With stormy winter snow and ice upon us, it was looking decidedly treacherous at home and up north so I decided on an excursion outwith East Lothian, venturing south to the border. I checked my passport and hit the road.
If you are looking for some challenging hill walks that don't require you to head to the Munros, then you should seek out Northumbria and The Borders. The Cheviots are a range of hills that actually straddle the border between Scotland and England and are often overlooked, perhaps because they are remote and far from main roads. The highest hill in this range is The Cheviot itself, and at 815m it is bigger, more varied in terrain, and far steeper, than many would expect. This was my destination, and 90 minutes after leaving home I was standing in a car park with Sean from Venturing Out. We had walked together during the summer from Traprain Law to North Berwick Law.
After a rugged cycle to get to the start of the hills, here is Sean contemplating the beginning of our clamber up what is known as Hen's Hole. This is a cleft of rock on The Cheviot. We required harnesses and ropes for climbing up the crags on the left of this picture. It was excellent fun.
I wondered whether Tolkein had been inspired by this landscape, as it was reminiscent of various rocky outcrops described in some of his famous works. And the name, Hen's Hole, is related to Old King Cole, from the popular nursery rhyme, hence the title of this blog.
King Cole is thought to have been a Northern British king who ruled over the Border area during the dark ages, after the Romans left. He is referred to as Coel Hen in later Welsh historical texts. Unfortunately not much is known about him other than he was a warrior king who took over much of the North of England and South of Scotland. This meant he and his descendants appear to have been in conflict with the Lothian kingdom. None of this murky history affected the experience, however, as the views from the top were brilliant on this lovely crisp, clear day.
At the top of the rocky clamber we were met with mysterious dry stane pillars. Perched atop a rocky Tor, these must have required a feat of engineering and endurance in order to gather and shape all of the rocks.
While enjoying the stunning scenery, I learned from Sean that the Cheviots are actually older than the Cairngorms. It is speculated that they would have once had a similar Alpine plateau.
The steep sides of the Cheviots and high tops mean that they sport multiple Iron Age forts, which was exciting to discover. When reaching a top you can be rewarded with views of clear rocky rings around the summits. These would have provided protection to our ancestors from potential invaders.
On the top of The Cheviot is a large boggy plateau. The Ice Age's retreating glaciers left a deep dip in the rock that over time has been filled by peaty moss, thus creating a distinctly wet environment.
In fact it is the only hill that I have ever been on where the Trig Pillar has had to be mounted onto a column to prevent it from sinking into the bog! Sean can be seen here looking suitably wind blown.
The descent did not involve having to get roped up again so we headed back down from the plateau along a path of sorts. Along the way we passed a remarkable war memorial dedicated to the Allied and German airmen who lost their lives
crashing into The Cheviots during WWII. As you can see it shows pictures of the aircraft involved, as well as citing a roll call of the men who died and where they perished. Some of the wreckage can still be found, if you know what you are looking for, so it is living history, even today.
I love my local area, but this journey was well worth it. The day out was fantastic. Thank you to Sean for an adventurous hill walk!
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