We crossed the county border into Cumbria recently to do a walk with friends encompassing Hadrian’s wall, starting and finishing at Lanercost in the valley of the River Irthing.
Lanercost Priory (English Heritage) and the historic parish church, fashioned from its preserved ruins, attract many visitors. My picture of the abbey is from an earlier visit in Spring of 2017, but it captures the peaceful spirit of the place. In its heyday however the place was far from peaceful. Founded by Augustinian canons in the 12th century the order here was often plagued with money troubles aggravated through pillaging of its properties by raiding Scots armies. In the winter of 1306 – 07 Edward I of England and his invading army heading for Scotland were forced to billet at Lanercost, putting even greater financial strain on the foundation’s stretched resources.
Starting from the car park at Lanercost we ascended out of the sheltered valley on quiet lanes working our way gradually uphill, passing this handsome Cumberland County Council black and white road sign at an intersection.
Did our first crossing of Hadrian’s Wall, or rather a rise in the path with its vallum (ditch) a mere dip in the land, all that’s visible of the 78 mile long world heritage site at this point. The monks happily demolished and carried off the red sandstone ready dressed blocks from here, 700 years after its abandonment by Rome, in order to build their priory in the valley below.
Many mature oak trees marked our walk. This one, marooned in pasture, caught my eye. Thought of it providing essential shelter and shade for countless generations of stock as well as sustaining many species of birds and insects.
We traversed boggy pastureland and B roads that ascended a ridge, yielding views of far off fells to the south lowering under a leaden sky. Turning off the tarmac, after a few twists and turns, we regained the wall path proper.
Just below a small farm we came upon Hare Hill – a protected fragment and tallest remnant of the Roman wall remaining today. A mere hint of the formidable structure the great wall once was. Experts think this little stretch survived because it was incorporated as part of an outlying medieval farm building while the rest of the lowered section at this point would have been retained as a property boundary by Lanercost Priory.
Beyond Hare Hill the views westwards were extensive, encompassing the Solway estuary and Lakeland fells. At our feet the foundations of the Roman wall jutted out supporting the narrower dry stone wall subsequently built on top. The vallum, much more distinct at this point, running parallel on the northern side, in a field of ranging bullocks, the reason for the contemporary wall being flanked by pole and barb.
We descended to a narrow lane bearing left and followed it back to where we’d started. Amused en route by a simple ‘W.C’. sign with arrow underneath pointing to a portaloo half hidden in a fringe of woodland. A thoughtful and welcome rustic convenience for walkers nevertheless.
Our quiet lane also sported outcrops of shaggy ink cap mushrooms along the verges. Edible fungi, they turn everything cooked with black, and need to be consumed shortly after picking. As the name implies these delicate mushrooms can be used as ink after mixing with a little water and cloves (to fix the colour) according to Wild Food UK.
Back at Lanercost we browsed the gift shop before having a late lunch in the café. Both facilities are housed in single story converted farm outbuildings. Nearby the former farmhouse stands, now appearing to have been transformed into private apartments or holiday lets. I remember this farm from filming here decades ago, when it was a working stead with cattle and sheep and lots of muck in the yard. In our drama it was the home of a dysfunctional family and I was playing the distracted dull witted farmer, always bickering with his wife (played by Caroline John) while our truanting son Kevin’s total absorption in his science fiction comics leads to a life changing encounter with an alien visitor up on the fell…’The Alien’ was a 30’ Dramarama episode from ITV (Border Television), written by David Simpson and directed by Kay Patrick, filmed entirely on location here back in 1988. Our seriously funny morality tale also featured performances by two old Lancaster based actor friends of mine, no longer with us, Ian Blower and Will Tacey.
Dramarama was a ground breaking series of separate stories for and about young people made between 1983 – 1989. Significantly they were stand alone dramas, not continual dramas or soaps. They explored issues around identity and relationships, often through science or the supernatural, and were an important part of the public service remit in the days before market commercial dictates had overrode all other considerations. The historic contractual compact with government meant the independent regional broadcasters had to provide a quota of original home produced content for younger audiences. Halcyon days for young peoples TV drama we’re not likely to see again!
Leaving for home the modern road bridge bypasses an impressive older bridge. This structure’s flood resistant multi-span arch, just wide enough for a cart to pass over, soars above the abbey mill stream where it meets the Irthing. One of only 200 such listed bridges left in the UK, this one dates from 1723 when it was built by local masons re-using stone from an earlier medieval structure, which in turn would most likely have been taken from the Roman Wall. And so it goes… (Bridge Image c. Simon Cotterill)
STEPHEN TOMLIN 