And look at it now – its like Spring – blue skies, sunshine, double figure temperatures… and since im still here, I have been making the most of it with some long walks along the coast.

All these shots are taken with my iPhone, and far from being high-grade, yet still capture the coast in its glorious autumn light… :)

Im off to Indonesia for a month… more at Christmas…

But the following video is an ideal gap-filler, and its a great piece of work, showing-off the various assets and natural beauty the area has.

Promise to write soon.. :)

Summer has yet to officially start in my book, its just been so mild – where is the heat ?
But that-said, there has been plenty to keep busy with, so sun or not, the people came.

Earlier in the summer we had a visit from Time Team on the point, digging the chapel there, with the show being aired in the autumn.

We had half of Cornwall’s finest up here as the swell dropped in the South West and the boys drove North in search of waves, good to see Stokesy, Fryer and Egor out in the water with us.

The usual raft of tourists have been queuing up to be rescued from the causeway at Holy Island – its an expensive mistake, and its not hard to avoid – check the crossing times !! :)

As well as the lighter side of things, the area had a couple deaths, both quite recently, one diving-related accident and one cliff-fall. Both very sad.

Looking forward once more to the August Bank Holiday weekend, the finale of the holidays, only one thing is being talked about – Crastonbury.

Big highlight for me this year – The Cuban Brothers headlining !!!!! You HAVE to see these guys. Truly epic entertainment. See the video below. :)

Must dash now, but promise to be back soon..

We actually need some rain, as the farmers will tell you… :(

A highlight for me has been the influx of in-season locally caught Scallops. Yum.

I caught Michael at the Craster Arms a few night ago and got the low-down on how to shell yourself a scallop, or two boxes even.

The villages are ready for it – and it will be a bumper Easter with the wedding and Mayday all wrapped-in.

The warm weather and light nights are very welcome, but it still needs to warm up before you can put the winter coat away.

Still its not as cold as it is in Thurso, This time last year we were up there watching the same contest that is happening now, today.

It has been absolutely pumping surf however. Which is typical, since it was rubbish last year.

Some highlights..  remember, this is Scotland…

The weather is still pretty fantastic, blue skies, sunshine and warm water. The road are getting quieter…  you can feel Autumn approaching.

I love September. I revel in it.

As the summer passed, I thought about what defined this area we live in.. not easy to do. Not as an answer to that, but as a visual exploration, I collected these images, which hopefully begin to paint the picture.

Coxons Ice-cream

The Longstone Lighthouse on the Farne Islands

Fish and Chips from any of the various chippy's

Bamburgh Castle

Lobster Pots - working or decorative

Billy Shiel boat trips to the Farne Islands

Of course there are many other things I could have included, and everyone has their own vision of what this special piece of coast means to them, but you have to draw the line somewhere… We could talk about Kippers, Grace Darling, Dunstanburgh Castle, Beadnell Harbour, Golden Beaches… but these are the ones that work most visually – and they work for me.

Running from midday to midnight on the Saturday of the August bank holiday, the line-up included; The Tuckers, The Longsands, The Proper Boys, Martini Sessions, The Remmies and the Amy Housewine Band.

Big thanks also to James Cummings for the sound-tech and PA services, Photographs from nighttime below also by James – JamesCummingsPhotography.com

It was a great day, with sprinklings of sunshine and rain, but the crowd was resolute and the weather did nothing to dampen the spirits.

The crowd was a great mix of families, old and young, with locals and visitors alike sharing the merriment and enjoying the day.

By 7am the next morning the entire garden was clean and clear and no-sign of the huge numbers of people could be seen -  a credit to all the staff and helpers who worked so hard.

We look forward to next year when the festival will get bigger and better !! Bring-on 2011 :D.

The villages are buzzing with the various visitors and summer activities, and as soon as this un-seasonal weather leaves us July and August will be upon us and gone in a flash. The summer has been a blur of football, work and surfing. All good then.

I never write here with a political agenda, its not what this site is for. This space is for documenting and celebrating the village of Beadnell and the surrounding area. That said, I do want to mention the current plans for the village. The new housing estate behind Harbour Road is progressing its final stage with another batch of twenty plus houses to be finished by the year-end.

Along with this the Duke of Northumberland has plans currently with the Council for a large holiday park development right next to the car park for the bay, adjacent to the Long Beach development. These plans have come under much scrutiny and objection within the local community. The village has an ever-growing number of visitors and second home owners, and a local economy that is shrinking with no new facilities to support the new homes.

The Duke of Northumberland

The Duke plans a seasonal holiday park, with basic facilities to service its own users. This copies the format he has used elsewhere, such as Alnwick, where he corners his market and peripheral local business lose-out and fail.
Its easy to imagine that the Dukes plans will be passed – they usually are – but the point of this being highlighted here is to raise awareness for the need for more local facilties to support and maintain the local community, rather than line-the-pockets of the Duke.

Documentation detailing the plans is hard to find currently, but should be available through the planning website eventually..

The Journal covers the plans here.

The Dukes plans get the Daily Mail treatment – here.

Locally, the feeling is that people would like to see the Duke doing more to support local communities rather than profiteering from them. Being that he and his wife have earned so much from the County, its time he started to repay the communities which he lord’s over…

… time will tell.

The farms are in top gear coping with this years lambing season, every field has little white things jumping around in it.

The village has been quiet for so long, but the changes are visible. The old huts used by the fisherman at the Haven have begun to come down, making way for more development.

The spring bulbs are popping up, things are green and bright. Below, the old Coop, with completed renovations.

Always a momentous day – you know its not winter when the village fish and chip shop opens for the year !

The first boats have been out in the Bay, with some glorious conditions, it is a bit windy, but the wetsuits are out and the kids are in the water. :)

The weeks of snow, ice and cold weather were only a mild distraction from short days and dark nights.

But its now mid-march, and the weather is breaking. The snow drops are pushing through the grass, the caravan sites are re-opening and the village has some people in it once again.

I’ll have some more Spring-like shots later this week to put up, but just quickly, a look back at the winter gone.