Log No 7. Fri 5th Apr 2013 - Redcar to N of Hartlepool, 25 miles (130 miles walked)

Not wanting a repeat performance with campsites we checked them out on the internet last night and the nearest was 25 miles away. Anyway I emailed and got a pitch confirmed so the only concern was the 25 miles.

There was no change to the weather as we set off at 7.35, after 45 mins along the roads we picked up a footpath alongside the railway line through a complex of fuel & gas pipelines. This was the Teesdale Way and was marked with some great signposts.

We followed this into Middlesborough to the football stadium, getting there at 10.00.

The path had been reasonable except for a small flooded section, there were some thick planks in the water so it looked okay, however, when I tried to cross I discovered they were actually floating. Luckily, with me being so light, they didn't sink too much but Mick needed me to find some extra bits before he could make it over.

To get across the River Tees we made our way to the bridge shown on the map, called Transporter Br (toll).

I didn't realise until we got there that it was basically a section of road suspended from a gantry which was carried from one side to the other so it was debatable whether I could use it, according to my No Ferries rule. NOT ALLOWED I hear you shout.
Too late now, we used it.

We now headed for Hartlepool and after eating half our lunch had 5 miles of road walking on the A178 before we could get back to the coast at North Gare Sands.

We saw a newly dead dolphin on the beach here, there was no obvious evidence as to how it died.

Stopping in the shelter of the sand dunes we finished our lunch then walked along Seaton Sands to get into Hartlepool for 15.00.

We passed by the PSS Wingfield Castle in Johnson Dock, this was a former Humber Estuary ferry which is now preserved as a museum, and thought we could walk round the marina but found that access was blocked to part of the port so it was back to the roads.

It took us an hour to get round to The Headland. At the end of the promenade we went past the cemetery and followed the path alongside the railway and through the golf course. Then another path led to our camp for the night at Crimdon House Farm, just outside Hartlepool, it was now 17.30.

This was a certificated C&C Club site with the bare minimum facilities but we can live with that.

25 miles of easy walking but little coastal scenery.