As keen walkers in the region know, the North East boasts plenty beautiful locations to enjoy some outdoor exercise and they include a wide mix of areas from countryside to coast.
Region-wide beauty spots have their attractions in every season and winter is no exception. Now a new list of best British walking locations has been announced to mark The Festival of Winter Walks. The annual event, by walking organisation The Ramblers, has been running for more than 25 years and aims to encourage more people to explore the great outdoors.
In celebration of the festival, holiday home operator Verdant has revealed its top 10 wintery walks for Brits to explore during the colder season - and they include four in the North East: three of them in Northumberland and one in County Durham. It has used data which examines much-loved walking routes and ranks each based upon the least amount of rainfall and social media popularity.
Read more: The darkest skies and deepest waters of Kielder
To identify the driest locations, it has taken into account the average rainfall between December and March, and also looked at visitor ratings from sites such as TripAdvisor plus both Instagram and TikTok hashtags. In top spot is Seven Sisters in Eastbourne, East Sussex, which is named the best wintery walk in the UK. Here are what it says about North East beauty spots which are included.
Sycamore Gap, Crag Lough
At number five, this 'stunning' location in Northumberland National Park, is home it says to "the most photographed tree in the UK". Ity adds: "This spot is a social media favourite with data showing it has 350,000 engagements across Instagram and TikTok, proving its already existing popularity.
"The gap exists within the vast gap between Hadrian’s Wall and border to the national park that many walkers are drawn to over the winter months. The most popular walk for this location is the Hadrian’s Wall Path, with additional views of the Steel Rig and the lake Crag Lough."
It adds: "This muddy yet scenic walk is great for taking in views of the rolling hills with TripAdvisor users who have previously visited the spot calling it ‘stunning’ and ‘magical’."
Kielder Water and Forest Park, Hexham
This area, placed number six, is "particularly favoured by outdoor enthusiasts", it says, with a rating of 4.5 from TripAdvisor. Kielder Water and Forest Park is home to Europe’s largest man-made lake and England’s largest forest, making it a must-see spot for walkers, cyclists, and nature lovers.
It adds: "With almost 1.5k location tags on Instagram, it’s also a part of England’s first and largest International Dark Sky Park, making it the perfect spot for stargazing on an evening winter stroll."
Dunstanburgh Castle, Alnwick
The 1.3-mile walk along the Northumbrian coastline "doesn’t disappoint as you approach Dunstanburgh Castle, with almost 50,000 people stopping to take a quick snap or video to share to their socials", it says, adding: "Once one of the grandest and largest fortresses in the north of England, the castle stands out amongst its surroundings of this scenic stretch of the Northumbrian coast, dating all the way back to the 14th century." Making number eight in the list, it added that the most common route for this wintery walk starts in the village of Craster, travelling through working farmland leading up to the castle, where the journey ends in the village of Embleton, described as "the perfect location to watch a winter sunset".
Barnard Castle, County Durham
Praised for its "charming views" and as being ideal for exploring, this came in at number nine, with nearly two million videos of the spot shared to TikTok and a 4.5-star rating from TripAdvisor. The write-up says: "These ruins of this fortress overlook the scenic market town nestled in the hills of County Durham, sharing its rich history and beautiful landscape with the locals and visitors. The surrounding valleys and riversides are ideal for a winter ramble, with what's left of Barnard Castle reflecting on the river Tees, setting the scene for the perfect wintery walk."
Other UK-wide locations included in the list are Cheddar Gorge in Somerset in second place, immediately followed by John Muir Way in Dunbar, East Lothian, and Belhaven Beach in Dunbar, East Lothian. Ranked behind Kielder was Robin Hood’s Bay in Whitby, North Yorkshire, and rounding off the top 10 was Burns Trail in Alloway, Ayrshire. For more about the UK’s best winter walks list, see here.
Read Next
