Bignew three

Verified Slow Way

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Some excellent easy walking, no cattle, plenty of woodland and a cafe half way. Always a weak link so the Bignall End start was poor and after lots of rain it will be soft in places.

I set off from Bignall End anticipating a quick entry into green spaces. I was disappointed because the fenced path was badly overgrown with mostly brambles, good job it was winter and I had long trousers. Watching where my feet were I failed to look overhead and lost my hat on a couple of occasions. Shame because, read on the route does get very much better.

Eventually into real countryside and on the Two Saints Way, while it was muddy after endless rain, the track improved along a long gone rail route. This was easy walking and a bench offered a rest if required. This is old mining country and there is a hint of the past life but trees have taken over making a pleasant woodland trail.

Thorpe Precast occupies the site of Apedale Colliery, here they make building panels that look like bricks. Crossing the road we enter Apedale Country Park and here I came to an abrupt stop. The track was flooded, cycles were able to pass through with care but no way would I get across without getting very wet. A public footpath is on the map alongside the narrow gauge railway which I managed to locate and keep my feet dry.

The visitor centre by the car park stands on the site of Apedale Iron Works and has much to offer. Inside you will find a loo and cafe, plus if you have time a museum. Pictures on the walls include a mosaic of Apedale Hall demolished in 1934.

Our route now follows the access road with a designated pedestrian strip to one side. At the bend we return to countryside, of sorts, but the map marks many fords so it’s not surprising that the stone surfaced path was a bit wet. It’s all marked on the map as a cycle track and old maps show it as a railway. I meet only those on foot as the route approached the edge of Newcastle along the edge of a wide open green corridor.

A modified bridge allows safe passage under a main road. Turning into suburban streets past a former hotel now apartments the route offers a light controlled crossing of the ring road. There is a short cut by the Library with a sign asking cyclists to dismount, so it must be public. This leads to shopping streets which we follow to the bus station. A most acceptable approach into the town.

A pleasant, mainly offroad walk. Safe and direct. Good use of existing paths including a section of the Two Saints Way. Some stiles. Museum and cafe at Apedale. Rather damp in parts. It was overcast with mizzle on the day we walked it, but I'm aware that on a clear day that some of the sections afford great views. Links well to the limited public transport en route. Shops and bus station at Newcastle end.

From Bignall End we followed an enclosed track alongside a field. It had a lot of brambles in it but was quite manageable in the winter. It was well trodden and looked as if it might be pruned back regularly. Then a path led through the woods, and along a track with tight cycle barriers at either end. Further cycle tracks (with one large puddle) took us past Apedale Valley Light Railway, which looked interesting, and through Apedale Country Park.
We continued along more cycle track under the A34 and into the centre of Newcastle. A good route, nearly all off-road, fairly direct and easy to follow.

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