Beadnell Bay

The half-mile paddle-out….

admin — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 14:10:30 +0000

… and the month-long storm that caused it.

Sorry its been so long. Winter has been a miserable affair this year.

I got back from a weeks snowboarding in Slovakia last week. It was about -27 at its coldest over there in the dumping fresh snow.

Yet when i landed back in Edinburgh I already knew it was colder, dark and more miserable here. We had heard on the saturday of the ship that ran aground at the Farnes.

We followed the updates and gossip on FaceTube and also kept an eye on the weather forecast. It was bleak. – Cold. Hovering just above freezing, with gales from the East. This meant big seas.

That forecast was 10 days ago, and the weather front arrived on the coast before we did. Its also looking to stay the same, for another two weeks, right through Easter weekend.

So there have been some proper big days on the sea, and plenty of casualties along with it. Seals, both adult and pups have been washing up all over the beaches. Along with a wide assortment of bird; Terns, Gulls, Guillemots, Razors and even Puffins, dozens of them. Its quite sad.

And what of the MV Danio ? the 80m freight vessel that managed to ‘miss’ the mighty Longstone lighthouse and park herself on the rocks a mere 30m away ?
Well the Danio is still there, waiting for the right tide to take her off the rock. Rumor is that they are going to move her tomorrow (26th March). A tug from Leith is moored just North of the Farnes waiting for the weather to break. I snapped a quick picture of the rope that has been shipped in to help move the 2500 tonne vesel. £20,000 worth of 6-inch thick rope….

And in the last 12 days, with seas as big as have been seen for a while, one boat has been the only one leaving the harbour at Seahouses. Stand Sure, skippered by Jonathan Dawson has been assisting the salvage team, moving people and equipment between the islands and the harbour in 6m seas… not a job for the faint hearted !

Lets hope they get her of the rocks in the next few days, nothing too bad can really happen, but it will be a mighty mess if she wont float off and sail away…

Into the unknown…

admin — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 14:15:16 +0000

We have tried to let winter pass quietly this year. But we still managed to slip away for a week and explore a corner of Eastern Europe… Slovakia.

Into the Unknown…. Snowboarding Jasna / Chopok, Slovakia 2013 from swinhoe on Vimeo.

Thanks to all the guys at Propaganda Snowboards for hosting us…

Richard James Patterson

admin — Fri, 07 Sep 2012 09:44:24 +0000

On Sunday August 5th 2012, Richard James Patterson, who ran the Beadnell Bay Boat Launch, died suddenly.

He was well know and well liked around the area, having spent 50 years of his life working in the villages of Beadnell, Seahouses and Bamburgh.

Richard Patterson with tractor at Beadnell Bay

The car park, Bay and village will miss him dearly.

Red bull Break 5 @ Bamburgh on the 29th & 30th September 2012 !

admin — Mon, 03 Sep 2012 10:26:08 +0000

So, the news is OUT.. the Red Bull Break 5 Surf contest is ON at Bamburgh on the last weekend in September…

Should be fun…. need an entry form ? check the Red Bull website

From last years event;

Red Bull Break 5 2011 from meu images on Vimeo.

Distractions in the water.

admin — Mon, 03 Sep 2012 10:10:23 +0000

A quick look into some August activities…

Messing about with boats…

admin — Mon, 23 Jul 2012 15:14:04 +0000

Well, its summer-ish… windows of sunshine, separated by strong wind, lots of rain and heavy skies.

But that wont stop us. Summer is ploughing ahead… BBQ’s, surfing and getting the boats in the water.

Amongst the various things that can go wrong with a boat, the engine is the most important bit, usually…

So this year especially has been a learning curve in terms of buying, selling, running and maintaining outboard marine engines.

Thats not good….

But at the end of that day we have the skills and the tools to prevail… and the flat water of August is right around the corner, bring it on.

Having fun jumping off cliffs…

admin — Tue, 29 May 2012 08:20:48 +0000

Summer has FINALLY arrived, and the temperatures are hitting the mid twenties… time to cool-off and enjoy some sea. :)

… needless to say this is not something that should be done by everyone.

Please be careful folks. !

The bit before Easter

admin — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 10:23:43 +0000

The blossom is appearing all over the trees, daffodils are springing-up everywhere, and the kids are on holiday from this friday.

Easter is upon us.

The unseasonably nice weather has got everybody moving and thinking about the summer ahead. And that include us too ! :)

We went for a quick shore-dive last night, just off Beadnell Point, and were greeted with STUNNING conditions. Still a bit chilly, but totally worth it.

Check the video below… :)

A quick snap of the Aurora Borealis

admin — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 13:54:08 +0000

We dont often see the Northern Lights this far south as a rule… but two weeks ago we got a treat.

This shot is via James Cummings – good work young man.

Sadly I missed this wondrous sight as I was out of the country, sliding down an Alp. Hopefully I will get another chance to this this sight at home. :)

Another season over…

admin — Sun, 20 Nov 2011 14:44:17 +0000

This time last year we were knee-deep in snow. Well, you were, I managed to make it out of the country on the last flight from Newcastle before they shut the airport due to the weather.

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…