England: Hadrian's Wall

We had a rather ambitious plan for walking Hadrian's walls. From Hexham Station we took the shuttle AD122 to Walltown Quarry and walked to Housesteads. It was a rather warm day. I was ready for it to end. We should have just walked from Steel Rigg to Housesteads.

We saw some agricultural action from the bus window, and a good part of the route is along the River Tyne (3rd below).






At Walltown Crags we walked east along the wall, not on the wall. It's prohibited to walk on the wall.










The view south from Walltown Crags.






We stopped for a rest and a snack at Cawfields Lake Park, the site of a former quarry.


East of Cawfields Lake Park, we checked out some small Roman ruins.


There were definitely more people along this beautiful part of the wall walk. Not to mention the sightseeing flights.




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Winshields, the highest point of Hadrian's Wall at Winshields is 342m above sea level.








The Foundation ruins of Milecastle 39 near Steel Rigg.


We continued EAST along the wall, passing some rock climbers.




Here, the wall is covered with sod/grass. Cool.




A young go-getter jumps into my photo. haha


Finally, Housesteads Roman Fort (Vercovicium).

England: Durham

Before leaving Newcastle, we made a quick trip by train (1st below) to Durham for its fine Romanesque Cathedral, UNESCO 1986, which was the location for a number of Harry Potter scenes. We also visited the National Trust's Crook Hall Gardens, a new post COVID acquisition. We have really enjoyed all the gardens, so we're trying to see as many as we can. The Himalayan Blue poppies were the highlight.

View from the train with Durham Castle at left, and Durham Cathedral, what a great view of its towers, at right


Durham Cathedral was huge and contained a surprisingly large number of "historic treasures", not to mention Harry Potter filming locations like the Chapter House (2nd below).




The Nave and its Massive Pillars (erected between 1104 and 1128 AD) with geometric patterns. Wow!






The Quire, completed in 1096 AD, and Rose Window.






The Shrine of St. Cuthbert




The Prior Castell's Clock


The Durham Light Infantry Chapel


The Cloisters.


We walked along the River, and under the Framwellgate Bridge with Durham Castle (behind left) and the Twin Towers of Durham Cathedral (behind right), to the National Trust's Crook Hall Gardens and the Himalayan Blue poppies.Then trained back to Newcastle.