Marching soldiers did not sleep in the open. Every night on campaign, a Roman army dug a ditch and threw up a rampart around its tents, and the faint outlines of these temporary camps are scattered across Northumberland, some dating from the conquest of the north, others from the building of the Wall. The camp near the old Grindon school, close to the Stanegate a little north of Haydon Bridge, is one of these. You will need a good map and a low sun to make out its banks.
A few miles west, Vindolanda, a Stanegate fort that predates the Wall, is where archaeologists found the famous writing tablets, thin wooden leaves with ink letters: requests for socks and beer, a birthday invitation from one officer's wife to another. They are among the oldest surviving handwritten documents in Britain, and the site's museum is excellent; excavations continue every summer, and volunteers dig alongside the archaeologists.
The country around here is a mix of farmland and moorland, with the South Tyne valley to the south and the Wall to the north. Haydon Bridge, on the South Tyne, is a village with an old stone bridge, and Langley Castle, a restored fourteenth century tower house now a hotel, stands to the south. Newbrough and Fourstones are small villages along the Stanegate.
The roads here are quiet and pleasant, with gentle curves, farmland and views. The B6318 runs along the Wall to the north, and the A69 runs along the valley to the south. The minor roads in between are narrow and winding, with sheep and tractors, and they can be muddy. The weather can be changeable, with rain and wind common.
Haydon Bridge, six kilometres away, has a shop and a pub, and Hexham, thirteen kilometres away, has filling stations, shops and somewhere to eat. Vindolanda has a café and a museum. The camp itself is in a field and best seen from the road or a footpath.