So we played the obligatory beach games, dug some *massive* holes and paddled in the freezing cold sea. That bit wasn't so Caribbean.
If only the north east would look like this every summer's day...
Showing posts with label beaches. Show all posts
Showing posts with label beaches. Show all posts
02 June 2011
The first day of summer
It was incredibly hot and sunny up at Druridge Bay today - it looked like the middle of the Caribbean. Even the sand was warm on your toes, which I don't think I've ever experienced on a Northumberland beach before.
So we played the obligatory beach games, dug some *massive* holes and paddled in the freezing cold sea. That bit wasn't so Caribbean.
If only the north east would look like this every summer's day...
So we played the obligatory beach games, dug some *massive* holes and paddled in the freezing cold sea. That bit wasn't so Caribbean.If only the north east would look like this every summer's day...
20 August 2010
Denmark day 6
It was sunny this morning, so we seized our chance and headed down to the beach at Saltum Strand. I say down – because that’s exactly what happened. The road goes down to the beach, and then onto the beach, and then along the sand…and you can drive your car up to the sea! Here’s the A2, looking rather incongruous amongst the North Sea waves and sand. It’s really not used to it.
It was incredibly windy, which made us wish there had been space in the car for the powerkite. We have an 8 footer, which would probably have dragged us down the beach and out to Norway without any problems whatsoever. But in lieu of such excitement, we put up our beach tent, and proceeded to manufacture a rather stunning sandcastle, made from the cement-like North Jutland sand.
The sand dunes were a little more sheltered, and great fun for running up and down. We found shells, seagrass, and all sorts of strange pebbles brought in by the waves.
For sheer excitement, we drove 5km along the sand to the next beach exit at Blokhus, fording some small streams along the way. At Blokhus there were a couple of fish vans at the entrance to the beach, so we stopped by the marauding seagulls and had a look. We could have taken the entire contents of the stalls home with us, but that would (a) have bankrupted us and (b) made the caravan smell terrible for the next 10 years, so we restrained ourselves and bought what looked like some salmon fillets.
(We ate these for tea with some potato salad and sautéed courgettes – and discovered that the salmon was possibly the best hot smoked salmon in the world. Mmmmm.)
It started to rain after lunch, so we headed off to the nearest big city, Aalborg, for a bit of a wander round, and a look at the latest range of Lego. Aalborg looks like it’s quite a fun place, especially if it was sunny. There’s lots of cafes and shops (I had to be restrained from going in the cookware ones), some beautiful old buildings, and a fjord-side location.
After visiting a toy shop or two, we can report that the Danish range of Lego is pretty much like the English range – only a bit more expensive because of the exchange rate. Bafflingly, Schleich, who normally make models of farm animals, have a range of Smurfs. Who knew?
But then it started to pour down, so we travelled home, back to the cosy van. The campsite's filling up a bit with weekend visitors (who seem to have permanent pitches here), and it was quite busy in the communal kitchen/dining areas. These are as nice as the ones at Grenaa Strand Camping by the way - sadly there's just not enough of them.
The nice people at the Danish Meteorological Institute are promising only 1mm of rain tomorrow. They've been pretty reliable on the forecast front so far - let's hope we finally get a day that stays sunny...
It was incredibly windy, which made us wish there had been space in the car for the powerkite. We have an 8 footer, which would probably have dragged us down the beach and out to Norway without any problems whatsoever. But in lieu of such excitement, we put up our beach tent, and proceeded to manufacture a rather stunning sandcastle, made from the cement-like North Jutland sand.
The sand dunes were a little more sheltered, and great fun for running up and down. We found shells, seagrass, and all sorts of strange pebbles brought in by the waves.
For sheer excitement, we drove 5km along the sand to the next beach exit at Blokhus, fording some small streams along the way. At Blokhus there were a couple of fish vans at the entrance to the beach, so we stopped by the marauding seagulls and had a look. We could have taken the entire contents of the stalls home with us, but that would (a) have bankrupted us and (b) made the caravan smell terrible for the next 10 years, so we restrained ourselves and bought what looked like some salmon fillets.
(We ate these for tea with some potato salad and sautéed courgettes – and discovered that the salmon was possibly the best hot smoked salmon in the world. Mmmmm.)
It started to rain after lunch, so we headed off to the nearest big city, Aalborg, for a bit of a wander round, and a look at the latest range of Lego. Aalborg looks like it’s quite a fun place, especially if it was sunny. There’s lots of cafes and shops (I had to be restrained from going in the cookware ones), some beautiful old buildings, and a fjord-side location.
After visiting a toy shop or two, we can report that the Danish range of Lego is pretty much like the English range – only a bit more expensive because of the exchange rate. Bafflingly, Schleich, who normally make models of farm animals, have a range of Smurfs. Who knew?
But then it started to pour down, so we travelled home, back to the cosy van. The campsite's filling up a bit with weekend visitors (who seem to have permanent pitches here), and it was quite busy in the communal kitchen/dining areas. These are as nice as the ones at Grenaa Strand Camping by the way - sadly there's just not enough of them.
The nice people at the Danish Meteorological Institute are promising only 1mm of rain tomorrow. They've been pretty reliable on the forecast front so far - let's hope we finally get a day that stays sunny...
11 July 2009
Druridge Bay
It all looks rather Mediterranean, doesn't it? It being Northumberland and July, I still kept my fleece and long trousers on. Cast na'er a clout and all that. Oh.
We finally got the flexifoil out today - it's been in storage rather a long time (flying an 8ft powerkite isn't really recommended while pregnant, and we've been rather occupied with bucket and spade work ever since). I'd forgotten how much fun it is - today was a nice light breeze, but you could still make the kite travel pretty fast and pull a few stunts (and make your arms ache like billy-o).
We didn't abandon the bucket and spade though:
23 April 2009
27 May 2007
Head case
Having just spent most of the last 24 hours with one, I can confirm that migraines are hideous.
And the weekend started so well - a gathering of friends for a sausage BBQ on a Northumberland beach in the blazing sunshine (although in typical Bank Holiday Weekend fashion the weather soon degenerated into freak hail showers and rain) followed by lots of ice cream at the delectable Cresswell Ices.
But by that point the headache had set in. Just behind my right eye, where it always lives, with the accompanying feeling of nausea and general nastiness. There's only one cure - lots of paracetemol/codeine/migraleve, one of those ridiculous cooling gel packs that sticks on your forehead, and lying flat in bed.
Didn't work.
Woke up this morning and felt like death warmed up. Which continued for most of the day, despite regular ingestion of pills and cups of tea (lemon and ginger).
I hate it when the day's a washout. Call me a neurotic overachiever, but I like to feel that I've actually done something by the end of the day. In fact I'm completely rubbish at chilling out, whether enforced or otherwise. I'm one of those people who gets through 47 novels a week on holiday, visits all the sights and then still complains that they're bored. If you left me on a beach for 10 days with nothing to read I'd probably self-combust or produce a 500-page plan on How To Take Over The World.
And the weekend started so well - a gathering of friends for a sausage BBQ on a Northumberland beach in the blazing sunshine (although in typical Bank Holiday Weekend fashion the weather soon degenerated into freak hail showers and rain) followed by lots of ice cream at the delectable Cresswell Ices.
But by that point the headache had set in. Just behind my right eye, where it always lives, with the accompanying feeling of nausea and general nastiness. There's only one cure - lots of paracetemol/codeine/migraleve, one of those ridiculous cooling gel packs that sticks on your forehead, and lying flat in bed.
Didn't work.
Woke up this morning and felt like death warmed up. Which continued for most of the day, despite regular ingestion of pills and cups of tea (lemon and ginger).
I hate it when the day's a washout. Call me a neurotic overachiever, but I like to feel that I've actually done something by the end of the day. In fact I'm completely rubbish at chilling out, whether enforced or otherwise. I'm one of those people who gets through 47 novels a week on holiday, visits all the sights and then still complains that they're bored. If you left me on a beach for 10 days with nothing to read I'd probably self-combust or produce a 500-page plan on How To Take Over The World.
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