1. Raby Castle
Meeting Point: Raby Castle
We begin the Big Smile in the magnificent grounds of Raby Castle. We follow a broad path through the grassy landscape where Red and Fallow Deer herds live wild. We pass the impressively maintained medieval castle, built between 1367 and 1390 by John Neville, the 3rd Baron Neville de Raby.
We wander through Ladywood and then up towards Raby Home Farm and then Shotton enjoying the beautiful countryside home to some superb flora and fauna.
Eventually, we leave the Raby estate and find ourselves heading over Cockfield fell, common land pock marked with evidence of human habitation including flint arrowheads dating back to 8000BC.
We skirt around Cockfield itself and back through the estate to finish back at Raby Castle in a wonderful start to the Big Smile Walks.
Distance: 20 km ( 12.47 miles)
Difficulty Rating: ★★★☆☆
Sponsored By: The Ramside Hall Hotel
1. Raby Castle
Meeting Point: Raby Castle
We begin the Big Smile in the magnificent grounds of Raby Castle. We follow a broad path through the grassy landscape where Red and Fallow Deer herds live wild. We pass the impressively maintained medieval castle, built between 1367 and 1390 by John Neville, the 3rd Baron Neville de Raby.
We wander through Ladywood and then up towards Raby Home Farm and then Shotton enjoying the beautiful countryside home to some superb flora and fauna.
Eventually, we leave the Raby estate and find ourselves heading over Cockfield fell, common land pock marked with evidence of human habitation including flint arrowheads dating back to 8000BC.
We skirt around Cockfield itself and back through the estate to finish back at Raby Castle in a wonderful start to the Big Smile Walks.
Distance: 20 km ( 12.47 miles)
Difficulty Rating: ★★★☆☆
Sponsored By: The Ramside Hall Hotel
47. A Blanchland Hike
Date: 24/08/2021
Meeting Point: Blanchland Public Car Park, Blanchland, Consett, DH8 9TA
With some spectacular countryside ahead, this beautiful stage of The Big Smile trek begins in Blanchland with a looping stretch, much of which follows the River Derwent.
We then head back towards the village at Baybridge, before rising up onto the moors and following a track towards Slaley forest.
Staying on the fringes of the forest, we aim for Winnows Hill, before turning back on ourselves across the moor and dropping down Pennypie Fell, and then back into Blanchland.
From river to moorland, forest to fells, we are surrounded by a wide variety of flora and fauna. History and heritage is all around us in the shape of the old Shildon mines and, of course, in the village itself. Blanchland has straddled the Durham/Northumberland border since 1165, and is widely recognised to be one of the country’s prettiest villages.
Distance: 22.3 km (13.86 miles)
Difficulty Rating: ★★★☆☆
Sponsored By: