Guidebook to The Teesdale Way

• Location
• Description
• Contents
• Introduction
• Sample Route
• Maps
• Reviews
• Further Reading

Some Notes on Teesdale

Tyne, Wear, Tees: the North-East of England owes much to its great rivers. They have shaped the region’s history, none more so than the Tees whose valley once formed the northern boundary of the Danish Kingdom of Jorvik (York).

We know that the Viking invasion of Britain began during AD793 at Lindisfarne on the Northumbrian coast only 50 miles (80km) from Teesdale. A century later large tracts of Britain were under Norse and Danish control. Likening the invasion to a sinister raven, Sir Walter Scott wrote in his epic poem Rokeby, ­published in 1813:

 ... And the broad shadow of her wing
Blackened each cataract and spring,
Where Tees in tumult leaves his source,
Thundering o’er Cauldron and High Force‑...

The Viking identity lives on in place names ending with ‘-by’, the Old Danish for farm or village, and in names for natural features such as ‘thwaite’ and ‘gill’ – a legacy from second generation Norsemen who came over from Ireland.

It does seem that Viking influence was generally far weaker north of the River Tees, perhaps because the land was poorer or perhaps because the new settlers were deterred by the threat of raiding Scots. Of course no such territorial limit is clear-cut and there was appreciable intermingling of the Viking and Angle cultures along the Tees valley.

Following the Norman invasion of 1066, many settlements on both the north and south flanks of Teesdale were laid waste by a combination of Scottish incursions and the Normans’ own push northwards. At the Domesday census in 1086, villages on Teesdale’s south side were all but derelict. Land to the north had belonged to the Church since the days of King Alfred but now the Bishopric of Durham began to attain great power. The Palatine or Prince Bishops raised their own revenue, minted coin, enforced the rule of law and enlisted troops. In return the King of England was assured of the North’s allegiance and an effective defence against the Scots.

Over the ensuing centuries Norman earls founded manors in and around Teesdale and castles were built, notably at Raby and Barnard Castle; both had passed to the Crown by the sixteenth century. A hundred years later most Teesdale villages had become manors with Lords in their own right. Patterns of land ownership in Britain tend to change slowly: today in the upper dale the River Tees ­separates the Earl of Strathmore’s estate to the south from the Raby Estate of Lord Barnard with its white-painted farms and cottages to the north.

Ever since the twelfth century, the navigable waters of the Tees have acted as a focus for trade and industry. As ships of ever greater displacement were built, trading ports well upstream were forced to give way to new ones closer to the sea. In the river’s lower reaches, centres of ­population grew up where labour was in greatest demand – for coal mining, iron and steel production, ship­building and later for chemical manufacture.

Lead mining – while it lasted – brought a few decades of relative prosperity to the upper dale in the nineteenth century but to this day agriculture remains the predominant way of life above the Stockton/Billingham/Middlesbrough conurbation. Lowland arable, beef and dairy farms to the east give way further west to sheep farming with flocks of hardy Swaledales able to withstand the severe winter climate.

Being sparsely populated and subject to heavy rainfall, the Tees’ vast gathering grounds totalling some 745 square miles (1930 km²) have always yielded copious quantities of good clean water. Indeed, according to the nineteenth-century writer Augustus Grimble, no fewer than 10,000 salmon were netted in the Tees during the 1867 season – a tribute to the river’s purity then.

Salmon, however, are migratory fish and in common with many other species their numbers had dwindled by the early twentieth century. During the 1940s the central estuary at Teesside had become so grossly ­polluted that it was unable to sustain any form of life at all. Encouragingly, a long-term strategy evolved in the 1970s for cutting pollution loads is currently being implemented by the National Rivers Authority and already salmon and sea trout have returned to the Tees.

It goes without saying that the Tees is a vital source of industrial and drinking water for the North-East. A‑reservoir system starting at Cow Green in the wild uplands below Cross Fell is supplemented by reservoirs on tributary rivers: Selset and Grassholme reservoirs on the River Lune; Blackton, Hury and Balderhead reservoirs on the River Balder; and Hurworth Burn reservoir on the River‑Skerne.

The main water abstraction point on the Tees is at Broken Scar on the outskirts of Darlington, with others at Blackwell and Low Worsall. Controlled release of water from Cow Green reservoir ensures a minimum flow over Broken Scar Weir of 127.3 megalitres per day. Interestingly, it takes water approximately two days to travel from Cow Green to
Teesside.

With a recorded history of ­inundations dating back to 1753, the fast-flowing Tees poses a threat to low-lying land and property, ­especially in its middle reaches around Yarm. As‑well as providing comprehensive flood warnings, the NRA also carries out flood ­prevention and defence‑work.

Upper Teesdale lies within the North Pennines Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, dubbed ‘England’s Last Wilderness’. This vulnerable upland landscape is protected by a 14,000 hectare Site of Special Scientific Interest, the very large Upper Teesdale National Nature Reserve, the 4000 hectare Moor House Nature Reserve and several Environmentally Sensitive Areas.

The main reason for these ­protective designations is the area’s flora. A combination of soil from ­limestone metamorphosed by ­volcanic heat (so-called ‘Sugar Limestone’) and the cold upland ­climate has enabled plant ­communities existing at the end of the last Ice Age to survive to the ­present day.

Upper Teesdale’s geology is ­dominated by dark basalt formations of the Whin Sill outcropping as low cliffs and producing dramatic waterfalls such as Cauldron Snout and High Force. Further downstream are found beds of ‘Teesdale Marble’ as the river enters a more settled countryside. Here the river’s often steep banks ­sustain ancient woodlands rich in wildlife; among bird species‑to be seen are grey wagtail, goosander and kingfisher.
With moorland left behind and gradients levelling off, the Tees ­dawdles east in great lazy meanders through its middle section past historic sites, pretty villages, woods and rolling farmland. Further east still, approaching the North Sea and impinged upon by the structures and activities of an industrial society, the river finally loses its innocence. Yet despite the intimidating presence of Teesside’s processing and manufacturing complexes, salt-marshes and mudflats in the estuary remain rich in invertebrates – a vital staging post for migratory and overwintering waders and wildfowl. These invaluable wetlands at the river mouth are protected by four SSSIs.

Not least of the Tees’ many roles these days is that of a leisure resource. Coarse fishing is immensely popular, confirmed by innumerable anglers and club signs along the riverbank. All the Teesdale reservoirs except Balderhead are stocked with rainbow trout, while Cow Green is operated as an unstocked brown trout fishery.

Historically, the scope for ­watersports has been constrained by‑the tidal nature of suitable ­locations. However, following the construction of the Tees Barrage at Portrack Marshes, river levels can now be maintained at or near the ­high-water mark and a boom in all manner of water-based pursuits is taking place.

Ever since the Tees Valley Railway opened in 1868 (sadly it closed in 1964), the beautiful countryside of Teesdale has attracted visitors. With an increase in leisure time and improving transport links, escape from the bleak surroundings of nearby industrial towns became a growing reality for thousands earlier this century. Today, perhaps because of its relative remoteness, the dale seems to have been spared the worst excesses of visitor pressure, though the local economy welcomes income from tourism.

Each season of the year holds its own advantage for visiting Teesdale: summer for its long daylight hours and abundant wildlife; autumn for stunning colours, frosts and atmospheric mists; winter for foliage-free views, unfrequented paths and a river often in angry mood; and springtime for wildflowers and sparkling light.

About the Teesdale Way

The River Tees rises on the eastern slopes of Cross Fell, at 2930ft (893m) England’s second highest summit. Although the Pennine Way itself crosses Tees Head, close to the river’s birthplace, there are no public rights-of-way downstream until you reach Cow Green reservoir. True, a track from Alston via Tyne Head to Moor House Field Station does meet the Tees and one of its tributaries, Trout Beck. But the better part of this forbidding upland landscape is a protected Nature Reserve of almost 10,000 acres (4000 hectares) created to encourage research into the management of high moorland. It is quite appropriately the domain of curlew, dunlin and lapwing, not humans.

Twisting and turning in a ‘V’ shaped valley, the infant Tees forms miniature waterfalls and deep, peaty pools, soon becoming a sizeable beck. Its banks and islets provide habitats for numerous species of bird, plant and small mammal. Various mining ventures dating mostly from the 19th century have left their mark and in more recent times the area was used for grouse shooting. Today, however, this remote and inhospitable region of the Pennines, its tracts of bog and heather almost devoid of footpaths and human habitation, holds botanical riches rivalled by few other places in Britain. Here too, as cloud shadows chase across the tucks and folds of rolling moorland, one senses true solitude.

The River Tees can be paralleled at a distance for a couple of miles upstream from Cow Green on an old lead miners’ track contouring Herdship Fell; there is road access at both ends. Additionally, a Nature Trail (in reality a tarmac lane) descends from Cow Green’s Wheelhead Sike car park to the reservoir’s east shore and passes the dam to reach Cauldron Snout. Technically it is here, at the county boundary between Cumbria and Durham, that a Teesdale Way proper begins, with riverside footpaths available all the way to the North Sea at Teesmouth some 90 miles (145kms) distant. However, only below Middleton-in-Teesdale does the Teesdale Way possess its own designation and waymarking: upstream from there it runs in tandem with the Pennine Way.

Any self-respecting long distance trail should set off from somewhere offering accommodation and, ideally, a pub. Dufton qualifies as a clear favourite. Although it sits beneath the Pennine escarpment on the wrong side of the watershed, the village already caters for walkers’ needs, being on the Pennine Way. By reversing the ‘normal’ Pennine Way direction you set off through the wonderful scenery of High Cup soon to follow Maize Beck, a major tributary of the Tees, over the moors to Cauldron Snout.

Some readers may question my assumption that the Tees should be explored downstream from source to mouth rather than the other way round. Ultimately it depends upon personal inclination and for me the scales were tipped by having prevailing winds and gradients in one’s favour. There is the attractive analogy too of tracing the river from birth to maturity - of seeing it grow, develop and survive the adversities, so to speak, of a journey through life. But I will happily concede that an upstream trek would reveal equally intriguing facets of this great watercourse.

As well as being an invigorating walk through unmatched river scenery, the Teesdale Way also presents a cross-section of the region’s social, cultural and economic life; this it does from both present-day and historical perspectives.

Any list of interesting places and features passed along the Teesdale Way would include the following, though this list is far from exhaustive: Cow Green and Cauldron Snout; High Force and Low Force waterfalls; Wynch Bridge; the traditional dales town of Middleton-in-Teesdale with its lead mining associations; Eggleston village, Hall and Gardens; Romaldkirk church and village; the Fairy Cupboard miniature caves; Woden Croft of Dickens fame; pretty Cotherstone village; Percy Myre Rock viewpoint; Barnard Castle - ‘capital’ of Teesdale; Egglestone Abbey, Meeting of the Waters, Rokeby Park and Mortham Tower - all with literary and artistic connections; Whorlton and Winston bridges; Gainford spa and village; Piercebridge Roman remains; Croft bridge and church; Hurworth-on-Tees and Neasham villages; the Sockburn ‘peninsula’ in a huge southward meander; Dinsdale spa; Newsham medieval village site; Yarm viaduct and historic town; Preston Park Museum; Stockton-on-Tees waterfront; the Tees Barrage and Portrack Marshes; Middlesbrough’s impressive Newport and Transporter bridges; the so-called ‘Black Path’ through Teesside’s industrial heartland; and South Gare Breakwater where the Tees enters the North Sea.

For many years past walkers have enjoyed rights-of-way beside sections of the River Tees. Indeed, the Pennine Way - perhaps the best known of all our National Trails - follows the river between Cauldron Snout and Middleton-in-Teesdale. But never before has there been a continuous riverside footpath virtually from source to mouth. There are several reasons for this. Landowners have resisted public access over their patch; in places the old fording points have fallen into disuse; dense undergrowth and property development have both, in their different ways, encroached upon the riverbank; and the great industrial engine of Teesside has stifled the interests of the walking fraternity until quite recently.

Back in the early 1980s Cleveland County Council’s Countryside section and planners were already examining the possibility of creating a recreational Tees Path. Long distance walking was growing in popularity and the concept of a Teesdale Way took shape. Since then, where appropriate, existing rights-of-way have been linked by permissive paths, new footbridges have been installed, paths and stiles have been upgraded and new waymarking introduced.

Meanwhile, Durham County Council were developing a Teesdale Way of their own. Situated further upstream and with more than double the mileage of Cleveland’s riverside, there was appreciably greater scope for devising loops to connect villages and bridging points. As a consequence there are more opportunities for circular walks in addition to the Teesdale Way itself. Durham’s Countryside Team are involved, like Cleveland’s, in improving the footpath infrastructure and carrying out repairs and maintenance.

Because at present the Teesdale Way is a Regional rather than a National Trail, funding and administration are carried out at a local level. Waymarking logos reflect this local decision-making: a dipper in County Durham, a leaping salmon in Cleveland. It’s as well to bear in mind that as the Way matures, minor improvements and diversions are likely to occur here and there, as well as the introduction of new alternative sections of path.

By and large, Teesdale Way terrain is not particularly troublesome. Children and less mobile walkers could manage substantial stretches of path, especially further east where gradients are mostly gentle. However, mud is encountered fairly often as you’d expect in a river valley. Stiles, timber steps, footbridges and occasional stepping stones also feature much as they do throughout the British countryside. There are some rough passages underfoot - mostly from rocks and tree roots - and the first leg of the Way over to Middleton-in-Teesdale crosses exposed moorland where you will need proper hill clothing, equipment and skills.