in a previous life I’d drive that every day in a 44ton artic.. fair pull getting up to Carter bar. I came via the A6088 though.
I first drove it in 1980, aged 18, in a 1967 Vauxhall Viva HB. Setting off from Chester-le-Street at 10.30 on a Sunday morning, I pulled into a car park by George Square in Edinburgh at exactly 1.00pm. 125 miles in two and a half hours: not bad for 49 bhp. Im not sure I could match that time today, with 300 more bhp and quattro.
lol 7 years since I posted that!!!@S32B wrote
Just did this, some great roads and lovely views, hardly any cars on it either!
Its called the "Evo Triangle"
This is the route with a few pics of the views:
Last year, I moved to Northumberland, and now live within ten minutes of Ponteland, where the A696 start its glorious run northwards towards the A68 and the border. I haven't yet done the whole route to Edinburgh in one go, but have done several runs up to the border. It's busier than I remember it from 1980, (naturally - eveywhere is) and yes there is a fair bit of speed camera intrusion, but the essence of what makes the road great - the dips, curves, swoops, sight-lines and amazing scenery is just as it was when I was a teenage hooligan as opposed to a saga lout.
You’re right; I didn’t which was rather remiss of me . I also didn’t mention the crashed and abandoned Fiesta in a field beside the road, nor the young man running up and down the road picking up the bits that he’d broken off his Honda Civic I suspect only minutes earlier. It was parked on the edge of one of the bends looking very sorry for itself.
