Black to Green - Herrington Country Park Traditional Cache
Black to Green - Herrington Country Park
-
Difficulty:
-
-
Terrain:
-
Size: 
(small)
Please note Use of geocaching.com services is subject to the terms and conditions
in our disclaimer.
The Black to Green series of geocaches are located within areas which have been transformed from former coal mining waste heaps and derelict areas left after the closure of the pits. The mines which once supported local communities with thousands of jobs across the area have, over the last couple of decades been transformed from the ‘BLACK’ pit heaps to the ‘GREEN’ parklands and leisure areas we see today.
Herrington Colliery 1874 - 1985
Herrington Country Park was once the site of Herrington Colliery, which closed in 1985. By that time the colliery waste heap was the largest in the North East at some 11,000,000 cu. M. of shale, which blighted the lives of the local communities.
Cast in the shadow of Penshaw monument, it has been transformed into what is possibly the premier park of the North East.
During the transformation, nothing other than coal left the site and useful minerals like sandstone and red ash were used in its development - the sandstone for the sculptures and the red ash for the many pathways.
The park has been the subject of a major BBC documentary celebrating the Queen's Golden Jubilee in terms of the changing English landscapes and has been cited as an example of best practice. The Park has a design quality which is rare and is rapidly gaining a sense of ownership with the community, and is winning respect across the region. It has been identified in the Great North Forest Plan as a Gateway Site, a major link between the community and the countryside offering people a taste of the countryside and hopefully assisting them to develop the confidence and skills to take them into the broader landscape.
The park is now the home of 'The Miners Memorial Service', 'The Race for Life', 'The Race for Grace' and many other events supported by the local community.
This area is very popular with dog walkers, a degree of stealth may be required.
For a wealth of information about mining in the area visit the Durham Mining Museum at;
(visit link)
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
onfr bs Sve.
Treasures
You'll collect a digital Treasure from one of these collections when you find and log this geocache:
Loading Treasures