As the title describes we took an excursion to Whitley Bay to see the bay and have an afternoon tea. First the E1 bus to South Shields where the bus ride abruptly stopped at the terminal. While we were asking the bus driver if the bus continued to the ferry terminal we were overheard by a very helpful woman. She walked us to the pedestrian mall and pointed us in the direction we needed to head to get to the ferry. We arrived as the ferry was pulling in and we were able to hop on and travel across the River Tyne. This is a large river and it is a working river. So there were many docks and we saw a large passenger/car ferry. This may actually have been the ferry that goes to Amsterdam. We took an Uber to Whitley Bay from the ferry to expedite the process as the bus routes don't always match the google bus route. Whitley Bay is has a large sandy beach and there were many folks with kids and or dogs using all the facilities. We found our restaurant 1910 and got right into our afternoon tea. We had the best view of the folks from the restaurant. After our tea we walked along the seaside in the northerly direction. We walked for a while and then went up to the main road to check out bus stops. We saw one but it was not the one that we knew would take us to the ferry, so we kept on walking. We saw another bus stop off in the distance with a bus parked in front of it. When we got there we were trying to figure out if this bus was going to take us where we needed. We spoke to a man sitting on the bench about where the busses travel. There was a woman sitting there with him and we all discussed how to get to the ferry. It was agreed that we could get to he ferry by walking from the North Shields stop. We then said all we need was a bus driver since the bus was still sitting there. So the man got up and got behind the wheel of the bus, he was the driver all along! The lady was Katrina and she was our unofficial tour guide all along the trip. She pointed out the interesting sights and told us some local history. Since she was getting off at the same stop that we needed to get off at, she walked three blocks with us and then pointed us in the correct direction. We got the the ferry just as the last people in line were boarding! Great timing saved us a half hour. The it was back to he bus terminal where the E1 was just arriving. Another case of great timing!
A rather large horse stables with extensive pasture land
The South Shields Light up on the headlands
A double light at the water level?
A rocky tower separated from the headlands
The birds love these isolated areas where they can live unmolested
A pair of birders looking with a very large lens
Gulls, cormorants and big nests on the outcrop
Workers in climbing gear? What is their job today?
Priory ruins in the distance
Fish and chips and a log fume type ride
A classic lifeboat named the Tyne
What time is it?
Portraits available lower right
A bit overcast but the umbrellas make it colorful.
Word is the name of this National Center for Writing
Here comes the ferry
Not this one, it is much too big, it is preparing for an 11 hour trip to Amsterdam
Down the gangway
Onto the ferry
A bike trailer for two!
In the middle of the River Tyne
Docks, ships, cranes and much more
A light house themed ferry house
Stirring up the river water
Small boats
Off to the mouth of the river Tyne
Long tall and skinny house
A pub, of course right nest to the ferry dock
The muddy pink tea roses
The type of buildings in North Sheilds
No longer a church, it is now a series of cafes
This one is still a working church
The distinctive bay windows were in all the older buildings
Great details in the windows
Big wide and sandy
No lack of light houses along this coast
The Dome!
It is not the actual Taj Mahal
But it is fancy nonetheless
Watching the kids ride the wheel
Great view for our afternoon tea
The sweet items
Cheese scones and berry scones
Savory items
Gorgeous and delicious
Pulling on the leash as hard as he can
Bird condo by the shore
Skate Park mostly used by bike and scooter riders
The White Dome
Very distinctive
A crow in a puddle
Flip it, flip it good
Again
One fine garden
The rugged coast line north of Tynemouth
A very busy beach
Learner surfers
A very busy roof top
Our impromptu guide, fellow bus rider Katrina, told us that her Grandad learned to swim in this now defunct seaside pool
A very posh row of houses
One of two lighthouses at the mouth of the River Tyne
Wreckage of the Priory and Castle at Tymemouth
The Castle
Folks climbing on the castle grounds
The priory
A church with great windows
Funky old car in North Shields
A dry dock in your front yard
Mr. Murre swimming in the River Tyne
South Shields riverfront
A ship on the weather vane
A gate into the shopping street of South Shields
With a central post for support
I have not seen this before
The bus terminal
"I Can See The Town" is written on this sculpture
Fun-town at the beach
So much going on in this picture
Pirates!
Colemans was recommended to us numerous times but we opted for Tea instead
There must be an elevator in this concrete tower that takes patrons down to the Grotto
Since 1782? A very old restaurant
Not sure what this large ruin is
Burn baby burn!
Nicely upkept
Some windmills
