The River Aln passes by Church Hill that was once part of the village of Alnmouth. You may be able to make out a cross on the top that marks the place where the village church once stood. Then, in a huge storm of Christmas Day 1806 a sandbank was breached which allowed the river to change its course and take another route to the sea. Nowadays, if you want to climb up Church Hill from the village, the best thing to do is wait for low tide and plodge across. Plodge is a north-eastern word for wade.
Turning to my left I follow the river to the sea. It’s a bit of a walk because the tide is out and the river bends to the left to run almost parallel to the dunes.
Looking towards the dunes I see the end of the village and the row of fine old Victorian/Edwardian houses with their splendid views of the sea. We used to stay in that one with the red roof on the right in the days that my brother co-owned the two top floors.
A long shot shows the river ambling along as if trying to avoid the sea.
Then the inevitable happens. The River Aln is swallowed by up the North Sea.
They say that in some northern counties you can experience all four seasons in one day. In Northumberland I think you can sometimes see all four seasons in one sky!
