Ian,

Well done, thanks for sharing your walk with us all, it was well documented account and some nice pictures of the views despite the onset of dusk, cheers.

🙂

Hi Ian thanks for sharing your walk and photos with us, what a area to walk and see.
keep it up Chris

Interesting report - Thanks for sharing

Walk report: Northumbriam coast path 13/3/2012

I am once again working in the Tyneside area for a while and staying in a hotel. I have long held the view that being away from home and staying in hotels alone is a recipe for turning into a workaholic or an alcoholic and, since I have no intention of doing either, I am consciously turning into a walkoholic.

Last night I decided that I’d travel a few miles north to look for a few geocaches on the Northumbriam coast. A quick check of the geocaching website revealed a cache at Newton by the Sea and another a couple of miles south by the ruins of Dunstanburgh castle. Both of these are on the coast path and a plan was quickly hatched. I would leave work promptly once I came off the clock and drive to the car park at Newton Point, then walk north for the first cache before turning south to retrace my steps for a half mile or so and then continue south to the ruined castle.

It took a little over an hour to get to my destination, where I discovered that they expected me to pay for parking! Pah! That’s not going to happen… I drove a little further north for a quick drive by cache before returning to the car park a minute or two before 6pm, after which parking is free. I had changed into a wrap and t-shirt so just needed my hiking boots before heading off to the first cache.

The walk started off on a short downhill section of minor road into Newton by the Sea village then turned left along the coast. The first stretch was going to have to be clothed as I was in very clear view of the old coastguard cottage on top of the hill. The sun was almost down, but it would remain fairly light for a good half hour or so. However, I discovered that I was able to get down from the cliff top to a lower path. I could still see the cottage, but most of me was below their line of sight. Clothes did not seem necessary so they went into my bag and I continued happily, but keeping a watchful eye open for dog walkers or joggers. Just before the point there is an old building with a watch tower. There was no one on the open tower and I did not pay too much attention, but once I got closer I could see a couple of vehicles parked up. I dressed, just in case.

Once past the building I was almost at the cache site, so I stayed dressed until I had found it. Then I decided once again that clothes were unnecessary and they went back into the bag while I signed the logbook and replaced the cache. I stayed naked for the walk back to the village as I now knew I could stay below the skyline and remain invisible from the buildings. I did not feel as warm as I would expect to in a temperature of 8C (46F) and I was almost glad when I got to the last stile before the road and had to dress. I decided to modify my plan and return to the car for a warm fleece jacket and my big torch.

By the time I reached the car at the hill top car park I was warm again. I collected the torch, but decided that I’d be fine without the heavy jacket and instead put a lightweight fleece pullover into my bag.

Back into the village I picked up the signs for the Coast Path. The path started off as a well surfaced tarmac lane, barely wide enough for a small car and rated as a footpath, but was obviously also used for access to a couple of houses. I stayed dressed, intending to strip off once past the houses. The path turned towards the sea and started over the back edge of the dunes. Now I found I was walking between well spaced holiday cabins with no signs of life in any of them. Despite the apparent lack of other people, I decided that discretion was the order of the day and stayed clothed for the ten or fifteen minutes it took me to pass the cabins.

At last I could strip off and all my clothes were quickly stashed in my bag; I set off again at a brisk pace, comfortable at last. The path climbed the back of a large dune, then dropped to the edge of a golf course. Although the light was now fading fast, I could see someone else out walking about 400 yards away. Curses! I made sure I was below the skyline and then watched for a few minutes to see where he went. He seemed to be on a path that would take him away from my route so I carried on, keeping a watchful eye in the direction he’d gone and towards the golf club.

The path skirted the golf course for a while before crossing a small river (with a warning sign about swimming in the river estuary being dangerous) and then climbed to the ridge of the dunes. I felt a little exposed on the skyline but by this time it was sufficiently dark that I decided I would not be seen well enough for anyone to know how I was dressed. Skin remained the optimum clothing.

After a while, I started to find following the path through the dunes difficult in the failing light and instead I worked my way onto the beach and walked along just above the surf line, where the sand was firmest. I reckoned I was about half an hour away from my destination cache under the ruined walls of the castle. It felt wonderful to be out boots only on what now felt like a warm evening (weird, I’d been cold earlier…) The boots stayed on because I knew I’d be back on the coast path further up and would need them to walk safely in the dark over the rocky, uneven surface. I could have removed them, but it would have meant carrying them and, on balance, I decided I was better off with them on my feet.

After about half a mile the beach ended in a mass of rocks and boulders designed to break ankles, so I climbed back to the coast path to reach the castle. My GPS told me the cache was about a tenth of a mile away, so I followed the arrow  until it told me I’d arrived. A couple of minutes checking under the rocks by the path and I had the cache. The log was quickly signed and the cache rehidden; another one logged.

This is pretty much how the castle looked when I was there, dark against the sky (which was rather darker than in this picture from Flickr).

This photo (also from Flickr) gives a better idea of the castle ruins.

It was time to turn back towards the car. There was no moonlight and I needed to use my small LED torch to follow the first stretch of path back to the beach, there were simply too many things to fall over to walk without light.

Back at the beach, the torch went into my bag and I went back to enjoying the crash of the waves as they broke and the occasional call of an unseen bird. I decided to stay on the beach right back to the village. That way I did not need to use a light and anyway I was enjoying the feel of the firm sand underfoot. (Barefoot would have been better but…) The only possible hole in the plan was that I did not know what the river estuary would be like as it flowed across the beach. Getting wet feet would not be an issue, but I was not prepared to go into deeper water than about knee high in the dark on a falling tide, so I had to be prepared to back track and find the footbridge I’d used earlier if the river could not be crossed safely.

I was so busy enjoying the relaxed walk and the calm tranquillity that seems to take over my very being, that I nearly walked into a couple of guys fishing off the beach! Fortunately one of them turned on a light to adjust his gear while I was still about 30 yards away or I’d have walked straight into them. My wrap was quickly in place and I routed around the dune edge of the beach to stay as far away from them as I could, about 15 yards. They did not seem to notice me until I was past, but one of them did shine a torch in my direction as I was walking way. I must have looked pretty odd wearing hiking boots and a skirt and carrying a fairly full bag but there was no comment that I could hear and I just kept going, removing the wrap once I was 50 yards or so away.

The estuary proved not to be a problem. As I had expected by low tide it was simply a fan of wetter sand with a couple of inches of running water. Crossing it did not present any problem. At high water I suspect that this would be more of an issue as the sea would reach right back to the dunes where the river runs a bit deeper in a narrow (but too wide to jump) channel.

The rest of the walk was uneventful, but I was glad to note that my usual reluctance to dress had returned and I could not force myself back into textile mode until I was  getting close to the exit ramp from the beach.

The drive back to the hotel was punctuated by collecting a couple more quick drive-by caches and I eventually found myself greeting the receptionist a little after 21:45 .

In total I’d been walking naked for just under two hours and had walked a total distance of just over six and three quarter miles. Now all I need to do is decide where to go for my next walk.

Have fun,

Ian.

PS Sorry, no pictures of my own this time, there was not enough light to justify taking the camera with me.

A good idea to repost this report here as not only is it wonderful report in itself but it will give the NC contingent some insight into the techniques needed for safe and non-confrontational free-range naturism.