Wild Northumberland

Northumberland is one of the least populous counties in England. This means that there are places to go to get away from the crowds, even on the warmest summer’s day. This includes areas such as the Cheviot Hills, which straddle the border between England and Scotland. Wild and rugged, it is a landscape steeped in history; until the seventeenth century it was a lawless land, roamed by the Border Reivers.

The photos in this gallery are a celebration of the wilder side of Northumberland, its moorland, woodland, and high hills.

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There are a number of valleys in the Cheviot range. My favourite is Upper Coquetdale, from the village of Harbottle through to Chew Green at the far end. It’s not truly wild – no place in England is – but it feels (and is!) far from the comforts of civilisation.

The valley is photogenic throughout the year. A particular highlight for me is August, when the heather is in bloom. There is a particularly fine walk from Harbottle through heather moorland up to the Drake Stone and Harbottle Lake. I get a bit twitchy if I don’t make my way up there at least once a year.

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