November

viaduct

Witton Park Viaduct

	Walk leader		Michelle
	Route		Escomb Saxon Church – Etherley Moor – Low Etherley – Phoenix Row – New Belt – Witton Castle – River Wear – Witton Park - Weardale Way - Escomb.
	Weather		Misty in places en route to the start. Cloudy at first with a slight shower. Turned out sunny later
	Walkers		Michelle, Michael, Diane, Richard, Sandy, Ron, George,
	Excuses		Ken - recovering from a hand operation Bernie - transport problems Ashley - injured calf muscle
	Comments		Michael named this the “Nobby Stiles Walk” because of the large number of stiles we had to negotiate, most of which were difficult on account being in poor condition. They were either high, narrow, partially blocked by hedges, broken or slippy. In one place we had to go through three stiles together. We started the walk outside the Saxon Church as there were the parking places. The place where we originally intended to park was occupied by footballers. Navigation was tricky through several fields with cattle and calves in them. The kissing gates were difficult to find as they had been obstructed by farmers. We joined the Etherley Incline, part of the Stockton and Darlington Railway, where the coal wagons had been pulled uphill using a stationary steam engine. There were very informative interpretative boards, erected to mark the 200th anniversary of the opening of the railway. Some stone blocks from the original track were still in place. At Phoenix Row, the end house had a painted mural on the gable end. The shed and garage had model animals and storks on them. Our lunch stop was on the grass verge beside New Inn Farm. We had a complicated debate as to whether the William Pit was named after William Pitt who was Prime Minister in the late eighteenth century. Before joining the path along the side of the River Wear, we went into Witton Castle, dating from the 15th century but greatly extended in the 19th century. Now it is the hub of a large country park with a large number of holiday homes and static caravans. Apart from the café where we had refreshments, there is also a bar and, uniquely, a fish and chip shop. The lake just below the castle courtyard had been drained. The sun had come out again by the time we reached the river. The colours on the trees were very attractive. The path was difficult to negotiate due to fallen branches and slippy stones. The path veered away from the river and meandered pleasantly through the trees to the village of Witton Park. Here we visited the memorial to the Bradford brothers, who grew up in the village. Two of them, one in the Royal Navy and the other in the army, are the only two brothers to both be awarded the Victoria Cross. Both died in action, as well as one of the other two brothers. They are commemorated by a statue of a soldier being given a football by a local lad to signify a return to normality after the war. They are also celebrated by a rose widow in St Paul’s Church in Jarrow. On our return to the cars, we obtained the key to the church, with the help of a young local boy called Alexander. The Saxon church, which dates back to about 670-700 AD, is the oldest complete Saxon church in England. It was originally dedicated to St John but the dedication was changed to St Wilfrid in the 13th Century. The building was constructed from Roman remains and stones and is mentioned in the Domesday Book. The building was replaced in the 19th century by a new church nearby with the Saxon building being used as an ancillary chapel. The Victorian building was demolished in the 1960’s and the original building became the main place of worship in the village. Wildlife: Kestrel, flock of geese, starlings, robins, long tailed tit, peacock, chaffinches, jay. A large number of attractive cattle with calves and with a variety of colours e.g brown, black white, mottled. About a dozen Highland cattle with impressive horns. Brown sheep with two dogs.
	Meal
	Meal		Manor House Inn, Carterway Heads. Nice relaxed meal – friendly service but no crumble.
	Photo Gallery		Walkers at Escomb