Northumberland National Park is all set to host National Parks Week which runs from Monday 25 to Sunday 31 July 2016.
The theme for this year’s National Parks Week is adventure, encouraging individuals and families to get involved in a full programme of inspiring activities and imaginative events throughout the Park. There is something for everyone, from young children to those seeking serious adventure.
On Thursday 28 and Friday 29 July Walltown Country Park will be transformed into a giant adventure playground with activities for all ages to enjoy including archery, bush craft, a zip line, climbing wall, animals, games, pizza-making, solar gazing and falconry.
Also at Walltown is the Mansio, a contemporary structure celebrating new work from writers, artists and thinkers. On Wednesday 27 July visitors can meet art and architecture curator Peter Sharpe and hear the story behind the mobile teahouse and reading room inspired by the original Roman mansios.
For keen walkers, highlights of the week include an on-foot wildlife safari in Wooler with a Northumberland National Park ranger, and Whisky, Waterfalls, Drovers and Dark Deeds, a circular walk starting in the Upper Coquet Valley. On Sunday 31 July visitors can take part in a guided walk, Over the Border in the Footsteps of the Legions, which follows the Pennine Way through Chew Green fort, across Coquet Head then swings over Whiteside Hill to Nether Hindhope.
Visitors looking for cultural activities can enjoy storytelling and try their hand at creative writing in the heart of the Northumberland National Park. Families can drop in to a free storytelling session with Jim Grant featuring Roman & Celtic inspired stories or join the free writing workshop; Life on the Edge – Writing Flash Fiction with author Tony Williams. On Wednesday 27 July, Malachy Tallack and Ben Myers, two writers in residence for the Mansio, will talk about their commissioned work and lead a short walk to the Roman Wall.
Northumberland National Park, which celebrated its 60th birthday in April, recently won the prestigious accolade of National Park of the Year in the BBC Countryfile Magazine Awards in a public vote.
Tony Gates, Chief Executive of Northumberland National Park Authority, said: “Every summer the UK’s annual National Parks Week celebrates some of our most stunning and treasured landscapes. It highlights the importance of our National Parks and presents the perfect opportunity to encourage more people to get out there and explore.
“We have a huge range of wonderful activities planned during National Parks Week that showcase all that is special about our countryside. The choice we have on offer in our National Park is unique. Whatever you’re looking for – whether flora, fauna, countryside activities, history and culture, or simply just somewhere to escape from it all – we have it in abundance.”
The Northumberland National Park is England’s most northerly national park covering an area of 405 square miles from Hadrian’s Wall to the Scottish borders, and has been described as the country’s last great wilderness. It has more than 1,130 kilometres of Public Rights of Way – including two national trails and a number of long distance walking, cycling and horse riding trails. It is also home to some of the region’s iconic species, including red squirrel and curlew.
For more information about the events during National Parks Week go to: http://www.northumberlandnationalpark.org.uk/events/