Gadgie Walks

Once more into the burn dear friends, once more.
(Northumberland) January 11th.
Daylight hours are still short so we have opted for an old favourite; Carey Burn and Cold Lawvia Broadstruther. It's one of my favourite walks, not too long, not too high, just right for a winter's day
There are seven of us venturing out on what promises to be cold, dry day;John H., John C., Brian, Ben, Harry, Dave and me.
We start at Carey Bridge in the Harthope Valley which is found by heading north on the A1, taking the A687 at Morpeth, turning into Wooler, taking the first left up Cheviot Street, take the right fork and turn right at the signpost for Langleeford. At the bottom of the hill past Skirl Naked there is parking space on the right. Warning; passing cattle once decorated one of our cars with muck so park at right angles, at least only the back end gets covered.
The map for this walk is OS Explorer 16 The Cheviot Hills. The parking area is at NT976249 approx
Breakfast at the Terrace café in Wooler, bacon sandwiches and tea to start the day before we started of course.

The Terrace café, Wooler

This has to be the best car park photo ever.

The walk starts at the signpost just before Carey Burn Bridge and on the same side of the water as the car park.

The start, looking back

If you have an old OS map like mine the footpath is not marked but it exists, is quite well worn and has marker posts along the way. On the right of the path in a field was an array of motor vehicles, the occupants having come out to shoot. They were probably after pheasant as grouse shooting lasts from August 12^th to Dec 10^th.

Shooters army. Most of them dressed uniformly in waxed jackets, wellies and flat caps.

You are allowed to shoot pheasants in Great Britain between October 1st and February 1st. Partridges from Sept 1st to February first

The footpath mostly clings close to the burn, is a little rocky in places, passes a waterfall and enters an area of woodland before crossing the Carey by a footbridge.

Carey Burn waterfall

Shooters shelter. Empty today

It must embarrass somebody. We didn't spot the higlanders

Footbridge over Carey Burn. With a gadgie in the distance.

Once over the stream the path crosses open moorland, goes through a gate and continues to a footbridge over the Broadstruther Burn. Ahead of us at the gate was another party of walkers, two couples and a dog. Although I was only a few yards behind her one lady called back to say she was closing the gate as it had a notice to do so and she always obeyed orders. I asked if she was German, fortunately she had a sense of humour. Brian wondered if she would like to make use of the glue he had in his rucksack as the sign also told walkers to stick to the path.

Broadstruther

Heading for the dining room. We shared Titans, Ben's ginger biscuits, flapjacks, chocolates and vegan carrot cake from Mrs A.

Once over Broadstruther Burn we joined the farm track that leads to the old farmhouse converted to a shooting lodge. It was locked up, presumably it’s for grouse shooters, but we sat in the remains of an outhouse to have a Herbie.

Early lunch over we continued on the track for a short distance before taking the footpath on the left. This path crosses moorland in a southerly direction before joining a farm track.

Eventually reaching a gate (boundary stone on the right) we turned left and walked in a very straight line alongside the fence that took us to the trig point on top of Cold Law.(452 metres, 1482 feet in real terms)

From this point there are great views of the Cheviot Hills to the south and west and the plain to the sea in the east. Not the brightest of day and a bit smokey too from the heather burning.

The straight path up Cold Law

There are few things that excite a gadgie more than a trig point. (Beer is one of the few of course)

The heather is burnt off to encourage new shoots which will be food for the grouse which will then be shot. (Actually I'm trying to send a message to my friend Eileen Pete in Saskatchewan. Hi Eileen, hope you are well, from me and the lovely one.

From Cold Law there are three routes, we took the footpath south(also not on some OS maps) which wandered downhill to Cockshaw Syke and the road in the Harthope Vallley.

Turning left along the road we walked to the bridge across the Harthope Burn to Langlee Farm. It’s a private bridge but is also a genuine footpath. We went round the farm and walked up the steep path to Brands Hill. We stayed on the farm track to a junction going left and from there the route is downhill to woodland above the Carey Burn, now named Coldgate Water.

Langlee farm

Harthope Burn from Langlee

From here we walked the footpath through the woods to a footbridge, crossed it and turned back over the Carey Burn road bridge to the cars.

On the way home we stopped to rehydrate at the Shoulder of Mutton in Longhorsely. Four hand pumps but only one ale, Directors so we had to settle for that. The lady behind the bar complained it was Friday night and only one real ale. Perhaps by evening the others would be on.