My Hadrian’s Wall Path Walk – July 2024
It had been 5 years since my last long distance footpath trek (The St. Cuthbert’s Way in 2019) and with entering my fourth quarter century I thought it time to see if the increasingly old legs still had it in them.
What is the Hadrian’s Wall Path?
It’s one of the 16 UK National Trails and follows, as far as possible, the route of the wall built by the Roman Emperor Hadrian (or rather by slaves at his behest!).
Construction of the wall began in AD 122 and it runs from Wallsend on the River Tyne in the east to Bowness-on-Solway in the west. It was a stone wall with large ditches in front and behind, stretching across the whole width of what was then Britannia. Soldiers were garrisoned along the line of the wall in large forts, smaller milecastles, and intervening turrets. It’s the largest Roman archaeological feature in Britain and was originally 73 miles long. The wall marked the boundary between Roman Britannia and unconquered Caledonia and was designed to keep out the Picts, who the Romans never subdued.
The National Trail goes from the Roman Fort of Segedunum at Wallsend in the east to the pavilion (The Banks Promenade) on the small coastal cliff at Bowness-on-Solway at its western end. At 84 miles it’s one of the shortest of the England and Wales National Trails but full of interest whether you’re a historian or not. It’s also one of the most walked with an estimated 10,000 completing it last year!
Walking The Wall
So the Hadrian’s Wall Path is supposed to be 84 miles long – 11 more than the Roman brickies built it but somehow or other I managed to walk almost 93 with only about 4 of those being to overnight accommodation slightly off route. And NO – I did not get lost, well not seriously anyway!
Most people walk west to east – supposedly with the prevailing winds behind them. However, since the Romans built the wall from east to west I chose to be awkward, as usual and go t’other way. There were a couple of reasons – firstly I wanted to get what I thought would be the boring urban bit along the Tyne out of the way first (it wasn’t – boring that is) and secondly there is no real visible wall at that end (nor at the western end, come to that).
Most people “walk the wall” in 6 days. I, being perverse and having just entered my fourth quarter century, decided to do it in 5 stages. And on the last very long leg, a lot on tarmac, I have to admit that I thought to myself “you must be bloody mad”! But I got there and here’s how I did it:
| Start | Finish | Distance (miles) | Time (hr:min:sec) | Min:sec/mile | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Day 0 | Bolton | Tynemouth | 172 (NOT walking!) | ||
| Day 1 | Wallsend | Wylam | 15.76 | 4:45:35 | 18:07 |
| Day 2 | Wylam | Chollerford | 19.10 | 7:01:13 | 22:03 |
| Day 3 | Chollerford | Twice Brewed | 13.24 | 6:01:34 | 27:19 |
| Day 4 | Twice Brewed | Walton | 18.09 | 7:01:12 | 23:17 |
| Day 5 | Walton | Bowness-on-Solway | 26.62 | 9:32:45 | 21:31 |
| Total = | 92.81 | 34:22:19 | 22:13 (2.7 mph) |
Fully stamped passport to allow visa-free entrance to Cumbria
Oh, on Day 0 we drove from sunny Bolton to even sunnier Tynemouth.
I took all the usual gear with me including both my lightweight Meindl boots (worn once) and “stouter” Altberg leather ones and there was a definite emphasis on trying to stay dry with my Montaine lightweight but very sweaty waterproof jacket and Berghaus over-trousers getting a lot of use!
Noelene, my ever faithful Sherpa, accompanied me by car taking everything else so that I only had to walk with a day sack – as with all the long distance walks I’ve done.
There have been a couple of trails I’ve plodded, notably the Pennine Way, where I met up with other walkers, became friends and walked much of the route with them. That didn’t happen this time. But I must mention – the German family of husband, wife and daughter, the two women from Oudenaarde in Belgium, Lisa from Alaska now living in Arizona, Leanne from somewhere near Melbourne who I saw and chatted to a bit. If any of you read this please get in touch – john @ gillatt . org. Interesting that nearly all the people I spoke to were non-Brits – though I did have a laugh with a couple of young Scots to whom I said, “I thought the wall was supposed to keep you lot out”. Fortunately they took it in good humour cos they were a lot bigger and stronger looking than me!
Click on the links in the table or in the menu to see my day by day account and lots of piccies.