The North Pennines is an area of outstanding natural beauty, covering 772 square miles.

This wilderness area is one of the country's last expanses of wilderness, a high wild landscape of undulating heather moorland and blanket peat.

The North Pennines spans three counties - Northumberland County Durham and Cumbria, and comprises moorlands, wooded valleys and small, unspoilt villages.

The area has a rich abundance of minerals, and was once an important location for lead, zinc, iron, fluorspar, barytes, witherite and coal mining.

In 2003, the North Pennines was awarded European Geopark Status, a designation for areas with world-class geology.

Parts of the area are protected as National Nature Reserves and Sites of Special Scientific Interest.

Man's influence has also moulded the landscape, with farming and mining. The largest towns in this remote area are Allendale, Alston, Blanchland and Haltwhistle.