Guyzance to Alnmouth Station

Mill House in Guyzance is one of those really special B&Bs. We slept well and Karen cooked us a lovely breakfast, and it was about 9 am when we left; the other guests, a Danish couple who arrived quite late last night, were out walking Karen's dog - so we didn't meet them. Although we are unlikely to be walking past Mill House again, having realised how close it is to the A1 (whilst feeling miles from anywhere) it is very tempting to visit again when on a journey north.

We started by retracing our steps over the river and back up to St Oswald's Way. Just up the road, we met the same man out walking his dog who we'd met as we arrived yesterday; it turns out he lives locally but usually works Monday to Friday in Liverpool. His wife had sprained her ankle, so he had extra time at home on dog walking duties!

We rejoined St Oswald's Way at NU212022, south of Acklington Park Farm and close to the edge of OS Explorer Sheet 332. We followed Rake Lane, sometimes a track and sometimes a green lane, for a couple of miles to the northeast, crossing the road back to Guyzance then going underneath the East Coast Main (railway) Line, then doing a dogleg left and then right onto a minor road south of Morwick. After passing a water tower, we turned left onto a tarmacked track heading almost due north to Warkworth. From here we had clear views of the sea, and Warkworth Castle was also visible across the fields.

We passed a woman with a toddler in a pushchair and a dog, then we squeezed to one side of the track to enable a tractor with a wide attachment to come past. We followed St Oswald's Way signs around the houses on the outskirts of Warkworth, then skirted around the castle. It's an impressive place and we have happy memories of visiting when the children were small. I was (unnecessarily as things turned out) anxious about getting to Alnmouth in time for the train, so I didn't think we had time to stop for shopping and also for a cup of tea in Warkworth. In the end the compromise was that I sat outside a bakers sorting out my feet whilst Richard went inside to buy provisions and take-away tea. Mind you, he was gone so long that I thought they were waiting for the chicken to lay the eggs for our egg sandwiches!

We walked out of Warkworth, crossing the River Coquet for the last time, and just as we did so, Richard's mobile phone rang - his hygienist appointment for tomorrow has been cancelled. Surprise, surprise; this is something of an ongoing saga with our dental practice and I don't actually think they've got a hygienist at the moment. Perhaps we shouldn't complain; our actual dentist is superb and we still get treatment on the National Health Service.

Back on the walk, we noticed a different signage for our route; I think this is because we had now joined the Northumbrian Coastal Path. We eventually managed to cross the busy A1068 (the road which links Alnwick to Alnmouth, via Warkworth) and climbed up to a car park; the road then became a track down towards Warkworth Beach.

We returned to the route of St Oswald's Way and the Northumberland Coastal Path and followed this to the north, around the edge of a golf course and up and down on the inland edge of the dunes. It was pleasant enough walking (and not too sandy, so we made good progress) though slightly frustrating that we couldn't see the sea. Eventually the coastline came into view and we had some nice views south to Amble, southeast to Coquet Island and north to Alnmouth. We walked though a small caravan site; I can't say that I ever find caravans attractive, but at least you can see why these ones are here - they have a super view.

We had decided to stop for lunch just before heading inland, and I also wanted to change my trousers (having put on a rather uncomfortable pair this morning on the basis that the others were all muddy), So it was rather disappointing to discover a number of cars parked at the point where we had hoped to stop. We walked a short distance along the path that continues to the north (as if to Alnmoith, though the River Aln eventually gets in the way) and here we managed to find a place to stop and, yes, I managed to change my trousers.

After lunch we took a stony track inland to a cycle route running parallel with the A1068. There were a few other walkers about including a woman walking slightly in front of us and a family with a know-all of a father - though to be fair he did alert us to the only cyclists we saw on the path, a couple on a tandem. The views to Alnmouth were lovely; unsurprisingly given that we were close to the railway line, it was like the view that you get from the East Coast Main Line, but we had rather longer to admire it!