Exploring Hadrian’s Way

Walbottle DeneUp to 41/2 miles / 7 km

Layers of History

At first glance this landscapemay seem unremarkable,but take a closer look and manylayers of history are revealed.

Near the surface are relics of 200years of coal mining. Many ofthe disused waggonways andrailways which once served thecoal industry have now becomeroads and tracks.

Delve a bit deeper - about 800years deeper - and you discoverthe medieval origins of Walbottlevillage. Deeper still, and thelandscape of the Romanoccupation comes into view.

But the layers continue on down,through the Bronze Age 1000years before the Romans arrivedin Britain, to a prehistoriclandscape 50 million yearsbefore humans appeared onthe planet.

Follow this route and take a walkthrough the past.

Born from Molten Magma

Over 50 million years ago,when mammals were only justappearing on Earth, there wasa period of massive volcanicactivity in southwest Scotland.

Huge quantities of molten rock,or magma, welled up from thedepths and squeezed throughfaults in the existing rock layers.The molten rock then solidifiedto form horizontal sills andvertical dikes.

The effects of that Scottishvolcanic activity spread as faras Northumberland, and twoof the dikes formed at that timenow run close to Walbottle.

The Great Whin Dike crossesFellside Lane and runssoutheast towards the Tyne.It caused major problems inmany Newcastle coal mines.

The Little Whin Dike runsparallel, slightly to the south,and was quarried in WalbottleDene.

The Roman Frontier

The route of this walk straddlesthe course of Hadrian’s Wall,the northwest frontier of theRoman Empire. It was animpressive and imposingstructure, and a magnificentfeat of civil engineering.

The main curtain wall stood upto 10 ft (3m) thick and 16ft (5m)high. In front, on the north side,was a deep defensive ditch.Some distance behind, to thesouth, ran another line ofdefensive earthworks includinga wide flat-bottomed ditch,the Vallum. A military accessroad ran in the strip of landbetween the Wall and theVallum, the Military Zone.

Why Blucher?

In 1815, when the Duke ofWellington faced Napoleon atthe Battle of Waterloo inBelgium, it was GeneralBlücher’s Prussian army whosaved the day. Some historiansclaim that without Blücher’sinvolvement Napoleon’s armywould not have been routed astotally as they were.

Back home in Walbottle, tomark the great victory, the localcoal mine was renamed DukePit, after Wellington, and a newsinking was named Blücher Pit,after the Prussian. Subsequentlythe village of Blucher grew uparound the pit.

Designed by Ad Infinitum, Rothbury. Published by Newcastle City Council © 2002

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Front cover: Near Walbottle – Newcastle City Council

This 41/2 miles / 7 km walk ispacked with historical interest.A 1920’s garden village, aVictorian rifle range and one ofthe oldest waggonways inBritain are just some of thediverse delights to bediscovered along the way.The route can be joined atany point and can be followedin either direction. It is mostlyaccessible for wheelchairs,except the lower section ofWalbottle Dene which has somesteps. The river crossings in thispart of the Dene can becomeimpassable in wet weather.Frequent bus services run toWalbottle and Throckley.Parking is possible aroundthe green in Walbottle village.

Contact details:

TravelineTel: 0870 608 2608www.traveline.org.uk

Hadrian's Wall Information LineTel: 01434 322002www.hadrians-wall.org

Newcastle TouristInformation CentreTel: 0191 2778000

To give feedback on these &other strategic routes in andaround Newcastle,please contact:

John Robertson,Newcastle City CouncilPlanning & TransportationTel: 0191 232 8520

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Based upon the 2000 Ordnance Survey mapwith permission of the Controller of H.M.S.O

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Walbottle Dene 41/2 miles / 7km Suggested starting point: Walbottle Village N

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Northumberland Gardenswas built in the 1920’s as aplanned garden village.

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The North WalbottleWaggonway carried coalfrom pits at Blucher and NorthWalbottle down to the staithesat Lemington.

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Blucher Pit closed in 1956,having worked over a periodof 140 years. Some of the oldpit buildings remain, includingthe winding engine house.

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The village of Walbottle isknown to have existed since atleast the 13th century, andperhaps earlier. The medievalvillage was built round thegreen, and was surrounded bystrip-cultivated open fields.

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A steep gully marksthe quarried outcropof the Little Whin Dike.

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Over 250 yearsold, the WalbottleMoors waggonwayis the only surviving18th centurywaggonway in theNewcastle area.Railway pioneerGeorge Stephensonis reputed to haveworked on this lineas a boy.

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Aerial photographs have showntwo rectangular Romano-Britishenclosures on Walbottle Moor.They were probably associatedwith small farmsteads.

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Based upon the 2000 Ordnance Survey mapwith permission of the Controller of H.M.S.O

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