Ruth Stout

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.

After I was dressed I took advantage of the roof terrace as the sun emerged before it was time for breakfast. It was wonderful. The breakfast wasn’t quite Fawlty Towers but the service was a little slow and the requested brown sauce arrived after Mr C had eaten his breakfast. The food, however, was excellent.

After breakfast we both enjoyed a short time on the roof terrace and a stroll in the hotel’s garden before taking a walk in Jesmond Dene.

As we were about to enter the parkland a lady was leaving with her dog. The dog was pulling after her on its lead not wanting to go home. The dog came to say “Hello”, and after we walked off towards the parkland we looked back to see that the dog, in an act of defiance, was lying down in the road. The Dene was wonderful and we enjoyed our brief walk before it was time to meet up with JD for lunch and a trip to the coast.

We had a quick chat with JD and a viewing of his gallery where I was presented with the gift of one of his paintings before we set off to Cullercoats. We strolled along the seafront taking in the views of the bay and looking at the architecture.

Next stop was St Mary’s Lighthouse which was a short drive away. We parked the car in the pay and display car park, paid the appropriate amount of money but were unable to display as the machine refused to print a ticket!

As we strolled down the walkway to the lighthouse, we noticed a car having difficulty reversing down a narrow roadway near to the lighthouse. The manoeuvrings caused people to stop so that they weren’t in the way.  Eventually the car was navigated back into relative safety and the owner checked all round to see if it had been damaged during those  maneuvers. It was only then that we noticed that it was a car dealer/salesman trying to do a photoshoot of the car in front of the lighthouse.

Mr C climbed up the lighthouse leaving JD and I to chat with the curator.

After all the excitement it was time for lunch so we made our way back to the car where we spotted a Royal Enfield motorcycle. To be fair I spotted the owner first due to his snazzy (eccentric) attire capturing my attention. We had lunch overlooking Whitley bay in Rendezvous Cafe where I made up for not having had a cake the previous day.

After dropping JD off at his house we picked up some sherry to enjoy on the roof terrace before our evening meal and some wine for later in the evening after we had dined. However instead of the sherry we opted for a glass of wine in the sunshine.

The hotel receptionist ordered a taxi to take us to the Peace & Loaf restaurant and when it arrived, we were surprised to find that it was a lovely Mercedes, a great way to travel to a special meal. The meal didn’t disappoint and I am sure we will be back again in the future. Our journey back to the hotel was in a rather more modest vehicle although the service was just as good.

I awoke good and early but drifted off to sleep again and the next thing I knew it was 9.20am. There was no sign of Mr C and no sign of a cup of tea so I leapt out of bed, at which point Mr C, having been distracted by something on his computer, realised what time it was!

After making a cup of tea Mr C packed his bag and we set of on our journey to Newcastle, slightly later than intended. Our intention had been to have lunch in the delightful town of Kirkby Lonsdale which we had accidentally found on a detour on a previous trip. The SatNav was predicting that we would arrive there to late for lunch so when we spotted a suitable tea shop in a garden centre near Sandbach we decided to stop there instead. I opted for an egg sandwich which was delicious.

The SatNav in Mr C’s car seems to have a mind of its own and shortly after lunch we arrived at Crewe which should have taken us about an hour from where we live but by this time we had been travelling for two hours. We hastily reprogrammed the SatNav to a different route type and continued on our way arriving in Kirkby Lonsdale in time for afternoon tea and a cake.

Unfortunately Mr C nipped into the cafe and was almost seated when I arrived through the doorway. It would have been a lovely cafe for lunch but it didn’t do cake so I settled for a cup of tea. As we left Mr C noticed next door another tea shop (with a window full of cakes) and realised that this was where he had been aiming for, having seen it as we drove past. I was reminded of our recent trip to Elan Valley when a similar thing happened. I see a theme emerging…

We ensured that the SatNav was programmed for the fastest route and continued towards Newcastle. We drove through some delightful Yorkshire countryside and were taken off our normal A66 route onto the A67. This took us past Barnard Castle and Raby Castle, both impressive, which we intend to go back and visit when we have more time. On our final approach to Newcastle the Angel of the North revealed itself as if by magic, one moment it is quite hidden from view before appearing as if out of nowhere.

We checked into the hotel then made our way to our room where gentle music was playing and on the dressing table there was a lovely note welcoming us back and wishing us a fantastic stay. As we had arrived later than intended there was no time to chill out on the roof terrace before dinner.

The restaurant was busy due to a couple of large groups and our food, although delicious, didn’t arrive exactly as ordered. The steak arrived with fries rather than chips and my fishcakes arrived without the salad that was advertised on the menu. I did query this but was told that the fishcakes only came with fries (not fries and salad). On checking the menu again later, I realised that I was right and the waitress had been wrong.

We had a well earned nightcap in the snooker bar before retiring for the evening.

St. Francis de Sales

Collingwood Arms

I am gathering my thoughts, sorting my photographs and helping my mum (post house move) after arriving home later than expected on Tuesday evening…

Normal service and holiday diary will follow soon