The Best of Hadrian’s Wall – walk on the England Scotland border

SUMMARY

Date: Thursday July 4th  to Tuesday July 9th  – 5 nights and 4 days walking

Guide: Jo Bird

Walking Grade: 3 Goats as you will be doing long days of walking and need to be able to walk up to 18km in one day. The ascents/descents are at most 610m so you also need to be comfortable walking up hill.

Base : The Centre of Britain Hotel in Haltwhistle – family run by Grethe and David and Haltwhistle’s most historic building. All bedrooms are individually designed and providing comfort at the end of your walking day. This is a perfect base for our hike.

Getting there: There is a train station in Haltwhistle so can you travel by train with trains via Carlisle or direct from Newcastle. There is also a car park at the hotel for car drivers.

Nearest airport is Newcastle but it is easier to fly to Manchester and get the TransPennine Express Train Service that operates direct from Manchester Airport to Carlisle and on to Haltwhistle.

Price: £1,100 per person for solo occupancy ensuite room fully inclusive to include :

If you bring a partner/friend the price per person in a shared room is £770 

• Expert Guiding by one of our most experienced WalkingWomen guides
• Bed and Breakfast accommodation
• Packed Lunches on all 5 walking days
• All evening meals at your hotel – to relax at the end of the day
• All transport to start of walks and pick up at the end of walks

Not included:

• Travel to Haltwhistle where your holiday begins
• Any drinks from the bar or additional drinks (other than what is included in packed lunches)
• Anything not part of the itinerary

DETAILS

We start in Haltwhistle which has been named the very centre of Britain. A small market town in Northumberland and the perfect spot to base ourselves for exploring Hadrian’s Wall. There is a railway station making it very accessible.

We are at the great northern frontier of the Roman Empire!  Walking besides the Wall with its milecastles, turrets and forts draws visitors from around the world, it is a World Heritage Site after all!   And, it stretches across wild and beautiful moorland scenery, perfect for fine walking.

In this holiday we trek 30 miles of the National Trail covering all the most significant Roman remains as well as the best of the hilly Pennine scenery.    It is demanding walking but we rest up each day in the historic and comfortable Centre of Britain Hotel, which is always a winner with our guests.   The 4^th walking day is shorter and explores the amazing Vindolanda Roman township, its fascinating museum and the local scenery.

This is a fantastic opportunity to see the best of this countryside and the very best of Hadrian’s Wall.

ITINERARY

We expect to follow this route and walk 30km along Hadrian’s Wall weather permitting. Your guide will brief  you and alert you if any changes need to be made.

Thursday July 4th – Arrival in Haltwhistle for check in from 3pm. There will be a briefing with you guide between 5pm and 6pm before dinner together at the hotel. If time there will be an orientation walk of the town.

The trek …

Friday Day 1  – 10 miles (16.25k), 385m ascent  A minivan takes us to the village of Walton and we start our trek and quickly come across the first signs of the Wall.   We will have a stop to refresh at the Birdoswald Fort and then continue on to Walltown Country Park for our afternoon pick up. As with each day, there are milecastles and turret remains to see, with helpful information boards, and we begin to experience the huge scale of the Roman activity 2000 years ago.

Saturday Day 2  –  9.5 miles (15k), 610m ascent / descent We begin where we finished on day 1 at Walltown and walk this day to the Housesteads Fort, one of the largest and most intact forts on the Wall. We will pass many of the most famous sites and scenery, the landscape becoming increasingly hilly with some steep ups and downs this is a tiring but very rewarding day. 

Sunday Day  3  – 11 miles(17.5km) 285m ascent We will start by visiting the Housesteads Fort (entry fee not included) for the first hour, and then resume our trek initially ascending to a high viewpoint but then gradually descending off the high uplands, heading down towards the north tyne river.   We pass the unusual temple of the ancient Mithraeum religion and finish the trek at Chesters Fort.

Monday Day 4  –  4.5miles(7km) with minimal ascent/descent  A very different and more restful day.   We will start a shorter walk from Vindolanda, walking up to a local fine viewpoint and then crossing fields and following a small stream.   We will then explore the really fascinating Vindolanda site and discover the remains of this roman township, and also visit the excellent museum which has such important exhibits as the tablet letters (the earliest found letter ever written by a woman!) and a huge range of other artifacts and clothing.   It is really not to be missed and gives a whole other perspective to all the sites seen during the trek (entry to the Vindolanda site and museum is not included in the price of this holiday)

Tuesday – Departure Day after breakfast