A walk from the centre of the universe

 A walk from the centre of the universe, almost. August 22nd

Haltwhistle claims to be the geographical centre of Great Britain. Great Britain is the largest of the British Isles, comprising England, Scotland and wales.

The town is in the Tyne Valley, west of Newcastle on tha A69. Free parking is available on the roadside above Sainsbury's supermarket.

  I know, I know, I should have cropped the lamp post out                                                                                      Today's walk is covered by OS OL 43 Hadrian's Wall.

The Newcastle to Carlisle railway runs through the town but Haltwhistle has nothing to do with trains. It's  Old English for " The hill where the two rivers meet." (one being the Tyne the other the Haltwhistle Burn)

We had breakfast in The Pillar Box Cafe, small and very friendly. In line to be cafe of the year. Hope they win.

Haltwhistle claims to be the geographical centre of Great Britain, that is to remind you, the island composed of England, Scotland and Wales. The town also suffered from marauding Scots  but they put the bunting out for us.

Walking east from the parked cars we found the sign leading us past the Burn Football Ground and down steps into the Haltwhistle Burn.

  The burn climbs quite slowly, passing evidence of old mining operations until it reaches the B6318, usually called the Military Road. It was built to allow troops to move quickly from Newcastle to Carlisle after the 1745. Some of it on top of the wall!

Turning right on the road we walked a few hundred yards  to a signpost just beyond a house. A footpath took us across fields to Hadrian's Wall at Cawfields.

Cawfields near the wall, once another mining area but now a picnic spot.

For the next three miles we walked alongside the remains of Hadrian's Wall. On this section it is very uppy and downy with short steep climbs, often with stone steps but also a couple of short scrambles. hard on the knees.

  A mile castl, a section of wall and a turret. A Roman Imperial Mile was 0.92 of a British Imperial mile. As the name say there was one every mile on the wall and there were two turrets in between. 

This section of the walk is part of the Pennine Journey, not to be confused with thje Pennine Way. A good number of walkers out, British, American, Australian and two Dutch men searching for the famous tree.

Reaching Steel Rigg, a popular car park with easy access to the wall we turned south to Once Brewed/Twice Brewed and the Sill restaurant, exhibition centre, shop and YHA. Picnic benches in the grounds made a good Herbie Spot.

 A blurry Herbie: Apple pies with a strange green streak on the pastry, ginger cake made without any ginger, cookies and sweet and savoury from Mrs A. A  blurry Margaret hugging the trunk of the famous Sycamore Gap tree. It was at this p;oint I realised there was a finger mark on the lens.

A clear view of treehugging Margaret, courtesy of Algarphotos Ltd

After a tour of the exhibition, well worth a visit, we headed down the road that takes visitors to Vindolanda, but we didn't. A little further on we turned right and walked along a very straight metalled road which turned into a grassy track before reaching a minor road. 

Turning right we went downhill, passing Hill Top Farm and then taking the signed footpath on the left.

                 Hill Top Farm and .horses. I had cleaned the lens with a clean handkerchief.

The path took us across moorland to a minor road where we turned left and then followed the finger post for a footpath back to the Haltwhistle Burn , the Burn Football Ground and the cars.

On the way home we stopped at the Fox and Hounds in Wylam for TTL and alcohol free Guinness.

Contains OS data, copyright. Crown copyright and database right 2025

The walk is 10 miles with some steep bits on the wall but worth it for the views

Eglingham, Blawearie, Cateran

 Eglingham, Blawearie, Cateran August 8th

(All around the blooming heather)

We've  not done a walk in this area for a while. Eglingham is a small village north of Newcastle, the church is dedicated to St. Maurice. A remodelled 14th century building, possibly built on the site of an 8th century one.

A1, A697 And turn right near Wooperton. Park on the roadside.

The map to use is OS explorer 332, Alnwick and Amble

We had breakfast in the Running Fox at Longframlington. Well worth a visit but booking is advised.

                   Street parking in Eglingham

Once ready we set off, passing the lane that goes to the church and then turning right to follow a long, but not winding, road uphill to Eglingham Moor.

St Maurice Church Eglingham. 13th century origins, bashed about by the Scots in the 16th century and restored. St Maurice is the patron saint of dancers.

Once the metalled road had become a track, at about 1.5 miles we turned off to wade through the heather to Hare Crag and Cateran Hill. Heather is pretty this time of year, in b;loom, but it can trip you up, especially on narrow footpaths. 

                       Heathery moorland, hard work.

At mile 3 we left the track, quite a good one by now and turned off to the right to see the famous Cateran Hole.

            The Cateran Hole entrance. It's about 30 yards long, is a natural cleft in the Gritstone and was possibly used by whiskey smugglers. You can walk the length but take a torch. Caterans were armed Scottish warriors in the almost endless border wars.

Back on the track we turned left at the bottom of the hill and walked in relative comfort to Blawearie. The old farmstead was last inhabited in the 1950s and has fallen in ruin but it makes a fine Herbie Spot.

It is nearly the Glorious Twelfth, the local shooters have built a shelter which we made full use of, kept us out of the wind. Apple pies, scones, shortbread caramel chocolate heaven, cookies, ginger biscuits and Mrs A's sweet and savoury. We walk it off, we claim.

After a heavy lunch we continued on the track heading South West before turning sharply near Old Bewick and heading uphill towards a game bird breeding and feeding area, a trivallate hill fort and some cup and ring markings.

                            Cup and ring markings are found all over Europe. In the UK there are 1046. Lots of theories but nobody really knows what they are for.

Following a good track with a short steep descent, hard on the knees we eventually reached Harehope Farm.

                     Near Harehope.

The path goes Infront of a row of farm cottages, crosses several several fields and a burn before turning south east on a very straight track. At mile 9 we reached the road we had started on and were soon back in Eglingham.

Needing to rehydrate we went to the Tankerville Arms in the village, a proper pub, several hand pumped beers and a friendly welcome.

The Tankerville Arms, Eglingham

Contains OS data, copyright. Crown copyright and database right 2025.

The walk is 9.5 miles, mostly easy going with some gentle ascents, but beware the heather.

 

To Gibraltar and Beyond

 To Gibraltar and Beyond. August 1st

A new walk, almost. Today's wander starts at the village of Hunstanworth near Blanchland. Huntstanworth is in County Durham, just. A69 west, A68 south  and watch out for signs for Blanchland. Morning coffee in the White Monk cafe in Blanchland and a couple of miles on to Hunstanworth. Park on the roadside by the church.

Two OS maps for the walk:OS Explorer 307 Consett and OS OL 43 Hadrian's Wall

Hunstanworth first gets a mention in 1183. The village is an estate village created in 1862.

The church however is older. Built in 1781 on the site of a medieval church it was rebuilt in 1862. Next to it are the remains of a peel tower.

The village is one of the Thankful Villages, it suffered no casualties in WW1.

Parking near St James the Less in Hunstanworth

St James the Less, Huntstanworth

Walking away from the church, going west, we crossed a couple of fields, going downhill to the Nookton Burn. The first stile of the day took us into a wood. The path was hard to find as it wandered uphill through high bracken and trailing brambles which had a nasty habit of catching feet.

                    The first stile of the day.

Out of the wood we passed Gibraltar, not that there was anything to see (mile 1) and continued on our way across fields to Nookden (mile 2). Crossing Nookden Fell we came to a shooting Cabin and although only 3.5 miles into the walk it made a comfortable Herbie Spot.

The shooting Cabin

                 Fine dining in the cabin: apple pies, shortbread and caramel, scones, buns, cookies and ginger biscuits.

Full we walked on, turning north west to Heatheryburn, an isolated farm  at mile 4.

                            Heatheryburn farm and geese.

Beyond the farm we continued by track to the junction near Riddlehamhope, turned left and at a fingerpost headed  across fields to mile 5 where we took a bracken high and hard to follow footpath downhill. (mile 5) Hard going through the bracken but on Hope Fell it was difficult to find a path through the heather. Some stayed lower down and some climbed to admire the trig point before finding the Carriers Way, a metalled track at last.

                                       The trig point on Newbiggin Fell.

                        The second shooters cabin, more substantial than the first.

A choice of routes here, we decided on the one going south east. At mile 7 we entered a small wood. The path down and through the trees was very steep and quite difficult, hard on the knees. But once out and over a field we crossed the Nookden Burn again and a field later were back at the cars.

On the way home we enjoyed some well earned TTL or Wainwrights in the Fox and Hounds at Wylam.

Contains OS data, copyright. Crown copyright and database right 2025

The walk is a little over 8 miles but quite hard going crossing heather covered moorland and there are a couple of steep descents.