Sycamore Gap & Castle Nick

On our return from a few days away in the Lake District, my son suggested a visit to Sycamore Gap on Hadrian's Wall. It wasn't much of a detour, so we agreed to call in. We pulled off the A69 at Greenhead and angled up to Steel Rigg Car Park via the Military Road. Though you can get a pretty good long-distance view of the famous tree from the equally well-known road, if you want to stop at the nearest car park then Steel Rigg it is - and it'll set you back £4 for the privilege.

You then set off on foot in an easterly direction for about a mile along the Wall, up and down several hills and dips, until you come, firstly, to the nice little surprise that is Milecastle 39 (aka Castle Nick), then to the much sought-after spot itself. It is not at all an easy location to reach, so don't think you can just casually visit with a pushchair, wheelchair, or whatever. It's a good twenty minutes of half-decent puffing-and-panting. 

The milecastle is a lovely little attraction in itself. It measures 19m x 15.5m, and stands almost 2m high in places. It has been excavated several times over the centuries, and is thought to have been occupied by the legions deep into the fourth century.

One 'dip' further on can be found one of the most photographed trees in the country. The Sycamore Gap Tree was made famous by the 1991 film Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, starring Kevin Costner - and it also made an appearance in the video of the spin-off music hit (Everything I Do) I Do It For You (Bryan Adams, remember?). In 2016 it was voted England's Tree of the Year.

Anyway, after a few snaps of my own I left my son, Matthew, and his girlfriend, Hannah, to enjoy the evening sun at this really quite romantic of spots in the way that young 'uns do best: by taking a slew of selfies in a variety of contorted poses...

P.S. By way of a little test, I asked the other three occupants of our car just how old they thought Hadrian's Wall was this year. It's a famous anniversary in 2022, of course, it being 1,900 years since construction began. None of them had a clue, and an extended bout of 'higher/lower' ensued. We got there in the end. Honestly, some people!