|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Kielder
Water
One of the top attractions of Northumberland, Kielder Water and forest lies close to the Scottish border, surrounded by spectacular scenery. With a perimeter of 27 miles it is Europe’s largest man made lake and offers facilities for sailing, wind surfing, canoeing, water skiing and fishing Kielder Water has many activities and attractions for all ages. Tower Knowe within Kielder is open daily and offers:.
Kielder Water Exhibition, Kielder Water Cruises, Picnic sites, Self-guided trails, Kielder Water sailing club base, Water’s edge restaurant, gifts, souvenir & fishing tackle shop also all buildings and a section of one of the self-guided trails are wheelchair accessible.
Leaplish Waterside park is also within Kielder water, and most of the main visitors facilities are open daily from April to October. Attraction’s are:
Leaplish Lodge-Licensed restaurant, bar, coffee shop and function room, heated indoor swimming pool & sauna, Kielder Cruises, Miniature golf, Adventure playground, Birds of Prey Centre, picnic sites, scenic waymarked walks, Sculptures, and Kielder waterski club base.
All general facilities and part of the Beeches walk at Leaplish are wheelchair accessible.
Kielder Castle, is the former hunting lodge for the Duke of Northumberland. It lies north west of Kielder village, and also has a variety of activities:
Kielder forest and birds of Kielder exhibitions, Duchess art gallery, Gift & souvenir shop, Dukes pantry restaurant, Guided walks & events programme, Forest drive (toll), Childrens adventure playground, Picnic sites, Walking and Cycling trails, Orienteering courses (cycling and on foot), Sculptures, Bike hire, and classroom education service.
All buildings and the Duke’s trail are wheelchair accessible.
To visit Kielder, you will probably first want to visit Falstone. Here is situated the Visitor Centre for the whole of Kielder Water, giving details of its walks, watersports, ferries, fishing and other attractions. About 4 kilometres (2.5 miles) west of here turn right onto an un-numbered road around the lake at the end of which is Bull Crag. Park in the Bull Crag car park and begin your walk (picnic and toilet facilities available).
To begin the walk, leave the car park and walk in the direction you drove in, along the track until you see the turning off to the right, marked the “Otterstone Viewpoint”. Bear left each time the path forks, continuing on upwards until you reach Otterstone, where there is another car park and glorious views across the lake to the forests on its far side.
Veer right to descend from the viewpoint, towards the shore of the lake, crossing a fence beyond which the path comes out onto an old road. This pre-dates the building of the reservoir in 1982, which explains why it soon disappears beneath the water. Instead of trying to follow this route!! keep right on the path which follows the lake shore. Ahead you can see the dam which holds 188 billion litres (41 billion gallons) of water. Beyond the dam is Falstone. The path goes around to the right as it follows the peninsula to a point known as the Headland. Here a path heads off to the right, into the forest. Continue on straight ahead for about 150 metres (165 yards) until the path turns sharp right.
After another 150 metres (165 yards) a track goes off to the right, and soon afterwards the path turns sharply left around an inlet. Instead of going left, continue on the track that goes straight ahead into the forest. These tracks criss-cross the forest and can be explored for as long as time allows. Provided you keep your bearings, you can always find your way back to the car park by heading south and west. The recommended path goes ahead and climbs into the forest. Ignore the first left turn but take the second one 500 metres (550 yards) further on, which takes you back to the shore of the lake where you turn right to return to the car park.