The Grey Panthers

This walk makes good use of two railway walkways, - the Auckland Way (the old Spennymoor-Bishop Auckland) line and the Brandon-Bishop Auckland Railway Path.
Between the Jubilee bridge in Willington and the Brandon-Bishop Auckland Railway Path the walk follows the Weardale Way beside the River Wear.
The walk is generally easy, though there is one section which requires considerable care, - the road down Whinney Bank to the Jubilee Bridge. Here there is no pavement and the road can be quite busy.
The walk makes for an enjoyable day out.

For a Memory Map overlay of the walk described, please select the above link.
(Overlay made with Version 5 of Memory Map)

Some new mapping software is now available which you may want to try, - QUO mapping. You can download the software for free from the link below, complete with demonstration maps. Having installed QUO, you can import and export Memory Map overlays. Thus YOU DON'T NEED Memory Map to use any of the overlays provided on the Grey Panthers web site, - just use QUO!!

Start from the car park at Batts beside the river Wear in Bishop Auckland (NZ21074 30352).
Head Eastwards beside the road until you come to the bridge over the River Gaunless ("Jock's Bridge").
Just past the bridge, on your right, is a field footpath.
Follow the footpath, with the Deer Park wall on your right. The footpath takes you to a bridge over the Auckland Way railway walkway. Cross the bridge, turn right, and take the steps down to the walkway.
Follow the walkway North until you pass under Station Bridge.
A short distance past this bridge you come to a minor road. Here turn left. At the junction with the Binchester-Byers Green Road turn right and walk to Byers Green (there is a pavement along this section of the road).
Continue along the road through Byers Green to Todhills.
Where this road meets Long Lane, turn right and head for the road down Whinney Bank.
Here there is no pavement and the road can be quite busy, - CARE is needed.
Cross the Jubilee Bridge over the River Wear.
Now follow the footpath beside the River Wear in a Westerly direction.
Just past Furness Mill Farm, the footpath leaves the river and ascends a steep bank. Steps have been provided to enable the climb up the bank.
At the top of the bank, a footpath takes you directly to the Brandon-Bishop Auckland Railway Path.
An alternative route to the above railway walkway is to pass through a small gate at the top of the above bank and to take the field footpath to the small community of Bell Bank.
Follow the railway walkway all the way back to Bishop Auckland.
At the Southern end of the Newton Cap Viaduct, turn left and follow the street to the Town Hall.
Just past the Town Hall is a narrow, and steep, road that returns you to The Batts car park.