Today I set off on another tour of the wall with Robert Forsythe except this time it was the west portion of the wall and the Tyne Valley Line. Robert very nicely offered to pick me up at Prudhoe station and from there we made our way up to the wall. I would like to add that I strongly believe that the train is the best way to make your way towards the wall stress free however for the purpose of seeing a lot of attractions quickly, the car was the better option today.
From Prudhoe station we quickly crossed the lovely Ovingham Bridge which connects Prudhoe to the village of Ovingham.
From here we quickly skipped across the length of the wall towards our first stop which was Wetheral and Wetheral station. On the way there, Robert informed me about the geography of the railway and how the route of the railway is not as the crow flies due to the contours of the land. These contours also cause the railway to drop down from close to the wall around Bardon Mill, towards Wetheral and Carlisle.
Driving through Wetheral, I saw how much of a lovely town it is. We parked up at Wetheral station and I got to appreciate how lovely the station is; maybe even the nicest station between Carlisle and Newcastle. The viaduct was only a stone’s throw away from the station. As I approached it, I was struck by how impressive it is and just how high up it goes. I couldn’t help getting my phone out to take a few photos. While doing this it suddenly dawned on me, if I were to drop my phone now it would certainly not survive the fall.
After the viaduct we walked over to the signal box, walked down the steps to check out the view from down below. From here we also got to take in the views of the river and the lovely houses of Wetheral. After this little stroll we got back into the car to travel to Talkin Tarn, en-route we made a quick stop at Gelt woods, which was very picturesque and would make for a nice walk.
Upon arriving to Talkin Tarn, I was taken aback by how impressive it was. Although I had been told what exactly Talkin Tarn was, the sheer size of the lake was a lot bigger than I was expecting. The amount of activities one could get involved in was also incredibly vast. After a bit of a wander round and look inside the café we decided that the day was quickly approaching the end. As the first few drops of rain began to hit our shoulders we decided this was our cue to leave and return back home once again.
