The word is a very exciting place

I woke in the morning, still with a painful ankle, and seriously thought about catching the train from Wylam to Newcastle and skipping the rest of the trail. I eventually came to the decision that I would try to walk as much as I could, but seeing as I was so close to Newcastle, then I could easily jump on a bus or train if it all got too much. The first part of the trail I didn't really pay much attention to, which I now regret. I was just trying to get some distance in before things got too uncomfortable, so I didn't appreciate the fact that I was walking along the Wylam Waggonway. Called the "father of the railways" because really he was, George Stephenson grew up in the little white stone cottage, and was inspired from a young age to become and inventor & engineer. Inspired by the slow moving carts that trundled past the cottage, the idea of a steam railway was born. One of his engines the aptly named Locomotion travelled at 15mph while pulling a passenger tra...

 If any of the days walking was going to break me, then it would be this one. It was the longest section I had planned, purely because I couldn't seem to get accommodation on the trail for some reason. So there was an approximately 20 mile walk between Chollerford and where I was staying in Wylam. I'd tried to rest my swollen ankle as much as possible yesterday afternoon and overnight. It was still a little swollen, and the pain was minimal which was a positive sign. I literally followed the road back over the Chollerford Bridge and up to Brunton Turret (26B) which is nestled in a quiet field with a rather large & high piece of wall, one of the tallest parts on the trail.

 Today I'd planned to have a slightly easier day, and make sure I spent a bit of time resting my tired body. I knew I was a bit unfit & somewhat overweight, but I didn't think I'd be struggling this much! The rain was back as well, I'd watched it trickle down the windows in the breakfast room. Luckily I had my waterproof jacket. I don't know what I would have done without it on this trip! Here you can see the haze of drizzle that was wafting over the hills. The sheep weren't bothered though! Nothing ever seems to bother sheep, they just chill in the fields all day. Imagine what it would be like to have a life without stress, only green grass and the occasional walker in your field. Anyway, I was headed for Chester's fort, another one of the large forts along Hadrian's Wall built to keep the Picts out of this side of the wall.

 Luckily, the rain seemed to have stopped by morning, which I was rather glad to see! I think I'd had enough rain by this point, although it is rather inevitable considering I am in Northern England!  Time for a good breakfast at the hostel, gotta get my energy levels up for the day!

 Day five started with a pleasant walk, retracing part of the path I had walked yesterday coming to Haltwhistle. But this time, rather than continuing onwards at the bridge by the square chimney, I crossed it, and followed the path along Haltwhistle Burn, this water course with a green oasis surrounding it in the valley. It was gloriously calm and peaceful, with the sounds of running water and birds calling each other.

After a well earned rest at the shepherds hut, I set out on day four of walking Hadrian's Wall. I was excited for today, because it's where the path would start to take in some of the more dramatic views of the wall and the surrounding landscape. Here's the first field of the day, after passing through Greenhead on my was to Thirlwall Castle.

 Day three got off to a fantastic start, one of the owners at the fabulous Scotch Arms Mews in Brampton had very kindly given me a lift back to the trail and Newton, saving me an almost hours walk back to the path. I gave them a tenner to say thankyou, but they refused to take it. It seems the North is full of good folk! You'd be kidnapped if that happened down South! The rain had been heavy overnight, but was just a light drizzle now thankfully. Here you can see the little stone's for the path, coming up the hill, this part of the walk was going to include some higher hills! But I was prepared, and I was eager for this stretch, as there is plenty of Roman remains to be seen!

The second section of the walk had very little Roman remains, but it was perhaps the most lush green I'd ever seen, surrounded by fields and crops. I'd started a little further round the trail than I wanted to, because although I'd wanted to walk along the river bank a little further round to see the Roman stones they had dredged from the River Eden, it then meant I'd have to double back on myself and add another mile and a half on the walk today. I decided not to, for fear of pushing myself slightly too much!

After a stellar breakfast and an interesting chat with two American ladies who had just finished Hadrian's wall the day before, I set off back to the little hut on the waterfront where my journey would begin. It's hard to believe that a sleepy place like Bowness would have been a busy & bustling fort two thousand years ago, it feels almost very un Roman!