorating so it made sense to call it a day. Mum and Dad clearly had the same idea, arriving just as I finished my lunch.

Double Rainbow over Lindesfarne Bay, Northumberland
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Ross Back Sands

But I hadn’t quite had enough. One of the best features of Northumberland has to be its beautiful beaches. So far the only one I had visited was the tiny one in the harbour at Seahouses. I therefore decided that despite the rain, I would go for a walk to visit the huge navigational obelisks at Ross Beach.

This wasn’t as straightforward as it could have been, because you can’t actually walk around the coast to get there. Still off I went, walking along the local lanes until I reached a little group of houses at Ross. This was where the road ran out and the footpath truly began. Secretly I was beginning to wish I’d accepted a lift from my Dad!

Lindesfarne Causeway, Northumberland
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The footpath takes you across Ross Links. Although there is a footpath, clearly the local landowners would prefer walkers not to be there. There are stern notices everywhere telling me where I can and cannot go. At first I find myself walking through sandy flat fields, but these are slowly replaced by sand dunes. Just as I’m beginning to wonder where the beach has gone; I’m there.

It may have been wet and windy, but I had a fantastic white sandy beach all to myself. In front of me I could just make out the distant Farne Islands. Whilst I had Lindisfarne Castle to my left and Bamburgh Castle to my right. As I gazed out to sea I watched Gannets plunging into the sea at breakneck speed.

Ross Back Sands, Northumberland
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Despite the beauty of my surroundings, I was getting worried about the approaching black clouds behind me. It looked like a storm was brewing and I was a long way from shelter. Suddenly there was an enormous crash of thunder. Or at least that’s what it sounded like. As I looked round I saw a jet plane vanishing into the distance. The RAF obviously like to use this stretch of coastline to practice low level flying. They kept buzzing me, making me jump out of my skin each time.

In the end I thought I should head back, but as I made it up onto the sand dunes, the sun began to come out. In fact as I looked up into the sky the edge of the bad weather was just moving away towards Bamburgh. On a hunch I went back down to the beach and was treated to a fantastic sight. The beach was bathed in bright sunshine, whist the sky over the Farne Islands had turned almost black. It was one of those moments in life where you happen to be in the right place at the right time and witness something truly special. Far from leaving; I spent the next half an hour mesmerised by the view. Who would have thought that such an unpromising afternoon would have such a remarkable outcome?

Walking home was a totally different experience. Off came my coat and on went my sunglasses. I wasn’t fixed on my final destination anymore and could concentrate on my surroundings. As a result I spotted the hares in the adjacent fields. Slowly and carefully I stalked my prey, until I managed to get within six feet of one. It was a fantastic treat, I’ve only seen hares a couple of times back home.

The Lindesfarne Causeway

My last day in Northumberland had been a really memorable one and I would have been quite happy if it had ended then. But I had one more treat in store. Mum wanted to go down to the Lindesfarne causeway in the evening, to see the tide coming back in. Unfortunately it started to rain as we drove down, but we parked up regardless and waited for the water to cover the road. In the end the rain eased up a bit and I decided to wander down to the waters edge anyway. Reluctantly Mum followed, mainly to keep an eye on me!

The sea was as still as a mill pond and I couldn’t resist paddling down the causeway. Mum thought I was mad, but strangely the water really wasn’t cold. I think she was actually more worried about the tide coming in behind us.

Suddenly the sun began to break through the clouds and a double rainbow formed across Lindesfarne. As we watched, it grew brighter and more intense. It was breathtaking! A few other brave souls had also come down to the waters edge and we were all blown away by the spectacle. I had brought my camera with me and snapped away frantically. Dad hadn’t bothered to bring his because it was raining – he is such a pessimist! Unfortunately, although I had brought my camera I had forgotten spare batteries. Still I managed to keep going until we reluctantly made our way back home.