(18 Apr 2016, 10:32 pm)Jamie M wrote The 20 is nice once it gets to the bank where west rainton is. Can see a long way, completely bleak apart from that section though.

The strength of that route is how varied it is. It seems to go through almost every style of housing and commercial development possible for that area, very ancient and very modern included, with a few fields in between for good measure!

Up around West Rainton is our secret shortcut to the Arnison centre for when Durham is too congested to contemplate. Used it, mostly, when I lived in Hetton Le Hole, for a while, but until we got our current car, have used it occasionally, since. It's single lane, most of the way, with a hairy turn onto a narrow bridge, at once point, plus a risk of encountering horses, but you emerge at one point to a place where (as a passenger) you can look down a long way into a valley that the Wear runs through (it's not right wide at that point, so is fast moving) and then, when you've retrieved your breakfast, carry on to the shops, via Finchale abbey.

We haven't taken out current car (Avensis Tourer) there because it's significantly wide than the old Avensis we had and Husband doesn't feel safe with it. Plus, the road is a lot busier than it used to be, which means a lot more pulling over or facing people off who won't pull over when you can't.