Frontiers of the Roman Empire

The morning started off chilly and foggy as we rode up and into the city of Kelso in Scotland where we entertained the locals out early with our quest for shortbread and scotch pies (not being a fan of either, I walked along for fun!) The countryside leading in and out of the area was stunning between the fields, farm animals, streams and homes that dot the landscape.

Hadrian’s Wall was our primary target and for good reason – an 80 mile wall constructed of stones 12 feet high, six feet across with 30 forts and 160 turrets (this is of course all during it’s 300 years of supremacy…2000 years of wear and tear have eliminated some of the construction). The wall took six years to construct by order of Emperor Hadrian who felt it necessary to separate the Romans from the rest of the world (he referred to them as barbarians) upon his ascension to power in the 2nd century.

We enjoyed a bit of exploring and climbing on the wall, including some feigned supremacy and dominance - it’s easy to be filled with thoughts of power and grandeur when standing on top of what was such a magnificent wall and fortress – then hopped back onto the coach for a quick trip to Haltwhistle. Geographically and historically speaking, Haltwhistle is the official mid-point or center of Britain and contains a nice balance of locals and visitors to keep it quaint and busy all at the same time.

The remainder of our day was spent tootling through the Cheviot Hills and along the countryside as we wound our way back down into the Lake District, popular for its beautiful scenery, Beatrix Potter and William Woodsworth fame.

We have only one evening in Windemere, for tomorrow takes us to York where we will plant ourselves for several days to explore, and you can come along of course!