College Valley
Encyclopedia
The College Valley is one of five cuttings into the Cheviot Hills
Cheviot Hills
The Cheviot Hills is a range of rolling hills straddling the England–Scotland border between Northumberland and the Scottish Borders.There is a broad split between the northern and the southern Cheviots...
. The valley is owned by College Valley Estates which in turn is funded by a trust created by Sir James Knott MP.
The valley is spectacularly beautiful and affords a serenely satisfying ascent of the Cheviot - 815 metres (2674 ft) - the highest peak in the area.
The Estate covers approximately 12000 acres (48.6 km²) and is now managed by a Board of Directors whose duty is to manage it in a way that increases its value as an environmental, social and economic place of excellence. From north to south the estate is approximately 10 km and at its widest 7 km. There are over 105 km of roads and pathways criss crossing the College Valley.
The valley is open to the public, but access by car is restricted to permit holders only and these are limited on a daily basis.
Access
There is one road into the valley. This starts at KirknewtonKirknewton
-Places:England*Kirknewton, NorthumberlandScotland*Kirknewton, West Lothian*RAF Kirknewton, a Royal Air Force station in West Lothian...
on the road between Wooler
Wooler
Wooler is a small town in Northumberland, England. It lies on the edge of the Northumberland National Park, by the Cheviot Hills and so is a popular base for walkers and is referred to as the "Gateway to the Cheviots"...
and Kirk Yetholm
Kirk Yetholm
Kirk Yetholm is a village in the Scottish Borders region of Scotland, south east of Kelso and less than west of the border. The first mention is of its church in the 13th century. Its sister town is Town Yetholm which lies half a mile across the Bowmont Water...
. On entering the valley itself the road splits into two, the right hand turn to Trowup burn. The left hand fork goes to the estate office and farm there up the main valley to the Cheviot itself.
History
The valley is ringed by Bronze AgeBronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
forts along the hill tops. There is evidence of habitation from very early times.
More recently the estate was owned by Cuthbert Collingwood, 1st Baron Collingwood
Cuthbert Collingwood, 1st Baron Collingwood
Vice Admiral Cuthbert Collingwood, 1st Baron Collingwood was an admiral of the Royal Navy, notable as a partner with Lord Nelson in several of the British victories of the Napoleonic Wars, and frequently as Nelson's successor in commands.-Early years:Collingwood was born in Newcastle upon Tyne...
, then the Grey family of Howick Hall
Howick Hall
Howick Hall, a Grade II* listed building in the village of Howick, Northumberland, England, is the ancestral seat of the Earls Grey. It was the home of the Prime Minister Charles, 2nd Earl Grey, after whom the famous tea is named....
followed by Arthur Sutherland
Arthur Sutherland
Sir Arthur Munro Sutherland, 1st Baronet KBE , of Hethpool House, Kirknewton, Northumberland, was an English shipowner and philanthropist....
.
Houses in the valley
The estate office is at Hethpool House, KirknewtonHethpool House, Kirknewton
Hethpool House is an Edwardian house at Kirknewton, near Wooler, Northumberland which has Grade II listed building status. Built in 1919 on the site of a late 17th century house which had been the seat of Admiral Lord Collingwood, it was improved in the Arts and crafts style in 1928 for Sir Arthur...
.
After this there are a number of estate cottages designed in the arts and crafts style.
Hethpool Mill is now converted into self catering accommodation. There is evidence of habitation here back into the 13th century.
As the valley approaches the Cheviot itself it splits into two. The right hand fork going to Mounthooly which is now a YHA hostel.The left hand fork going up to Goldsceugh by way of Coldburn cottage and Dunsdale house.
Hills within the College Valley Estates
The CheviotThe Cheviot
The Cheviot is the highest summit in the Cheviot Hills in the far north of England, only 2 km from the Scottish border. It is the last major peak on the Pennine Way, if travelling from south to north, before the descent into Kirk Yetholm....
. 815m
The Schil. 600m.
Black Hag.549m.
Scald Hill. 546m
Newton Tors. 537m
Preston Hill.520m.
Broadhope Hill.516m
Saughieside Hill.487m
Coldburn Hill. 484m
Whitelaw Nick. 430m.
Loft Hill.410 m.
Madam Law.397m
Eccles cairn.350m.
Sinkside Hill.
Great Hetha.
White hill
White Hill
White Hill is a hill in the Forest of Bowland, north-western England. It lies between Slaidburn and High Bentham. The summit houses a tower and a trig point. In medieval times, the hill marked one of the northernmost limits of the Lordship of Bowland....
. 226m.