An easy-going quirky ride in pleasant countryside which starts at Etal Village and crosses the Border into Scotland visiting the Chain Bridge Honey Farm, the Union Chain Bridge over the River Tweed, the all-stone Ladykirk, and the impressive ruins of Norham Castle.
We start by heading north out of Etal on the B6354, turning east to Bowsden after a few miles through pleasant undulating countryside. At the B6525 junction we dogleg to take the quiet road to Lowick Mill where we turn north to Ancroft and carry on to West Allerdean to re-join the B6354 northwards. After a few miles we turn left on to the road to Longridge Towers school. At the crossroads with the A698 we go straight ahead and follow the road to the Chain Bridge Honey Farm. Here we can look around the honey museum, shop for honey products (try the heather honeycomb), and have lunch in an old double decker bus converted into a cafe.
After a leisurely lunch, we take the road down to the historic Union Chain Bridge - a wrought iron suspension bridge built in 1820 - and cross the River Tweed into Scotland. This area of Scotland is known as the Merse, famed for its highly fertile and productive soil. We wind our way through this pretty countryside to Ladykirk constructed entirely out of stone and commissioned by King James IV of Scotland (he who was killed at Flodden). From Ladykirk we go down the hill to the beautiful Ladykirk and Norham bridge and pay a visit to Norham Castle.
From Norham, we follow NCN 68 south towards Etal and we will take the option to ride along the good quality track alongside the River Till which brings us into Etal at the weir.
The ride is all on road apart from the good quality 1.4 mile riverside track into Etal.
Distance: 32 miles. Difficulty level is moderate.
Toilets: There are toilets open to the public at Etal and Norham. Toilets at pubs and cafes are generally for customers only.
The ride is operated by the Wooler Cycle Hub on behalf of Northumberland National Park Authority.
The route, route profile, and gpx download (and direct downloads to compatible Garmin devices) are available on Garmin Connect:
