follow you follow me

28th Dec 2018, Howick Bay, 8am

I followed my nose and ended up at Howick.  We dropped down towards Howick Bay while there was still a blue light of pre-dawn.

I fancied a circular walk but as we turned inland Daisy made it clear she wanted to stay by the beach.

Eventually I gave up trying to persuade her and I followed as she trotted happily back to the beach.

She was right though.  When we got there the sunrise was beautiful.

the quiet end of the day

27th Dec 2018, Beadnell Bay, 8am

The end of the year is rolling up fast but it's all just another day down here on the beach - which is why I like it.

27th Dec 2018, Newton Point, 3:30pm

Some say the evening is ‘the quiet end of day’. For me sunrise is much quieter and there were quite a few people around this afternoon

27th Dec 2018, at home, 4pm

Winter trees at twilight are beautiful things to catch out of the corner of your eye. Their stark outlines contrast with the the softness of the sunset clouds in the stillness of falling evening.

broken promises

26th Dec 2018, Dunstanburgh, 8am

A gentle pink sky
Whispered promise of sunrise
That faded too soon

First Christmas

Christmas Day 2018, Beadnell Bay, 8am

My first Christmas at home with just myself and Daisy.  We were at the beach for sunrise but armed with more equipment than normal.

These shots are just the usual though...

A wee tripod and a microphone with wind jammer allowed for this video to be shot.  You can't stop the drizzle getting on the lens though!

Here is a longer soundscape of the curlews waking up from their roost at Long Nanny.  I was hoping to get a nice shot of them and the sunrise but that wasn't possible today...

Christmas Day 2018, Embleton Bay, 2pm

Sunny and surprisingly warm.  Maybe not barbecue weather but a long way from a white christmas.

venus returns

24th Dec 2018, Newton Point, 3pm

A nice late afternoon walk. The sun setting way over the cheviots was nice enough but more subtle and, to me, more beautiful were the colours of the 'band of venus' over the sea and the eastern horizon.

Half an hour on and the colours had strengthened.

In this photo you can maybe see a spark of light on the horizon which is the sun glinting off the windows of Longstone lighthouse 10 miles to the North.

half way morning

24th December 2018, Dunstanburgh, 8am

A gentle light all around the horizon.  Kind of half way between a grey morning and a blazing sunrise.

if there isn't a sunrise?

23rd December 2018, Embleton Bay, 8am

Grey clouds meant there was no sunrise visible this morning

There was clear sky on the opposite side of the horizon and a lovely setting moon.

The clouds themselves were beautifully textured.

waiting

22nd Dec 2018, Embleton Bay, 8am

Quite a dull, grey start to sunrise but we hung about, played a bit with Daisy and watched the waves and eventually the light was beautiful

sounds

21st December 2018, Beadnell Bay, 8am

This is the quiet time  - Soon the Christmas visitors will arrive in great numbers but this morning there was only me and Daisy for the full length of Beadnell Bay.

It was quite dull and grey but around the mouth of the Long nanny there were dozens of curlew roosting.

It's a beautiful sound and I stood and listened for a while.

Hark the beach doth call...

20th Dec 2018, Dunstanburgh, 8am

This is as far as we're going time to head back - that distant beach is calling us...

20th Dec 2018, Newton Point, 3pm

As the sun sank slowly in the south-west the clouds put on quite a display...

walking and waiting for the sun

19th December 2018, Embleton Bay, 7:45

A wander up the beach as the sun rose is always a joyful experience.

A simple landscape is made more interesting by including some sunrise watchers...

The moment we were waiting for...

Here's the sunrise in moving pictures.

No cameras were harmed in the making of this video!

sunrise to sunset

17th December 2018, Dunstanburgh, 8am

Still half an hour until sunrise.  It was good to be back in our usual spot after a weekend away being sociable in Scotland.

Meanwhile down on the beach the play of the light on the ghinstone (basalt) 'cannonball boulders' caught my eye...

17th December 2018, Football Hole, 3pm

At the other end of day I turned my back on the sea for a shot of the sunset reflected in a big pool of fish water on the beach.

famous hound

15th December 2018, Supplemental

Today me and Daisy featured in a lovely article in Newcastle's 'The Journal' newspaper.

I knew it was happening but didn't really expect us to be splashed across pages 2 and 3!

There's no photo of me of course - Daisy is the photogenic one.

looking the other way

14th December 2018, Embleton Bay, 7:30am

There was colour in the sky but out over the sea where the sun was due to rise was a thick bank of cloud.

This view is of a familiar location (i.e. the Skaith) but from an unusual angle being almost South West

As we walked up the beach the sky out over the sea stayed grey and the colour to the south faded as quickly as the new day arrived.

time to stop and look

11th December 2018, Embleton Bay, 7:30am

A quick dog walk along the beach before a guided walk at Bamburgh this morning...

the world goes by

10th December 2018, Embleton Bay, 7:30am

Daisy was up early with a rumbly tummy but she was sprightly enough when she spotted her sisters from her favourite viewpoint up by the castle.

After sunrise we wandered along the beach watching the world go by as usual

watching and waiting

9th December 2018, Embleton Bay, 8am

All sorts of activities on the beach predawn this morning...

 A bunch of photographers stood in the grey light under heavy clouds and hoped for the best

We headed off towards the north and eventually the clouds wandered off over the sea leaving a bonny morning behind them.  I hope the photographers were patient enough to wait for their shot.

9th Dec 2018, Newton Point, 3pm

The sun was setting beautifully behind us as we walked to the shore.

Once we got there the waves were spectacular.  If we'd been here an hour earlier there would have been nice light on the waves but this is how I saw them.

easy inspiration

8th December 2018, Embelton Bay, 7:30am

As I drove down to the beach I could see small grey clouds sitting above a clear horizon.  I have seen a lot of sunrises and I thought the sun might just light these up with colour before sunrise.

So, I was already inspired to wander around the beach and see what happened.

Still well before sunrise but the grey clouds started to take on colour from beyond the horizon.