Hart and High Throston

A figure of eight walk centered on a church of Saxon origins
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Statistics and Files
Start: Hart Distance: 4.7 miles (7.5 km) Climbing: 100 metres
Grid Ref: NZ 47062 34999 Time: 2 hours Rating: Easy
GPX Route File Google Earth File About Hart
Statistics
Start: Hart Distance: 4.7 miles (7.5 km)
Climbing: 100 metres Grid Ref: NZ 47062 34999
Time: 2 hours Rating: Easy
GPX Route File Google Earth File
Ordnance Survey Explorer Map (1:25,000)

The Walk: The peaceful village of Hart, which overlooks the sprawling port of Hartlepool, is reputed to be the birthplace of Robert the Bruce, whose family were lords here. This walk around the village begins near the Brus Wall which was once part of the Brus manor house.

St Mary Magdalene Church, HartSt Mary Magdalene Church, Hart
Site of Hart railway stationSite of Hart railway station

The route leads along a track onto farmland. The walls of Hart's graveyard is nearby where, in the far left-hand corner, a tombstone commemorates Thomas Warnaby, who 'died aged 5 score years and six'. Close by a memorial recalls Mary Thompson, cousin of the missionary and explorer David Livingstone. The church of St Mary Magdalene has Anglo-Saxon stones embedded in the nave and chancel arch, though much of the present building is Norman.

Just south of the church, the walk passes a quaint cottage called Voltigeur, after the 1850 Derby winner. The horse was born in the building which was used as a stable. In nearby Front Street is the Blue Stone, a glacial hunk of Whin Sill dolerite, which was once the hub of village celebrations.

You head out into the countryside again, following quiet roadsides and lanes to Hart Windmill. Built in the 18th century to replace a medieval mill, the building has a tall brick tower which tapers up to a massive cap. Last used in 1915, Hart Windmill is a precious survivor.

You return to the village, where the front of the White Hart Inn is graced by a beautiful lady in a flowing skirt. Believed to be a figurehead from the Sunderland barque Rising Sun, she was washed up on the Hartlepool shore after a violent storm in 1861, when 60 ships foundered.


Acknowledgments: Text derived from the Out and Out Series; Discovering the Countryside on Foot. Pictures courtesy of Wikipedia.


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