Wigtwizzle - Norman Smith's Travel Blog.: beach

Showing posts with label beach. Show all posts

The Two Mellons and Gairloch Museum

A day out to the finest cafe in the area and then the finest beach...what more could one ask for?

Whenever we are up this way, we always go to The Perfume Factory at Melon Charles, mainly for the coffee and cake. It is not easy to get to but is well worth the effort, being beautifully situated on the edge of Loch Ewe and also having magnificent views all round, weather permitting. I've had some drenching here in the past and came very close to one this day but, experience had given me just a good enough head start to get back to the car in time.

It was then just a short drive up the coast to Melon Udrigle which, I think, is everyone's favourite beach in this area. The views up to The Summer Isles and Coigach and across to An Teallach are simple superb, as is the beach itself and the clear blue waters.

The weather was perfect for photography as well. All around there seemed to be dark brooding squalls but miraculously, we managed to steer clear of them. On our way back to the car I could see one approaching and unfortunately, it was a race we lost but compared to some of the previous drenchings I've had in these parts, this one was relatively mild!

It had been our intention to visit Gruinard Bay as well but the rain looked to have set in for the day so, after sitting in the car for a wee while waiting for it to brighten, we decided to call it a draw and head back to Badachro. One good thing to come out of our early departure was that it gave us the chance to visit the Museum at Gairloch.

Gairloch Museum is located in a converted nuclear bunker with galleries showcasing the history, culture and natural heritage of the beautiful area of the North West Highlands. Displays include the original lens from Rubh Re lighthouse which we visited the previous year, a replica croft house showing how people used to live and an interactive gallery about the area's natural world, midges and all!

Add to that a cafe and what more could you ask for?

Melon Charles

Loch Ewe from Melon Charles

Melon Charles

Viewpoint Melon Charles

Distant hills of Coigach

Melon Udrigle

Sand dunes, Melon Udrigle

Loch Gruinard

Maryport Rocks!

Question...where can you go in Cumbria for some quiet photography on a sunny day when The Lake District is full to bursting? Answer...Maryport beach when the tide is out.

The rocks on Maryport's North Beach are from the Sherwood Sandstone group. The Sherwood Sandstone Group, formerly known as the Bunter Sandstone, predominantly consists of sandstone and pebbly sandstone with lesser amounts of conglomerate and minor amounts of mudstone and siltstone and was deposited between 230 and 260 million years ago in the late Permian and Triassic periods. They are found in northwest England as far north as Carlisle (and extending just into Scotland around Annan and Gretna) and in the Vale of Eden and then extending down the Cumbrian coast into Lancashire and Cheshire. There is also a band running from Nottinghamshire up to Durham and the North East Coast.

Erosion by the sea has made the rocks form into lots of weird and wonderful shapes with many channels cutting through them, plus it's many pools have become a haven from small crabs and other shellfish. You can always see people on the beach collecting shellfish when the tide is out.

I'm always drawn to the coast though; the North West Coast of Scotland is an area I truly connect with but it's just a pity that I found it late on in my life. The stretch of coast and countryside between Gairloch and Lochinver is my idea of heaven, and I feel so privileged to be able to visit it every year. Also, I love my local Yorkshire coast, especially the Whitby area and then just a bit further northwards, the Northumberland Coast with its long sandy beaches and castles.

The Solway is just as beautiful though but maybe in a more rugged and industrial way, both on the Cumbrian side and across the Firth on The Galloway side, where Southerness and Kippford are both firm favourites. My star sign is Pisces, so maybe that has something to do with it.

Maryport Beach

Wreckage, Maryport Beach

Rock formations, Maryport Beach

Maryport Beach

Sea channel, Maryport Beach

Seaweed, Maryport Beach

Rock formations, Maryport Beach

Galloway Coast

First of all, apologies for having these photos in reverse order. Basically I took the first photo last and the last photo first if that make any sense!

I can't really remember exactly how I discovered Kippford but I think it was because someone recommended going to Sandyhills Bay which is just down the coast and then it all sprung from that. I think I took in Southerness, Rockcliffe, Kippford as well as Sandyhills that day and have been coming back once a year ever since.I think once a year might be a bit of an understatement but my recent trip there was definitely my first this year due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Everywhere seems to be a lot busier compared to previous years, I've notice that a lot in The Lakes and Yorkshire Dales as well. Maybe it is due to the fact that no-one wants to travel abroad due to the possibility of facing quarantine on return.

My first stop as always was Carsthorne which was very quiet so I got parked up without any bother. The Solway Firth tide was out which resulted in there being thousands of Oystercatchers on the beach and boy were they making a racket. My photo only shows a fraction of the number. Looking inland, I was treated to a spectacular, ever-changing view of the clouds breaking over Criffel which is the highest hill in the area.

I had a walk along the beach and took photos of the old pier and jetty which were both used for the transportation of Scots to Canada and America during the Highland Clearances of the 1850s before moving on to Southerness with its iconic lighthouse. The lighthouse was built by Robert Stephenson and was first lit around 1800 before finally being decommissioned in 1936. The rock formations around the lighthouse make for some great photos.

I didn't bother going into Rockcliffe as it is a busy little place which makes it hard to park but carried on to its neighbour Kippford instead. There was not a single parking place to be had there, either in the car park or along the main road. I had more or less given up any hope of stopping but as a last resort I thought I'd try going in to Rockcliffe and fortunately someone was leaving the car park as I pulled in.

The stroll round the bay and through the woods to Kippford is only a couple of miles and is scenic as well so walking it was no imposition. My photos were all taken of the cockleshell beach area of the village and all look out over the Saur peninsula to The Solway Firth.

This is another of my 'feel good' places where I can just sit for ages and peacefully take in the view. Feeling revitalised, I set off back up the hill and through the woods to Rockcliffe where I sat overlooking the bay for a short while before retreating back to Cumbria.