■ Distance: 7¾ miles/12.5km ■ Time: 4 hours ■ ...

■ Distance: 7½ miles/12km ■ Time: 4 hours ...

■ Distance: 5½ miles/9km ■ Time: 3 hours ...

■ Distance: 6 miles/9.7km ■ Time: 3 hours ■ ...

We arrive at the top of High Cup Nick in the North Pennines. “It’s like the world starts just over there,” comments my friend Mark. He’s pointing down the U-shaped chasm of High Cup Gill, beyond whose

Half a century after its inception, the Coast to Coast path becomes a National Trail this spring, opening up the wild landscapes and historic villages of Northern England to a new generation of hikers