Bill's Walks

Castle Eden Dene and the Durham Coast

Approx. Distance: 12 miles

Start: Masonic Hall car park opposite Castle Eden Inn, off B1281 (GR  NZ 423375)

Click to view start position on Google Maps

Map: Explorer 306 – Middlesbrough and Hartlepool & OS Explorer 308 – Durham and Sunderland

This walk is probably the easiest walk to navigate on any that I do as a Durham County Council walk. It is a very attractive walk of 12 miles which can be broken down into roughly three equal sections which are all totally different.

The walk starts opposite in Castle Eden village. We start by passing to the right (south) of the Castle Eden Inn and when you get behind the pub you will see a footpath sign on the left with a narrow lane passing between two houses. This crosses over the trackbed and you then proceed over a stile into a large field. Go diagonally north-east across the field to the far corner to a stile onto a clear lane which is followed north to the road (B1281) near to an attractive house. Cross this road and follow the footpath east towards Hesleden to reach some other houses and a terrace of estate houses. There is an alternative to avoid this bit of road walking by proceeding down the line towards Hart for 200 yds and then taking a footpath north to the same spot but this can be left for the return journey.

Castle Eden is a spread out place and until recent times was well known for its brewery known as Nimmo’s and later owned by Whitbreads. The brewery was demolished in 2003 although part has been converted into business accommodation and land sold for some housing development. It was originally known as South Yoden which was a corruption of Yew Dene. There was coal mining here in the 1800s and also ropeworks and bleaching carried out in the village. The bleaching site is named on the map to the south-east of the houses. Walking down the lane you soon come to the church of St James built in 1764 apparently on the site of a much earlier medieval chapel. Since then there has been additions and the spire contains an attractive clock. The church was built and paid for by Rowland Burdon who had purchased the estate at that time. Burdon was an inventive and benevolent person who was, amongst other things, the local MP from 1790 to 1806. After that he devoted his efforts in the service and welfare of his poorer neighbours until his death in 1838. He also founded the brewery along with the Nimo family (note the spelling change).

After passing the church you go through a side gate to reach the track into Castle Eden Dene and turn downhill into the dene by the interpretation board. Castle Eden Dene is run by Natural England and is the largest area of natural woodland in north-east England. The vegetation here goes back 10,000 years to the last ice age. Here can be found over 450 species of plant as well as a good variety of birdlife. There is a good chance here to see Greater Spotted Woodpeckers, Nuthatch and Treecreeper. In early spring the wood is full of lesser celandine and wood anenome and this is followed later by masses of bluebells. There are several paths in the dene but care must be taken as the dolomitic limestone (Permian) which is the rock here is slippy when wet. The sides of the dene are very steep and crumbly. Yew trees are still common as they thrive on this soil. Our route follows the Castle Eden Burn all the way to the sea staying close to the beck all the time and ignoring paths that lead upwards out of the dene. You cross the road (A1086) and head back into the dene to pass under the railway viaduct. Alternatively you may find it easier to continue past the school to the main road.

After passing under the viaduct continue towards the sea until you see the bridge over the burn on your right. Cross this and ascend the path onto the cliff top.A  great panoramic view awaits you along the coast to the south and the cliffs north of Whitby and north to Souter Lighthouse north of Sunderland. Over the last 20 years this area has seen massive changes under two main programmes. One of these was Operation Neptune when the National Trust actively went about purchasing as much coastline as possible to prevent further buildings on the coast and this was followed by Turning The Tide from Durham County Council and partners, where much of the coastline which had been despoiled by the coal industry was restored. In the past the spoil heaps reached down to the cliff edge and the area was used for a dramatic scene in “Get Carter” with Michael Caine. The beaches were black with shale and a business existed of gathering sea coal. Paradoxically this shale protected the cliffs from the ravages of the sea but standing at the end of Castle Eden Dene and looking north you could well be in Cornwall such is the change.

Heading south there are two choices, either on the beach, or you can keep your fine views by staying on the cliff top following the Durham Coast Path. The beach route is slower and you have to pick your way but it does include Blackhall Rocks where there are interesting caves. Watch the tide though! The grasslands above have internationally unique grasslands with quaking grass, rock rose and bloody cranesbill to be found. There are 15 species of butterfly to be found here including the northern brown argus and the cistus forester which is a green moth that breeds on the cliff tops. The coast path (known as the English Coast Path ECP) occasionally leaves the clifftop to avoid steep drops into Blue House Gill and other denes and eventually you come to Crimdon Dene Holiday Park. Do not go through the caravans but keep to the clifftops through the site to reach a car park. Here you continue south along the road towards a white building which is a riding stable.

At the end of Crimdon Dene you are entering a special place because here, so close to the caravans (and indeed Hartlepool) is a colony of Little Terns. Call into the site hut where you will find the wardens Trevor Stephenson and Derek Brown who protect this site from many threats. Little terns are a rare breeding bird which have been in decline partly through loss of habitat. There are only about 1200 pairs each summer in the UK, arriving back from the Antarctic in early May. During the breeding season the site is fenced off but there is always a threat from foxes and hedgehogs which are common as well as rats and occasionally stoats. The breeding records illustrate the big annual changes in breeding rates but when the birds first arrived they were given very little chance of being successful. 2006 saw the breeding pairs fall from 65 to 25 but the year after saw 106 chicks from 46 breeding pairs. This was the highest number ever fledged from a UK colony since recording started. 2009 was even better with 118 fledged chicks from 60 pairs which was prolific as 2 chicks per pair is exceptional, particularly when the national picture is quite bleak. This is entirely due to the dedicated workers on the site.

If you are in this area look out for the Newsletter of the Durham Heritage Coast called Coastlines . Further info from 0191 3833351 or www.durhamheritagecoast.org

We now cross Crimdon Dene by the bridge and head up the clear track to cross the railway line by a new footbridge seen on the skyline to arrive at the end of the Haswell to Hart railway walk. The conversion of this to a fine bridleway was also part of the Turning the Tide Project. The history of this line is interesting, being opened by the Harlepool Dock and Railway Company. The purpose was to get into the Durham coalfield and thereby get coal sent to Hartlepool to be shipped out and the line got as far as Haswell going through Castle Eden, Wellfield and Shotton. At the same time George Stephenson was building a line south from Sunderland to Haswell and this opened on 23rd  November 1835. Both lines terminated at Haswell but they arrived at right angles, so Haswell had to have two stations for the passengers. The Hartlepool company abandoned their expansion plans when the Sunderland company opened a branch line from Murton to Durham which reached many pits. Much of this is walked on other walks such as the Elemore Woods walk and the return of the Weardale Way walk from Finchale to Shincliffe which is where the line originally ended. A link was constructed at Haswell (linking the two routes) and the line was heavily used by passengers until the coast line was opened quite late in 1905. The line was finally closed in 1980 under the Beeching axe but when the mainline was closed for repairs the Haswell branch was brought into use. There is a photo of the Flying Scotsman on this route on one of the interpretation boards. Hard to imagine now!

The railway path leads directly back to Castle Eden passing through good country with wooded denes mainly to the left. The main one is Hesleden Dene, a corruption of Hazel Dene. On the way back we take a diversion off to the left at Hesleden Hall which is a short distance after the lake on the left. There is good birdlife at the lake if you are patient. It is then straight ahead to Monk Hesleden. Here was the church of St Mary which dated back to the 13th Century and was the only Anglican church around here. When the rectory (now Browns farm) was being built the foundations of a much earlier monastery were discovered. Sadly after some vandalism in the 1960s the church was demolished in 1968 and now only the graveyard survives.

We pass Low Hesleden Farm and across two fields back to the line which is followed back to the start at Castle Eden. It is worth mentioning however that this line can be followed for a further mile to where it links up to the Castle Eden Walkway which can be walked, cycled or ridden on horseback south past Hurworth reservoir to Stockton or north to Sunderland.