Once upon a time there were seven sisters.

When you are driving the old road across the moor from Seaham to Houghton-le-Spring in County Durham, UK, you pass an unassuming hill to your left just before the first turn off into Houghton. 

You may or may not notice it, depending how fast you're travelling. Many people just drive by. Local legend has it that once upon a time, seven sisters danced upon this hill. And those seven sisters were turned into trees. 

A friend of mine recently asked me if I wanted to go for a little exploration. She knew of this place because as a child she had been playing there. 

She told me it's a magical place and that it is very special. So on Beltane eve, Frunza and I got in my Land Rover and drove the B1404 from Seaham to Houghton-le-Spring until I reached the Copt Hill Inn on my right. 

Because this place is on a country road with no pavements, it is also extremely difficult to park. The only parking facility is the pub car park.

Undeterred by this, we decided to meet in the pub car park because it sounded like a good idea to go in for a nice cup of coffee before setting off on our leisurely hike.

When I got to the place, I noticed that the pub only opens at 12 o'clock. So if you go please be aware of that fact. I'm not sure what the rules would be to park in the car park before pub hours. Please make your own enquiries. 

I was really pleased to see that the pub is dog friendly. So in we went, my friend and I and Frunza, and had a most enjoyable cup of coffee and doggy even got a biscuit. 

We then set off on our little track. We crossed the road to a public footpath sign directly opposite the pub car park. 

From there we followed the footpath to our right until we got to a small junction where you can either carry on a head on the main path or turn left and climb over a wooden turnstile into a field. 

We took the turnstile, climbing over whilst Frunza was easily able to slip underneath, and headed into a field leading directly up to Copt Hill, also known as Seven Sisters. 

When you walk through this field you need to have your faculties about you because quite often cows are grazing here. We were lucky, on the day we went the field was empty. 

As we approached the gentle incline to the hill, I realised that we were indeed in a very special place. The energies here are very powerful. 

My friend informed me that indeed the hill is not natural. It is an ancient burial mound. Excavations in the 19th century found that it dates back to the mesolithic period.

The old people used to build burial mounts in sacred places. And these sacred places lined up with the Earth's energies. 

The energy on this hill is super powerful! You could feel it. It was like walking into a solid wall of energy. My friend had brought her dowsing rods and as we were approaching the hill they were pushed backward like by an unseen force.

Once on top, you could see that the trees had been planted in a perfect circle. They had been planted in the 1800s around the time of the excavations. Why I don't know. Maybe because of the Victorians' fascination with witchcraft and the occult? That's only my guess.

Originally there were seven trees. Today, five trees and one dead one remain. But the magic remains. 

On closer inspection we noticed that somebody had already been there before us celebrating Beltane Eve. Flower offerings had been placed on the four trees that demarcated North, East, South and West. Somebody had been calling the quarters. 

As a pagan priestess, it gave me joy to know that there are others still out there believing in the old ways, believing in Mother Earth, honouring Gaia. 

At the centre of the hill, there is a patch of earth where no grass will grow. When you stand on this patch you can feel the energy. I felt like I was standing in an energy vortex. 

When I took my friend's dowsing rods, my feeling was confirmed. Both rods spun like windmills in a clockwise direction. This place is magical indeed. 

From this vortex point, you can see for miles. It was a misty day and yet I could still see the foothills of the Durham Dales. I'm sure that on a sunny day you could see all the way past Sunderland. 

I also noticed that you could see the spire of the ancient church of West Rainton. Always curious about ley lines, I looked on Google Map and realised that when you draw a straight line from West Rainton through Copt Hill, you end up at Durham Cathedral. The old people knew so much more than we do today!

The veil feels really thin in this place. When I closed my eyes a little, I could almost see the caravan of knights in shining armour riding down the foothills. If there are portals on this Earth where the veil is thin, this certainly is one of them! 

You can easily spend a day in this place and forget about time itself. After soaking up the atmosphere for a little while longer and marvelling at the feel of the hill, my friend took me for a short hike to a local dene. 

This is another magical place that is mostly forgotten today. We made our way down the hill through the meadow along a footpath and quite unsuspectedly, at the bottom of a modern housing development, was a small entrance which was rather steep.

It had been raining these last few weeks so the entrance looked more of a landslide than a path. Gingerly we made our way down, trying as best as we could to get a foothold and not tumble all the way to the bottom.

The rest of the path was not much better because of the heavy rainfall we'd been having. But the effort was worth it. We were in another magical place that looked straight from a fairy tale. 

Ancient trees, overgrown with mosses, ferns, bluebells, a small stream... It was like walking through Hobbit Land. 

Frunza was in her element. She had been off lead since the first wooden turnstile and was enjoying herself royalily. 

I love seeing her happy like this. She is a rescue dog who grew up on the streets of rural Romania and being off lead and in the countryside brings out her true adventurous nature. 

I love giving her these moments of total freedom. Living in an urban environment with me, having to walk on the lead most of the time, must be very hard indeed for a free spirited animal like her. 

Right at this time, my friend and I were envying her mountain goat-like ability to climb. Where we were desperately sliding and scrambling and holding onto trees for dear life, she just hopped and skipped up and down the steepest of hillsides. 

We almost got to the end of the dene when we were stopped by a landslide that went all the way down into the stream at the bottom of the ravine. And even though only about six feet wide, we decided not to chance it as one wrong step would have been a critical mistake here. 

Neither of us fancied tumbling all the way down into the stream at the bottom. So even though we could see that we were only about two hundred yards from the end of the dene, we decided to turn back to stay on the safe side. 

Making our way back to Copt Hill, we rambled through sprawling meadows where horses were lazily grazing and took a rest on a public bench that was placed in such a way that you have a perfect view of the hill. 

A local community group has worked wonders maintaining the place. Lovely benches are placed to enjoy the view, handmade, rather artistic, footpath signs point towards Copt Hill and the place is generally very well kept. There is also an information sign that tells you a lot about the history of the place. 

This is a place where you can spend a beautiful afternoon. It's great for adults, kids and dogs alike. And when you make your way back to the main road, you can always turn in for a nice pint or a Sunday roast dinner in the pub. What a perfect day out! And best of all, this is right on my doorstep. 

It just shows that if you walk or drive through your local neighborhood with your eyes wide open, you will find some absolute gems. 

It's not always necessary to travel for miles to far off tourist attractions. You can have a wonderful time right at home. 

So next time you wonder where to go for your next weekend trip, I encourage you to do a little research. Go to your local library and find some books on the history of the area you live in. Look online if there is a historic society for your area. Talk to your neighbours, and generally just get an idea of the history of your place. 

I can guarantee you that even if you live in a super modern place, you will find something of interest, because all modern developments are built on ancient land. 

History is all around us. It is around us and beneath us. So go on, become a bit of a historian, dig into the archaeology of your area, and marvel at what you will find!

History and magic and wondrous places are everywhere. All you need to do is go through the world with your eyes wide open and be receptive to the magic of Mother Earth.

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