Walking and Cycling in County Durham - Day Walks & Cycleways

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Walk 2 

Bearpark, Broompark and Brandon
 

Distance          13km (8 miles)
Terrain             Easy, low-level field paths and old railway trackbeds
Start/finish     Deerness Centre, Ushaw Moor – GR236423
Maps                OS Landranger 88; Explorer 308
Refreshments  Pubs at Bearpark and Brandon, or off-route at Broompark and Ushaw Moor
Transport         Regular daily buses serve Ushaw Moor, Bearpark, Broompark and Brandon from Durham city.

Ushaw Moor lies just to the west of Durham city. Dispel any notions of a moorland walk, as the area is well cultivated and well settled. The starting point is a leisure centre and the route visits the villages of Bearpark, Broompark and Brandon. There are short stretches of railway paths, including the junction of the Lanchester Valley Railway Path, Deerness Valley Railway Path and Brandon to Bishop Auckland Walk. The route explores the valleys of the River Browney and River Deerness, with the ruins of Beaurepaire seen in the early stages. Views are occasionally wide-ranging, with Durham Cathedral often popping up as a reference point.

Leave the Deerness Centre near Ushaw Moor, following a road that curves through a housing estate. Don’t take any roads to left or right, but watch for a bridleway sign on the left before reaching Broom Hall. A clear path leaves the estate to run northwards through fields grazed by horses. Cross a gentle rise to reach the village of Bearpark near its parish church.
 

Turn left to walk up the road, passing a couple of shops, a pub and bus stops. Watch for a bridleway sign on the right, opposite a school gate in the upper part of the village. Walk along a road, then branch left along a tarmac path through a grassy area. Follow this path straight down to a road and cross it.

Continue down through a housing estate, where the path simply cuts between the houses. At the bottom, turn right along a track and follow it to a road. Turn left to walk down the road, which crosses an old railway trackbed, called the Lanchester Valley Railway Path. Either turn right to follow it, or consider a short detour to nearby Beaurepaire.
 

Beaurepaire

For the detour, which is quite short, continue down the battered road to cross the River Browney. A gate on the right gives access to a short path climbing to the ruins. Explore and return to the railway trackbed to resume the walk. Beaurepaire means ‘beautiful retreat’ and is contracted as Bearpark. It was built in 1258 for Prior Bertram de Middleton. An extensive estate supplied food and fuel for the entire household. Beaurepaire had living areas, a large hall, kitchen, chapel, and so on, making it a self-contained unit. Nearby Aldin Grange was attached to the manor as a farm.

Follow the Lanchester Valley Railway Path, which overlooks the valley of the River Browney and crosses a road near Aldin Grange. A farm shop specialises in meat, with trout fishing also available.
 

The trackbed features a link with Durham city and runs close to the main line railway at a point where a road bridge crosses it. Two more railway trackbed walks branch apart ahead. Keep right along the Deerness Valley Railway Path, which runs through the Broompark picnic area.
 

Railway Paths

The Broompark picnic area includes the junction of the Lanchester Valley Railway Path (see Railway Path 7), Deerness Valley Railway Path (see Railway Path 8) and the Brandon to Bishop Auckland Walk (see Railway Path 9). These have been developed from old railway trackbeds. The line through the Lanchester Valley carried ironstone from the Cleveland Hills to steelworks at Consett. The line through the Deerness Valley to Bishop Auckland mainly carried coal, linking nine collieries. It crossed the valley on a huge timber viaduct, now long dismantled. The railways closed in the 1960s and have been converted to multi-use railway paths.
 

Walk along an embankment and through a cutting. As you leave the cutting, look out for a footpath dropping down steps on the left. Walk down to the wooded banks of the River Deerness, crossing two footbridges before the path leads up to Primrose Side Farm and a road crossing.

An obvious path runs straight uphill from the farm, climbing at a gentle gradient. Watch carefully for waymarks, turning right and left round the edge of a field at a higher level. The path leads to the edge of the village of Brandon, where a right turn leads to the first few houses. There are two pubs up to the left, but if these are not being visited, then turn right downhill to continue.

A path leaves the road and leads back into fields. The descent is fairly clear, but watch for helpful waymarks on the stiles that need to be used. Cross straight over a track along the way, rather than following it. The route leads down into a small valley to cross a runnel of water. A slight climb over a rise in the fields leads to the roadside near Unthank Farm.
 

Turn left along a road to pass the farm, then right to walk down an enclosed track. Bear right at the end of the track and cross a footbridge over the River Deerness. Climb straight uphill, crossing the Deerness Valley Railway Path, and head through fields to reach the Deerness Centre where the walk started.