North Pennines

The North Pennines form a broad sweep of high moorland between the Lake District, Yorkshire Dales and Northumberland. Cross Fell rises above the Eden Valley at its western edge, leading into a chain of exposed summits crossed by the Pennine Way. These hills are rounded rather than rocky, but their height, peat and famously uncooperative weather make them serious walking country.

East of the main ridge, the landscape breaks into long valleys shaped by the rivers Tees, Wear and South Tyne. Waterfalls punctuate Upper Teesdale, while old paths climb from villages such as Dufton, Garrigill, Alston and Middleton-in-Teesdale towards remarkably empty uplands.

Mining has left a particularly strong mark. Abandoned shafts, hushes, reservoirs, tramways and ruined engine houses appear far from modern roads, giving many walks a sense of exploring a landscape that has quietly returned to the moor.

The North Pennines also contains gentler routes through hay meadows, river valleys and woodland. High Cup Nick provides its most dramatic natural landmark: a vast glacial valley cut deeply into the western escarpment.

This is a region for walkers who value space over spectacle. The summits may lack sharp ridges, but the distances are substantial, the weather changes quickly and solitude is rarely difficult to find.