Named after one of our favourite guests (Monty the dog!), this short circular walk is perfect to wake up the legs in the morning, or as a great route to take you to a coffee shop for a cake! Taking about 30 minutes, this 1 mile walk has one small hill, but is largely on level ground.
Starting from the hostel, head down the steps to the Pennine Way. You can either follow the Way to the left, or head down to the South Tyne river and walk along the river bank. Do be careful on this second route though, as the path is rocky and there have been some rockfalls.
Just before you reach the first stile, follow the sign up alongside the stream, through the small copse of trees and over the bridge heading up the hill.
As you leave the copse over the stile through the wall, turn left and make your way up to the road. Bear in mind that there are horses in these fields, so please keep any dogs on a lead.
At the road, turn left, past the farm and head back towards Alston.
As you reach the T-junction, either pop over and say hello to the chickens and ducks, or turning left you can also extend the walk slightly by following the sign to “Strait Lonning” into the town, turning right at the end of this path to join the road and head down into Alston town. Pop in to Sadlers or Cobbles for a lovely cake and drink before heading back to the hostel. If you want to just head back, you can carry on without taking this path, going through the gate into the cemetery. Following the path down the hill, you will walk under the majestic trees until you see the hostel re-appear on your right.
You can see a map of this route on OS Maps by following the link below