Great Day Out at Spurn Point

Left: North Sea; Right: Humber

The Humber river does not only separate Hull from Lincolnshire but its north bank also marks the beginning of what historical linguists call northern English. I have grown quite fond of the estuary in all its brown glory and was intrigued to see what it looks like when it finally meets the North Sea at Spurn Point. Spurn Point is a 3.5 mile long sand and shingle island. It is only 46 metres wide in some places and protrudes out into the water like a hook. It even featured in the BBC show Seven Natural Wonders as Yorkshire’s coastal gem.

Withernsea beach

It’s possible to get to Spurn Point from Hull without too much trouble. We took the 75 bus to Withernsea. There we had 50 minutes to kill before our connecting bus arrived so we had a wander about the place. It’s your typical bucket-and-spade seaside town with tacky arcades (I never understood why the English are so fond of them) and myriads of places where you can get a mediocre coffee and ice cream on the go. But it feels strangely out of the way, which I didn’t like. I’d rather go to Hornsea for my bucket-and-spade beach feel. Luckily, the 73 bus to Easington arrived on time and we hopped on. It turned out that we could have left the 75 at a village called Patrington already and catch the 73 from there thus cutting time, money and Withernsea off our journey but at least we know for next time.

The bus dropped us off right next to the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust building. From there we set off to walk the entire perimeter of Spurn Point starting with the stretch of beach on the North Sea side. The weather was terrific and I searched the beach for pretty shells and little stones. The less pretty ones I threw at John :) I was rather chuffed with my findings but I wasn't lucky enough to find a fossil, which is a shame as they are apparently quite common among the pebbles.

Every once in a while we ran up the dunes to see what the view was like on the river side. The tide only just began to rise so the Humber’s mud flats were still very visible. They might be rich in nutrients making a diverse wildlife possible but they are not all that aesthetically pleasing so back to the North Sea side we went. 3.5 miles can really start to drag when you’re walking on sand and once we made it to the tip of Spurn Point it was definitely time for a break. It is pretty windy there so our lunch was mixed with a gnashing quantity of sand as we were watching large ships cross the Humber-North Sea threshold. Gnash, gnash...

Coffee definitely required a less windy spot so we climbed up the sand dunes and found shelter in an old, overgrown gun battery used during WW1 and 2 to keep the Germans out, heh. Clearly it didn’t work! My celebratory invasion coffee tasted amazing, I admired my new stones and just chilled in the sun. It was pure bliss. But we had a bus to catch and still a few miles to walk so on we went to the Spurn Point lighthouses on the southern river side.

It’s pretty amazing to think that at least 8 lighthouses have disappeared here since the 15th century. The still intact one was built in the late 19th century but you can see that it was decommissioned 30 years ago as the paint is starting to peel off and the top is getting a little rusty. There are plans to turn it into a heritage centre but I’m not convinced. I really enjoyed the decay-charm you get from the lighthouse and the overgrown battery ruins. It'd almost be a shame to tidy it all up.

Shortly before we were back at the bus stop, we were lucky enough to get a glimpse of why Spurn Point is so popular with bird watchers as we witnessed a large bird gathering over the Humber. It's paradise for anyone who has binoculars with over 200 different bird species visiting throughout the year. We haven’t fixed the whole lack-of-binocular problem yet but I think it has definitely become more of a priority. The next paycheck will have to go on gear upgrades and not on adding to my ambitious collection of clothing. It was getting quite late and we had to rush to catch our bus back to Withernsea where we were in medical need of a large ice cream with flake by the beach. Overall a very lovely day and it’d be very good to have a bit more time when we go again to get more exploring done.

A Day in York

I quite like York but haven’t been in a long time so last Saturday we decided to change that. York is approximately 40 miles northwest of Hull and it’s easily accessible by public transport. Taking the X46 bus takes about an hour and a half and costs £11 for a return ticket. We spent most of the day walking without a particular aim and came across a few gems.

The Warehouse

Close to the city centre we went to a dark, old looking warehouse that seemed to sell all sort of junk. Second-hand army jackets, leather suitcases in various stages of decay, old furniture, rusty bicycles, untuned pianos, dusty lamp shades, silver rings, random trinkets...  When we had a slightly closer look not all of this “junk” could be bought for a few quid. Close to the entrance was a locked cabinet with old books costing up to £400 and next to it a piece of T-Rex bone could have been ours for £28. Little archaeological artifacts such as mini statues and old Roman coins covered a very wide price range.

The Little Garden

There are so many little corners and alleys in York that I’d have trouble finding this garden again. It branched off one of the main roads and was pretty dinky! In essence it was an alleyway which was decorated with customised soft pots for flowers. I thought they were quite pretty especially when you don’t have much space in your garden you can get some lovely effects when they’re put together right. I have put this on my “to try one day” list. 

The Shambles
Hardly a secret gem, ‘The Shambles’ is generally considered to be the most well preserved medieval street in the world. The buildings are from the 14th and 15th century when it was still a butcher’s lane. Not one roof seems to be quite straight. The overhanging buildings protected the meat from direct sunlight and the pavements are slightly raised to wash away the blood from the doorsteps. In 1086 William the Conqueror mentioned ‘The Shambles’ in his Doomsday book and by now it has made it into countless tourist guides. I would have tried reaching the left and right side of the alley with outstretched arms, which is apparently possible in parts, but I think I would have vexed a lot of people. So it'd be nice to go there once all shops are closed to properly take it in without bumping into someone. There are plenty of quirky little shops as well as slightly more touristy ones to browse through if you have the patience and don’t mind a crowd. I was feeling quite zen that day and managed to “float” through the crowd. Well, until I started to get hungry anyway.
                                                                                    The National Railway Museum

Filled with curry and coffee (we didn’t have those at the same time), we made our way to the National Railway Museum. Like most museums in the UK it is free but you are asked if you want to give a £3 donation, however this is entirely voluntary. My train knowledge is limited and my feet were pretty tired from walking around town all day so I only remember one carriage and two trains in more detail. Queen Victoria’s carriage is situated in an inactive train station among many other royal and more common carriages. I do love the Victorian Age so seeing the carriage she used to travel in was really exciting. Inside everything was blue! As we went into the great hall we saw the Mallard. On 3 July 1938 it set a world record as the fastest steam train when it reached a speed of 126mph on Stoke Bank! The astonishing thing is that to this day the Mallard’s record is still unbroken. Next to the Mallard stood a Shinkansen Japanese bullet train. Shinkansen is a highspeed railway network in Japan and the driving car in the museum is a 0 series model, which was the first series. These trains could reach a speed of 130mph and later even 137mph. The 0 series retired in 2008 but can look back on a 44 year long history. I’m a bit ashamed to admit that the train didn’t stick in my mind because of its impressive stats but because the word Shinkansen reminded me of the German word Schimpansen (chimpanzees).

Once we had seen enough trains we bought a few essentials we couldn’t bear to leave behind in the city centre before all the shops closed. This included a bottle of Lindisfarne mead, tasty pasties and my newly discovered favourite thing: cinder toffee. Pasty and toffee have long disappeared but the mead is still sitting in the fridge waiting to be opened...

Six Miles of Birdage at Bempton Cliffs

Photo of parts of the cliffs taken near Filey.

Apparently today is Yorkshire Day. I don’t really know what that means. Wear a flat cap, drink ale and be sure to let everybody know you live in Yorkshire maybe. But for what it’s worth, I like living here. Yorkshire has a rugged beauty to it, especially the moors and the seaside. There is a 6 mile stretch of chalky coastline about an hour north of Hull. It’s a nature reserve called Bempton Cliffs, which is the scene of a noisy spectacle from April until August. About 200,000 seabirds breed along the cliff line and it’s amazing to watch and hear. It is also a little bit smelly so don’t expect a fresh sea breeze...

Drenched!

I went to Bempton for the first time in late spring/early summer 2011. I’d just finished my final modules at uni and had some weeks to fill before I had to head back to Germany so I went on random day trips from Hull to places that sounded interesting. I was still a bit of a newbie to this “dressing sensibly when going outside”-thing and ended up wearing jeans and a cotton jumper for a day out in the pouring rain. I had only just discovered the genius of wearing waterproof shoes and was so happy with myself that I didn’t think of waterproofing the rest of me. After all my jumper had a hood so... Well, needless to say my first experience was damp and cold. I vividly remember cursing those smelly birds for luring me out. To top it all off the next train back to Hull was not until an hour and a half so I sat in Bempton’s village pub shivering over a cup of tea and trying to dry myself with the hand dryer in the bathroom. Dashing! But even when the train finally arrived, it took an hour to get to Hull and then I had to walk for another 40 minutes to get back to my student accommodation. I learnt my lesson and am now the proud owner of three waterproof jackets! It’s funny how my hiking boots recently gave up their waterproof properties, though. I only seem to be allowed to have one or the other.

Either way, Bempton was not on the top of my list of places to visit once I had moved back to Hull but a few weekends ago we walked from Flamborough to Filey via Bempton Cliffs on a non-rainy day. There are a couple of viewpoints along the cliffs and several RSPB (Royal Society for the Protection of Birds) members had set up their binoculars and were answering visitors’ questions. That’s when I saw my first close-up of a puffin in the wild! You quickly get the hang of puffin spotting and I found them very recognisable due to their fluttery flight and their colourful beak. They normally seek a solitary existence out at sea but come to the cliffs to breed around May-July. If you want to get a close look at them then DO NOT forget your binoculars like we might have done, ahem.

One bird species you do have a good chance of getting a close look at even without binoculars is the gannet. Bempton Cliffs is the only gannet breeding area on the British mainland although 25% of the northern gannet population breeds in the UK. Islands such as the Scottish St Kilda and the Shetlands are major gannet territory! They are big birds with a wingspan of up to 2 metres and it takes them 5 years to reach maturity.

The final bird I could recognise was also the most common one to be seen whizzing around the cliffs: the kittiwake. 10% of the UK’s kittiwake population are at home at Bempton. There are only 8 major bird species living at the cliffs throughout the year so the number is manageable and I should probably make an effort to learn them all and tell them from each other... maybe. I found this guide to what highlights can be found at the cliffs throughout the year pretty interesting and it gives you an idea of what birds to expect when.

Incidentally, the cliffs are also a great place for going porpoise and minke whale spotting. I’d like to do that soon so this would require another trip to the seaside. Hurray! I’ll be sure to pack binoculars and a raincoat this time.