Drivelines
England · Near Newcastle/8 min read

The 10 most scenic drives around Newcastle and the Northeast.

The Northeast holds some of the starkest, most compelling landscapes in the UK. From the deep valleys of the North Pennines to the fringes of the Cheviots, these are the routes where the view commands your attention.

By Drivelines·Published 06 May 2026
REGION OVERVIEW

Big skies and borderlands

Though the city of Newcastle itself is dense and urban, half an hour behind the wheel in almost any direction puts you into spectacular driving country. To the south and west, the North Pennines offer huge, sky-dominating expanses of heather and dramatic descents into ancient stone villages. To the north, the roads skirt the edges of the Cheviot Hills and weave through dark, forested valleys. The pleasure here is scale: these roads aren't just lines on a map, but vantage points that lay the wilder edges of the Northeast out in front of your windscreen.

Routes mapped
10
Total distance
132km
Avg curve idx
5.2/10
Map of all 10 routes in near-newcastle
StartEnd
Plan a drive to B6344
10
B6344 · Rothbury · Spirited
Dual-trackSmooth surface

B6344

The B6344 follows the River Coquet upstream from Weldon Bridge on the A697 to Rothbury, Coquetdale's main town, and packs a 6.7 curve score into a little under six miles. It is smooth, mostly dual-track and rarely straight for long, but it is also the working road into town and out to Cragside, so the sightlines through the wooded valley sections are shorter than the flow of the road suggests. It rewards a tidy line and patience behind local traffic.

The stretch at Todstead, near Cragend, has been sliding towards the river since the 1970s: shut from late 2012 to 2016, and again from April 2023 to March 2024 while 180 m of retaining wall went in and 200 m of road was moved away from the bank. That is where the tarmac is newest and the alignment has changed.

Distance
9.2km
Drive time
0h 11m
Curve idx
6.7/10
Climb
143m
StartEnd
Plan a drive to Comb Bridges (C87)
09
C87 · Derwent Valley · Expert
Single-trackVaried surface

Comb Bridges (C87)

Hidden away near the Derwent Reservoir, this very twisty, single-track lane is a technical challenge paired with immediate, enclosed scenery. The surface is inconsistent, and the rapid succession of blind bends demands respect.

Traffic is almost non-existent, but stray sheep on the road are far less predictable than a tractor.

Distance
7.2km
Drive time
0h 13m
Curve idx
7.2/10
Climb
150m
StartEnd
Plan a drive to Crosslet Lane (C74)
08
C74 · Bishop Auckland · Spirited
Single-trackVaried surface

Crosslet Lane (C74)

Tucked into the hills near Bishop Auckland, this single-track route is narrow, winding, and completely immersed in the rural landscape. It’s not about driving dynamics, but rather the quiet isolation of the Durham dales.

Sightlines vanish into sudden dips, demanding constant attention to the road surface ahead.

Distance
9.7km
Drive time
0h 21m
Curve idx
5.4/10
Climb
68m
StartEnd
Plan a drive to Park Bank (B6306)
07
B6306 · Blanchland · Easy
Mixed widthVaried surface

Park Bank (B6306)

Dropping southward towards Blanchland, this road mixes flowing bends with occasional tighter descents. The transition from high open ground down into the sheltered, wooded valley is visually striking.

The historic village of Blanchland at the bottom is a natural, heavily photographed waypoint to let the brakes cool.

Distance
11.9km
Drive time
0h 16m
Curve idx
4.8/10
Climb
166m
StartEnd
Plan a drive to Lands Road (B6282)
06
B6282 · Teesdale Fringes · Easy
Dual-trackSmooth surface

Lands Road (B6282)

Sweeping eastwards across the lower fringes of the moors near Cockfield Fell, this is a smooth, gentle route. The low curve density means the car settles into a long, easy rhythm, leaving you free to take in the vast skies.

The wide grass verges are a common parking spot for locals walking dogs, so keep an eye out for sudden movement.

Distance
15.3km
Drive time
0h 17m
Curve idx
3.0/10
Climb
168m
StartEnd
Plan a drive to Town Head
05
Unclassified · Middleton-in-Teesdale · Spirited
Single-trackRough surface

Town Head

A rough, single-track climb leading out of Middleton-in-Teesdale. It won't win any awards for surface quality, but the raw, unpolished Teesdale scenery is the entire point of the detour.

Patience is mandatory; you will inevitably find yourself reversing to a passing place for an oncoming farm vehicle.

Distance
8.2km
Drive time
0h 19m
Curve idx
5.8/10
Climb
185m
StartEnd
Plan a drive to Healeyfield Lane (C16)
04
C16 · Castleside · Spirited
Dual-trackVaried surface

Healeyfield Lane (C16)

Perched above Castleside, this relatively short stretch packs in tighter, spirited curves while overlooking the Derwent valley. The dual-track road requires reading the camber, but the elevation provides excellent vantage points.

Glimpses of the Derwent Reservoir off to the west provide a sudden, vast contrast to the enclosed farmland.

Distance
6.9km
Drive time
0h 09m
Curve idx
6.0/10
Climb
76m
StartEnd
Plan a drive to Shield Street (B6295)
03
B6295 · Hexhamshire · Easy
Dual-trackVaried surface

Shield Street (B6295)

The B6295 leaves the A689 just past Cowshill and climbs 150 m onto Burtree Fell: 3.2 km at around six per cent, opening with a hairpin section in the forestry and topping out at 570 m. It then drops steeply into the old lead-mining village of Allenheads before settling into a gentler run down the East Allen to Allendale Town and Catton. It is better graded than the A689 alongside, with nothing steeper than about one in seven, so the driving is rolling crests and mid-speed bends on a surface that comes and goes rather than hairpins all the way. It rewards patience over the blind crests and smooth inputs on the descents.

Allenheads sits at 400 m and runs a ski club, which tells you about winter: the B6295 from the Allendale side is kept clear in all but the worst weather, but the minor roads off it have been blocked for weeks at a time, so in snow the northern approach is the one to use.

Distance
19.5km
Drive time
0h 24m
Curve idx
4.7/10
Climb
491m
StartEnd
Plan a drive to Church Lane (B6320)
02
B6320 · Wark · Easy
Dual-trackSmooth surface

Church Lane (B6320)

From the Chollerford roundabout on the Military Road, the B6320 follows the west bank of the North Tyne north for 12 miles to Bellingham, through Wark at the halfway mark. The bends are long and well sighted and the surface holds up, so this is a road about rhythm rather than effort: it rewards a steady throttle and early, gentle positioning. It finishes over John Green's four-arch bridge of 1834 into Bellingham, which is single-track.

Bellingham Bridge is single-track with no lights, so be ready to give way on the way in; the Pennine Way drops walkers into the village all summer. The Battlesteads at Wark sits right on the road at the halfway point.

Distance
25.7km
Drive time
0h 27m
Curve idx
3.8/10
Climb
297m
StartEnd
Plan a drive to Bolihope Cross (B6278)
01
B6278 · North Pennines · Easy
Dual-trackVaried surface

Bolihope Cross (B6278)

The B6278 crosses the Wear on Stanhope's fifteenth-century bridge and climbs south over Bollihope Common before dropping to Eggleston in Teesdale: eleven miles of open North Pennines road with 463 m of climbing. The curve score is a modest 4.2, so this is about long sightlines and mid-speed sweepers rather than steering lock; dual-track throughout, with the surface varying as the altitude does. It rewards fluid inputs and reading the road a long way ahead.

Riders treat it as one leg of a Stanhope, Alston and Middleton triangle with the A689 and B6277, so Sunday traffic is bikes. Stanhope's ford at the bottom is closed to vehicles; the road uses the old bridge 600 m upstream.

Distance
19km
Drive time
0h 21m
Curve idx
4.2/10
Climb
463m
// KEEP READING
Sibling guide · Driving
Top 10 driving roads in Newcastle
Parent region · England
Top 10 scenic drives in England
Nearby · The east of England
Top 10 scenic drives in the east of England
Nearby · London and the Home Counties
Top 10 scenic drives in London and the Home Counties
Nearby · The Midlands
Top 10 scenic drives in the Midlands
Index · Every region
All Top 10 Field Guides

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