Tyneside

We left Blyth with plenty of time for the ten miles or so to the Tyne. We had been recommended to stay in the St Peter Marina only one mile from Newcastle city centre.

We sailed gently down the coast and had our first success with fishing. One large and one small mackrell. We kept the large one for supper.

Nearing the Tyne we dropped sail and motored into the Tyne and fuelled up at Royal Quays, before going deliberately slowly up river as we couldn't get into the marina before 18.30. We arrived to find a man on the waiting pontoon who surprised up by saying he would lift the bridge. This was a surprise as no mention was made in any of the pilot books about a bridge. We must have just cleared the sill, before finding (again) that a marina that says it maintains a depth of 2m only has about 1.5m We went onto the mud just inside the entrance and had to sit there for an hour while the tide came in. We used the time to gut the fish and have a rum and coke, before settling down for supper and scrabble.

We are now exploring Newcastle. We hope to go towards Hartlepool tomorrow in order to leave the boat there a few days. The seal is in Eyemouth