Help us plan our holiday in Weardale please. Staying near Frosterley. Looking for gnomes!

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Mumsnet has never let me down when it comes to local knowledge, so here's my annual holiday request. We're staying in Frosterley, near Stanhope, for a week at the end of July with 17-year-old DS and our young dog. We've been before, about 12 years ago, and DS has asked to go back to the same cottage. He's a motorsport and aviation fanatic, and DH and I both like nice walks, gardens and photography. DS and DH are going to Croft on the Sunday for the touring cars event and DS will inevitably want to go karting. We'll probably go to Beamish again, but other than that we have the whole week to fill. We're vegetarian and will have our cocker spaniel with us all week because she can't be left at the cottage, so hit me with lovely places to go and good dog-friendly places to eat.

Also - this a very random question, but it can't hurt to ask! We were last in Frosterley when DS was four and mad keen on trains, and he has a core memory of us taking the train from the village, probably towards Bishop Auckland, and passing a house with loads and loads of gnomes in the garden. He's spent hours over the years looking for it on Google Earth with no joy and he desperately wants to find it again. I'd rather not waste half a day on a boring train if we can just go straight to the gnomes and get a photo to shut him up! 😂

Hopeful bump

Lots of lovely walks round Hamsterley Forest, including one up the interestingly named Potato Hill (we didn’t see any).
Walks from Frosterley to Walsingham (bakery there is amazing!) but passed through a field of arsey cattle at one point. Walsingham Wanderers do a set of walk leaflets you can find online.

Lots of lovely walks round Hamsterley Forest, including one up the interestingly named Potato Hill (we didn’t see any).
Walks from Frosterley to Walsingham (bakery there is amazing!) but passed through a field of arsey cattle at one point. Walsingham Wanderers do a set of walk leaflets you can find online.

We also went to Durham when we there, not too far a drive.

We also went to Durham when we were there, not too far a drive.

Sorry about the double posting!

We’ve done a lot of holidays in Teesdale, just a little way south. Raby Castle is a nice visit, Barnard Castle is lovely, there are lots of lovely walks around High Force and Cow Green.

If you haven’t visited Beamish for a while there is loads more to see. The 1950s town is almost finished and most of it is open. A fantastic day out!

Depending on how you feel about driving the Lakes aren’t too far either….we often set off early and make a day of it…especially if the weather is better in the west! Lowther Castle and Gardens is another nice visit to the west.

Have a great holiday!

Thanks! I think it was 2012 that we were last there so Beamish is probably a bit different now, not that I remember much other than DS wanting to go on all the trams etc.

The Three Falls walk from Middleton is good - well for walking and waterfalls! There are, well there were last summer, a couple of dog friendly cafes there too.

Gnomes - possible speak to the Weardale Railway Trust - they may know where there are gnomes?!

Agree with PP re contacting the Weardale Railway Trust about the gnomes. You're lucky as the railway has been closed awhile for work on the track but reopened last year if you're looking to travel it again.

A few suggestions which you may have done before... a day in Durham, the cathedral is magnificent. If you like gardens Crook Hall in Durham is an NT place and the gardens are lovely and you get good views. The Rose Garden at Wynyard Hall is also lovely. Eggleston Hall in Teesdale is nice. High Force in Teesdale is impressive especially after heavy rain (it's the biggest waterfall in England) and there are some great walks round there including Cauldron Snout.

Ooh, good shout about asking the railway trust! I will email them tomorrow.

We went to High Force last time and loved it, and apparently we have to go again because the car park is the one featured in some racing game DS plays! Lots of other great ideas - keep 'em coming!

I was going to suggest Hamsterley Forest, too. If you walk down to the river in Frosterley, there are loads of rugose corals in the black limestone boulders, the same stone is used in two pillars in Durham Cathedral.

Allenheads is quite close by and the wheelhouse, blacksmith's forge etc are worth a look. There's always Hexham to go afterwards, lots of nice shops and good eating.

Or you could try Alston, a few nice wooded areas to explore, with a good chance of seeing red squirrels.

Ooh, red squirrels!! Definitely going there - thank you!! ☺️

South Tynedale Railway operates from Alston, lovely little pootle along the line to Slaggyford and back. Fantastic cafe at the the station (Hitchins, they are retiring soon but opening limited seasonal hours afaik) which is super dog-friendly. You can hop off the train halfway, walk through a field and across the road to Epiacum Roman fort, well house and bastle house trail. The Nook Farm Shop and Cafe is also fantastic. You can walk from the station alongside the track instead if you don’t want to be tied to train times.

Hillend just after Stanhope is nice walk.
Definitely visit Durham, food Flat White and Leonard’s are really nice coffee shops.
Washington Wildfowl centre is good and if you have a NT pass a visit Washington old hall is worth a visit. And the Angel of the North.

Excellent ideas - thank you all so much! DH is an Ancient History lecturer so he'll definitely want to go to the Roman fort. We did Hadrian's Wall last time and DH and DS went to Housesteads, but I had to stay in the car with the dogs.

Dogs more than welcome at Epiacum. There’s not much there apart from earthworks but you get a real sense of the isolation the soldiers must have felt, stuck on the edges of this weird, cold region so very far from home. They are using non invasive methods to find out what’s down there and sometimes they ask for volunteers to work on areas. Plus, the cafe does the most amazing cooked breakfast

I'm getting excited now 😁 I've emailed the railway trust about the gnomes but no reply yet. I'll post photos if we find them.

Anyone know what's the best karting track in the region for DS? The more challenging the better.

Parking at Beamish gets full early on at weekends in the holidays so go in the week if you can.

Binchester Roman Fort is just outside Bishop Auckland so if you're going to Bishop anyway you might as well stop in. It isn't worth a special trip. Bishop itself has some nice cafes and the gardens at Auckland Castle have just been restored (although entry is £££).

Parking at Hamsterley Forest is also about £11 a day, be warned!

Am vegetarian and things up here are better than they used to be, I can't recommend anywhere particularly special closer than Newcastle but it won't all be Sunday lunch with just the veg any more (a regular when visiting my Weardale relatives)

Binchester doesn’t allow dogs, something to be aware of. Bishop Auckland deer park does, but not the Castle or Faith museum.

Birdoswald, another fort on Hadrians Wall is very dog friendly, including the cafe. A little further to drive though. If heading in that direction the sections of Hadrians wall between Birdoswald and Lanercost is very good, there is a nice walk from Lanercost to Hare Hill where there is a large section of the wall to see. Lanercost has a lovely place to eat, which has its own dog section called Bark and Brew!

Vindolanda and the Roman Army Museum make a great day out, fit in The Sill while you're there if you can.

There's a nice walk mainly along the river between Wolsingham and Frosterly. It can get muddy though.

I think Vindolanda is dog free too, sorry.

I love the train from Alston to Slaggyford, you can walk back as it's a gentle walk.

If you're going to the wall, The Sill has a fantastic visitor centre, with excellent Roman displays. The view from the roof is spectacular and last time I went, the cafe was very pleasant.

Thank you all!! This is brilliant!

Is it wrong of me that I'm watching this thread, with no knowledge of this area of the country, simply because I want to know if OP finds the gnomes!