Sitting patiently for the water level to drop clearing the way ahead and sipping on a mug of coffee I tried to imagine what it would be like for someone else to be in the same situation. The waves crashing against the rocks, the sound booming off the cliffs from all sides. It would be a scarry situation to find yourself in. I imagined the panic they would feel and wondered what drastic actions they would take. After 4 hours the tide had come in filly and was now out far enough for me to climb into the cave to my left to see if I could see what lay ahead. Would the next bay be sandy or stoney? I waited another hour and was able to stand by the outcrop ready to proceed. Half an hour later I walked round into the next bay, it was stoney and showed signs of a recent landslide. Fresh rocks laying against the cliff face. I headed on looking up watching for signs of impending doom. I reached the far side and walked round the next obstacle only to be halted in my tracks by yet another recent landslide. The pile of mud and rocks higher than a house and spanning out into the sea. This was not what I had been expecting. I had a good look and weighed up the risk against the rewards. The loose soil and rocks made this obstacle a dangerous climb and was too wide to simply walk round without wading through the cold waters. I had no choice, I would have to go back. I turned round slightly disappointed that nature had thrown me this curve ball. I went back round to the previous bay and back passed my little picnic spot and back to a previous bay that looked climbable. The cliff here was not vertical but instead had a steep bank that once Id climbed up to it would be a fair scramble to the top. At the top I rejoined the coastal path that would take me to seaham only a few miles away. I gazed down at the beaches below as I passed them, the light fading as the sun started to set. All around me where fields and farm land, but ahead I could see trees descending into a valley, a railway track to my left. The path turned as it went down and I passed under the tracks, a train horn letting pedestrians know it was approaching. The path heading deep into the valley and in amongst the trees. It was a beautiful sight, caves embedded in the valley walls and a green canopy above me. The light was to dull now to take any pictures and as I ascended up the opposite side it became difficult to follow the track I was now on. I looked at my phone hoping to decipher a route from the satellite images in Google earth but I couldnt see anything obvious. I carried on up the track and emerged at the top in a field. No patgs visible I headed across hoping to run into the rail track. When I arrived at the other side of the field I spotted a pedestrian crossing a little further along that would take me across the tracks and back out to the clifftop path.
Posted on: Tue, 03 Jun 2014 07:21:36 +0000
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