It’s my birthday coming up, and this year I’m turning 32, so I decided to do a list of thirty-two places I’d like to visit in the North. This is not a list of things I’m going to do in the next year, as a sort of checklist, some of these are pie-in-the-sky dream places I want to go, whilst others are more attainable and I have concrete ideas and plans to actually do. So, that being said here’s my list of things I’d like to do in the North, just to illustrate how many things there are to do, and how amazing this region is!

Go to Walney Island

Walney Island is a wildlife haven that you get to from Barrow-In-Furness. Whilst some Neolithic remains have been found at Walney Island which in itself is interesting to me, I’d be going specifically for the nature reserves that are found on the Northern and Southern tips of the island; species to be seen include plovers, oystercatchers, otters, natterjack toads, grey seals and unique flora. Definitely a place to take a (well fitting) hat though, as it’s been named the windiest place in North-West Britain!

Stay at the Quiet Site

The Quiet Site at Ullswater has been on my list for ages. Named AA Campsite of the Year in 2024, it is a place that does what it says on the tin… it’s a place in that’s peaceful, to get away from the rush of it all. It’s also a great place to see red squirrels in the UK, and I can’t imagine anything more wonderful that waking up in my glamping pod, getting a cup of tea, and watching red squirrels as the early morning sun came up over the dewy grass. Perfect.

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Go to Hexham Book Festival

Every spring Hexham hosts a book festival with local, national, and international authors speaking, and I’ve been wanting to go for a while. I’m what you would call a book dragon, as opposed to a book worm. I hoard books… I don’t necessarily read them all (not the point I know!), but yeah I have hundreds of books. I just recently moved house, and not kidding, there must have been twenty+ boxes of books out of a relatively small flat. Although, to be honest, I see books kind of like wine, or good food, you’re not sure what you’re going to be in the mood for, so you might as well have a lot to choose from!

Anyway, this year they had authors and speakers such as L. J. Ross (crime writer), Jonathan Coe (author), Pam Ayers (poet), Mike Berners-Lee (author and climate activist), Wayne Sleep (author and ballet dancer), and Julie Beckett (writer for the Archers), so there was plenty to choose from. Can’t wait to see who they come up with next year!

See Dolphins off the Northumberland Coast

As any readers of mine from May know, I went on a trip to the Farne Islands that month, but I wasn’t lucky enough to see any dolphins or orcas that have been seen around that coastline. I am determined that I am going to see some, so I guess I’ll just have to go back.

I have been lucky enough to see dolphins a couple of times in my life – once or twice off the coast of Scotland in the Moray Firth, and another time when I was on a boat in Spain. Just because I’ve seen them before doesn’t mean I don’t want to do it again… you can never seen dolphins too many times, right?

Visit Beatrix Potter’s House

Growing up I loved Beatrix Potter. Loved. To the extent that one of my first sentences (apparently) was the slightly nonsensical “Pit Pat Paddle Pat… Pit Pat Paddle Pat,” which is what Jemima Puddleduck says as she walks along in the TV show. I also watched the VHS (showing my age now!) of the ballet by the Royal Ballet Company until it wore out. And, to this day, I have a whole bag full of Beatrix Potter plush toys with the tags still on. Sadly they sit in that bag in the under roof storage as I’ve got nowhere to store them out. I’d be very willing for a child who loves Beatrix Potter as much as I did to have them, because I’d rather that than them be hidden away forever. Anyway, that’s off the point a bit, I’d love to visit Hill Top farmhouse again, and wander through the gardens and buildings that so inspired her and her wonderful characters.

What was your favourite Beatrix Potter story?

Spend a weekend in Durham

I have never been to Durham. I know, shocking right? I have been all over the North, but for some reason or another, I have never made it to Durham, and I really want to go. As a complete history nerd, the city is fascinating to me, and aside from that it looks exceedingly pretty, with independent shops and eateries to explore. This one is pretty self-explanatory to be honest, it looks like a wonderful little city, and I’d love to go.

So there you have it – six out of thirty two of things I’d like to do. This is going to be a bit of a long series I guess, but there are just so many things to do around the North and if I did them all in one go (or even in three articles) it would end up being so long you’d never reach the end! If you had to pick three places to go in the North, where would it be? What should be on my list? I guarantee there will be places you love that I won’t even know about, so drop me a comment below or an email at bryony@thenorthishlass.co.uk and let me know what I should feature!

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