Forest bathing at Hareshaw Linn

Hareshaw Linn is a narrow wooded valley on the edge of Bellingham, in Northumberland National Park. Its ancient woodland of oak, hazel, elm and ash is a Site of Special Scientific Interest for its rare ferns and lichens, with more than 300 kinds of mosses, liverworts and lichens. The path follows the burn upstream and crosses six bridges to a waterfall about nine metres high. The valley has industrial history too: an ironworks ran here from 1833 to 1848, and its dam and mounds of ash and stone remain.

Start from the National Park car park at the edge of Bellingham; it has been enlarged but still fills on fine days. The walk is about 3 miles there and back, with one or two steep parts and rocky ground near the falls. The mosses and ferns on the rocks and trunks are the thing to slow down for. Look out for red squirrels, dippers and redstarts.