From 1974 to 1977 I was at university in Newcastle and loved it. On this trip it was a given that we would head into the Tyne. There were no such things as marinas when I was there and the river was pretty filthy, although magnificent. Nowadays all of Tyneside is much cleaner and the marina at Royal Quays in North Shields has a great reputation.
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| Early morning Whitby |
We dithered again about staying longer in Whitby, but Saturday looked fair, although with not much wind, whereas Sunday looked wetter, windier and generally less attractive. So it was out of Whitby on the last bridge opening of the morning tide, just after 0730, on a gorgeous clear morning, and straight out to sea in almost windless conditions, where we were escorted for a while by a pod of dolphins, a complete surprise and just a total delight.
It was 44 miles to Royal Quays and a motor all the way. The sky gradually clouded over and there were evidently fog patches, although not immediately around us. We did try sailing around 1300, had a peaceful lunch, then put the engine back on. Finally into the Tyne, which was very exciting for me, and a couple of miles upriver to be locked into the marina where we were greeted by incredibly nice and helpful staff. We'll be here for at least three nights so plan a trip to the Baltic Centre tomorrow (it's closed on Mondays and Tuesdays), a chance for me to catch up with a bit of work, and plan the next steps.
Distance run: 44 miles
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| Royal Quays |
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