Northumberland Traveller

Since leaving Malaysia in April 2019 I have been living in Northumberland, a scenic and historic county in the far northeast of England. During this time I have been doing lots of walks and exploring the county’s many attractions, some of which I have written about here.

You can take a look and get some ideas for places to visit .

What’s So Great About Northumberland?

It’s Spacious. It’s the least crowded county in England. Northumberland is big with an area around 5,014 sq. km (the 6th biggest) while its population is low, only 319,000 in 2018, meaning a population density of just 63 people per sq. km. Less people means less traffic on the roads, less stress, less pollution, etc.

It’s Scenic. Northumberland is geographically diverse with the Northumberland National Park taking up over a fifth of the county, a long and spectacular coastline, large forests, lakes, rolling farmland, majestic rivers and the windswept Cheviot Hills. And Northumberland has a great location surrounded by scenic places such as the Lake District in Cumbria, the North York Moors, County Durham, and the Borders of Scotland.

It’s Historic. There are a lot of historical remains here ranging from Hadrian’s Wall, castles and peles to mining and industrial sites. The City of Newcastle upon Tyne (once part of Northumberland but now administered as part of Tyne and Wear) is a wonderful city, packed full of historical places of interest and heritage sites.

It’s Friendly. The people of Northumberland are welcoming, hardy, salt-of-the-earth types, with the most attractive of all the northern English accents.

What Will I Be Blogging About?

Here are some of the walks and sights I have written about so far.

Long Distance Walks such as:

City Trails & Art Trails:

Other Walks:

Castles

Roman Sites

  • Corbridge Roman Town
  • Chesters Roman Fort
  • Housesteads Roman Fort

Museums

  • Laing Art Gallery
  • The Clayton Museum
  • Wylam Railway Museum
  • Stephenson Railway Museum
  • North East Land Sea & Air Museum
  • Bowes Railway Museum
  • Tynemouth Volunteer Life Brigade Watch House and Museum
  • Woodhorn Museum

Historical Homes and Gardens

Churches and Abbeys

Lighthouses

  • Souter Lighthouse
  • St Mary’s Lighthouse
  • Tynemouth Pier Lighthouse

Monuments & Statues

Railway Related Sites

Towns & Villages

Other Attractions

Attractions in Neighbouring Counties

I will add to this list over the coming months.

26 thoughts on “Northumberland Traveller”

  1. Hiked and camped along Hadrian’s Wall on a school trip when I was about 12. Remember it well (particularly the blisters and midges) including Thirlwall Castle. Hope you are all settling in well.

  2. Not Northumberland but well worth visiting is Bishop Aukland, about 40 mins drive from you, to see Francisco de Zubaran’s “Jacob and his twelve sons” in Auckland Castle. Amazing and gratifying to see such paintings in northern England.

  3. I’ve been wondering where you were. Sometimes I see one of your stories re-produced by the FMT news site but upon reading, it is an old story. Good to know you are back in UK. Stay safe.

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