After breakfast we said adieu but not goodbye to the Cotford Hotel. We will be back.
We headed off to Croft Castle stopping briefly at the Hop Pocket for me to purchase the other colour cardi that I loved from the day before. Mr C and mum stayrd in the car. As I was purchasing the cardi I had a lovely chat with the sales assistant about the type of cardigan and a special broach to wear with it that he said they used to sell them but for some reason they weren’t available anymore.
Croft Castle was a little sparse inside compared to our previous visit, however I enjoyed the explanation of the two dragon statues outside the house. I learned that one is a Wyvern, a Welsh Dragon (black dragon), that has only two legs.
Whilst there we looked inside the medieval church of St Michael and All Angels and the walled garden which was especially spectacular due to it being allowed to grow more naturally without over pruning.
The café looked very busy so we continued on our journey eventually stopping in Ludlow for a takeaway lunch. Mum and I were told to find a suitable bench for an outdoor picnic, which we did. Twenty minutes later neither Mr C or the sandwiches had emerged from the café. Mum and I were left wondering where he had got to. When he emerged with drinks but no food he informed us that the café was rather busy and they would get around to our order when they could which would take some time. After waiting a further twenty minutes Mr C arrived with some food, although his sandwich had not arrived. He told them to forget it, luckily the sandwiches, when they arrived were large and mum and I were quite happy to donate a triangle of sandwich each to him.
After our slightly stressful lunch we unwound in the local bookshop. Mum picked up a couple of non-book items and I purchased Places of Pilgrimage by Ian Scott Massie which has given me ideas for future adventures (and blog posts).
We took a leisurely drive home and later Mr C and I enjoyed ‘Fine Dining’ at Chez Nous, Jamie’s Breaded Chicken with Rocket which takes moments to prepare. A fitting conclusion to a lovely few days away.
The walled garden which was indeed a delight. And if that was due to it being allowed to grow more naturally without over pruning, I am all in favour of under-pruning.
I am all in favour of more natural looking gardens rather than finely pruned pom poms.
That being said my own garden does need a bit of taming back after this years growth.
My wife hails from the USA and has a maiden surname of Crafts. This is believed to be an Americanisation of Crofts, and the arrival of her ancestors in the USA corresponds time wise to the abandonment of Croft castle by the Crofts who backed the wrong side against the king.
Thank you for the fascinating family history connection
It would be interesting to find out more about that part of the Croft family history.
Lovely photos
We haven’t been to Croft Castle this year but it is lovely there and I adore the Wyvern 
I must check where the Hop Pocket is – I wonder if it is the place my son and I stopped off at when visiting Castle Frome???
Such a pain about the sandwiches
The book purchase looks great!
Here is the link to the Hop Pocket shopping village:
https://thehoppocket.com/
As to the sandwiches, next time we will choose a bakers that makes up sandwiches on request. They usually have some tasty bun options as well as bread