Aerial view of the Church of Our Lady next to Seaton Delaval Hall Northumberland | © Callum Thompson Photography

North East

Wagonway walk at Seaton Delaval Hall

This gentle trail starts from Seaton Delaval Hall and takes in much of the wider estate, incorporating local points of interest and historical facts about the Delaval family. Part of the route follows a centuries-old wagonway that was used to carry the coal from the local mines to Seaton Sluice, where it would be loaded onto waiting ships for export. Stop by the old harbour to get an idea of this industrial history, and look out for other landmarks, including the remains of Starlight Castle (a folly built on a wager) and the Mausoleum.

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Total steps: 8

Start point

Seaton Delaval Hall main gates, grid ref: NZ321766

Step 1

Leave Seaton Delaval Hall by the main gates, turn left on the footpath and follow the estate wall around the bend as far as the gates to the grounds of the Church of Our Lady and its secluded graveyard. Retrace your steps back to the main road and turn left to walk up the Avenue towards Seaton Delaval.

Step 2

Turn left at the first junction (signposted 'Public Bridleway Holywell Dene') into Harbord Terrace. Go to the end of the lane, round the metal gate, and straight ahead between fields then through a kissing gate beside a metal gate and onwards. To the left you can see the obelisk (which is on private farmland and is not accessible). The fields are named after the Dairy House Farm and Pit, which used to be located in the hummocky area with several gorse bushes just before the next metal gate with a wooden bypass to its left.

Step 3

Wiggle through the bypass and turn left along the wide grassy footpath, a wagonway that was in use by 1778.

Seaton Delaval Hall and the wagonway

As you walk beside the hawthorn hedge there is a magnificent view of Seaton Delaval Hall and you can see the south front steps where Sir Francis Blake Delaval fell and broke his leg, from which he subsequently died in December 1752. The obelisk you can see is a landscape feature of the hall's pleasure grounds and would be a focal point for the Delavals and their guests to walk to when the weather was fine. The wagonway was used to carry the coal from the various mines in the area to Seaton Sluice, either for export or for the industry there.

Step 4

Climb over the stile at the iron gate and continue straight on until you come to some steep steps descending to the left. Go down the steps, over a stile, and down another flight of steps to the bottom of Holywell Dene.

Step 5

Turn right and cross the Seaton Burn using the wooden bridge, then turn immediately left on the path, keeping the burn on your left-hand side. On the left are the remains of Starlight Castle. After a short distance further, on the left-hand side of the burn, are two 18th-century cottages and the site of Seaton Lodge.

Starlight Castle and Seaton Lodge

Starlight Castle is said to have been built in 24 hours by Sir Francis Blake Delaval for a wager of 100 guineas. The remains of the castle - a small wall and arch - can only be seen in winter when there is no vegetation. Seaton Lodge was a large Jacobean house bought in 1694 by Sir Ralph Delaval and lived in by his brother Sir John Delaval. Samuel Pepys is said to have stayed here in 1672 and, six years later, the Scottish inventor James Watt. The Lodge was demolished in the 1960's. In the burn at low tide, you can see the foundation stones of a footbridge used by the Delavals to reach the works at Seaton Sluice.

Step 6

Continue around the burn and pass under the road bridge, pause and then contemplate the scene in front of you.

Seaton Sluice harbour

From the 16th to 19th centuries, Seaton Sluice was a major exporter of coal, salt and glass bottles. In 1777, thanks to the 'cut' in the cliff created by the Delavals, 80,000 tons of coal, 300 tons of salt and 1.75 million glass bottles were all exported from here. The 'cut' was made by John and Thomas Delaval between 1761-64, which gave improved access for ships to the old harbour and also created a wet/dry dock to allow the loading of cargo in all tides and weathers. The isolated sandstone pinnacle you can see is known as Charlie's Garden, named after the person who cultivated the top of it before the sea finally separated it from the mainland. It is not a sea stack but the result of 19th-century quarrying.

Step 7

Retrace your steps. Do not go under the road bridge, but instead turn right and down the short flight of steps to cross over the metal footbridge. Then turn left to pass under the road bridge and bear right to reach the street of bungalows (Seaburn Grove). Bear right in front of the bungalows.

Step 8

At the roundabout, turn left and stay on the footpath all the way back to the Hall. You will then reach your original starting point at the main gates of the hall.

The Mausoleum

As you climb, notice the old wall on your left topped by slag, which is a waste product of glass making. Beyond the wall lay Lord Delaval's deer park, and above that his hare park. On your right, notice Lookout Farmhouse, built in 1721 and used as a lookout post in time of war. Opposite, you may be able to glimpse the Mausoleum, built in 1777 by Sir John Hussey Delaval for his son John, who died in 1776 aged 19 (the Mausoleum was never consecrated and John is buried at Doddington, Lincolnshire).

End point

Seaton Delaval Hall main gates, grid ref: NZ321766

Trail map

Map of Wagonway walk at Seaton Delaval Hall, Northumberland — Wagonway walk at Seaton Delaval Hall, Northumberland | © Crown copyright and database rights 2013 Ordnance Survey

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The Avenue, Seaton Sluice, Northumberland, NE26 4QR

01912379100

seatondelavalhall@nationaltrust.org.uk

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Total steps: 8

Total steps: 8

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End point

Trail map