Living the High Life ALONG HADRIAN ’ S WALL
History, hiking and haute cuisine along the historic Hadrian’s Wall Path in Northern England BY DOUG O’NEILL
“It’s
the echo of Roman soldiers you’ll hear if you close your eyes and wait long enough,” advised Robert, a fellow hiker (rambler in British vernacular) who interrupted my reverie one September morning along a section of the 135-kilometre Hadrian’s Wall Path in Northern England. I had stopped to admire the famous Sycamore Gap Tree, a lonely but much photographed sycamore that commands an imposing spot in a dramatic dip along the historic wall between Milecastle 39 and Crag Lough, a few kilometres west of Housesteads Roman Fort in Northumberland. “He’s daft,” proclaimed Meaghan, Robert’s partner who was clearly not as enamored with ancient Roman ruins—nor with hiking as far as I could tell—as her keen companion. “I’m ready for a hot cup of tea.” Try as I might, I didn’t hear the voices of Roman soldiers, but I’ll allow that I could feel their presence. Perhaps that’s because I started my day a stone’s throw away at Housesteads Roman Fort, the remains of a 2nd century Roman auxiliary stronghold that’s one of a handful of archeological sites along Hadrian’s Wall. Hadrian’s Wall Path is an 84-mile (135-kilometre) long-distance footpath that extends from Wallsend on the east coast of England to Bowness-on-Solway on the west coast. It essentially follows the remains of Hadrian’s Wall, the mammoth defense system constructed by the great Hadrian, Roman emperor from 177 to 138 AD. A league of 15,000 Roman soldiers built the wall, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, after Hadrian paid a visit to Britain in 122 AD. The once formidable structure, 15 feet high and up to 10 feet thick, stretched from sea to sea, and was intended to secure the Empire’s northwestern border and control the “barbarians to the North” (sorry, Scotland!). The original
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Corbridge Roman Town
wall included 80 small forts (called milecastles) and half-a-dozen giant forts that served as armed cities. Hadrian’s Wall Path became one of England’s National Trails in 2003. Of course, not all of the wall has survived intact. Sections suddenly appear in the middle of a farmer’s pasture, seemingly emerging from the ground next to grazing sheep. In some sections, especially near Corbridge, I found myself following what appeared to be an elongated “bump” that stretched for miles, only Carrawburgh to pass through a farmer’s gate and see a perfectly preserved stone wall straddling a laneway in front of me. It’s a walking history lesson through the English countryside of Northumberland. I started my walk near the village of Corbridge, and from there I covered about 10 to 15 kilometres each day, with time to explore the Roman ruins at Chester’s Fort in Chollerford, Housesteads ruins near Hexham and the Vindolanda museum and archeological dig near the village of Bardon Mill. Photos by Doug O’Neill, except main photo, courtesy of Visit Britain
