You may have heard of the Angel of the North, but have you heard of the Lady of the North? Giant sculptures seem to be multiplying across the north of England. These two may actually be within sight of each other, but I think some trees blocked by view of the Angel. This lady is build using earth from the neighbouring surface coal mine, which was looking pretty active.
It was designed by Charles Jencks whose work we have also seen near Edinburgh.
This is the view from her forehead towards her feet a few hundred metres away. You just cannot see the whole thing at once from the ground, but it is meant to be explored. There are paths all over, but some people obviously took short cuts and have caused some damage. Everything is so dry that it could easily wear away.
We wandered around a fair bit, but it was pretty hot with no shade. The lakes were looking like they had dried up a bit with a few water fowl paddling around. There was a lot of insect life with butterflies and dragonflies to be seen.
You can see some trucks collecting coal in the background as I was stood on a nipple. I think that had a plaque pointing to the Angel and there are other little features scattered around.
From the car park you pass through a small wood. This wooden sculpture was very elegant with the feel of the skeleton of some giant beast. There are trails in the wood for kids to explore. The site is free to visit with the option of donating.
We did not go in the visitor centre that has a cafe. Some people were having picnics, but there was a lot of litter around. It is a shame people cannot enjoy the site without spoiling it. A guy was busy cleaning the place up. There was some work being done on the paths, but they will need it as visitors and the weather take their toll.
If you are in that area just north of Newcastle then it is worth a visit. You could see most of it in an hour.
