Captain's Log

Yearning Saddle

Brass monkeys would have enjoyed last night. It was a tad too cold for me in my summer sleeping bag. I had to put my walking clothes on during the night for some extra warmth. I scraped and wiped the frost from my tent and packed it away before I escaped from the bitter wind by entering the Yearning Saddle refuge hut. To be honest, it didn’t seem much warmer in there, but it had a bench to sit on and I brewed a coffee to warm my hands and innards. I downed some muesli too to fuel the rest of the day.      

I reckoned that I was about 9 miles from Byrness Hill where the long Cheviot ridge would finish. My schedule had me at Bellingham by the end of the day, but that would be an additional 15 miles. I knew that wasn’t going to happen and that the likelihood would be that I’d end up wildcamping 6 or 7 miles beyond Byrness. That would make tomorrow a short day to Bellingham, a place I wanted to stop to re-stock and recharge. I figured a shorter day wouldn’t be such a bad thing, given the arduous start to the Venture. I packed everything in my rucksack and thanked Yearning Saddle for providing an exceptional wildcamp. I set off south westwards along the Pennine Way. 

Return To The Cheviot Rollercoaster

The high ridge line of the Pennine Way wasn’t as undulating as yesterday and so wasn’t quite as arduous. The surrounding terrain was slightly flatter too. It looked less like mountains and more like rolling moorland. The landscape stretched for mile after mile. Occasionally I’d see a shed or barn in the far distance. I don’t know if these were shooting huts or used by the farmers.    

After half an hour’s walking, I was surprised to meet a NoBo woman who looked to be in her thirties. She was heading for Kirk Yetholm today and so must have had a very early start from her B&B in Byrness. I came across a herd of goats munching their way across the moor. I wondered if these were wild or whether they were farmed.  

The Pennine Way temporarily joined Dere Street, a Roman road. This led to the Roman camp and fortlet at Chew Green. On previous occasions I’d followed the Pennine Way to the south of the camp and found it difficult to distinguish any remains of its fortifications. On this occasion, I went to the north of it, higher on the hill, to see if that would give me a better impression of it. It didn't. I guess you really need an aerial view of the place to really appreciate it. 

Just beyond the camp, I met two young runners heading northwards. In 2016 I also ran this section from Byrness to Kirk Yetholm. I’ve no idea how I did it. I wished them luck, since the route definitely gets harder towards its northern end. Further on, I met a NoBo Lancashire chap who had been dropped off by his wife at Byrness. His plan was to bunk down in the shelter at Auchope, before finishing the Pennine Way tomorrow. From Chew Green there had been a military area to the east, noted as Danger Area on the OS map. Every so often there would be a sign with the following warning: ‘Danger. Do not touch any military debris. It may explode and kill you.’ I stepped on the other side of one of the signs, but nothing happened. I guess I was just lucky. 

At last I came to Byrness Hill and the end of the long Cheviot ridge. There was a large cairn that had been built into a basic seat. It was too windy to sit in the seat itself and so I sat at its base to have my lunch. The walk over the Cheviots had been a wonderful experience. Looking south I could see a huge area of forest stretching to the horizon. This was the Redesdale Forest and would take all of the afternoon to cross. Northumberland is big. 

Byrness

The sting in the tale of the Cheviot ridge was a bit of a scrambly section off Byrness Hill via some crags. It was more awkward than dangerous and it brought me down into the forest, some of which had been nuked. Before reaching the A68 I came to a stream near a forestry road and refilled my water bottles. It felt a bit bizarre entering civilisation again after a 2 day absence. I crossed the road and went to investigate Byrness’ St Francis’ Church. It was built in 1786 and hosts the Catcleugh stained glass window. This is dedicated to the memory of the 64 men, women and children who died during the building of nearby Catcleugh Reservoir. That seemed a remarkably large number of deaths to me for such a small reservoir. The window shows the workers and also a narrow gauge steam engine that was also utilised during the construction of the dam. 

At the rear of the church I found an isolated cylindrical monument with a metal plaque on top depicting the Greek Goddess, Cassiopeia. I didn’t really know much about this particular deity, but she didn’t sound that likeable. I suppose it depends whether you think chaining your daughter Andromeda  to sea-cliffs, so that she would be eaten by a sea-monster, was a good thing for her to do. The monument had been installed by the Northumberland International Dark Sky Park and was part of the collection of four other similar features along the Redesdale Star Cairn Trail. The connection between Cassiopeia and the stars is that she is associated with a constellation in the northern sky. 

Redesdale Forest

I followed the River Rede downstream. The Pennine Way was now a totally changed experience. I’d gone from a windy mountain top traverse with extensive views, to a riverside forest walk in the sun. There was a campsite at Byrness with a sign saying Pennine Wayers could camp there for £10. It was too early in the day to stop though and I wanted to make the most of this great weather. The trail reached the Blakehopeburnhaugh picnic area and I commandeered a table to brew some tea and have a snack. The place seemed to be a hub for walkers, mountain bikers and anybody else who wanted to make use of the picnic and toilet facilities. 

I set off southwards along the forestry road. Apart from one forestry pickup that passed me and left me smothered in a cloud of white dust, I didn’t see anybody else during that long journey through the forest. To be honest, there wasn’t that much to grab your interest as you plodded its stone road. The route gradually made its way up higher into the forest. There’d been no Pennine Way signs along the 3 mile route and it came as some reassurance to find one at a junction where a fingerpost pointed me along a southeasterly stone path. It was late afternoon now and so I started looking for a spot to pitch my tent. 

Forest Camp

The forest stopped on my left hand side revealing open moorland. It also revealed quite a strong wind. My Trailblazer guide had suggested that a place called Deer Play might be a place to wildcamp. This was 3 or more miles further on and looked to be on top of a hill. I really needed something less exposed in this wind. All the empty forestry areas held clumpy grass and the moorland area looked too heathery and boggy. By the time I reached a descent that led to the end of the forest, I’d given up on the hope of finding any sheltered pitches. I was therefore delighted that within 20 metres of the descent, I found a relatively flat pitch that was just big enough to cater for my single person tent. I couldn’t believe my luck! The area was surrounded by small trees and the open side was protected by a high stone wall. I thanked the Gods. Within half an hour I had my tent pitched, tea brewed and was eating my tea. 

It had been another excellent day on the Pennine Way. It was a day of two halves. The first half traversing the remaining Cheviot ridge to Byrness, and the second half, a riverside walk followed by forestry road plodding. I was still half a day behind schedule, but I didn’t care. Tomorrow would be an easier day, probably around 10 miles, with a walk to Bellingham. There, I would be able to perform a grub-heist at the Co-Op and its cafes, and potentially have a shower at its campsite. What luxury!