Here's some great walks to do in and around Sunderland other than the obvious walk along Roker and Seaburn - and they're all free.
9. Elemore Country Park, Easington Lane
Elemore Country Park in Easington Lane is Sunderland's newest park after transforming the former Elemore Golf Club which stood on the old Elemore Colliery site. Opening in April 2023, it features a new cafe and garden centre as well as forestry and lake improvements | submitted
10. Whitburn Cliffs
Starting at Souter Lighthouse, take a walk along the clifftops of Whitburn to Seaburn beach. The rocky outcrops and sea stacks provide a home to a vast array of nesting seabirds. If you are lucky you may even spot seals and dolphins out at sea | Sunderland Echo
11. Cleadon Hills
Cleadon Hills offers some great variety for a walk. In the winter months, ponies roam and graze the land, to preserve the habitat by encouraging greater floral diversity and creating benefits for invertebrates and ground nesting birds | Sunderland Echo
12. Rainton Meadows Nature Reserve
Located on the site of a former open cast mine, the Rainton Meadows nature reserve is home to more than 200 species of birds. Deer can also often be spotted while walking and you can also take in the Exmoor ponies which are used to naturally manage the grasslands. There's plenty of parking on site and a cafe serving ham and pease pudding sandwiches, coffees and more. | Sunderland Echo