Inspiration

Great Walks on the Northumberland Coast

Sawday's Expert

5 min read

Hairdressers, builders, restaurants and great walks all have something in common – they’re best found with recommendations. Scooping up Newcastle-upon-Tyne at its lowest boundary, Northumberland, with all it’s rugged topography and dramatic coastline, is one of the most scenic areas of the country. Unsurprisingly, amongst its many stretches of national parks, wildlife reserves and AONBs, Northumberland has some of the greatest walks found anywhere in the country, as well as the loveliest people to bump into on them. We asked our ex-Newcastle resident, and travel expert, Nicola Crosse, for the canniest strolls to take in this Northern wonderland.

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Cresswell to Warkworth

You’ve the option to make the 10.5mi walk from the seaside village of Cresswell, all the way to Warkworth – a commonly suggested route. The path follows the beach, and if the tide is out, you can stroll across the sand instead – you might enjoy the wildlife, or the far stretching views – and the beach itself, Druridge Bay, is magnificent, however views of the local nuclear power station from Cresswell itself may not be the idyllic sights you’re hoping for. Keep your focus North, and enjoy ambling past the Druridge pools, a wetland wildlife haven, and then later – the Druridge Bay Country Park as it comes up on your left – as well as the Hauxley Nature reserve ahead of you shortly after. The walk will then take you through Radcliffe, then the aptly named Amble which has a few places for pit stops and refreshments.

Shortly before arriving at Warkworth you’ll find yourself strolling along the River Coquet as it rushes towards the sea – and be surprised to find the river take a hard right, as it meanders around the town like a giant moat. This is not without good reason – the village has the remains of Warkworth Castle – though ruinous, it’s mostly intact, and rather impressive. Home to the Percy family, and the most famous of Percys – Harry Hotspur, immortalised by Shakespeare as the bane of Scots who traversed the border and stole cattle (though less mentioned that the Northumbrians also did the same). The town itself is idyllic, made up of period houses and buildings that didn’t see the same battering the south did during the second world war, and a simple stroll about the town, or a venture by the river is a beautiful setting to rustle up an appetite for the many highly rated restaurants that are dotted throughout Warkworth.

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Warkworth to Craster

If Warkworth’s your starting point, or your hardy legs laugh at a 10.5mi walk, you can walk straight from the end of Warkworth, at its most north-easternly point you’ll find a medieval bridge that hops the Coquet and heads North, turn right at the end of the bridge, and head east towards the sea, and at the end of the road you’ll find Warkworth Beach car park, followed by the beach itself. Here you can make your way up the coast, either along the beach, or the paths that lie a little further inland. After two miles, you’ll find the seaside village of Alnmouth, and Alnmouth beach, unsurprisingly where the mouth of the river Aln meets the sea. If you head inland just a little, you’ll spot a road, where you’ll find signage to follow for footpaths that will lead you round to a road between Hipsburn and Alnmouth.

Here you can either decide to make the journey to Craster either by rolling field on the Longhoughton road, or by the curve of the coast via Alnmouth. The former will reveal a series of little villages, ripe for further pit stops and scenic patchwork fields and the latter, a series of beaches – vast open expanses of sand. Both paths will meet together at Howick, where you’ll follow the northern path up to the village of Craster – a beautiful little fishing village, quiet and inexplicably unpopular with tourists, given its idyllic architecture, quaint harbour and miles of coastline. If you’re peckish, stop off at The Jolly Fisherman for The Jolly’s Famous Crab Sandwich, and a view over the sea to pair it with, or a jaunt to Robson’s Smokehouse for smoked Craster kippers – a dish perfected over the last 100 years.

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Craster to Dunstanburgh Castle

A shorter walk this time – stretching the shingle beach coastline from Craster to Dunstanburgh Castle just a mile or so north. Follow Dunstanburgh Road from the north end of Craster, to where it converts to track via a wooden fence. Hopping it, keep the jade Northumbrian Sea on your right, stopping to dip in toes if the temperature’s right, and venture up the coast, weaving between sheep, hopping a second fence, perhaps making your way round a few cows, all the way to Dunstanburgh Castle where it stands proudly on the coast. Passed from one member of gentry to another (you’ll find out if you pay for a visit inside), it has an impressive view from the top, and the beach below makes an interesting spot to find ‘St Cuthbert’s Beads’, fossilised plant stems, that look like small stone coins, with the centres cut out – named such for the monk that lived on Lindisfarne and supposedly used them for rosary.

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Dunstanburgh Castle to Seahouses

From Dunstanburgh Castle, head north, along the coastal path, to Embleton Bay – golden sands framed by low dunes at its back – voted the best beach in the UK by readers of the BBC’s Countryfile magazine. Teeming with wildlife, you’ll hear kittiwake squawks as you eye the pink wild vetch and wild thyme sprouting forth from the dunes. Following its gentle curve up the coastline, you’ll find Low Newton-by-the-Sea and its beach by St Mary’s haven. Here you can stop off at The Ship Inn, pub and brewery, for some fresh ales and pub food, before cracking on past High Newton-by-the-Sea, and further north onto Beadnell Bay Beach – a stretch of Northumberland AONB with a bird sanctuary when terns nest during the summer. You might spot revellers partaking in water sports here, surfing and windsurfing as well as sailing, or the suddenly emerging faces of snorkellers and scuba divers. This long stretch has Beadnell at the most Northern point of the sand, and offers more pit stops in turn, as well as the option to partake in a few beach activites yourself with equipment rental and lessons on offer.

Keeping to the coastline, you can follow the path by the sea to Seahouses, by North Sunderland, about a mile and a half up the road. Here, the Farne Islands are just a couple of miles off the coast, and there’s the option to take a trip out with Billy Shiel’s Boat Trips – which have been running since just after the second world war. Be warned, however, Billy’s been known to threaten Sunderland FC fans with a unceremonious jettison unto the sea, being a diehard Newcastle United fan. If enquiring about how to get to Lindisfarne, opt for its other moniker ‘Holy Island’, which is preferred (significantly) by the locals. At Holy Island, you’ll find The Priory Ruins, the castle and the option to learn more about St Cuthbert than his preference for small fossils.

Stay close by at Chaffinch Cottage, Kidlandee >

Featured places to stay in Northumberland

Victoria Cottage & Smuggler's Cottage

Alnmouth, Northumberland

£250 p/n
Self-catering
4 rooms for 4

Newt Cottage at Hunting Hall

Berwick-upon-Tweed, Northumberland

From £64 p/n
Self-catering
2 rooms for 3

Teal House Learchild

Whittingham, Alnwick, Northumberland

From £156 p/n
Self-catering
4 rooms for 8

Discover our special places to stay in Northumberland >

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Nicola Crosse

Sawday's Expert

Nic modestly describes herself as a pig keeper with typing skills. Having been at the company since it was run from an old farmhouse, she is actually the ultimate arbiter of whether or not a place is right for us. She divides her time between caring for our owners, inspecting new places and keeping her experienced eye on the quality of the collection. She is presently pigless, but plans are a-trotter for a bit of land and a new litter.

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