My first walk of the section in the first week of January, was on a morning following a night of strong winds and heavy rain. It was dry on my arrival at Heavenfield layby but there was still some strong gusts of wind, as I prepared for my walk on the section.

The field at Heavenfield was full of sheep and they all moved closer to the gate, probably thinking I was the owner with some feed! They quickly moved away to the corner of the field as I started to walk east.

The full programme of walks and events for the 2012 Haltwhistle Spring Walking Fesival is now all online.

The Festival runs between 28th April and 7th May and the times and dates for all 29 walks (and the social evening) have now been published on the Walking Festival website on www.haltwhistlewalkingfestival.org.

By visiting the site those interested in this established walking festival can also read full descriptions for all of the walks so that they choose walks that they can both physically manage as well as finding something of particular interest to themselves.

The cost for most of the walks remains at £6 but where they run over a series of days or where additional costs are incurred, such as transport or food (like an afternoon tea) then prices are higher.

Birds, alpacas, beer, singing and drumming are just some of the themes available in the prgramme for this spring.

Bookings for the walks can also be made through the website so people can plan their Walking Festival visit in the comfort of their own homes.

Christmas is over, 2012 has started and we are all getting back into our routines as though nothing has happened.

But amidst all of this the organising committee for the Haltwhistle Waking Festival is putting the final touches to the Spring Walking Festival which is scheduled to run from Saturday 28th April to Monday 7th May.

There are 28 proposed walks in all of varying grades of difficulty and interest, as well as a social eveing. All of the finalised walks and social events will be fully described on their website before February and also booking will be available for online.

Spring brings a renewed freshness to this area which is both wild and rugged as well as very beautiful, and the walks provide a great opportunity to see the best of this area in good company. The headline long walks this spring will be the Burns and Crags over the first weekend and the 3 day Hexham to Haltwhistle via Burn Tongues over the second weekend. There will be something of interest to everyone as Real Ale, Bird watching, Drumming, Singing, Conservation, Alpacas and much more have all been included in the programme.

During 2011, I created a photographic diary of images taken at the National Trust property of Wallington. As a volunteer gardener there, it gave me the opportunity on my weekly visits to observe the seasonal changes in the Walled Garden and around the woods and grounds. My monthly blogs appeared on the Morpeth Community web pages.

For 2012, I am going to chart the changes on my section of Hadrian's Wall Path National Trail. As a volunteer ranger, I maintain and monitor a three and a quarter mile section - Portgate to Heavenfield. It starts at The Errington Arms car park north of Corbridge and finishes at the lay by at Heavenfield near to Chollerford.

Written by Kevin O'Hara, conservation officer at Northumberland Wildlife Trust

Where do they all go in winter? - Part 1

Recently I felt the first twangs of winter; the 'first frost' gripped my garden, the chickens came skidding out of their ark, and I had to break the ice on their drinking water. I really like those first days, when we still have some daylight left to enjoy the wonderful colours and smells. I take the camera and binoculars with me when I walk the dogs, keeping an eye out for winter thrushes or other visitors. The clocks have altered and we start the long haul of winter - not until February will some real light return to the sky, and warmth to the sun.

It is during these months that we wonder where, exactly, many of our resident wildlife species go to survive the coldest and wettest days of winter, especially those that are more delicate and less mobile.

Make a day of it in Western Tynedale and visit the 25th Annual Art & Craft Fair in Haltwhistle.

The Masonic Hall in Haltwhistle is not far from the Main Street in Haltwhistle. It is a comfortable, modernised hall with good disabled access and will be well sign posted on the day.

The fair has attracted a varied range of different crafts both from local producers and from across the region. There will be different types and styles of high quality wood products, Metal Products, Knitwear, Candles, Quilting, Digital Art, Cards, Floral Arrangements, Nail Art, Pencil Drawings, Photographs, Embroidery, Stained and Painted Glass, various styles of Jewellery, Paintings, Festive Products and much, much more.

Of particular interest there are two new stall holders who travelling some distance to attend and they are bringing hand crafted leather goods and items made from silk screen printed fabric.

According to the dictionary, a walker is a person who walks, especially for exercise or enjoyment; a rambler is one who walks in the countryside for pleasure and a hiker goes on an extended walk for pleasure. Whichever way you look at it, seeking pleasure is at the heart of all the definitions. The walkers who booked for this Autumn's Haltwhistle Walking Festival probably wondered how much pleasure there could be, when they saw the weather forecast for the first few days!

Over the first weekend, the weather was atrocious and people's waterproof clothing and boots were put through their stiffest challenge. Despite this, the atmosphere on the walks was buoyant, and a strong sense of camaraderie developed between those who had braved the conditions. As the week progressed the weather improved, although conditions underfoot were slower to change. There was more "plodging in clarts" then many had ever experienced! But by the weekend walkers were able to discard their coats and enjoy the sunshine.

The 18th Walking Festival attracted more than 400 bookings. Walkers came from as far afield as Bradford and Belfast, Lincoln, Luton and London, Dumfries and Durham, Warrington and York, and of course from Northumberland and Cumbria. A few visitors stayed with friends and family, but many were booked in the B & Bs, hotels and hostels in the Haltwhistle area.

Haltwhistle Walking Festival "came of age" with the start of the 18th festival last Saturday 8th Ocotber. The weather was dull, overcast, drizzly, misty and miserable, nevertheless the first 25 walkers gathered at 8.30a.m. in Haltwhistle Market Place for a coach journey to Bewcastle.

Spirits were high as old friends greeted each other and new walkers to the festivalwere welcomed. This particular walk started at Bewcastle Church, with its famous 7th century cross, and then followed a route through farmland and forestry roads before climbing over tussocky moorland to Christianbury Crags. These crags consist of small tors of sandstone, eroded over the centuries into a variety of fascinating shapes. It is here that farmers used to collect strickle, small quantities of sand that lie between the rocks which they used to sharpen scythes and other blades.

At the beginning of September the Sound + Vision 35/45 music video competition was launched by
'Northern Film+Media' in partnership with 'Generator'.

The challenge for the North East film makers was to produce a music video from a choice of three songs recorded by up and coming bands in the region. The makers of the video judged to be the best would have the opportunity to produce a music video for Domino Records' solo artist Bill Ryder-Jones, formerly the ex-lead guitarist of The Coral.

The film makers were given just two weeks to make the music videos from the date that the music tracks were made available.

Flashlight films entry for Middlesbrough band Toyger with their song Karl's Diary was selected as one of the finalists shown at an event at the Cluny in Newcastle on 29th September.

It wasn't a smooth process for Flashlight Films as the original plan put together by Matthew Brown was set in outside locations and unfortunately the filming days coincided with the arrival of hurricane weather and at the last minute a new indoor set was hastily found and a new plan put into action.

It is now just only a month until the 25th Annual Art & Craft Fair in Haltwhistle and the event is filling up nicely so is definitely worth putting in your diary so come along to see the variety of crafts that are available.

The event takes place in the Masonic Hall on Banks Terrace in Haltwhistle on Saturday 5th November, between 10.00 a.m. and 4.00 p.m. and is set to be just as big as the hall will take.

The venue for the event and is not far from the Main Street in Haltwhistle. It is a comfortable, modernised hall with good disabled access.

The fair is continuing to attract stall holders from near and far and a wide range of cards, jewellery, hand crafted leather goods,stained glass, screen printed fabric goods, photography, wood products, candles, photography, pencil drawings, hand made Christmas decorations and everything you might want to consider as a special present for someone this Christmas.