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A visit to Kielder Castle visitor centre will uncover many surprises. Get lost in the Minotaur Maze, discover the fascinating night sky or walk along the unique Lakeside Way, a 26 mile multi-use path around the lake which can be accessed from Kielder Castle. Take a stroll along the former track of the Border Counties Railway line to the Kielder Viaduct and absorb the staggering views of the forest and reservoir from the top. The country’s best-preserved ‘skew-arch’ bridge soars above the point where the North Tyne flows into the Bakethin Reservoir, and you can walk beneath the soaring arches once you’ve enjoyed the view from the top. Even if fishing doesn’t hook you, the nearby Kielder Salmon Centre makes for a fascinating visit. Home to the largest conservation hatchery in England and Wales, up to 900,000 salmon are bred here each year. You’ll discover the amazing life cycle of salmon and see the fresh-water pearl mussels living in their artificial stream.

Nestled in the Kielder Water and Forest Park in Northumberland, Kielder Observatory is a spectacular experience for all the family. At nearly 580 square miles, our dark sky zone, known at Northumberland and Kielder Water & Forest International Dark Sky Park, is the second largest area of protected night sky in Europe. Here the stargazing can be breath-taking: the ‘Kielder moment’ is very special, the moment that visitors look up at the glittering skies and realise that they’re completely connected to this vast cosmos, yet utterly unique within it. Like the deck of a ship sailing above the landscape, the Observatory provides astronomers with a permanent facility in the heart of Northumberland. It is part of the art and architecture programme that has turned Kielder Water and Forest Park into an open-air gallery over the last 10 years. The observatory hosts events to suit everyone: there are family events to entertain young explorers; relaxed events for people with different abilities; introductory events; legends behind the constellations events; and events focusing on phenomena such as the aurora, our moon, dark matter, and exoplanets.

This is a beautiful walk along the banks of Fruid reservoir that will provide some amazing views at any time of the year. The high hills often are reflected beautifully in the reservoir creating some great photo opportunities. This is a gentle walk along the private road that runs along the length of Fruid reservoir to the farms at the top of the Valley. You could then choose to extend your walk by continuing along the other side of the dam, back to the start. The path on this section is not so well defined. You will have to cross cattle grids. Start/Parking Parking: There is car parking at the reservoir at the start of the walk. After parking your car, take the narrow, tarmacked road that runs to the left of the reservoir and follow this road as it winds along the length of the loch. You will pass the unusual concrete building which is the ‘retro’ control house. Fruid Reservoir was formed in the 1960s by damming the Fruid Water. The water from Fruid supplements the contents of nearby Talla Reservoir, and travels through the hillside in a tunnel. This water eventually supplies drinking water to Edinburgh. Fruid Reservoir is quite small, measuring 140 hectares. It is managed by Scottish Water. Construction on the site was completed in 1968. Farmland buildings were sacrificed to build the reservoir (including Fruid, Carterhope and Hawkshaw), and are now underneath the water. New cottages were built as replacements at the end of the reservoir. Carterhope Farm was run by the monks of Melrose Abbey in the 13th-15th Centuries, when Fruid Castle was occupied by the Frasers. The monks were faming cattle and sheep, selling fleeces and hides as well as butter and cheese (from both cow and sheep milk). The goods would have been transported by horse and cart, and local farm names reflect this: Carterhope and Hopecarton both mean ‘valley of the carts’. The monks also had a chapel and a graveyard, now lost under the water, and the baptismal font from this chapel now forms part of the signpost directing travellers at the crossroads in Tweedsmuir Village. The Chapel was located on the banks of Chapel Burn, a tributary of Fruid Water. The playwright Peter Moffat had ancestors who lived in the area that is now under the reservoir. He has cited this location as the inspiration for his 1993 TV series The Village. The series tells the story of life in a Derbyshire village in the early 20th Century.

Park and start Park at the end of Talla reservoir, just before the steep road (Talla Linn Foots), on the grassy verge. The walk starts as you pass through the pedestrian gate at the bottom of the valley. There is an information point inside the gate, showing various points of interest. Views The footpath follows the Gameshope burn, and there are spectacular views as you make your way up the valley. The path is generally in good condition, but in some sections, water runs over the path, and there are some rocks and potholes to negotiate. As sections are tarmacked, it can be very slippy underfoot in the winter. Ice Age History This valley was under ice during the last ice age and as you look up the valley you will see the “U” shaped sides, typical of glaciation. Some of the rocks on the sides of the path also have scratch marks on them, that would have been made by rocks carried down the slope in the bottom of the glacier. You will also notice that the hills are rounded, as the glacier would have covered them completely. The river has also done some erosion on the landscape, and about halfway up the valley you will notice small round pockets cut into the rock at the side of the burn. When the burn is in spate, this will have been caused by gravel and grit carried by currents, grinding the rocks within the water. The Dam at Talla The path is tarmacked in places, as stones for the building of the dam at Talla were quarried from here in the early 1900s. There was a railway running the whole north side of Talla reservoir to take the stone to the dam. Some of the quarries can still be seen in Gameshope with piles of whinstone rocks, still in situ, that were ultimately not required during the construction of the dam. If you look carefully at some of the rocks on the top side of the path you will see some holes that were drilled to contain dynamite during quarrying. It is likely that the rocks were transported down the valley to the railway by horse drawn wooden sledges. Once the dam was completed, the railway was removed, and the track bed used as the route of the present vehicular road. The old Shepherd’s cottage at Gameshope Now managed by the Mountain Bothy Association, and is free to stay in overnight. The cottage was formerly owned by the Anderson family, and was bequeathed to the Bothy Association. To reach the bothy, you have to wade across the burn, which is not advisable when the water level is high. For centuries Talla and Gameshope was an upland sheep farm. There used to be 6 full time shepherds working here, and Gameshope was home to one or two of these men, with their families. Gameshope was purchased by Scottish Borders Trust in 2013, and all the sheep have been removed. Just beyond the bothy, past the farm shed, there is a rocky natural structure, that appears from a distance to resemble a stony fortress. Is this the site of Gameshope Castle? Peden’s Pulpit In the hills behind Gameshope Castle is Peden’s Pulpit. Grid reference: NT137183. Peden’s pulpit is a natural stone and is where Prophet Peden preached to his congregation of local covenanters, hidden from Claverhouses’s men. If you stand on top of the “pulpit’ it is easy to imagine the congregation of local covenanters gathered below, listening to his sermon.

The latest on the tree The Sycamore Gap tree was one of the most photographed in the country before it was felled in October 2023. The tree stood in a dramatic dip in Hadrian’s Wall in the Northumberland National Park, and in late 2016, it took the crown for English ‘Tree of the Year’ in the Woodland Trust’s awards. Following its felling, an update on how Northumberland National Park is responding to the public outcry can be read here: Sycamore Gap Update. Recently, we announced the artists who have been appointed on a creative commission to install the largest section of the Sycamore Gap tree at The Sill. The National Trust gave the Park the largest section of wood from the trunk salvaged from the tree when it was removed from site. The artists installed the section of trunk at The Sill: National Landscape Discovery Centre a year on from when the tree was felled. At the Sycamore Gap site The Roman Milecastle 39 is just to the left. It’s known as Castle Nick, as it sits in a nick in the hillside. The site was excavated between 1908 and 1911 and re-excavated between 1982 and 1987. In the south-east corner was a stone oven and the south-west corner a rectangular building with a sunken floor associated with Roman finds. The milecastle appears to have been occupied until the late 4th century. In the 18th century, a possible milking house was built in the west corner. The land at Sycamore Gap is looked after by both Northumberland National Park and the National Trust.

Take an atmospheric wander around the best-preserved Roman fort in Britain. Housesteads Roman Fort was once garrisoned by 1,000 soldiers. It is aligned towards sunrise, making the east gate the main gate. You can still see the deeply worn wheel ruts here. Vercovicium or Borcovicium were how the fort was known in Roman times. The museum and its introductory film give great insight about these astonishing ruins. The steep walk to the remains is worth it for the history and spectacular views. From 1663, Housesteads was the home of the Armstrongs, notorious Border Reivers. Nicholas Armstrong bought the farm in 1692, only to have to sell it again in 1694 to Thomas Gibson, of Hexham, for £485. The Armstrongs remained as tenants. They were well-known horse thieves and cattle rustlers, who used the old Roman fort as a corral for their stolen livestock. They “traded” all over. At one time, every male member of the family had been outlawed by English or Scottish authorities. Nicholas was hanged in 1704, and his brothers fled to America. The Armstrongs lived in a typical 16th century defensive bastle house of two storeys: the ground floor for livestock and the upper level for living quarters. Its ruins remain built up against the south gate of the Roman fort and clearly show its defensive nature, with external stone steps and narrow loop windows. A corn-drying kiln was inserted into the gate’s guard chamber in the 17th century.

Over the past 27 years, the landscape around Kielder Water & Forest Park has become home to a unique collection of visual art and architecture, inspiring the creation of work in response to the scale and complexity of its unique environment and the area's varied and fascinating history. Many people visit the park for this open-air art experience, located at sites around the lake, in the forest, and within Northumberland National Park. You might choose to visit the award winning futuristic shelter ‘Kielder Belvedere’ by Softroom Architects; experience James Turrell’s light sculpture ‘Kielder Skyspace’; discover the story of Freya and Robin in Studio Weave’s ‘Freya’s Cabin’; or contemplate the play of water on the waves in Chris Drury’s ‘Wave Chamber’. There are many other varied works of art and architecture including the ‘Bakethin Hide’, a wildlife watching space delivered in collaboration with Newcastle University’s School of Architecture as part our Testing Ground programme. Between May and November why not visit The Nick, situated at the highest point of Forest Drive that links Kielder village with the A696 to the east. The Nick is designed to provide a variety of shelter and seating alternatives from which different aspects of the landscape can be viewed. Download a Travelling Tales guide below to help make the most of your trip along the Forest Drive. For more information see http://www.visitkielder.com/public-art/the-nick-&ssid=1256116 Most pieces are fully accessible to visitors and along the Lakeside Way there is the opportunity to explore many of these contemporary works, including the three large rotating Janus Chairs and the ever-popular Silvas Capitalis, also known as the 'giant forest head'! PLEASE NOTE There is currently no access to Janus Chairs. due to it requiring repairs and maintenance so for visitors safety, there is currently no access.

Nestled in the Kielder Water and Forest Park in Northumberland, Kielder Observatory is a spectacular experience for all the family. At nearly 580 square miles, our dark sky zone, known at Northumberland and Kielder Water & Forest International Dark Sky Park, is the second largest area of protected night sky in Europe. Here the stargazing can be breath-taking: the ‘Kielder moment’ is very special, the moment that visitors look up at the glittering skies and realise that they’re completely connected to this vast cosmos, yet utterly unique within it. Like the deck of a ship sailing above the landscape, the Observatory provides astronomers with a permanent facility in the heart of Northumberland. It is part of the art and architecture programme that has turned Kielder Water and Forest Park into an open-air gallery over the last 10 years. The observatory hosts events to suit everyone: there are family events to entertain young explorers; relaxed events for people with different abilities; introductory events; legends behind the constellations events; and events focusing on phenomena such as the aurora, our moon, dark matter, and exoplanets. Access to the Observatory is for ticket-holders only: booking is essential and can be done via the website. The access track is 2 miles long, uncased and single lane so is only opened for events one hour before to ensure traffic up and down the track is managed properly. Visitors can walk up to the Observatory during the day and enjoy the spectacular views but there are no facilities available during the day. Close to the Observatory is James Turrell's Kielder Skyspace, a circular sculpture which is illuminated by a combination of natural and artificial light. Skyspace can be accessed via the track to the Observatory. During dusk, the LED lighting system is triggered and as the exterior light changes - the effect is a rich and unforgettable display of tone and colour. Kielder Observatory — a beacon for dark skies. Come and find your infinite inspiration. For more information about Northumberland International Dark Sky Park see our Dark Skies page. Come here to: Learn about the night sky and use the powerful telescopes. Meet experienced astronomers and learn how to take stunning photographs of distant objects in the Universe. Experience meteor showers (shooting stars) and other celestial events. Kielder Observatory is also part of the art and architecture programme. Find out more about its striking design here.