July 2021
A forgotten part of England with mile upon mile of empty beaches, many renowned for their extreme wild beauty. If you have ever travelled from the south by train and wondered about that amazing stretch of dramatic coastal scenery before Berwick upon Tweed, much of that land belongs to North Northumberland before it morphs into Berwickshire, also home to striking scenery.
If I could distill the magic into a bottle I would. I can only begin to describe the calming effect of days spent in this area, drip by drip allowing troubles to slip away. Every river bend, every rolling pasture or harvested field is steeped in the history of the place. Every pretty country church, country cottage or farmhouse illustrates the past whilst many happy hours can be spent travelling the deeply hedged byways opening up into a market town just waiting to be explored.
Images from top left: Lady Waterford Hall; The Black Bull, Etal; Bamburgh Castle; Ford & Etal Light Railway.
River, beach or hill; the choice faced by holidaymakers planning their lazy summer days. The silky brown water, the crashing surf waves, or a heather clad hill. Whichever you choose you will spend time looking around wondering where everyone else went, because that’s the thing. That’s the reason for holidaying here. You can go for hours without seeing anyone else and that is truly rare on an English holiday. Go ahead and try it for yourself!
Walking in the Cheviot Hills
Swimming at deserted Cheswick beach
St Cuthberts Way – goes straight through the College Valley ending at Holy island
Lady Waterford Hall
Heatherslaw Mill Heatherslaw Light Railway
Heavy Horses
The Cheviot Tap and Microbrewery
Discovering the swim spots of North Northumberland and asking expert Vicky Allan about her love of the area.
September 2021
Holiday cottage interior design, the evolution of Wild Plum
November 2021
