Our drawing of the route — the shape of the walk, not a navigation aid. Carry OS Explorer on the hill.
Three and a half miles with 140 metres of climbing, an hour and a half up the Shildon Burn past the old lead-mine engine house, over the hill on a bridleway and back down the Derwent by Baybridge. Start from the free village car park just before the bridge at Blanchland, which holds about 30 cars and is the only sensible parking in this single-street estate village. Riverside and woodland where a dog can safely be loose with the Derwent to swim in, but the middle section crosses grazed pasture with gates, and the lane past Baybridge is narrow with fast cars in summer.
Five miles and 230 metres of climbing in about two and a half hours, up the old carriers’ road to Pennypie House, out along the heather of Blanchland Moor and back down to the Derwent. Start at the free car park at the entrance to Blanchland village, about 30 spaces and the only parking there is. Big open moorland running for a dog that will come back, with burns to drink from and no traffic, but this is a managed grouse moor grazed by sheep where ground-nesting birds mean leads from March to July, and the National Park’s Take the Lead signage applies on the open ground.
A twelfth-century abbot's house at the head of a stone village on the Durham border, with a bar in the vaulted crypt and a fire you can sit beside for hours. Dogs are welcome in the bar and garden areas, and specific bedrooms are set aside as dog-friendly, so name yours when you book. The moor starts at the end of the village and the dark skies here are among the best in England.
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