Highfield Hushes

Walk up into the moorland west of Bishop Auckland and you'll stumble across something genuinely odd - a series of deep, narrow channels carved into the hillside like giant scratches from some medieval giant. These are the hushes, and they're the scars left by medieval lead miners who used water to blast away topsoil and expose the ore beneath. It's raw, unvarnished industrial archaeology.

What strikes you immediately is how violent the landscape looks. The hushes cut down the fell in straight lines, some twenty feet deep, and there's no railing, no interpretation board telling you what to think. You work it out yourself, which is oddly satisfying. The moorland around them is proper wild - heather, rough grass, the lot - so the contrast between the scarred channels and the open fells makes the whole thing more atmospheric than any prettified heritage site could manage.

This isn't for everyone. If your idea of a day out involves cafes and gift shops, walk on by. But if you're the sort who likes to wander rough ground, read a bit of history beforehand, and feel genuinely connected to how people lived and worked centuries ago, then Highfield Hushes delivers. Walkers especially will appreciate the raw moorland setting and the satisfying puzzle of what you're looking at. Allow 45 minutes to an hour to explore properly, longer if you're the type to sit and absorb the atmosphere.

Stay at Westgate Caravan & Camping Site just outside Bishop Auckland and you've got a proper base for exploring this corner of Durham's mining heritage. It's free, it's always open, and it doesn't need you to book anything in advance.