Print

Today I set off on my tour of Hadrian’s Wall with Colin, the finance director of the partnership. We started by heading from Bardon mill up to Gilsland. I was first shown the old train station at Gilsland, the current building could only be described as a very large old house. Hopefully this station is set to be reopened and modernized. It was clear from the location of this station why it would be very beneficial to be reopened. It is positioned in the perfect place for a walker to get straight off the train and begin their day exploring the wall. Gilsland also homes a lovely little town with the Samson Inn just 20 yards from the station which is the perfect lunch stop.

poltossburnmilecastleFrom the station we walked down towards Poltross Burn. En route we came across a rather impressive viaduct and a lovely little stream before carrying on up the steps until we reached Poltross Burn. Upon arrival, Colin gave me the full history of the stone remains we were standing over. Poltross Burn is a Milecastle built along Hadrian’s wall by the Romans. Today we can only see the layout and the remains of what was once there, however it can still be described as fascinating and rather cool. I was also impressed by how close it was to the train tacks (literally about 2 yards away). From here I got a good look across the valley to understand why the Romans built it here. It was also fun to learn that they built these larger Milecastles every mile with three smaller ones between each one at quarter mile intervals. Colin also informed me that if the Romans were ever to vacate one of their Milecastles they would dismantle it so that it wouldn’t fall into the hands of the Scots. 

I can honestly say my tour of this section of Hadrian’s wall was very interesting and well worth the travelling, I look forward to exploring more of it on a later date.

 poltrossburn1  poltrossburn2