29 September 2007 - Amble, Northumberland Coast.

A sunny but cold day at Amble saw waves crashing over the end of the pier and breakwater, helped by a brisk north east wind and a very high tide.

There will have been rougher seas here but we haven't seen waves as good as this and it was a spectacular sight, with plenty of people out to watch. Apart from a few kids who got soaked, nobody was running the gauntlet along the breakwater today as there were few breaks between the waves.

28 September 2007 - River Blyth.

At the end of a dull week we visited Blyth South Beach and Harbour to take some photos for our Northumberland Photos website. The wind was blowing strongly from the North East and combined with one of the highest tides of the year it made the sea quite rough.

In the first photo below a yacht was sailing up the River Blyth and being blasted by a strong side wind. The second photo shows anglers on the end of the West Pier also being blasted by the cold wind, despite their wind breaks tied to the fence. The third photo is a view looking through the East Pier over rough seas to a cargo ship that was anchored outside the river.

18 September 2007 - Newbiggin-by-the-Sea, Northumberland Coast.

The beach at Newbiggin on the Northumberland Coast is being reinstated following many years of erosion and a new breakwater has been built, complete with a sculpture. We decided to make a visit to see what it looked like.

The beach looks great, hopefully the breakwater will keep it that way. There will no doubt be many views on what the breakwater looks like. We like the sculpture but not it's location.

Here are three photos of the beach, breakwater and sculpture.

16 September 2007 - River Tyne - Visit of QE2.

Today saw the visit of the QE2 to the river Tyne for the first time (a visit last year was aborted due to weather) It looked like the same would happen this year but the ship finally entered the River Tyne at the fourth attempt.

Fireworks greeted the QE2 as she entered the river about 7pm in some brief sunshine, but many of the thousands who had lined the banks of the River Tyne had gone home by then after waiting in the rain.

The ship was followed up the river by a flotilla of tugs and small craft and was met by more fireworks further upstream in the quickly fading light.

Below are three photos of the QE2 entering the River Tyne and making her way upstream.

10 September 2007 - South Shields.

Today we visited the Roman Fort of Arbeia at South Shields. It is strange to see a Roman Fort in the middle of a large residential area. There is much excavation going on and parts of the fort including the entrance gate and barracks have been reconstructed. This is unlike most other Roman Forts that are left as low level foundations in most cases. It is very interesting and well worth a visit.

We also visited the Town Centre and Market - one of the few in the area still worth calling a market.

Below are photos of the entrance gate at Arbeia Roman Fort and South Shields Market.

07 September 2007 - River Tyne, North Shields Fish Quay.

This afternoon we visited the River Tyne at North Shields Fish Quay to take photos for our Tyne Photos Website.

It was a beautiful afternoon and the area around the Fish Quay was very busy with people enjoying the views along the River Tyne, as well as fish and chips. There are always plenty of ships and boats coming and going along the river and always something happening.

Shortly after we arrived the car and passenger ferry Queen of Scandinavia was leaving the river under a perfect blue sky. It is seen in the photo below passing the Fish Quay entrance.

Later on in the afternoon the inshore lifeboat was called out to a boat whose engine had failed and is seen in the second photo being towed past Herd Groyne up the River Tyne to safety.

05 September 2007 - Amble, Northumberland Coast.

An evening around the harbour at Amble while the nights are still light enough. The dredger which has been working at the harbour was still moored beside the ice making plant.

The dredger glowed nicely in the evening sun, as did the fishing boat Aspire, seen here passing by on it's way in.

A little later the sunset produced an effect on the horizon that looked like a forest fire as it shone below a layer of cloud.

© Copyright - All photos on this website are subject to copyright and may not be reproduced on any website or in print without prior permission. To use any photo please use the enquiry form at les-bell.com

© Copyright - All photos on this website are subject to copyright and may not be reproduced on any website or in print without prior permission.

To use any photo please use the enquiry form at les-bell.com