Captain's Log

Closing The Gap

I’m nearing the end of my England Coast Path North-East Venture. It was the first Venture I started and so it is a little bit sad. Before today, there were only 4 more walks to complete and the whole thing could then be ticked off. Today’s walk filled a gap between the Newton and Transporter bridges over the River Tees. The gap was only 5 miles, but there was probably a reason that I'd put the walk at the bottom of the pile and delayed it for so long. Teesside is an area of the UK like no other. Both sides of the River Tees are dominated by huge industrial complexes for many miles from the sea. The area is not for those who like their walks over rolling green hills and crystal clear brooks. Think giant fuel depots, methane flares, massive cooling towers, hundreds of miles of pipework and tankers carrying toxic produce around. I completed the south side of the River Tees earlier this year with a walk from Redcar to the Newport Bridge. 

I stayed at the Premier Inn next to the Tees Barrage last night and so I had a mile or so to go downstream to the Newport Bridge. From there it would be another 4 miles to the Transporter Bridge. This would be an out-and-back section  and so I’d return to the Premier Inn via the same route. 

Tees Barrage

Up until today, I’d walked every one of the routes on my England Coast Path North-East Venture. Today would be an exception; I would run it. There were two reasons for this. This section wasn’t going to be that scenic and so I wanted to get it done as fast as possible. The other reason was that I’d driven along the road accompanying this route a few times, and I remembered that the housing estate near Port Clarence looked a little unwelcoming. This probably said more about my paranoia, rather than any real safety risk. Even so, I felt that with my running shoes on, I could at least have a fighting chance to outrun any mugger. I’d also  have to pass through the area twice, so this doubled the risk in my mind. With these disturbing thoughts, I double-bowed my laces for security and set off running from the safety perimeter of the Premier Inn.     

I stopped almost immediately since the hotel had a birds eye view of the Tees Barrage water course and they had water flowing down it today. Maybe I’d see some canoeists riding the white water when I returned...assuming I returned. In the centre of the barrage was a couple of dozen people carrying out exercises using weights and bands. They are a sporty lot these Teessiders. An outpost of the Durham University campus was just across the river and so maybe these athletes were students. The morning was sunny, but there was a chill wind. I set off at a fast pace in order to warm up a bit. The River Tees was covered in white foam from the barrage. It looked like icebergs floating down it. Well, it did with my contact lenses in. 

Newport Bridge

The path alongside the river was quite pleasant. There were a few walkers on it enjoying the early morning sun. I passed under the A19 bridge and then the Newport Bridge came into view. Compared to the pleasing, aesthetic design of the Transporter Bridge, the Newport Bridge looked totally functional. In the past, the deck of the span of the bridge could be lifted by a huge chain hauling mechanism. The deck is permanently lowered now, presumably because the barrage was constructed a mile or so upstream and large boats could go no further. I ran under the bridge and the trail headed into woodland away from the river. It gradually went uphill. I noticed some sort of tarp shelter in an area of the woodland; it looked like somebody was, or had been, sleeping rough here. I reached the busy A1046. My industrial adventure was about to begin. 

Oxygen Corner And Haverton Hill

Fortunately, I didn’t have to run on the road. I don’t think I’d have lasted long if I'd tried. There was a wide pavement running alongside it that incorporated a walking and cycling lane. Remarkably, this facility continued right up to the Transporter bridge. It had broken up in places and there was plenty of debris that had accumulated on it, but overall I was surprised at how good it was. Having said that, I didn’t meet any other runner or cyclist using it on my out-and-back journey. I guess people just don’t want to visit industrial areas. I reached a roundabout and turned right onto Haverton Hill Road. I was surrounded by cooling towers, huge warehouses and mysterious pipework, some of it pumping out white vapour. I wondered what they were making in these facilities. The road crossed over Billingham Beck. It looked like a sorry affair with effluent pouring into it from one of the sites. Remarkably the beck was full of wildlife. Wildfowl paddled on the water and Oystercatchers performed aerobatics along its length. It’s odd how wildlife sometimes prefer these industrial locations. I continued along the road. Hundreds of metres of metal security fence rattled in the strong wind next to me. Just after Billingham Biomass Power Station I reached Oxygen Corner and the road shifted from northwards to northeastwards. Presumably the name of this corner gave some clue as to what was brewing in one of these nearby  industrial complexes. The road went slightly uphill to Haverton HIll. One industrial yard had old vans placed on the top of shipping containers. ‘Cheap Van Hire From £45’ was emblazoned in large letters on their sides. Given the state of the vans on show, you’d have to pay me good money to drive one. The road turned to the southeast. I was now approaching the stretch I’d been dreading; the housing estate near Port Clarence. 

Port Clarence

The first houses I came across were decent and I wondered whether I’d had a false memory implanted about the place. Even some of the gardens were well kept. The autumn coloured  leaves of the trees along the road caught the morning sun and the area actually looked quite nice. This favourable impression was then abruptly shattered by a house at the end of a street, with a garden which had basically become a rubbish tip. There was all sorts of rubbish in there including refrigerators, furniture and bags of debris. I thought about taking a photo of it, but at that moment a dog walker started walking up the street and I didn’t think it would be appropriate. I ran onwards past the ends of deserted streets. There were very few people about. I passed one chap walking along wearing a high-viz jacket (presumably going to or from work) and another one waiting at a bus stop. I came across a row of shops, all with their metal shutters closed. I wasn't sure whether Chipsy King was a good name for a chippy. It was approaching 09:00 and a fellow came out  of the general store and started rolling up the shutter. I came across a tyre fitting compound opposite the shops. Two German Shepherds came bounding up to the security fence to inspect me. They shoved their snouts through the gap between the metal bars. Amazingly, they were silent. They looked so friendly that I was almost tempted to shove my hand through the fence and stroke their heads. They must have read my mind since they suddenly turned into two furry balls of teeth, slobber and vicious barking. I ran alongside the fence and they accompanied me to the end of the compound. I reached a tunnel that went under the railway line that ran alongside the road. It was too long and dark to see if there were any dead bodies in there, but I took a punt that there wasn’t. This brought me to the final 200 metre trail that delivered me to the north side of the Transporter Bridge. 

Transporter Bridge

It had been a similar day, the last time I was here (see Captain's Log, Seaton Carew To The Tees With Ease); blue skies and sunshine. The Transporter Bridge is a wonderful structure. If I ever find my old Meccano set, I’ll make a scale model of the bridge. I wandered further up the pathway alongside the river to get a better view. Across the Tees I could see Boro’s football ground and the unusual Tenemos net and hoops sculpture. The Hydraulic Clock Tower was directly opposite too.  Well, that was it; I’d eliminated  the gap on my England Coast Path North East Venture. All I had to do now was to get back to the Premier Inn at Stockton. I started trotting back along the route. 

Return

The Clarence housing estate didn’t hold any fear for me now. Apart from there being no people about, the area wasn’t as bad as I remembered. I have to say that a lot of the gardens were better kept than mine. My two German Shepherd friends welcomed my return by racing me and barking as I ran alongside their security fence. I headed into the wind on the way back. This didn’t really slow me down, but it did make the experience chillier. If only all hills were as easy to climb as Haverton Hill, running would be a doddle. Two tankers departed from a complex at Oxygen Corner. I wasn’t close enough to see what they were carrying, but I guess it may have been oxygen. The Biomass Station was still churning out white vapour. Fortunately, it was heading towards Middlesbrough rather than me. It seemed even busier with wildlife along Billingham Beck. I felt like shouting to the birds that there was some lovely, safe marshland available to them a short flight to the north. The path alongside the River Tees from Newport Bridge was busier with walkers than earlier on. There was a canoeist and a couple of kayakers testing the rapids at the white water course. Rather them than me. It had taken about 55 minutes to run each way. I thought that was pretty fair given that I was carrying a rucksack and I kept stopping to take photos.    

You really don’t have to run this section of the England Coast Path. The area is safe enough. The industrial complexes won’t be to everyone’s taste though. The Transporter and Newport bridges are worth visiting even if you don’t walk the bit in between.