Recently I have been rather distracted from the Tyne Valley by another Northumbrian great river and its environs. So, I hope you will forgive me this time for telling you something of my work in Coquetdale, and the Rothbury Estate. Here, Northumberland Wildlife Trust has just taken on a large part, including Simonside, and is fundraising to secure the rest of nearly 4000ha, or 10,000… Read More »Change of Riverside
Of the Tyne. Have you ever wondered how an otter experiences and lives along and within the Tyne? I have many times, as I caught glimpses of their lives over the years and being lucky now and then to watch their habits. Putting these vignettes together and my experiences of watching otters in Scotland too, a typical autumn night might run something like this; Unnoticed… Read More »Otter’s Eye View
I’ve been spending most time lately either right up in north west Northumberland and the borders, on the coast, but also in Newcastle looking at nature and wildness in the midst of the city and its green and blue spaces. So, I thought this time I’d focus on the Tyne in its lower reaches, between the city and the estuary and how that relates to… Read More »The Urban Tyne
On 13 March 2010 I was one of 1000 volunteers selected to help light one of 500 beacons which, at every 250m intervals along its 84 mile route, truly illuminated Hadrian’s walls’ position in the Tyne Valley. It marked the 1600th anniversary of the end of Roman rule in Britain too. It was a very memorable event for many and being so close to it… Read More »Wildlife On The Wall
I’m walking the line, the line connecting the Northumberland hills to the estuary, along the bank of the Tyne. I’m just near Stocksfield, it’s early morning and a cold bright day. The sun is glancing off the ripples across the water and the willows and the occasional alder buckthorn have burst into blossom, like white and yellow candyfloss. For once there is no wind and… Read More »Walking the Nature Line
It’s a while since I’ve written for Tyne Valley Express about the Tyne Valley, so before putting words to pc, I went to seek guidance from NWT’s long serving Vice President and former RSPB Northern Director, Ian Armstrong, who is a long term Tyne Valley resident and has observed the landscape and wildlife here for decades. I was seeking oversight and insight of where to… Read More »Wild Tyne Tales
