NEHL - There's an incredibly special set of Stuart earthworks just south of Greenside that really peaked my interest.

Hopefully you'll see the embankment on the shots below. These are some of the last remnants of Cowclose Way, a waggonway dating from at least the late 17th century to link collieries at Chopwell and Cowclose Farm to what were likely very primitive coal staiths at Stella.

They were such waggonways all over this part of Gateshead, linking inland coal workings with the River Tyne well before steam power was invented. You might have heard of the Grand Lease waggonway, opened in the 1620s, which accelerated the growth of the railways in the region and became the most dominant and self sufficient network in the country. Some lasted into the days of steam and developed into railways we're more accustomed with.

This one was certainly still here in the early 1700s and is mapped out in the 1720s, but the waggonway and the collieries it served didn't survive into steam. Therefore, these earthworks are a special survivor into Tyneside's early industrial golden age.

Please note this waggonway cannot be traversed without trespassing so please do not attempt.