Northumberland Voyage Tips and guide

Contents

Northumberland is a rural county in North East England, on the England-Scotland border. It contains one of the most picturesque and untouched stretches of coastline in the United Kingdom and contains rolling hills and low mountains in the sparsely populated interior. Northumberland feels a world away from London and the south of England in terms of its ruggedness, sense of remoteness, its culture and its geography. It has a distinctly more Scottish feel to it than English and at its closest point is a mere 45 minutes from the Scottish capital.

Most of Northumberland's settlements are in the lowland strip between the coast and the A1, with the main railway line snaking through. The southern parts are the least interesting, with former mining and industrial small towns that are nowadays in the commuter belt for Newcastle.

• 55.082-1.5851 Cramlington is a commuter town.
• 55.126-1.5142 Blyth is an industrial port but has a beach.
• 55.181-1.5683 Ashington is post-industrial but has a beach strip at Newbiggin.
• 55.1675-1.6908334 Morpeth is where you escape the suburbs and reach open country.
• 55.3306-1.57835 Amble is a small fishing village.
• 55.4134-1.706916 Alnwick has a fine castle and charming old town centre.
• 55.388-1.6157 Alnmouth is a former fishing village near Alnwick.

The best of the coast is the rugged, scenic stretch north of Alnwick to the Scottish border.

• 55.583-1.6558 Seahouses (straggling into Beadnell) is the main village on this stretch.
• 55.622-1.6281 Farne Islands are busy with seabirds and curious seals.
• 55.68-1.80252 Lindisfarne or "Holy Island" is reached by road at low tide. Its stylish castle was made-over by Lutyens.
• 55.769167-2.00259 Berwick-upon-Tweed, the most northerly town in England, has stout defensive walls.

Two miles north of Berwick the road and railway cross into Scotland, over the moors to Dunbar and Edinburgh.

A lowland route, with the A69 and a railway, breaks through the hills to link Newcastle with Carlisle in Cumbria.

• 54.961-1.84910 Prudhoe is at the edge of the industrial belt, then the view improves.
• 54.975-2.01711 Corbridge is a pleasant market town with a Roman fort.
• 54.966667-2.112 Hexham is similar, with an ancient priory.
• 54.97-2.45813 Haltwhistle is the last village before crossing into Cumbria.

Hadrian's Wall runs coast-to-coast, but the best sections are along the ridge north of Hexham to Haltwhistle.

The south fork of the River Tyne has a scenic valley, part of North Pennines AONB.

• 55.478-2.1523 The Cheviot is the summit of the hills along the border with Scotland, with the Pennine Way traversing their crest.
• 55.316667-2.2166674 Northumberland National Park takes in the Cheviot Hills and Kielder Forest Park.

Two main routes access the area. The lowland route A697 runs north from Morpeth past Rothbury, Wooller, Ford and Etal to Cornhill. The upland route A696 / A68 runs past Newcastle Airport to Otterburn, to cross the border at Carter Bar and descend to Jedburgh and Edinburgh.

• 55.544-2.01514 Wooler is a small historic town, useful as a base for exploring the Cheviot Hills or visiting Chillingham Castle.
• 55.632-2.0815 Ford and Etal are scenic villages.
• 55.657-2.22816 Cornhill-on-Tweed is where the road crosses to Coldstream in Scotland, running on to Edinburgh.
• 55.145-2.25417 Bellingham is a good base for Kielder Forest.

England's most northern and sparsely populated county, Northumberland is a remnant of the ancient kingdom of Northumbria which once covered an area stretching from Edinburgh to Sheffield and the river Mersey.

The area has a very long and bloody history due to its proximity to Scotland and has fallen into Scottish hands at least once as the border has shifted over time. The more populous towns are either market towns (Amble, Hexham, Morpeth) or former mining communities (Prudhoe, Ashington).

Northumberland has its own dialect, different from the famous Geordie of Newcastle.

The Northumbrian Pipes are a local folk instrument, similar to the Scottish bagpipe.

Ethnically Northumberland is overwhelmingly white and British. While racism against ethnic minorities is not a recorded issue, do be aware that it is very unusual to see a person of a black or Asian background in the county and that people might take a second glance.

55.038-1.691 Newcastle Airport (NCL ^IATA) is the closest, in Ponteland northwest of the city. Take the Metro to city centre for trains and buses north.

Edinburgh (EDI ^IATA) has a wider range of flights.

The London-Edinburgh main line runs up the coastal strip, with stations at Newcastle, Cramlington, Morpeth, Alnmouth (for Alnwick) and Berwick. Trains run this way from London Kings Cross and from the Midlands via Leeds and York, but you may have to change at Newcastle as most of them hurtle non-stop through the smaller stations.

The Tyne Valley line crosses east-west from Newcastle via Prudhoe, Corbridge, Hexham and Haltwhistle to Brampton and Carlisle.

You generally need a vehicle to get about Northumberland as it's a large rural county, some sights have sparse public transport, and distances are a bit far for cycling.

Buses radiate out from Newcastle west towards Hexham and north up to Berwick. In summer Bus AD122 follows Hadrian's Wall between Hexham and Haltwhisle. 122 AD, geddit?

See above for stations on the railway north from Newcastle to Berwick and Edinburgh, and west to Haltwhistle and Carlisle. Bicycle-on-train is an option here. A branch line from Newcastle to Ashington opened in 2024, but this is commuterland and you're unlikely to use it.

• Hadrian's Wall marches coast to coast for 73 miles, with a flanking footpath. The best of it is between Hexham and Greenhead, with the Roman camps of Housesteads, Vindolanda, Chesters and Corstopitum.
• Crumbly castles were built for defence against entire armies. Their defensive role was lost once the region was at peace, and better artillery made their fortifications useless. Most fell derelict: good examples include Dunstanburgh, Bamburgh, Warkworth and Norham. At Berwick the entire town was protected by walls, still standing though grassy. "Pele towers" are lesser bastions, built against armed banditry.
• Plush castles were intended as comfortable residences and showplaces for mi'lord's wealth. Some were conversions of defensive castles, others were built anew as mansions. Fine examples are Chillingham (near Wooler) and Alnwick. The castle on Lindisfarne is a remarkable stylish conversion by Lutyens.
• Northumberland National Park and the Cheviot hills.

• Cricket: Northumberland CCC play in the National Counties Cricket Championship, the tier formerly known as "Minor Counties" below the first class competitions. They usually play at Osborne Avenue in Jesmond, Newcastle.
• Pennine Way long distance hiking trail keeps on going even though the Pennines end near Alston in Cumbria. It reaches Hadrian's Wall at Greenhead and the paths are concurrent east along the scenic ridge to Housesteads. It then branches north - this section is mostly on forestry trails through pine monoculture. From the A68 comes a long, long section along the Cheviots and Scottish border, then a sharp left turn and descent to finish in Kirk Yetholm.
• Golf: some twenty courses, mostly south towards city commuterland.
• Beaches are long, sandy and deserted, whenever they're not rocky. South towards Blyth they may be black, from coal that outcrops under the sea.
• Northumberland County Show is held on the first Friday of June at Bywell Hall near Riding Mill.

Lots of eating places with trad fare in the towns, no stand-out.

This is beer-drinking country. All the towns and villages have pubs, usually open daily and serving decent meals.

There are half-a-dozen breweries, mostly along the east-west line of A69. More in Newcastle, though its iconic "Newcastle Brown" is nowadays brewed in Tadcaster, North Yorkshire.

Beware traffic, safeguard valuables, and swerve clear of aggressive drunks, same as anywhere else.

The mountains are of no great height so you're unlikely to suffer worse than cold lashing rain. Nevertheless be suitably equipped up there, with boots, compass and adequate clothing.

• South to Tyne and Wear: Newcastle upon Tyne is the lively big city. Several of its attractions (eg Baltic Gallery) are south of the Tyne and thus in the separate city of Gateshead.
• West is Cumbria: Carlisle is a pleasant market town. Further southwest is the scenic but very touristy Lake District, where it's sure to rain.
• North are the Scottish Borders, with a series of stately homes and ruined abbeys around Jedburgh, Melrose and Kelso.