16/05/2026
Looks like we have a hat trick! This is our 3rd mention in the Telegraph in the last couple of years.
Very proud to represent Belford and the local area.
Ross Back Sands, Northumberland
It takes effort to reach this beach on the northern side of Budle Bay, in northern Northumberland. First, the road just stops, so you’ve no choice but to park up, even though you can’t see or hear the sea. Then it’s a walk on a track past a farm and across rough grass towards a distant line of sand dunes, which look promising, except they’re a tease. Several more lines of dunes have to be crossed until, finally, you crest the last and three glorious miles of pale sand lie below you, stretching north and south.
Ross Back Sands
It’s not easy to reach Ross Back Sands, but the castle views and seal sightings are definitely worth it Credit: david a eastley / Alamy Stock Photo
The beach looks to be bookended by Bamburgh Castle to the south and Lindisfarne Castle to the north; a lovely illusion. In truth, seawater separates each castle from the beach. Walk up to the northern end of the sands and you may be surprised by seals hauled out on the rocks, sometimes quite a party of them.
How to do it
From the A1, around 12 miles north of Alnwick and less than a mile north of Belford, take the turning to the east marked “Budle” and “Waren Mill”. After a quarter of a mile, turn left at a T-junction, after a further mile turn right. This road comes to a dead end after a further mile, near Ross Farm Cottages. Park and head through the gate straight ahead. Stay at the Market Cross Guest House in Belford, a Georgian property in the centre of the village, from £115 B&B, evening meals by request.