For many years, when you think of watersports and North Tyneside you think of surfing on Longsands. There is no disputing that it is a great surf beach, probably the best locally. We use it ourselves for all of our surf activities. But all the things that make it a great surf beach also make it not-so-great for many other water-based activities. The beach is long and lacks shelter from swell, it is also prone to sudden rip current formation, so knowing where and when to bathe can be tricky. That is why we think the future for non-surf activities is Cullercoats.

Cullercoats Bay is pretty unique for this stretch of coast as it’s a deep cove, with rocky reefs extending far out to sea to the north and south. All those big swells from the north and south are rebounded by the reefs, keeping the waters of the bay calm. We also have two man-made piers extending from both sides of the harbour, further holding back the swell and the waves. What does that mean? It means you have an oasis of calm in what can otherwise be a bumpy sea. That’s why for hundreds of years it has been used as a safe harbour for fishermen.

Now, as the coastal renaissance continues at pace, we want make the most of this calm water to see Cullercoats become the region’s premier destination for watersports activity. At high tide, when the bay is flooded, we have the perfect training ground for kayaking and stand-up paddle boarding. It’s beautiful for swimming as the central channel is deep. There are even marker buoys just offshore that can be used for laps. The rocky reefs that fringe the bay are ideal for coasteering and traversing. There is excellent beach access, with ramps right down to the sand, this opens up the possibility of creating a centre for disability sport.

But we can’t do it alone. To create this hub of activity, we need to see more clubs and informal groups using the bay. We would love to support this, perhaps you can use our little centre as your meeting point. We have changing facilities and places to warm up afterwards. We also have lots of down-time with our kit pool, we’d like to use that to support grassroots clubs.

Please drop us a line on [email protected] if you share our vision and let’s talk about making Cullercoats the go-to place for getting in the water.