Rain was gently falling when I woke up so there was no chance for a last linger on the roof terrace, although when the rain stopped I went outside and could almost smell the fresh air (I have no sense of smell). The service at breakfast was quicker than it had been on the previous day. Mr C decided not to ask for brown sauce on this occasion.

After breakfast, as we checked out, we gave feedback on the restaurant service. We then set off along the coastal road to Bamburgh Castle, detouring to Alnwick for a quick browse in Barter Books.

At Bamburgh Castle we took in the breathtaking views over the North Sea sea before making our way to the tea shop for lunch. I opted for a toasted sandwich but had my eye on cake for later in the afternoon. The weather was sunny so we decided to tour the rest of the grounds before the castle interior in case there was a change in the weather. As we did so the wind started whipping up; it was the tail end of Storm Ali and there were some pretty fierce gusts.

As we made our way from the castle grounds to the state rooms the wind took my breath away and threatened to blow me over. Inside the castle we heard loud booming noises as the wind howled down one of the chimneys. In some of the rooms I could feel the stone floors rumbling. As I looked out of the windows I could see tall tufts of grass blowing out of the lawn and over the castle roof. We went back to the tea shop for cake but the Lime & Fennel cake that I had had my eye on was sold out so I chose raspberry and coconut cake instead.

The weather was a mixture of sunshine and shade as we drove through beautiful Northumberland countryside on our way to Cornhill-on-Tweed. Once in the Collingwood Arms we unpacked and had a pre-dinner glass of wine in the hotel’s library before freshening up for dinner.

Dinner was enjoyable; I opted for haddock and was given the choice of batter or breadcrumbs. I opted for the latter, although when it arrived it had been served with fries rather than chips. One of the other tables was occupied by loud, opinionated fisherman who at one point, were discussing medical details that were not what I wanted to be hearing whilst I was dining.

We retired to the bar area out of earshot of the loud voices. The duty manager chatted with us about many subjects including local properties and places of interest. We even touched on ghosts and potential witch markings in some of the woodwork in the hotel. Witch markings are carved into many old buildings to ward off evil spirits, you can read more about the fascinating subject here. Apparently the ghost could sometimes be heard on the stairs and, it is said occasionally moves things around.

The castle was very run down and currently being done up by the owner who is related to the original owners (the Grey family) by marriage. The renovations have been ongoing for 20 years and are far from complete.

Some rooms had a cool and unsettled feel to them. They were the ones that were closest to the guest apartments where one of the rooms is supposed to be haunted.

I will now clarify my feelings. One room I had to leave immediately after being in there for a couple of minutes (the room that led to the guest rooms), there was a particular place in the dungeon that I had to rush past and the minstrels gallery made me feel a little unsettled.

Some of the pics I took:

Fast forward to today I logged onto the Chillingham Castle website to get the historical background for the castle so I could share it with you.

This ancient and remarkable fortress is the home of Sir Humphry Wakefield Bt., his wife The Hon. Lady Wakefield and their family. Since 1246 the Castle has been owned by one continuous blood line with the Earls Grey ruling the Castle for the founding centuries. Those Grey Lords built the Castle’s alarming dungeons and torture chambers, as well as the beautiful parklands and gardens.

In the Castle you will see active restoration of complex masonry, metalwork and ornamental plaster as the restoration continues. A wide diversity of styles in the rooms spells out successive fashions through the early centuries, which gives an educative and vibrant difference to this ancient Castle. Today, it thrives with day to day family life and also events relating to music, drama, mountain rescue, child welfare and other local interests.

Then out of curiosity I clicked on the link ‘Ghosts’ and found the videos ‘Most Haunted Unseen’ and watched them. It seems I wasn’t just being paranoid and jittery…

If you have the time and are interested just click the first video to watch  and then  click on the right arrow which will show program in full.  My immediate response to the video is *phew* it isn’t wasn’t me then…

Most Haunted Unseen – Chillingham Castle