Not all those who wander are lost
Date published 21 February, 2019
Second Hand Books in Wooler
If you are doing a tour of Northumberland, a visit to Wooler is recommended. It is a small town, around 2000 people, with some quaint shops, decent pubs and a good base for some walks. Don't forget to walk up the hill to Wooler common from the town and watch the vista grow.
It is often called the gateway to the Cheviots, because of its location right by the hills.
It has some great features if you pause and explore. The river runs just below the main town centre. Near the bridge over the river there is a place where you can buy fantastic icecreams, once you have overcome the life sized model cow looming ominously outside.
It took 3 visits to find the gem, though. In the main shopping street there is a tiny second hand book shop. Pop in there and buy something totally random to read - we ended up with a short history of Finland. Why? I have no idea. But it is interesting, because -admit it to yourself - you and I knew very little of the history of Finland before.
As you can see, we got snow on the hills, too, which is definitely added value. And the snow temporarily closed the road to Wooler. Not long enough for us to get snowed in there, disappointingly.
There is another shop selling books, too. There we acquired the book entitled 'A History of the borders' by Alistair Moffat. There is a review of it here . It is a compelling read. It changes your perspective on British history. It will make you want to explore more of this region.
And that, of course, would be a good thing.
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