Introduction


When we started walking the coast of England we had no intention that this would become a major lifetime project. Having to make a last-minute arrangement for our summer holiday in 1987, we said "Let's go to the nearest piece of coast and see how far we can walk along it." It turned out well and we started adding further stretches of coast, initially once every two years, but soon annually, or even twice a year.

We had always enjoyed the coast - there is something refreshingly "edgy" about having the sea always at our side, and one of us was into marine molluscs. We also enjoyed long-distance walking and had long been involved in general natural history recording. This project enabled us to combine all three interests.

You soon discover when embarking on a project like this that you need a few rules, which evolve from the first experiences. Our main rule was that we should walk as close to the coast as possible, which meant beach-walking whenever we could (unlike the official coast paths that largely remain above shore, recognising that at high tides the beach may be inaccessible). The route should also be capable of being a continuous walk, so that when we came to an unfordable river we walked inland along its banks to the first place at which we could cross, whether a bridge or a ferry.

We only carried light packs, so that at the end of each day's walk we had the problem of getting back to our car where we started. Initially we walked back, but soon realised we would be walking the coast twice this way! We used public transport whenever this was available - buses or trains, sometimes adjusting our start and finish points to make this easier. Failing this - and it was often not possible - we would phone for a taxi (an increasingly costly option over the years). Having our car with us gave us more freedom as to where we could stay at night - and after a day walking and only light food we were usually ready for being spoiled by a good meal and a comfortable bed! Even so, we stayed on the coast itself whenever there was a decent option.

Each walk was made for enjoyment, it was not a route-march to see how quickly we could get it finished. We therefore took it gently at times when passing through pleasant scenery or where there were many plants or creatures to record.

In terms of biological recording, we systematically noted every bird, butterfly, creature or sea-shell that we came across, sometimes spending time searching for the shells. We could not record every plant in the same way - there are too many common ones - so we were more selective, noting all coastal plants and any others that were not run-of-the-mill.

In our daily posts, edited from our original diaries, we include a star-rating from no star to **** according to our subjective estimate as to how special that day was from the point of view of natural history. This score (and our daily records) will, however, have been affected by the weather - it is difficult to appreciate the environment fully, for instance, in torrential rain, and there are many more butterflies and other insects to be seen in warm sunshine!

A summary of all our natural history records on the walk can be found using this link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1LLGD55lKRHYXd1SGU1QndrcUU/edit?usp=sharing





Tuesday, 28 January 2014

Tyne & Wear: South Shields to Whitburn 6/7/2006***

 
Saw-wort
 
Common spotted orchid var. alba
 
Foxtail barley
From the ferry terminal in South Shields we resumed our walk through recently gentrified docklands whose apartment buildings generally cut out any view of the river Tyne.  However, we soon rounded a corner where a small pier and lighthouse marked the widening of the estuary.  There was a small beach at Littlehaven, raked clean and bare of shells, with damaged dunes above with little other than marram, thistles and coltsfoot.  Above the beach were some strange sculptures.  We passed the South Pier but our access to the coast was first prevented by a large amusement arcade called, ironically, “Dunes”, and then by a “Pleasure Park”.  When we did get to the beach we found it again scrupulously cleaned; there were hundreds of litter bins at regular intervals; a tarmac walkway near the top of the beach so that people did not have walk on sand; and crowds of holidaymakers.  It was the most popular seaside venue we had come across but there was nothing here to delay us.  At the south end a path climbed to the top of low cliffs with more interesting views, various plants and seabirds.  Here were outcrops of Magnesian limestone supporting a different flora like hoary plantain.  Six-spot burnet moths were flying.  However, there was much rank vegetation and an old quarry had been filled with “possibly hazardous” (!) waste.  Marsden Bay beyond was shingle with some sand. We descended steps at the north end to look up the vertical cliffs full of kittiwakes and fulmars nesting, making a continual racket.  Just off the beach were steep stacks that also housed thousands of seabirds, including one of England’s largest colonies of cormorants, confined to the flat tops with a few herring gulls and their nearly full-grown fluffy chicks.  Razorbills swam in the sea.  There were many people here on the sands, despite the strong smell from seabirds, and the bistro and bar in a building at the centre of the beach were crowded. A lift took people up and down the cliff.  It did not seem to be working, so we (like many others) laboriously climbed the steps beside it before a lift came past!  However, this did allow us to spot alexanders again growing on the cliff.  The cliffs beyond here became increasingly interesting, with meadows including saw-wort, cowslip, great knapweed, field scabious, betony, harebells and hundreds of common spotted orchids, including pure white variants with unspotted leaves (var. alba).  We stopped at the National Trust-owned red-and-white banded Souter lighthouse to enjoy home-made cakes and coffee.  The cliffs continued with displays of bee orchids, yellow-wort, and a little patch of foxtail barley, until they gradually deteriorated into rank grass in the vicinity of Whitburn.  At the north end of Whitburn Bay we cut to the coast road through a car park and caught a bus back to South Shields.
"Conversation Piece" Littlehaven Beach
 
Marsden Rock with cormorant colony
 
Souter lighthouse


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