Walking Tours in united-kingdom
Hadrian's Wall
* Northumberland National Park and Eden Valley
* Roman Forts and Relics
* Walk from Wallsend to Wall’s End!
In 122 A.D the Roman Emperor Hadrian ordered a great wall to be built "to separate Romans from Barbarians" across northern Britain at its narrowest point between the Solway Firth and the North Sea. It was extended and enhanced with impressive stone defences following natural ridge lines and with a deep ditch (The Vallum) dug alongside it. Later much of the stonework was mortared allowing it to survive the centuries to become one of the oldest structures in the country today. However the walking path that traces its line is in fact the youngest National Trail, opened only in May 2003 and now with Sherpa you too can feel like a Legionary, or at least an auxiliary, with the opportunity of walking its 82 mile / 133 km length!
This is a great walk, with a lot of scenic variety from the modern, busy cityscapes of Newcastle Upon Tyne to the red sandstone hues of mediaeval Carlisle, From industrial Tyneside to the quiescence of Bowness on Solway. From the barren blustery heights of Highshields Crags in the Northumberland National Park; to the lime green pastoral scenes of the Eden valley. Omnipotent along the route the Wall snakes its way. In sections interrupting a housing estate here, popping up under a road there. Then from being little more than a grassy bank it transforms into stone and rollercoasters over crag tops and down into impressive fort like structures such as at Housesteads.
After a visit to the excavated fort at Segedunum, you commence along the River Tyne and under the Tyne Bridge, alighting on the line of the wall for the first time at Heddon On The Wall. The route runs beside the road, past milecastles and Roman forts at Vindobala, Onvvm and Chesters at Cholerford with its impressive bath house and relics of a Roman Bridge. Crossing into the Northumberland National Park, the route passes the temple at Mithraeum, before leaving the road and up onto Sewingshields Crags, with great views over Broomlee lough to the impressive Housesteads Fort – watch out for the latrines! Via Steel Rigg we continue crossing the wilds until dropping down to the romantic remains of the 14th century Thirlwall Castle and past the Romano-Victorian Birdoswald fort. The landscape becomes a little tamer as you head down into the beautiful Eden Valley and so on into Carlisle with its chequered border history and both Roman and Mediaeval features. Normally you have two nights here as the final flattish push to Bowness on Solway we do in reverse by taking the morning bus and walking back into Carlisle giving you plenty of time the look around the town.
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