26-608: The College Valley is an area within the Northumberland National Park in northern England. It is one of five cuttings into the Cheviot Hills . The valley is owned by College Valley Estates which in turn is funded by a trust created by Sir James Knott MP. The valley is spectacularly beautiful and affords a serenely satisfying ascent of the Cheviot – 815 metres (2674 ft) – the highest peak in
52-634: A range of uplands straddling the Anglo-Scottish border between Northumberland and the Scottish Borders . The English section is within the Northumberland National Park . The range includes The Cheviot (the highest hill), plus Hedgehope Hill to the east, Windy Gyle to the west, and Cushat Law and Bloodybush Edge to the south. The hills are sometimes considered a part of the Southern Uplands of Scotland as they adjoin
78-510: Is a broad split between the northern and the southern Cheviots. The former encompass most of the high ground and are pierced by five main valleys: The southern Cheviot hills encompass the slopes running down to the valley of the river Coquet . At the centre of the range is an outcrop of Early Devonian granite , the Cheviot Pluton, which is surrounded by Silurian and Devonian arc andesitic lava flows, tuffs and agglomerates of
104-436: Is in frequent use — artillery can be clearly heard from Lindisfarne to the north-east and Fontburn Reservoir in the south. Because of this, recreational use of the area is restricted, although it is possible for the public to use some parts of the estate subject to the relevant bylaws. The MoD publishes a booklet, Walks on Ministry of Defence Lands , which offers advice on this matter (see link below). The peaks marked with
130-405: Is open to the public, but access by car is restricted to permit holders only and these are limited on a daily basis. There is one road into the valley. This starts at Kirknewton on the road between Wooler and Kirk Yetholm . On entering the valley itself the road splits into two, the right hand turn to Trowup burn. The left hand fork goes to the estate office and farm there up the main valley to
156-636: Is the northernmost national park in England . It covers an area of more than 1,050 square kilometres (410 sq mi) between the Scottish border in the north to just south of Hadrian's Wall . The park lies entirely within Northumberland , covering about a quarter of the county . Of the thirteen National Parks in England and Wales , Northumberland is the most remote from large urban areas,
182-601: The Cheviot Hills and adjoins the Southern Uplands of Scotland, which the hills are sometimes considered a part of. Since the Pennine Way runs through the national park, the Cheviot Hills are also considered a part of the northern Pennines although they are separated from the Cheviot Hills by the Tyne Gap , part of which lies within the southern extent of the national park. Part of Kielder Forest lies within
208-525: The Northumberland National Park . Although many of the summits top 500 metres (1,600 ft), most have a relatively low prominence . Only three rise 150 metres (490 ft) or more above the surrounding terrain: The Cheviot itself, Shillhope Law and Housedon Hill , a small northern outlier (see Marilyn ). To the south-west the Cheviots merge into the Kielder Forest group of hills. There
234-560: The Ordovician and Silurian periods. The surrounding lower ground is formed from Carboniferous Limestone , though much of it is obscured by superficial deposits of Quaternary age. To the south of the Cheviot hills was the site of the Battle of Otterburn in 1388, and possibly a separate bloody battle between English and Scottish forces, after which only 110 people survived, which is described in " The Ballad of Chevy Chase ". (Note
260-570: The River Humber " and is related to the name " Northumbria ", referring to the former Anglo-Saxon kingdom which once covered much of Northern England . The national park lies totally within the boundaries of Northumberland . The Northumberland National Park covers a large area of Western Northumberland and borders the English county of Cumbria and the Scottish council area of The Scottish Borders . The national park encompasses much of
286-617: The Cheviot Volcanic Formation. These are in turn intruded by a swarm of igneous dykes with a predominantly calc-alkaline chemistry arranged radially around the pluton . Both the pluton and the volcanic rocks owe their origin to the northward subduction of the oceanic crust attached to the former micro-continent of Avalonia beneath the Laurentian plate in the course of the Caledonian orogeny during
SECTION 10
#1732781017564312-475: The Cheviot itself. The valley is ringed by Bronze Age forts along the hill tops. There is evidence of habitation from very early times. More recently the estate was owned by Cuthbert Collingwood, 1st Baron Collingwood , then the Grey family of Howick Hall followed by Arthur Sutherland . The estate office is at Hethpool House , Kirknewton . Apart from this there are a number of estate cottages designed in
338-633: The English side is mapped as 'open country' and hence there is a general right to roam over it as prescribed in the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 . Traditional rights of access in Scotland, bolstered by the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 , provide for similar access for the public to the north of the border. In addition, a sparse network of public bridleways and footpaths stretches around
364-748: The Northumberland National Park. In December 2013 the International Dark Sky Association conferred Dark Sky Park status on an area including Northumberland National Park and Kielder; it is the largest protected Dark Sky Park in Europe. [REDACTED] Media related to Northumberland National Park at Wikimedia Commons [REDACTED] Northumberland National Park travel guide from Wikivoyage Cheviot Hills The Cheviot Hills ( / ˈ tʃ iː v i ə t / ), or sometimes The Cheviots , are
390-511: The Roman occupation. The 10,000-year history of human habitation of the region is explored through the many archaeological sites, ranging from prehistoric monuments and Roman remains to Pele towers , constructed as a defence against invading Scots and Border Reivers . The Park's official symbol is the curlew . The Northumberland National Park takes its name from the English county of Northumberland . Northumberland means "country north of
416-508: The UK's largest firing range, where the Ministry of Defence train up to 30,000 soldiers a year. The Cheviot is the highest hill in the range at 2,674 feet (815 m). Other notable tops are Hedgehope Hill , Windy Gyle , Cushat Law and Bloodybush Edge. Of the hills mentioned, only Windy Gyle has its summit on the border. The rest are all within England. The English section is protected within
442-460: The area, often providing useful means of access from the lower ground onto the open hills. The northernmost leg of the Pennine Way runs from Byrness in England to Kirk Yetholm in Scotland. It is the longest, and most exposed, on the whole of the national trail. The Way follows the high level Border Ridge (literally the England–Scotland boundary fence) for nearly 20 miles (32 km) after
468-485: The area. The Estate covers approximately 12,000 acres (49 km) and is now managed by a board of directors whose duty is to manage it in a way that increases its value as an environmental, social and economic place of excellence. From north to south the estate is approximately 10 km and at its widest 7 km. There are over 105 km of roads and pathways criss crossing the College Valley. The valley
494-773: The arts and crafts style. Hethpool Mill is now converted into self-catering accommodation. There is evidence of habitation here back into the 13th century. As the valley approaches the Cheviot itself it splits into two, the right hand fork going to Mounthooly (which is now a YHA hostel) and the left hand fork going up to Goldsceugh by way of Coldburn Cottage and Dunsdale House. The Cheviot . 815m The Schil . 600m. Black Hag .549m. Scald Hill . 546m Newton Tors . 537m Preston Hill .520m. Broadhope Hill .516m Saughieside Hill .487m Coldburn Hill . 484m Whitelaw Nick . 430m. Loft Hill .410 m. Madam Law .397m Eccles cairn .350m. Sinkside Hill . Great Hetha . White hill . 226m. Northumberland National Park Northumberland National Park
520-516: The ascent to the ridge from Byrness. The terrain is boggy and remote, and two mountain refuge huts are situated on the Way for those too tired or weather-beaten to continue. The town of Wooler in the Cheviot Fringe (the lowlands bordering the hills to the east) is often cited as the "Gateway to the Cheviots" as it is the largest town in the Cheviot region; the town also has easy access being on
546-676: The continents of Avalonia and Laurentia collided, resulting in extensive volcanic activity (the Caledonian orogeny) which created a granite outcrop surrounded by lava flows. The area enjoys a general right to roam under both the English Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 and the Scottish Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 . The Southern Cheviots include the Otterburn Training Area ,
SECTION 20
#1732781017564572-447: The least populated, and the least visited. The park covers several distinct areas. In the north are the Cheviot Hills , a range of hills that mark the border between England and Scotland. Further south, the hills give way to areas of rolling moorland , some of which have been covered by forestry plantations to form Kielder Forest . The southernmost part of the park covers the dramatic central section of Hadrian's Wall , dating from
598-472: The major A697 road. Many walking routes have been established, such as: The Otterburn Army Training Estate (ATE) covers about 230 square kilometres (90 sq mi) of the Southern Cheviots, approximately 23% of the Northumberland National Park. It is owned by the Ministry of Defence (MoD) , and used for training some 30,000 soldiers a year. Otterburn is the UK's largest firing range, and
624-518: The origin of the border skirmishes between Percy, the Earl of Northumberland , and the Scottish Earl of Douglas may have been a hunt that strayed into Scotland and was interpreted as an invasion.) Two other related battles were the Battle of Homildon Hill , fought within the Cheviots near Wooler in 1402, and the Battle of Hedgeley Moor , fought north of Powburn in 1464. Most of the range on
650-482: The park, and in other areas forms a forest park. Kielder Forest is the largest man-made forest in Europe and surrounds Kielder Water . The Ministry of Defence in the United Kingdom owns much of the land in the national park as the Otterburn Training Area . Some parts of this training area are off-limits; others can be accessed only at certain times or with permission. The training area accounts for 23% of
676-417: The uplands to the north. Since the Pennine Way runs through the region, the hills are also considered a part of the northern Pennines although they are separated from the Cheviot Hills by the Tyne Gap , part of which lies within the southern extent of the Northumberland National Park. The Cheviot Hills are primarily associated with geological activity from approximately 480 to 360 million years ago, when
#563436