For most kids you can’t beat getting close up and personal with members of the animal kingdom. And the places where you can do this in Northumberland are manifold. From bees to prehistoric bulls, from birds to farmyard animals, Northumberland offers opportunities galore.

1 The Bird of Prey Centre, Kielder Water
Did you know that a peregrine falcon can reach 112mph when it dives, with its wings half folded, on its prey? Or that this dive is called a ‘stoop’? Would you like to learn more about eagles, buzzards, kestrels, falcons, hawks, kites, vultures and owls?
If so, a visit to the Bird of Prey Centre on Kielder Water’s Leaplish Waterside Park is a must. Not only can you see the birds, but you can handle them, and watch falconry demonstrations. The centre also lays on hunting days, hawk walks and falconry training.
Run by a team of enthusiasts led by the proprietor Ray Lowden, the centre helps to ensure the survival of these beautiful birds in an often hostile world through a captive breeding programme.

2 Hauxley Nature Reserve
On the coast just south of Amble, the Hauxley Nature Reserve is one of four on Druridge Bay run by the Northumberland Wildlife Trust. Based around a fresh-water lake created in 1982 when open-cast mine workings were flooded, it has five small islands and six hides. Whether you’re a complete novice or a confirmed twitcher, Hauxley offers easy-access birdwatching in comfort and with the support of an experienced warden.
Twenty metres or so from the (free) parking area, you come to the reception hide, a handsome wooden building bought complete from Scandinavia. The hide is warm, has modern toilets, and large picture windows looking out over the lake. A record is kept each day of all the birds seen – 47 species when we were there. Jim Martin, the warden on duty, said that 40 to 50 was a good average in the spring.

3 Bird Sanctuaries – Coquet Island, and the Farne Islands
Up the coast from Hauxley are two offshore wildlife sanctuaries. The first is Coquet Island, directly east of Amble. An RSPB bird sanctuary that also has colonies of seals, the island can be viewed from boats which set off from Amble harbour throughout the summer, weather permitting. Further north, off Bamburgh, are the better-known Farne Islands, owned by the National Trust. A major breeding ground for Atlantic or Grey seals, during the nesting season they are also home to 20 different species of seabirds, including razorbills, eider ducks, terns, guillemots and puffins.
The Farne Islands include one which was the home of St Cuthbert (Inner Farne), another on which Grace Darling and her father ran the lighthouse (Longstone), and the one from which she rescued the survivors of the Forfarshire (Big Harcar). Only Inner Farne and Staple islands allow landing. Boat trips can be booked at a row of colourful offices on the quayside at Seahouses.

4 Conundrum Farm
North of Berwick-upon-Tweed is Conundrum Farm, which advertises itself as England’s most northerly farm visitor centre – the farm’s land actually runs up to the border.
Lynn and Nigel Dudgeon have grafted a number of attractions onto their working farm, without changing its nature. Running along the back of a barn are a well-stocked gift shop and a restaurant that serves home baking and farm-fresh food (it won the Northumberland Gold Food Award in 2002). A lovely feature is a big picture window that allows you to watch the animals in the barn while you eat.
Beyond the barn is an extensive farm trail, where families can see pigs, sheep, goats, Highland cattle, donkeys and ponies. There are ducks and geese to feed, and a children’s playground to explore.

5 Chain Bridge Honey Farm
Just as close to the border (the suspension bridge after which it is named crosses the Tweed into Scotland), Chain Bridge Honey Farm is a commercial operation established in 1966. Hives made on the premises from locally grown timber house around 1000 colonies of bees, from which come honey, cosmetics, beeswax candles, furniture polish, mead, and much else. The visitor centre houses a beekeeping museum, an observation hive, some vintage farm vehicles and a shop carrying a wide range of the farm’s products. There are also pleasant walks in the lovely border countryside.

6 The Wild White Cattle of Chillingham
The wild white cattle of Chillingham are unique. For 700 years they have lived in Chillingham Park, cut off from the outside world. And this is why they are of such great interest – they have inbred for generations and yet have remained healthy. Even Charles Darwin was interested in them.
To see the cattle, you buy a ticket at the warden’s cottage, then walk up through woodland and across a field. The warden, Austin Widows, meets you at a hut and escorts you into the park. He makes sure that you keep a fair distance – and a river – between you and the bulls. They can be very dangerous.

7 Whitehouse Farm Centre
Just down the road from the great conurbation of Tyneside is Whitehouse Farm Centre. Its proximity gives city kids the chance to get in touch with the countryside. A lot of the centre’s attractions are indoors, so even bad weather shouldn’t be a discouragement.
In a succession of barns there are farmyard animals – cattle, sheep, pigs, goats, horses, ponies, donkeys and poultry. The centre is also home to wallabies, rheas, llamas, rabbits, guinea pigs, chipmunks, mice, rats and chinchillas. Children are encouraged to help feed the livestock. They might even get to handle a yellow Californian king snake. There is also a play-barn and a café/restaurant with a soft play area. Outdoors there are pedal tractors, go-karts, an adventure playground, a toboggan run, and tractor-and-trailer rides. Not to mention quite a few retail outlets. Something for everyone, in fact.