Captain's Log

Redesdale Forest

It had been my warmest night yet on the trail. That might have been due to the pocket sized pitch that I’d found tucked away in the Redesdale Forest. The trees kept me snug during the night. It looked like another beautiful day was ahead. I've been lucky with the weather so far. Today would be a shorter day of around 10 miles. The first three days of the Pennine Way had been tough and so an easier walk would be welcome. The plan was to reach the small town of Bellingham (pronounced Bellingjam) that was well provisioned with a supermarket, cafes and pubs. It had also had a campsite on its outskirts that I’d pinpointed as my camp for the night. After 3 days wildcamping, I thought I was about due for a shower. I brewed a coffee, ate some muesli and packed my stuff up. It wasn’t long before I started Day 4 of the Pennine Way. 

Padon Hill

The first bit of the walk turned out to be the trickiest. I remembered this particular section from my previous excursions along the Pennine Way. The route followed a broken stone wall down a steep hillside. A forest plantation was on my right and the moors on my left. A stream joined me and the rocks became very slippery. The water also made the path very muddy. I’m a bit surprised that this section of the trail has never been improved over the years. Slowly and steadily, I made my way to the bottom of the wall. This coincided with the end of the plantation; I was now leaving the vast Redesdale Forest behind. 

Having lost all the height, I started to regain it again as slabs led me up Padon Hill. I could see the summit of this hill from last night’s pitch and noticed that it had a huge cairn on it. The summit was a 5 minute walk from the Pennine Way and I’d never actually visited it on previous visits here. Since today was a short day, I decided to make the out-and-back to the cairn to get a closer look. The cairn was indeed huge and very well made. The large cairn is also known as a currick in the North Pennines.There was a stone plaque with an inscription that was unreadable due to weathering. Later research revealed that the cairn was 5 metres tall. The monument was thought to have been constructed to commemorate the 50th wedding anniversary of Sir Charles and Lady Morrison-Bell of Otterburn Hall, who were married in 1863. Otterburn Hall was about 4 miles over to the east. I'm not sure what Sir Charles did to celebrate his 60th wedding anniversary. The view from Padon Hill was so extensive that it was possible to see well beyond Otterburn. I could even see The Cheviot over to the north. I noticed that there was a potential wildcamp pitch to the east of the monument, but it was rather exposed. 

Deer Play

Back on the Pennine Way I continued following the slabs. Some of them were flooded and others were booby trapped. I’d step on the occasional one and it would tip and sometimes squirt bog-water up by legs. The slabs were far better than walking over the moor itself. I crossed a single track road and then climbed gradually to Whitley Pike, which turned out to be flat on top, rather than a peak. I was off the slabs now and the path became quite moist in places. I traversed flat moorland to the area known as Deer Play. My Trailblazer guide had signified this spot as a potential for wildcamping. There were indeed a few grassy places where it would have been possible to camp. It was quite exposed though and there wasn’t any shelter if the wind was strong. 

A little further on, I came across my first NoBo LEJOGer (North Bound Lands End John O’Groats). He was a Scottish fellow known as Scottish Rogue Outdoors on his TikTok account. He’d set off from Land’s End mid-March and so was doing well. He reckoned he was doing above 20 miles per day. I asked him about his route from here. After the Pennine Way, he was taking St Cuthbert’s Way to the east coast. He’d then follow the east coast northwards until he could get on to the John Muir trail. He’d then use that to get to the West Highland Way, Great Glen Way and then the John O’Groats Trail. I wished him luck. Half an hour later I met a young Australian woman who was also a NoBo LEJOGer. She’d set off on the 1st of March from Lands End and so was taking it a bit slower. I asked her if she’d met the Scottish Rogue Outdoors and she said that she hadn't. It seemed a bit unfortunate that two walkers doing such epic journeys should miss each other.      

I lost the path crossing the moorland to the west of Callerhues Crag. To be honest, I’m not really convinced that there’s even a path in the middle section of the moors. It was only for a kilometre or so and wasn’t a problem. Beyond that, Bellingham became visible in the valley in front of me. I could see a mast on the hill behind the town and knew that I’d be passing it on tomorrow’s walk. I descended into the valley by field-hopping. At Blakelow Farm I said ‘hello’ to a farmer who completely ignored me. I joined a road that led into the town. 

Bellingham

Bellingham was a very pleasant, little town. It feels miles away from anywhere, even when you drive to the place. The market place was bustling with people and vehicles. It was lunchtime and so I sought food. My nose took me to a bakery called Lunch that had a few tables inside where you could eat and drink their produce. I bought some pasties, cake and a coffee and sat at one of the tables. I chatted with Linda behind the counter. She was originally from Gateshead and still retained the accent. She’d moved to a village just outside Bellingham. She said that she hadn’t seen that many Pennine Wayer’s this year, although it was still a bit early. The pasties and cake were excellent and I couldn’t resist buying some more goodies to have for my tea. After my Lunch break, I restocked the rest of my food by visiting the Co-Op. I managed to get everything I needed for the next couple of days and a bit more besides. 

As I started to walk away from the market place I came across a Chinese Gingall Gun. It seemed an odd thing to display in the village, but an information board enlightened me. The item was captured by British forces in North West China in June 1900 during the Boxer Rebellion. The gun fell into the hands of Commander Edward Charlton who was serving aboard HMS Orlando which was part of the force to put down the rebellion. Charlton’s family lived at nearby Hesleyside Hall and the Commander (later Admiral) presented the gun to the people of Bellingham. 

Irishmen's Graveyard

Near to the River North Tyne I found the Irishmen’s Graveyard. This is a historical burial site for around 100 Irish navvies who died of cholera between 1899 and 1905 while constructing the Catcleugh Reservoir. I’d visited St Francis’ Church at Byrness yesterday (see the Captain’s Log, Hills And Forests Of Byrness) that hosted the Catcleugh stained glass window. An information board said that the window was a memorial to the 64 men, women and children that died whilst the reservoir was built. I’d wondered why so many people had died building such a small reservoir; maybe the cholera outbreak was the reason? Even so, there appeared to be a difference in the number of people killed between the two references. An AI question about it says that the two references track entirely separate groups of people. The  64 men, women and children in the Byrness reference include those in the reservoir shanty town who died from any cause, including accidents and general illness. The Irishmen’s Graveyard 100 deaths were specifically travelling Irish navvies who died predominantly during a local cholera outbreak. It must have been a grim time when that reservoir was being built. 

Brown Rigg Campsite

Brown Rigg Campsite was a 20 minute walk from Bellingham. It was a Caravan And Camping Club site. Normally I’d avoid these sites due to their prices for non-members, but the Australian LEJOGer I’d met earlier in the day said that it only cost her £10 for a pitch and that the facilities were excellent. 

The site turned out to be the best one that I camped at along the Pennine Way. Its facilities were second to none including a well provisioned shop, great toilets and showers and a good pitch. The best thing was that it had a building that had a great kitchen, communal room and even a games room. I was able to recharge my electrical equipment. I chatted to a couple in the communal room who were cycling the Sandstone Way. I’d never heard of this. The 120 mile route goes  from Hexham to Berwick-upon-Tweed and was designed for mountain bikes. They were carrying all their camping gear and were knackered after their first day. Their second day would be apparently hillier and longer.    

It had been another great day along the Pennine Way. The weather had been brilliant again, the terrain relatively easy, and it had been a comfortable mileage. The Lunch bakery had provided me with enough calories to survive the next couple of days and I’d even managed to get a shower.