Windy Gyle from Barrowburn

I sort of nagged Yvonne to come up with a route and this was the result. I had absolutely no idea what to expect, and was pleased to see the slopes of the Cheviot Hills rising around me as I drove towards Barrowburn.

We started from the car park there, and proceeded up and down a series of pleasantly rolling hills. The Cheviots sort of remind me of the Howgills, although maybe not quite as high, and maybe the gills aren’t quite as steep sided.

With very little sign of civilisation, you can walk for miles across the grassy moors. The hills rise and fall around you, providing beautiful, peaceful views.

We walked for a while, enjoying all this, until we reached the Pennine Way. We joined it, walking along the border to reach the top of Windy Gyle  All the time looking over the border (little fence), to Scotland.

In fact, we did actually venture into Scotland, since Windy Gyle is on their side of the line. Very appropriate name, Windy Gyle, the wind was very strong as we approached. I loved it, especially as the air was warm.
We enjoyed our lunch and the views into Scotland from the trig point. The air was clear, and we could see for miles, including watching the downpours as they crossed to the North of us. We could also see three little hills that seemed to just grow out of the ground, unattached to anything else. I checked later, they are the Eildon Hills, near Melrose, 22 1/2 miles away.  Created by volcanic activity, but not extinct volcanoes.

Fed and watered, it was time to go down. We followed the Pennine Way and the border for a little while before turning southwest and heading for Davidson’s Linn. There is a brilliant little waterfall here. In fact, you get two for the price of one.

The weather changed now, and went from being very warm and pleasant to cold and wet. The shower didn’t last long, but it was enough to make us change the planned route and take a quicker path through the pine forest. We emerged into a valley surrounded by the gently rounded hills.

And now it was back to walking amongst these lovely hills. More down than up this time and surrounded by the rolling green hills. A delightful way to while away the day. And then, we were back at our cars. Legs and feet were satisfyingly tired; we’d completed over 13 miles and about 2300ft of up and down. Cool.