Northumberland Holiday Guide 2009
focuses on education and recreational enjoyment,” (there is a The Simonside Hills and the remote valley of Upper
daily limit of 12 cars) Coquetdale have always been a place of myth and mystery.
Like the Cheviots, the footpaths here lead to summits
Accordingly, the College Valley has charming self-catering scattered with Iron Age hillforts and Neolithic rock carvings.
cottages and cosy bunkhouse hostels in which to stay - and When their original purpose was forgotten, the local villagers
plenty of opportunity to walk, ride and relax. became convinced these strange structures and markings
North of the College Valley, St Cuthbert’s Way climbs the last were the work of fairies.
slopes of the Cheviots and joins the final few miles of the Pennine
Way to where it officially ends in the Scottish village of Kirk
Simonside’s ‘fairies’ are a lost race of magical people; a
Yetholm. This brings us very neatly back to the Pennine Way...
local legend tells of a shepherd who reappeared after twenty
years claiming he had been held captive by the Fairy King.
The Pennine Way and the Northumberland National Park:
or perhaps the ‘shepherd’ was actually a distiller of illegal
We left the Pennine Way where it turns north from Hadrian’s Wall
moonshine whisky and was hiding from the authorities!
and plunges into the vast Kielder Forest that covers most of the
western half of the Northumberland National Park. For centuries Rothbury is the capital of Coquetdale and back in the days of
this was Reiver Country, the lawless lands that neither Scots nor Black Rory, one of the most notorious moonshiners, it was a
English kings could control, and there is still a wonderful sense lawless place. When the railway came to Coquetdale, this wild
of freedom for walkers who follow in their footsteps. frontier town became a genteel spa. Its most famous Victorian
resident was the engineer Lord Armstrong who built Cragside
Kielder is the largest reservoir in Northern Europe with miles of
House - the first domestic house in the world to be powered
footpaths, cycle ways and bridle-paths through the forest and
by electricity.
around the lake shore; there is even an off-road motor trail (a
small toll is payable) through the forest from Kielder village to
There are three superb scenic roads that cross
Byrness on the A68.
Northumberland’s North Pennines. Firstly the A686 climbs
from Haydon Bridge to Alston on the Cumbrian border before
Kielder is a haven for rare wildlife where budding naturalists
plunging over Hartside summit to Penrith 2,000 feet below.
can spot otters, roe deer, ospreys, red kites, red squirrels
From Hartside the views are simply breathtaking (especially if
and bats. The lake has facilities for sailing, waterskiing and
you have walked or cycled here!) and stretch for fifty miles or
fishing or you can take a short cruise aboard the little steamer
more from the Cumbrian Mountains to the Galloway Hills.
Osprey. Non aquatic activities include a sculpture park, Bird of
Prey Centre and visitor amenities at Tower Knowe, Leaplish,
Secondly, the B6303 is an alternative route into the heart of
Kielder Castle and Kielder Observatory. Officially opened by the
the North Pennines. This road leaves the A686 at Langley
Astronomer Royal in 2008, Kielder Observatory has a calendar
Castle and follows the river East Allen, through ‘the centre
of star-gazing events throughout the year.
of Britain’ at Allendale town, to the old lead mining village
The Simonside Hills & Coquetdale: Between the Cheviots
Allenheads. The third scenic drive is along the B6306 which
and Kielder is an offshoot of the Pennines known as the
skirts the eastern edge of the North Pennines from Hexham to
Simonside Hills. In a county with more than its fair share of
the picturesque village of Blanchland.
rugged upland scenery, the Simonside Hills are, arguably, the
Following any one of these roads rewards the traveller with the
jewel in Northumberland’s crown.
chance to experience fantastic views, historic wayside inns
View north from Simonside Hills View of the Cheviot Hills, Gail Johnson
20 www.visitnorthumberland.com
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