220 miles (354 kilometres)

Newcastle - Tynemouth - Amble - Holy Island - Berwick - Wooler - Bellingham - Haltwhistle - Hexham - Newcastle

The route is almost 220 miles long and runs around the fringes of Northumberland with a start and finish in Tyneside. It comprises three sections of the National Cycle Network: the Coast and Castles Cycle Route, the Pennine Cycleway and Hadrian's Cycleway.

Traveling north from Newcastle you pass through the Northumberland Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, renowned for its unspoilt beaches and castles such as Warkworth, Bamburgh and Lindisfarne. From Berwick-upon-Tweed you run briefly through the Tweed Valley before heading south-west to the National Park and the heather-clad Cheviot Hills. Quiet country lanes, peaceful villages and more historic sites and buildings typify this section of the route. Towards its southern end you enter the fringes of Kielder Forest, the largest forest in England. Finally you reach the market town of of Haltwhistle, the geographical centre of of Britain, and gateway to Hadrian's Wall. 

Traveling east from Haltwhistle you pass through and close to key Roman sites such as Vindolanda, Housesteads and Chesters Roman Fort as well as the Wall itself. You journey through the historic centres of Hexham and Corbridge before entering Tyneside again and passing the many bridges which famously cross the river, including the Millennium Eye Bridge, the world's only tilting bridge.

The award-winning official maps of the route, based on Ordnance Survey data, are available from Sustrans, book and cycle shops.

Information courtesy of various organisations including Northumberland County Council, Northumbria Tourist Board and Sustrans