Day 1 · no walking
Arrive in Gilsland
Anticipation
Walking: None, travel day
TonightGilsland, in a hotel or B&B we've booked, with breakfast in the morning.
84 miles. Coast to coast. 2,000 years of history.
See what your Hadrian’s Wall walk actually feels like, day by day, before you walk it: the city, the farmland, the crags and the Solway shore.
- The trail
- 84 miles / 135 km
- From
- Wallsend, on the Tyne
- To
- Bowness-on-Solway
- Our trips
- 2–8 walking days
One Wall, your pace
You’re choosing your pace, not a different Wall.
Every itinerary walks the same path. What changes is where you sleep, how far you go each day, and how much time you have for the forts. Pick one and watch how it divides the Wall.
Full crossings, coast to coast
Short breaks, one section
Central section · 2 walking days
The Whin Sill Short Break
Difficulty, honestly: Graded hard, and we mean it. Best for: Fit walkers who want the famous middle in a long weekend.
- Walking days
- 2
- Typical day
- 8–12 miles, with real climbing
- From
- £375
The journey, day by day
The Whin Sill Short Break
Day 1 of 2 · mile 51 of 84
Day 2 · walking day 1 of 2
Gilsland to Once Brewed
- ≈8 miles / 13 km
- Moderate
- Walltown Crags, Cawfields, Winshield
- Trail mile 42–51
Today feels like
A proper mountain-day workout at lower altitude
- Morning
-
Gilsland straddles the Northumberland–Cumbria border. Poltross Burn milecastle, behind the old station, is one of the best preserved on the wall and most walkers march straight past it.
Thirlwall Castle, built from scavenged Roman stone, sits below the western end of the crags.
- Midday
-
Great Chesters, an unexcavated fort beside the path, free and usually empty.
- Afternoon
-
Cawfields' knife-edge wall above the quarry lake, with a seasonal café at the car park.
Winshield Crags, at 345 m the highest point of the whole trail.
- Best moment
- Walltown's crag-top masonry: long runs of standing wall riding the Whin Sill, arguably the most dramatic wall-walking of all.
- Hardest part
- More crag-top ups and downs: short distances that take longer than the map suggests.
- Worth knowing
- This is the most exposed stretch of the trail in bad weather.
On the way
- mile 49 Thirlwall Castle. A castle ruin built from scavenged Roman stone, below the end of the crags.
- mile 48 Walltown Crags. Long runs of standing masonry riding the crags, with the Roman Army Museum at their foot.
- mile 46 Great Chesters. An unexcavated, unticketed fort right beside the path: fifteen minutes alone with the Romans.
- mile 45 Cawfields. Knife-edge wall above the quarry lake, with Milecastle 42's gate clearly visible.
- mile 43 Winshield Crags. At 345 m, the highest point of the whole trail.
- mile 42 Steel Rigg. The crag top above Once Brewed, at the western end of the most-photographed stretch.
TonightOnce Brewed, in a hotel or B&B we've booked, with breakfast in the morning.
Your main bag is already there when you arrive.
Tomorrow: Once Brewed to Chollerford — hard morning, kinder afternoon.
Day 3 · walking day 2 of 2
Once Brewed to Chollerford
- ≈12 miles / 19 km
- Challenging
- Crag Lough, Housesteads, then easing moorland
- Trail mile 31–42
Today feels like
Hard morning, kinder afternoon
- Morning
-
The Sill visitor centre and the Twice Brewed Inn sit just below the crags; Vindolanda is a steep mile or so south.
Sycamore Gap. The tree was felled by vandals in 2023, but the gap itself, wall plunging in and climbing out, remains one of the finest sights on the trail.
Housesteads, the most complete Roman fort in Britain, sits right on the path. Stand at the north gate and you look at the ground Roman sentries watched.
- Midday
-
At Sewingshields the Whin Sill begins: a rollercoaster of short, sharp climbs and descents along the crags, the wall riding the edge beside you, views that stretch to Scotland.
- Afternoon
-
Out of the North Tyne valley the path climbs steadily onto open moorland.
- Best moment
- Crag Lough's cliffs, with the wall running along the ridge above the water.
- Hardest part
- The repeated short, sharp climbs and descents across the Whin Sill crags.
- Worth knowing
- No cafés between Chollerford and Housesteads: carry lunch and plenty of water.
On the way
- mile 42 Sycamore Gap. Castle Nick and Milecastle 39. The tree was felled by vandals in 2023; the gap itself remains one of the finest sights on the trail.
- mile 41 Crag Lough. Cliffs above the lough, with the wall running along the ridge.
- mile 41 Vindolanda (off the path). A steep mile or so south of Once Brewed: the writing tablets, and a site that honestly takes two to four hours.
- mile 40 Housesteads Roman Fort. The most complete Roman fort in Britain, right on the path; the visitor centre sits below it, a stiffish climb.
- mile 38 Sewingshields Crags. Where the Whin Sill begins: quieter than the honeypot mile, the wall snaking along the ridgeline.
- mile 31 Chesters Roman Fort. A cavalry fort guarding the river crossing, with the finest military bathhouse in Britain.
TonightChollerford, in a hotel or B&B we've booked, with breakfast in the morning.
Your main bag is already there when you arrive.
This is The Whin Sill Short Break: 2 walking days, from £375 per person.
See prices & full itineraryDay 4 · no walking
Depart from Chollerford
Plotting the full crossing
Walking: None, travel day
Trail mile 51 of 84
Day 1 of 2
Gilsland → Once Brewed
The official trail line, north–south stretched for clarity. Diamonds mark the Roman forts on the path. Trail line © OpenStreetMap contributors.
The lie of the land
WallsendThe cragsBowness
Landscape
The Whin Sill crags
The wall rides the crag edge: short, sharp climbs and the views everyone comes for.
Which pace is right for me?
Five questions, one honest suggestion.
We’ll match your answers against the real days of every itinerary: how many there are, and how long the longest one is. If a trip’s longest day is more than you said you’re happy with, we’ll tell you.
Still unsure? Ask us, and we’ll tell you straight which fits.
Ready to walk it for real?
The Whin Sill Short Break
Graded hard, and we mean it.
- Walking days
- 2
- Nights
- 3
- Distance
- ≈20 miles
- From
- £375 pp
Per person sharing a double or twin. Single room £590. Prices confirmed at booking.
You walk. We handle the rest.
- 3 nights in hotels or B&Bs, breakfast every morning
- 2 luggage transfers, one bag each up to 20 kg
- Trip pack and the Trip Tracker app with each day's route
- Transfers where your stop sits off the trail
No online checkout: we confirm dates, rooms and a firm price first. Compare all itineraries.
The route at a glance
The Hadrian’s Wall Path, stage by stage
The National Trail runs 84 miles (135 km) from Wallsend, on the Tyne in Newcastle, to Bowness-on-Solway on the Cumbrian coast. Most walkers go east to west. These are the six standard stages; each has its own page.
| Stage | Distance | Terrain | What it feels like |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Wallsend to Heddon-on-the-Wall | ≈15 miles / 24 km | Urban riverside paths, then field edges | Long but easy, flat almost throughout |
| 2. Heddon-on-the-Wall to Chollerford | ≈16 miles / 25 km | Rolling farmland beside the old military road | Steady, long green miles, gentle rises |
| 3. Chollerford to Once Brewed | ≈12 miles / 19 km | Open moor and the Whin Sill crags | The big climbing day, shorter, much harder |
| 4. Once Brewed to Gilsland | ≈8 miles / 13 km | The last and best of the crags | Short but spectacular, a half-day of drama |
| 5. Gilsland to Carlisle | ≈19 miles / 31 km | Irthing gorge, then long lowland pasture | The hardest day, by far the longest |
| 6. Carlisle to Bowness-on-Solway | ≈14 miles / 23 km | River path, then flat marsh road | Long, flat and atmospheric, watch the tides |
Places along the way, east to west
Approximate miles from Wallsend along the trail.
| Mile | Place | What’s there |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | Wallsend | The eastern end of the trail, at Segedunum Roman fort, where the wall once ran right down to the Tyne. |
| 5 | Newcastle | Surfaced riverside paths through the city, under the Tyne bridges and past the quayside cafés. |
| 11 | Newburn | Where the path climbs gently away from the river and the city gives way to farmland. |
| 15 | Heddon-on-the-Wall | The first substantial fragment of the real wall, and a village with a pub and a shop. |
| 21 | East Wallhouses | About six miles from Heddon on the way to Chollerford; the Robin Hood Inn is the natural stop. |
| 25 | Corbridge (off the path) | A market town just off the trail, an off-trail bed with a short transfer, and the Roman supply town of Coria nearby. |
| 31 | Chollerford | The bridge over the North Tyne, where the wall once crossed the river. |
| 31 | Chesters Roman Fort | A cavalry fort guarding the river crossing, with the finest military bathhouse in Britain. |
| 38 | Sewingshields Crags | Where the Whin Sill begins: quieter than the honeypot mile, the wall snaking along the ridgeline. |
| 40 | Housesteads Roman Fort | The most complete Roman fort in Britain, right on the path; the visitor centre sits below it, a stiffish climb. |
| 41 | Vindolanda (off the path) | A steep mile or so south of Once Brewed: the writing tablets, and a site that honestly takes two to four hours. |
| 41 | Crag Lough | Cliffs above the lough, with the wall running along the ridge. |
| 42 | Sycamore Gap | Castle Nick and Milecastle 39. The tree was felled by vandals in 2023; the gap itself remains one of the finest sights on the trail. |
| 42 | Once Brewed | The Sill visitor centre and the Twice Brewed Inn, just below the crags. |
| 42 | Steel Rigg | The crag top above Once Brewed, at the western end of the most-photographed stretch. |
| 43 | Winshield Crags | At 345 m, the highest point of the whole trail. |
| 45 | Cawfields | Knife-edge wall above the quarry lake, with Milecastle 42's gate clearly visible. |
| 46 | Great Chesters | An unexcavated, unticketed fort right beside the path: fifteen minutes alone with the Romans. |
| 48 | Walltown Crags | Long runs of standing masonry riding the crags, with the Roman Army Museum at their foot. |
| 49 | Thirlwall Castle | A castle ruin built from scavenged Roman stone, below the end of the crags. |
| 51 | Gilsland | A small village straddling the Northumberland–Cumbria border; Poltross Burn milecastle sits behind the old station. |
| 52 | Birdoswald Roman Fort | High above the Irthing gorge, reached along the longest continuous stretch of standing wall on the trail. |
| 58 | Brampton (off the path) | A market town a little off the trail, with a short included transfer if your stop is away from the path. |
| 61 | Newtown | Quiet pasture country west of the crags, where the wall is a buried presence. |
| 70 | Carlisle | Reached along the River Eden through Rickerby Park: castle, cathedral and Tullie House museum. |
| 76 | Burgh-by-Sands | Where Edward I died on the marshes waiting to invade Scotland. |
| 84 | Bowness-on-Solway | The western end: a little pavilion on the shore at the site of the Roman fort of Maia. |
How each itinerary divides the same Wall
| Itinerary | Walking days | Nights | Longest day | Where you sleep | From |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Three-Day Wall Challenge | 3 | 4 | ≈31 miles | Newcastle · Chollerford · Brampton · Bowness-on-Solway | £509 |
| The Four-Day Crossing | 4 | 5 | ≈23 miles | Newcastle · East Wallhouses · Once Brewed · Newtown · Bowness-on-Solway | £655 |
| The Five-Day Crossing | 5 | 6 | ≈20 miles | Newcastle · Heddon-on-the-Wall · Chollerford · Gilsland · Carlisle · Bowness-on-Solway | £719 |
| The Classic Crossing | 6 | 5 | ≈19 miles | Heddon-on-the-Wall · Chollerford · Once Brewed · Gilsland · Carlisle | £699 |
| The Coast to Coast at Ease | 6 | 6 | ≈19 miles | Heddon-on-the-Wall · Chollerford · Once Brewed · Gilsland · Carlisle · Bowness-on-Solway | £769 |
| The Rested Crossing | 6 | 7 | ≈19 miles | Newcastle · Heddon-on-the-Wall · Chollerford · Once Brewed · Gilsland · Carlisle · Bowness-on-Solway | £789 |
| The Explorer's Crossing | 7 | 8 | ≈16 miles | Newcastle · Heddon-on-the-Wall · Chollerford · Once Brewed · Gilsland · Brampton · Carlisle · Bowness-on-Solway | £939 |
| The Unhurried Wall | 8 | 9 | ≈15 miles | Newcastle · Heddon-on-the-Wall · Corbridge · Chollerford · Once Brewed · Gilsland · Brampton · Carlisle · Bowness-on-Solway | £1,019 |
| The Western Wall Short Break | 2 | 3 | ≈19 miles | Gilsland · Carlisle · Bowness-on-Solway | £375 |
| The Whin Sill Short Break | 2 | 3 | ≈12 miles | Gilsland · Once Brewed · Chollerford | £375 |
| Chollerford to the Sea | 4 | 3 | ≈16 miles | Once Brewed · Brampton · Carlisle | £445 |
Prices per person sharing, from £375; confirmed at booking. Exact overnight stops depend on availability.
How we rate each day’s pace
- Relaxed
- under 11 miles, no big climbing
- Moderate
- 11 miles or more, or a short crag day
- Challenging
- 18 miles or more, or 12 or more across the crags
- Serious
- 25 miles or more, or 19 or more across the crags
“The crags” means the Whin Sill, from Sewingshields to Walltown, where short distances take longer than the map suggests. It’s our rating, not an official grade.
About these figures
Distances are rounded to the nearest mile. Trail miles and day distances are measured along the official National Trail line (OpenStreetMap, © OpenStreetMap contributors) and scaled to its official 84 miles; the height profile shows the shape of the ground, not exact heights. Keep reading: the daily stages guide, how many days you need and how hard it really is.