(All photos can be enlarged by clicking on them)
A trip north to the once genteel resort of Cleethorpes delivered something of a shock. Despite being end of season, the town was absolutely packed with tourists, and it took a very long time to find a car-parking space.
Dogs were not allowed on the beach until the end of the month, so we had to walk along the busy promenade with Ollie. Although the streets were full of people, the beach was almost deserted.
In the distance, I spotted what was left of some wartime fortifications.
The pier that once served as an elegant entertainment venue is now just a gigantic fish and chip shop.
It was a sunny and warm day, and we were able to find a good place for a delicious lunch later.
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Thanks very much, Angela, glad to hear that.
Best wishes, Pete.
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great photos, Pete. it must be wonderful to have beach almost to yourselves! peace and quiet! 🙂
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We couldn’t actually go onto the beach that day, as dogs are not allowed until after the 30th of September. 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
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A packed town and a deserted beach is odd, but this whole year has been odd. Always nice to see your photos, Pete.
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Thanks, Jennie. Everyone semed to be eating. 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
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You’re welcome, Pete.
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Great photos 🙂 Your mention of Fish and Chips is getting me hungry 🙂 Anyway, keep up the great work as always 🙂
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That food is for sale everywhere up there, John, as it is almost everywhere in England.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Nice to see photos of your vacation Pete.
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This was 40 miles from where we were staying, but I have posted photos of that place before, when we were there in 2017.
Best wishes, Pete.
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In the fifties,we holidayed in Cleethorpes evey year, staying with my aunt, uncle, and older cousin who lived there.
I remember the smell of the hot tarmac in the coach park when we walked through it to the beach. (Hot? Cleethorpes?) I remember crabs crawling around the neighbour’s garden; the footpath and wall at the end of the garden and the smell of the gasworks behind the wall; the Rayburn in the back room and sharing a bed with my cousin; walking up the road to get fish and chips.
I remember the carousel on the beach and the donkeys and the sand – real, soft sand – the entertainments arcade on the promenade; the clock and the crazy golf and the swimming pool further along the beach. Every year I mourned when we left to go home.
I went back as an adult (just) in the seventies. The arcade was seedy and the lido was tired. The carousel was still there but silent on the day we visited. I’ve not been back since.
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Seedy is a good word to describe it now, Cathy. But it has a ‘better end’, with some nice cafes and restaurants away from the cheap chips and burger places.
Best wishes, Pete.
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As far as I recall I never saw the sea from the beach in Cleethorpes, the tide goes out a looooong way! And that sand can be quite squelchy too like at Skeggy, so you sink rather than walk. Maybe the folk visiting were aware of that! Used to have a nice crazy golf place on the seafront 🙂
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The crazy golf is still there, Jude. The tide does go out a long way, but the sand at the top of the beach stays dry.
Best wishes, Pete. x
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Last time I was there it was raining. My friend and I retreated to a pub and sent the kids to play golf! 😂
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Oh my goodness–I love the word “squelchy.”
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I use that all the time, and obviously so does Jude. 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
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Lets they have fun. As i had read UK citizens for vacancy are most time on beaches around the world. This in the past sounded very curios for me, because you are living on aisles. 😉 Michael
Honestly i understand there are less beaches in the UK with white sand.
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There are yellow sand beaches in many parts of Britain, Michael. The problem is that the sea is cold, and you cannot be sure of the weather at holiday time.
Best wishes, Pete.
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This sounds more usable for much more hardened people. 😉
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I have missed our excursions to the beaches this year. Thanks for sharing. Warmest regards, Theo
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I remember your trips to the place called ‘Seaside’. I hope you can both enjoy them again soon.
Best ishes, Pete.
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Me Too! Warmest regards, Theo
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Pete, Santa Monica’s iconic pier has the same sort of giant pavilion at the end; unfortunately, it’s now just a low-rent restaurant serving mediocre food for tourists…sadly all too common here in the US…there is also a Bubba Gump’s restaurant on the pier…that says it all
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Looks like our piers are heading in the same direction on both sides of the ocean, John.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Yea
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🙂
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Great photos, Pete. It’s a bit late in the season, but you’re right, things are pretty weird this year. I am with Ollie about walking on the sand. I know it’s good but I hate finding sand all over later (and a lot of the beaches here are very fine sand). Stay well.
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The beaches in Lincolnshire are mostly very good, but Ollie doesn’t enjoy walking on any sand. 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
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Photo #1: Three adults and one child discussing whether to thumb a ride on that Danish ship (DFDS stands for Det Forenede Dampskibs-Selskab). The child wonders if they serve pastry for breakfast, and if she’d get a chance to meet the little mermaid.
Photo #2: Those old wartime fortifications have become the secret base of operation for a small group of intellectual apes who plan to take over the world.
Photo #3: The restaurant on the pier only serves fish that are of an elegant species. As for the “chips” (French fries), they are made from special potatoes imported from Idaho. Each potato is inspected by many eyes before being approved for international shipment.
Note: A lot of folks here live a short distance from the beach. The nearest oceanic beach to my home is in Santa Monica, California, which is 280 miles away. London Bridge Beach, located in Lake Havasu City, Arizona, is 154 miles away. Beaches are great, but I’m a bit hesitant to get in the water. Steven Spielberg has convinced me that the ocean is full of great white sharks, and Alexandre Aja has convinced me that Lake Havasu is teeming with prehistoric piranhas.
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Nicely done, David. Always pleased to see someone enlarging the photos fully. 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
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It is lovely to see your photographs again, Pete. The beach looks inviting for a walk. Too bad it was a bit early for a walk with Ollie.
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He is not so keen on sand, Maggie. He walks strangely on it, as if he doesn’t like his paws sinking into it. I will post a photo of him on a different beach tomorrow.
Best wishes, Pete.
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I can understand that, although I love the feel of wet compacted sand on my bare feet. I can imagine it feeling strange to Ollie.
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It’s funny that people weren’t taking advantage of the water and sand.
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Most were stuffing their faces at the fast food places. 🙂
Maybe they went back on the beach later?
Best wishes, Pete.
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I remember that beach well, went to high school in Cleethorpes. 🙂 Looks just the same!
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Happy to take you back. It was rammed with people on the promenade, I was amazed.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Here it is the reverse, beach is crowded! The beaches were closed for Labor Day, but the Florida crowd always find a way.
It’s been ages since I’ve had a good meal of fish and chips!!
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I had one while I was away, but not in that place shown in the photo. That was serving on an industrial scale. 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
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A great beach indeed…..bet Ollie would love a good romp. chuq
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He is not a fan of sand, but I have a photo of him on another beach that I will post soon.
Best wishes, Pete.
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I look forward to it chuq
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Strange indeed that the beach was so empty. One would expect on a lovely day such as that, to go and take some nice walks. Makes for some great pictures though. Glad you had such a nice day😊
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Thanks, Michel. There were some people on the beach, but hardly enough to notice. Most were in the amusement arcades, or eating at all the cafes and fast food places.
Best wishes, Pete.
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That is a huge beach! I feel so lucky living only a 15-minute walk from lovely beaches as I do; I don’t visit every time I go out walking, but I do try to visit regularly, as it is so refreshing, both physically & spiritually. Cheers, Jon.
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I have to drive for just 25 minutes to get to our nearest beach, which is at Wells-next-the-Sea. It is enormous though, and extends to Holkham and beyond. I only ever go there out of season, as the car parks are full until October.
The beaches in Linclonshire are also huge, and it is easy to find a spot where you can be completely alone.
Best wishes, Pete.
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I always used to visit my grandparents here, almost every year throughout my childhood. (My grandmother, in her 90s, still lives there as do other family members) It has a very special place in my heart, so I’m glad to see it’s doing ok. 🙂
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It is still doing great business, and one end of the town seems to have become very ‘desirable accommodation’ for some quite wealthy people.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Lovely to see the seaside Pete, thank you very much … it’s been a year to the week since I last saw the sea 😮
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I only live 25 minutes from the beaches of North Norfolk, but avoid them during the tourist season as it can be impossible to park up there. It was nice to be staying so close to the beach in Sutton-On-Sea that I could see the promenade from the porch of the cabin. I have one more ‘deserted beach’ post to come.
Best wishes, Pete.
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I’m surprised more people weren’t on the beach, especially as it was a nice day.
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They were packed into the amusement arcades and fast food places, Mary. Perhaps they had already been on the beach that morning? But it is a huge beach, with enough room for a lot of people.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Very peaceful.
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The town promenade was packed with people, which I didn’t bother to show. I wanted to look at the empty beach instead. 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
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