Not just any port in a storm
đź“· February storms saw parts of the harbour closed to walkers
The start of this year saw Robert Booth take over as Chairman of Warkworth Harbour Commissioners from Maurice Burnett. Maurice has had a fantastic 25 years at the helm, and we wish him well in his retirement and for the future. (See above). We welcome Robert, previously a commissioner, as Chairman.
We continue with grounds maintenance improvements and general repairs following the stormy weather and exceptionally high seas throughout mid- February. Our breakwaters were certainly put to the test during this period. The weather also prevented our fishing fleet from going to sea, a frustrating period for all involved. It has been fantastic to see the boats all go out again and normal service resume across the harbour.
You will no doubt have noticed that the car parks have been resurfaced and new parking bays and road markings have been refreshed. This all adds to the professional and welcoming site that we want to welcome everyone with. We have installed new benches at the top of the fish dock to allow the public to sit comfortably and enjoy their fish and chips or a coffee.
It has been a pleasure to have some of the children from King Edwin School back to visit the harbour. They enjoyed helping to carry out dynamic risk assessments and their time with the Coastguard and the Lifeboat staff respectively. The children will be back at the harbour soon planting flowers and bulbs for us to enjoy.
As Harbour Master, I was interviewed by the BBC for a programme entitled “Our Town”, which gave me the chance to tell the public what a fantastic place Amble is to live and work. To be fair, this is probably the easiest thing I have ever been asked to talk about; I don’t believe it needs me to sell our brilliant little town to the public. I would argue it does that for itself.
So, we will continue with cosmetic improvements in the coming weeks so that we look as fantastic as we can when we welcome visitors back to the town in the spring, and so that your harbour looks as good as it possibly can for your enjoyment and pleasure. As always, I look forward to meeting and talking to you when you visit the harbour over the coming weeks.
Gary Paxton
Harbour Master
