frayed at the edge

Hot and hazy

As usual, the media are going mad, with headlines like "hotter than Argentina" ....... but of course, our hot weather will last for a day or two, while Argentina (why Argentina, not one of the first places that springs to mind for a comparison) will stay hot.  Never mind, we decided to enjoy it while it lasts, and headed out this morning to Born in the Borders, for, first, a walk along the river, then a spot of lunch

the remains of a very big tree

the thistles will soon turn purple

 

this gate hasn't been closed for a while

 

a hazy Fatlips Castle in the distance

 

Ruberslaw, also hazy in the distance

 

you can read about Chesters House here

 

the river was very low, but still provided some good photos

 

there has been a lot of work going on in the area, renewing the electrical gubbins (hopefully when it is finished we won't have power cuts like yesterday's)

 

and of course there had to be an arty photo!

 

after an enjoyable (if slightly hot and sweaty) walk, we headed back to Born in the Borders' courtyard.  We didn't go into the brewery

 

but we had a look round the food hall

 

and the clothing and gifts shop

 

before heading into lunch

 

it turned out we were slightly early for lunch, so we ordered from the brunch menu.  Malcolm had egg and asparagus on toast with hollandaise

 

and I tucked into a sausage and bacon sandwich, on artisan bread

 

on the way back to the car, we resisted the temptation to try out the latest attraction

 

to finish - a warning for fishermen about the overhead electrical wires

Would you rather .......

........ have a leisurely paddle in a canoe

 

or go zipping across the water on one of these?

 

my answer is a definite NO to both!  You will only get me on the water on a very big boat!!  The canoes came very briefly into the dock on Saturday, and we saw the man on the jet ski when we were walking on the beach at Bamburgh with Stuart and Alison on Saturday morning

looking up at the castle

 

and down to a feather

 

looking out to the Farne Islands in one direction

 

and Lindisfarne in the other

 

of course, after a long walk on the beach at Bamburgh, the next stop has to be Seahouses for chips.  Stuart and Alison agreed that they are the very best of chips, and taste even better being eaten sitting in the sun beside the sea!

 

and the chips are much too good to share, even with handsome birds! 

 

I spent a lot of time at the weekend jumping out of my seat to take photos of what was going on in the dock.  First we had swans sailing in majestically

 

then the seal popped his head out of the water, with a fish in his mouth!

 

but the fish escaped - you can just see it to the right of the seal

 

then there was the whump, whump, whump of a helicopter.  I snatched a quick shot to make sure I got it before it disappeared

 

but had time to switch to the digital zoom to get a closer shot

 

the lighthouse looked good in the late evening sun

 

the swans were back in the early morning sun

 

look at this thing of beauty ........

 

 ....... it's the lid of the latest addition to my tin collection - and even better it is full of biscuits!

 

to finish ....... we didn't have scones at the weekend, but on the way home we popped in for a cuppa and scones.  A rather crumbly (but delicious) fruit one

 

and an exceedingly cheesy cheese scone.  No, we didn't have the jam on it!

A tale of two beaches

On Saturday, we went for a walk on Spittal Beach.  While Malcolm was busy looking for driftwood, I was looking for interesting things to take photos of.  However the tide was in, so there were no rock pools to explore, or interesting bits of seaweed.  However, I did discover a tiny dead crab

 

and a shell from his big brother

 

and another little dead one

 

of course when I am on the beach, I have to take a photo of the lighthouse

 

there was a bit of excitement when some microlights flew over us - I think the people who fly these things are either brave or mad!!

 

 

I was glad when we went back to the carpark that these beauties weren't sitting on my car!!

 

 

then on Sunday, we decided to head north to Dunbar, birthplace of John Muir

 

I was rather taken with this original entrance to a shop - too often the tiles are removed or covered over.  And you can just see a bit of the mosaic tiled floor

 

this shop had some wonderful things in it, including some lovely driftwood creations

 

and so to the beach.  It is very different to the beach at Spittal - I found it hard going walking on the pebbles

 

it looked better from this side!

 

when we were walking round the harbour, we saw this boat getting ready to set sail

there used to be a castle in Dunbar

 

but this is all that is left

 

however the remains of the walls have provided nesting sites for the seagulls

 

back at the flat, there were lots of swans in the dock, but my view was obscured by this large lorry ..... as an aside, Stuart was at school with Richard, one of the Stevenson family

 

however, the dock gates are open on a Sunday, and I was able to go on to the dockside to take some photos

 

I still have lots of photos left, so I'll just pop in a random selection

 

and to finish ....... more proof that it was a foodie weekend!  For lunch on Sunday we shared a portion of chips.  In our defence, we just couldn't help ourselves, we kept passing people tucking into chips, and the smell was so delicious, we just had to have some!!

A quick tour .....

...... round the rest of the weekend, as it is Abbey Quilters' monthly meeting tonight.  On Sunday we went for a run over to Wooler.  Having lived "down south", I know a lot of people down there think that it is grey, grim and industrial "up north".  If only they had been with us to enjoy the stunning scenery

 

in Wooler, one end of the town is dominated by the church

 

I couldn't remember if I had taken a photo of this pillar box before, but you can't have too many photos of pillar boxes!

 

as all the cafes/coffee shops were shut, we headed to the antique centre at Powmill, where we shared an excellent cheese scone

 

I liked the set my tea was served in, and you can see Malcolm's coffee mug in the background

 

we didn't buy any antiques, but I did come home with several pieces of Liberty fabrics

 

and a good sized remnant to make cushion covers

 

there was a big ship sitting offshore on Sunday morning, waiting for high tide to come into the dock, but it wan't until early evening that the pilot boat went out ......

 

........ and shepherded in its charge

 

and before we leave Berwick, we have to have a swan photo!

 

on our way home yesterday morning, we called in at the Lovatt Gallery in Jedburgh ......

 

........ as the owner, Linda, who had bought some of Malcolm's driftwood creations at the Christmas Fair, had said she would be interested to see more of his stuff.  We were very glad that we made the detour, as she bought almost all of his remaining stock!!  So we went off to Border Meringues to celebrate

 

Malcolm had a rhubarb and ginger scone

 

and I ate what has to be my entire week's month's year's sugar allowance in a slice of rainbow rocky road!  It isn't white chocolate on the top, but a  sort of chewy fudge.  It was delicious, but it will be a long time before I will want to eat anything so sweet again!!

 

must go and make the dinner, but I'll be back tomorrow with some sewing!

 

 

Running off to Gretna .....

........ but not to get married!  Rather, we went out for the day in Malcolm's spiffy new car!

 

to get there, we had to leave Roxburghshire and cross into Dumfries and Galloway

 

passing lots of sheep enjoying the better weather

 

we then crossed the Border into England

 

before crossing back into Scotland!

 

we went to Gretna Gateway Outlet Village for a little it of retail therapy.  I got a nice pair of summer shoes ....... but I forgot to take a photo of them!  I can't show you the other thing I bought, as it is for a birthday present.  We sat outside in the sun to have lunch, which came from here ........

 

....... because we had a voucher for a bogof on a 6" sub.  It tasted much better than it looks in the photo - pulled pork with lots of salad 

 

the sun was still shining on the way home

 

back home in the garden, the osteospermum flowers were turning to the sun

 

and the poppies are ready to flower

 

to finish, a male sparrow, enjoying the early morning sun in the front garden

 

Topsy turvy weather

After a few wonderful, very warm spring days, on Saturday there was such a cold wind blowing I declined to accompany Malcolm for a walk on the beach, although these swans didn't seem bothered by the wind

 

and the windy conditions hadn't deterred this little boat from a fishing trip - although I think they would have been glad to be back, as the weather worsened

 

the weather on Sunday morning was grey and wet, but the boat set off for another day at sea

 

as we drove home, the rain got heavier and turned sleety, so we were quite happy to stop at The Teviot Smokery for a cuppa and some excellent sconnage.  As usual we had half each, and that did us for lunch

fruit

 

cheese

 

by the time we got home it was snowing ......... you can just about make the snow out in this photo

 

but today, although it wasn't as warm as last week, it was warm enough to open up the summer house to have lunch in

 

and to hang the washing out to dry

 

when I was hanging out the washing, I noticed that the dark hellebore had suddenly flowered - there wasn't even a stem showing s few weeks ago when I took photos of the adjacent pale one!

 

and there was another splash of colour in one of the pots

 

as Malcolm was busy in the garage creating all things driftwoody, I offered to unwrap the olive tree for him

 

we were relieved to find that it had survived the winter and was looking healthy

 

I have to thank my friend Sandra H for the next two photos, taken on a recent holiday.  For some reason I can't get the photos to separate, to put captions under them, so I will just say that I want one of those machines, and I am intrigued by the markings on the sheep at the back

to finish, when I was doing the ironing this afternoon, I wondered if I am the only person who is tired of the on-going fashion for putting silly little straps inside sleeves?  If I roll my sleeves up, I don't want to faff about doing up the little button to hold the cuff up, when it stays up perfectly well on its own!

 

ps - if, like me, you are fed up with the election, then check out the app "Penguin Poop", and have have fun splattering your least favourite politician!!

The early morning mist lingered .......

....... on Monday morning when we drove down to Seahouses, making for slightly arty photos of the dock

but the mist was quite swirly, and suddenly this coble was sitting in the sunshine

 

as we headed back up from the dock to have lunch, I paused to take a photo of this memorial

 

lunch, of course, came from the best chip shop, as recommended by The Hairy Bikers

 

haddock and chips, eaten in the fresh air by the seaside ....... it doesn't come any better than that!!  The batter was light and crispy, the fish delicious and the chips excellent - I never manage to eat a whole fish supper (as it is called no matter what time of day you eat it) but I only left a few chips!

 

then it was on to the next part of our day out - a visit to Howick Hall Gardens

 

sadly the house, home to Earl Grey, the creator of the tea of that name, is no longer lived in

 

there is a small visitor centre in the entrance to the house - but I was distracted by the knocker on the front door!

 

do you think the rabbits and hares can read this sign telling them to keep the gate shut!!

the gardens are tended by a small staff and a squad of dedicated volunteers

there is a very pretty church within the gardens

 

with a very imposing doorway

 

with intricate carvings

 

by this time we were in need of refreshment, and headed to the tearoom

 

 

where we ordered (of course) a pot of Earl Grey tea

 

and a scone with jam and clotted cream

 

on the way back to Berwick, even the little point and shoot camera shows of the magnificence of Bamburgh Castle

 

we may have acquired one or two little goodies when we were out and about, but I will show you them tomorrow, as well as telling you about the very enjoyable day out I had today with my lovely friend Maureen!!

Back to basics!

When we headed over to Berwick on Sunday morning, I left my laptop and big camera at home, and contented myselfwith the Hudl and my little point and shoot camera .......could I survive for two days without lots of time online and basic photos with limited zoom?  I was pleased to find that the answer was yes, that I am not as addicted to my technolgy as I feared!  When we arrived at the flat, there were lots of swans in the dock, and I was quite happy to take a general shot, rather than zooming in for close-ups

 

after lunch, we headed off down the coast to Cocklawburn Beach

 

the tide was out, and the sands stretched as far as the eye could see

there were also lots of interesting things closer to hand to see

 

there is always a dead crab on the beach!

 

we climbed over a ridge of rock ....... and there was even more beach!

 

while Malcolm was looking for driftwood, I found this  old piece of wood, which had a bit of fungus growing on it

 

as we walked back along the beach, the tide had turned, and a chilly mist was blowing across the sand

 

there was an icecream van in the car park, so we rounded off the afternoon with a "99"

 

the sun was still shining when this little fishing boat came into the dock

 

unlike yesterday morning!  When we got up, we couldn't see the dock at all, but by the time we had breakfast, it was just appearing out of the fog

 

however, the fog didn't stop us having  a good day out, which I'll tell you about tomorrow!

 

To finish, three sigms today that spring is here

1: a man wearing socks and sandals (there should be a law against that!)

2: a postman wearing shorts (I think it might be obligatory after the first of April)

3: best of all, several large bumble bees buzzing round the garden!

 

Buildings large and small

As the weather was good on Sunday, we headed down the coast to Bamburgh, to have a walk on the beach, although, of course, I had to pause on the way to take photos of the castle

 

then there was another pause to take a photo of this gate across the path through the sand dunes

 

but finally we reached the beach, where I was promptly waylaid by shells marooned when the tide went out

 

and a worm cast

 

and of course from the beach you can see the whole castle

 

after our walk on the beach, we had a stroll through the village.  This weathered rock caught my eye - do you, like me, see a face?

 

we will have to come back through the week, when this establishment is open!

 

of course we went for a cuppa, but I'll save those photos for the end.  As it was such a lovely day, we decided to go on down the coast to Beadnell, which we hadn't visited before.  After the splendour of Bamburgh castle, this quirky house, which was having a lot of work done on it, was at the other end of the scale

 

the village is known for its limekilns

 

these beautiful doves had made themselves at home on one of the kins

 

Malcolm wouldn't let me play with the big machines on the beach!

 

and I had to tell him not to go right to the edge of the pier

 

 

in the distance we could see Dunstanburgh Castle

 

driving back towards Bamburgh, as always we commented on how the castle dominates the landscape

 

and now ........ the cuppa!  We popped into The Copper Kettle

 

a lovely, traditional tearoom

 

where we enjoyed fruit scones with jam and clotted cream (as always we were going to share one, but the waitress brought two by mistake ........ and they looked so good we decided we would have one each!!)

 

 

 

A very, very busy weekend!

Oh my, we managed to squeeze so much into the weekend, this will have to be a two part post!!  So, let's get going!  We went for a (rather chilly) walk on Saturday, stopping first at the Coastwatch Tower

 

we were invited to go up to the balcony for a better view, but when I saw the ladder, I decided that I would remain on the ground!

 

while Malcolm was upstairs, I took these two photos to show how strongly the wind was blowing

 

a quick selection of our progress along the beach

 

I wondered what this group were doing, so of course when we went past, I stopped to ask!  They were making a dinosaur sand sculpture ...... and I think the adults were having more fun than the children!

 

I wondered what had left this mark on a rock.......

 

when I saw this on the next rock

 

and while I was taking that photo, Malcolm pointed out this on the next rock!

 

I'm glad that the dog that left this paw print in the sand wasn't still on the beach!

 

we encountered quite a lots of birds on Saturday

 

there was a very high tide on Saturday - a combination I gather, of the 18-year lunar cycle and the eclipse.  Combined with the wind, the waves were coming over the breakwater 

 

we had an excellent day out yesterday, but I'll save that for tomorrow, and instead I'll skip forward to today.  We were woken up in the early hours by a lot of noise coming from the dock, so we weren't suprised to see a large ship when we got up this morning

 

its cargo of grain was being unloaded into large lorries

 

we popped into town for some shopping, and decided to try out the new coffee shop

 

which is very nicely decorated

 

but I don't think I'll be rushing back to have a cheese scone served with salad!!