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The Worm
Nine miles from the finishing post, almost every C2C cyclist hurtles past this snaking sculpture, interactive and potentially dangerous with nettles and loss of pride at hand.
In 1988 Sustrans invited proposals from artists for sculptures on the Consett and Sunderland section of the C2C and it was a requirement that each piece reflected the history of the local area. And this earthwork, located near the site of the killing of the legendary gargantuan Lambton Worm, was given first commission.
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"Wisht ! Lads, haad yor gobs ... An Aa'll tell ye 'bout the worm ..".......
.. the tale goes that a son of Lord Lambton, out fishing in the River Wear one day, caught only a worm. Disappointed, he threw his catch into a nearby well. Over the years the worm grew to monstrous proportions and became the scourge of the countryside, feeding on man, child and beast. Lambton's son eventually rid the county of the colossal beast by wrestling with it in the Wear. The worm was cut to pieces and swallowed up by the river.
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The Worm earthwork is made from old spoil heaps built in a serpentine design with pools of water waiting just below. The challenge is to ride the back of the monster and it requires concentration. Local children have added walls of death.
