Arty Walks And Little Adventures – A Day Trip To Berwick

Northumberland is a beautiful place bordering Scotland. Until this week I couldn’t say had ever been to the beautiful town close to the border known as Berwick Upon-Tweed. I must say it is definitely worth a visit!

To begin the day Tom, Otto the collie dog and I woke up and had some breakfast, watched Gilmore Girls and had a cup of tea. I always struggle to sit down and enjoy breakfast when there is something exciting ahead of me, I’m just impatient for the day to begin but I know I won’t enjoy it proporly until I’ve eaten. Ben and Rocky the cats posed beautifully for my camera while I was getting ready.

After a leisurely drive into Morpeth, a local market town in Northumberland, all three of us caught the train to Berwick for our day out. Otto had never been on the train before and so at first was a little nervous about what was going on, and after informing him he wouldn’t have his own seat on the train he didn’t seem fussed at all about the concept. But he quickly settled in when he realised he could get lots of attention from the ticket collection staff. We enjoyed reading our books for most of the journey, I am currently reading the first installment of the James Herriot memoirs, which as delightfully funny and very easy reading.

After the short journey to Berwick, we stopped off at a lovely local cafe called ‘Pier Red’. I enjoyed their soup and crusty bread, while Tom enjoyed some salmon mouse and crackers, both of which were absolutely delicious. The staff there was so incredibly kind and helpful and of course it was very dog friendly which is always handy when travelling with your four-legged friend! Although Otto was not pleased that the salmon patte was not for him.

We continued walking into Berwick and had a wonder round the local shops and did a bit of christmas shopping. The buildings alone were very interesting with arched windows and a stunning clock tower. My favourite shop by far was ‘Slightly Foxed’ book shop which reminded me so much of a book shop in Tynemouth which is no longer there. It was absolutely beautiful with such an array of interesting and unique books. The ceiling was also absolutely breathtaking with a cove painted like a blue sky with a circular window in the centre. Most of the shops we visited were dog friendly which is very refreshing and lovely, however it is important to know your dogs boundaries and only take them in if you feel they will behave accordingly. If Otto got a bit restless I would take him outside and let him expend his energy away from the shop.

After leaving the beautiful book shop, we found a sign showing we were facing a spot that artist L.S Lowry had sketched. As someone who has had a lifetime love of art this was incredibly exciting and so we decided to follow the Lowry art trail which was signposted along the way. The walk led us along the Berwick Town walls, which featured several interesting historical buildings such as the ‘Main Guard House’ which was moved there in 1815 and the defence tower which was modified multiple times throughout history.

We really enjoyed the walk and it allowed us to let Otto off the lead for a bit too. We watched cormorants fly and oyster catchers wade below the walls. It was beautiful up there above the sea, looking out and learning all about the local history and the artists that captured its beauty. We walked all the way along to the lighthouse where Otto attempted to round it up. Berwick is truly a beautiful spot and has so much history to learn from. One of my favourite parts of traveling around my home county, is learning what made it in the first place.

After our walk we had some time to kill so we made ourselves comfy in a local pub named ‘The Leaping Salmon’ and had some soft drinks and some chips while we waited for our train. What struck us is that everyone we met, absolutely everyone, was so incredibly lovely. From experience 95% of the people you come across day to day in our part of the world, tend to be lovely people. But everyone we met was just so lovely and kind to us, Otto got so many treats from local shop keepers I’m surprised he ate is dinner! We eventually got our train but just before we did, a member of LNER staff asked if he could get Otto a biscuit, he then appeared with three packets of shortbread for all three of us! He was absolutely lovely and it definitely was a lovely way to end our trip.

If your planning  visit to Northumberland, I would highly recommend you visit Berwick. There was only so much I could fit in a blog post and only too many photos. Berwick is truly a beautiful and fascinating location for a day trip or even to stay. Northumberland never fails to fascinate and amaze me.

– Lucy Strawberry