Windy Monday, wet Tuesday morning, brighter from Wednesday. Walk on Thursday.
Monday stays mild, around 18C to 19C at Alnwick and Berwick, but cloudy and blustery, with gusts of 30mph or more and some light rain inland at Hexham and Kielder. Tuesday starts with rain, heavy at times, before it clears. Wednesday and Thursday bring sunny spells and lighter winds (gusts around 21mph to 23mph inland), with showers near the coast, and Thursday looks the driest day of the lot. It turns cooler as the week goes on, about 13C by Thursday, with the chance of a frost overnight. Friday morning looks damp again. On the coast, Berwick keeps gusts nearer 30mph until midweek, so save the exposed walks for Wednesday or Thursday.
Sunset About 6.30pm in Alnwick on Monday, about 6.20pm by Friday. Full forecast (Met Office)
Berwick has its literary festival all week, so the north end of the county is full of talks, and Thursday's dry, settled day is the one to keep for a proper walk. We've picked a wooded one, which also copes if the coast turns showery.
About 3.5 miles there and back from the Heritage Centre, up the wooded valley of the Hareshaw Burn to the waterfall and back the same way
About 2 hours at a steady pace, longer if you stop at every bridge (there are six)
Start: The Heritage Centre, Woodburn Road, Bellingham NE48 2DG
Hareshaw Linn is a Northumberland National Park site just above Bellingham: ancient woodland of oak, hazel, elm and ash, Victorian Douglas firs, six wooden bridges over the burn and a waterfall at the end. The path also passes what's left of a mid 1800s ironworks, which once had two blast furnaces and 70 coke ovens, so it's a bit of industrial history in among the trees. Thursday is the day for it: the Met Office has it mostly dry with sunny spells and lighter winds, and after Tuesday's rain the burn and the falls should have plenty of water in them. The valley is sheltered, so it's a decent choice even if the wind picks up. Afterwards, the Heritage Centre is right there, and Bellingham has cafés and a pub on the main street.
The path is good but has some inclines and gets muddy after rain, so wear boots. The site is a Site of Special Scientific Interest and a scheduled monument, so stay on the path. The National Park car park nearer the woods only has 25 spaces (two of them disabled bays), so on a busy day start from the Heritage Centre, which has free parking.
Mon 5 Oct, 11.15am (about 40 minutes), then every Monday to December
Ad Gefrin, South Road, Wooler NE71 6NJ £5, Grown-ups
A new weekly talk at Wooler's Anglo-Saxon museum and distillery, looking closely at objects from the time of the royal court at Ad Gefrin. Topics change each week, from costume and powerful women of the age to feasting and craft. A good indoor start to a blowy Monday, and Wooler is the gateway to the Cheviots once the weather settles. Details and booking
Mon 5 Oct, half-hour tours at 12pm, 1pm, 2pm and 3pm
Wallington, Cambo, near Morpeth £5 plus normal admission, Grown-ups (8 and over)
A look into the oldest part of the house, the cellars, with a maximum of 12 people a tour. There are steps down, so this one isn't step-free. Book on 01670 773606 or 0344 249 1895. The next dates aren't until the end of the month. Details and booking
Mon 5 Oct, 7.30pm to 8.30pm (doors and refreshments from 7pm)
Armstrong Hall, Jubilee Institute, Bridge Street, Rothbury NE65 7SD £4, members free, Grown-ups
Ian and Elaine Burnell talk about dragonflies, for Northumberland Wildlife Trust's local group in Rothbury. A small, friendly evening with a cup of tea first. To register, email the organiser through the Wildlife Trust event page. Details and booking
Daily to 8 Nov, 10am to 5pm (last entry 4pm); Wednesday looks the pick
Bamburgh Castle, Bamburgh £19.95 adults; parking £6 a day, Grown-ups
Wednesday brings sunny spells to the coast, which is when the castle and the beach below it are at their best. There's a free shuttle buggy from the main car park, and wheelchair users can reach the first five rooms of the state rooms, including the King's Hall. The castle and café are card only, and there are accessibility rates with proof of disability. Details and booking
The producer behind Blackadder, QI and The News Quiz looks back on a career in radio and television comedy, as part of the Berwick Literary Festival. Seats were still on sale when we checked. If you're there earlier, Peter Aitchison talks about the Eyemouth fishing disaster of 1881 in the same church at 1pm (£10). Details and booking
Queen's Hall Arts Centre, Hexham From £13, 14 and over
James Wilton Dance set Bach to contemporary dance, with cellist Raphael Weinroth-Browne playing live and taking the music somewhere between the concert hall and heavy metal. Box office 01434 652477. Details and booking
The former MP, Times sketch writer and Great Lives presenter talks about his new book and his theory that genius is often sparked by a hard childhood. An afternoon slot that works for a day trip by train. Details and booking
The former Business Secretary on the rise of Asia's economic powers and what it means for a West that has had things its own way for three hundred years. Details and booking
Stephen James and a nine-piece band with brass do the songs of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons: Sherry, Walk Like a Man, Can't Take My Eyes Off You and the rest. Only a handful of tickets were left when we looked, so don't hang about. Details and booking
Battlesteads Dark Sky Observatory, Wark £27.50, concessions £24.50, 8 and over
Homemade soup and sandwiches in the hotel restaurant, then telescopes, meteorites to hold and a talk about meteors and asteroids. Thursday should be one of the clearer nights, though it goes ahead indoors if the cloud wins. It'll be cold, so dress for a frost. Wark is just down the North Tyne from this week's walk. Details and booking
Vindolanda, Bardon Mill NE47 7JN Included with normal admission, Grown-ups
Susie MacMurray, Vindolanda's artist in residence this year, has made three pieces that grow out of the museum walls from beeswax, haircap moss, Soay sheep wool and antler, all materials from the site's own collection. A good reason to go on Friday morning, which looks damp, and save the fort for a dry hour later. Details and booking
Former National Trust regional office car park, Scots Gap, near Wallington £5, Grown-ups
A 6 mile walk with National Trust volunteers along an old railway line, then by a stream through farmland and woodland. It has short climbs, steps and mud, so it's for fit, experienced walkers, and there may be livestock (dogs on leads). Booking is essential on 0344 249 1895 or wallington@nationaltrust.org.uk. Details and booking
Theatre historian Dr Annette Rubery and Dr Nicholas Helm on the London playhouse Vanbrugh designed in 1705, its scenery, its sound and what was staged there. Booking is essential on 0344 249 1895. There are steps up to the Saloon (ring 0191 237 9100 about access), and it's unheated, so bring a warm layer. Details and booking
Martins the Printers, Sea View Works, Main Street, Spittal TD15 1RS £10, Grown-ups
A walk round the working factory floor of a family book printer that has been in Berwick since 1892, one of the few left in the country. The festival calls it perennially popular, so book through The Maltings soon. Details and booking
Book ahead
Rain-proof
Tip. Kielder Observatory's evenings this week (including both Aurora Nights) were already sold out when we checked. If you want a night under the stars, Battlesteads at Wark is the one with seats, and the Met Office has Thursday down as the clearest, coldest night.