Judith Baker has just returned from a visit to the breath-taking Farne islands where she got up close with some playful seals and took in the local sights and sounds
The Farne Islands lie two to three miles off the Northumberland coast midway between the fishing village of Seahouses and the magnificent Castle of Bamburgh. As well as being the most famous Sea Bird Sanctuary in the British Isles they also have a large colony of Atlantic or Grey Seals. My husband, a keen diver, was exploring the wrecks under the sea as well as cavorting with seals, which are also visible from one of the many boats that take you around the islands.
I must have been one of the few people to enjoy a sunny, warm Bank Holiday as the weather in Seahouses was balmy. A walk along the beach took in a great view of Bamburgh Castle, one of the largest castles in the country and the seat of Northumbrian kings from early times. I was later to explore the castle and the delightful village of Bamburgh with its cosy tea rooms, shops and lovely green where a game of cricket was underway.
The island’s other famous resident was young Victorian heroine Grace Darling who with her father William, the keeper of Longstone Lighthouse, set out in their small open coble boat to rescue survivors of the stricken paddle steamer SS Forfarshire which had struck Big Harcar rock in 1838. Grace, aged just 22 years old was hailed a national heroine. I stopped at her magnificent grave in the churchyard in Bamburgh, where there is also a Grace Darling museum.
Seahouses is also handy for trips to Lindisfarne, or Holy island, the epicentre of Christianity in Anglo Saxon times, Lindisfarne Priory was once the home of St Oswald. This serene setting was the birthplace of the Lindisfarne Gospels, one of the world’s most precious books. Ransacked by marauding Viking raiders in the 8th century, the evocative ruins of Lindisfarne Priory includes the famous ‘rainbow bridge’ which spirals skywards with the ghost of a long-vanished tower.
Holy Island remains a place of pilgrimage today. The island is the final destination of long distance walking route and one of Scotland’s Great Trails, the St Cuthbert’s Way.
Seahouses has any number of small B&Bs, guesthouses and self-catering options. Theres plenty of fish and chip shops and a couple of nice pubs but for more gastronomic fare Bamburgh or nearby Alnwick are worth the journey
