The Cheviots might look like miles and miles of empty countryside, but they're not a giant playground that's been left there purely for us to wander around.
Much of the landscape is being farmed and managed. There are sheep, cattle, grouse moors, working farms and people trying to earn a living, alongside all the wildlife that was quite happily living here before we arrived with our walking boots and Fruity Malt.
None of this means you need to creep around apologising for being there. Just remember that we're visitors and look after the place while we're enjoying it.
Dogs and livestock
Dogs are welcome in the National Park, but this is definitely somewhere you need to keep them properly under control.
You'll encounter sheep all over the Cheviots and cattle in plenty of places too. A dog doesn't actually have to catch a sheep to cause problems. Chasing or frightening livestock can cause injury and distress, particularly around pregnant animals and young lambs.
On Open Access land there are specific rules too. Dogs must be on a lead around livestock and, between 1 March and 31 July, they must be on a lead even where livestock aren't present. That's because spring and early summer are also nesting season for birds that make their nests on or close to the ground.
Curlew, lapwing and oystercatchers are among the ground-nesting birds found around the National Park, and a dog bounding through the vegetation can disturb nests and young birds without you ever realising they're there.
There can also be additional local restrictions, particularly around lambing fields and grouse moors, so pay attention to signs rather than assuming the same rules apply everywhere.
Personally, if there's livestock around, the lead goes on. It's easier for everyone.
And obviously pick up after your dog. Bag it and take it home with you.
Give livestock some room
Most encounters with livestock involve absolutely nothing more exciting than walking past while being stared at suspiciously.
Give animals plenty of space, particularly mothers with young, don't feed them and don't try to interact with them. Their behaviour can be unpredictable and there's really no reason to get involved.
Cattle deserve a little extra respect, especially when calves are present and particularly if you have a dog with you. If cattle do approach aggressively and you feel threatened, official advice is to let go of the dog rather than putting yourself in danger trying to hold onto it. The dog has a much better chance of getting itself out of the way than you do while attached to the other end of the lead.
Leave gates as you find them
You'll go through a lot of gates in the Cheviots.
The temptation is to think closed good, open bad, but farmers sometimes deliberately leave gates open so livestock can reach food or water. The Countryside Code advice is therefore beautifully simple: leave gates as you find them, unless a sign or somebody working there tells you otherwise.
Use gates and stiles rather than climbing fences and walls too. A damaged fence might be a minor inconvenience to you, but considerably more interesting to the fifty sheep standing behind it.
Take your rubbish home
This shouldn't really need explaining, but unfortunately somebody always seems to need explaining.
If you've carried it into the hills, you can carry it back out.
That includes wrappers, bottles, cans, tissues and food waste. The Countryside Code specifically says to take litter home and leave no trace of your visit, as rubbish can harm both wildlife and livestock.
Banana skins and orange peel don't suddenly become part of the natural Cheviot ecosystem because they once grew on a tree somewhere.
And Fruity Malt wrappers definitely don't.
No fires
Don't light fires. Simple as that.
Northumberland National Park specifically asks visitors not to light open fires, and barbecues aren't permitted within the National Park. Dry moorland and vegetation can burn incredibly quickly, damaging habitats and putting people, livestock and property at risk.
Cigarettes, matches and glass can cause problems too, particularly during dry weather, so be careful with anything that could potentially start a fire.
There are plenty of excellent pubs around the Cheviots if you desperately need something cooked.
Leave things where they are
Stone circles, hillforts, old settlements, cairns and other bits of archaeology are part of what makes exploring the Cheviots so interesting.
Have a look. Take photographs. Have a good nose around. Just don't start rearranging things.
The Countryside Code asks visitors not to disturb historic sites and to leave rocks, plants and other natural features as they find them.
The same applies to wildlife. Enjoy seeing it, give it space and don't feel the need to interfere.