After a ‘Northern Adventure’, on the way home we often stop off for lunch at Brough ice cream parlour and tea room. The food is delicious with the added bonus of views of the castle.

If there is time I am always tempted to walk up to the castle to take in the scenic views and contemplate the history of the ruin.

• The history of the site can be found on the English Heritage website.

We surprised ourselves by being ready to set off on our holiday adventure early. The Satnav took us on a delightful route through Hodnet, Whitchurch and Tarporley. Just before we joined the motorway south of Warrington, we stopped off at Hollies Garden Centre in Little Budworth, Cheshire for a late breakfast. I chose a danish pastry and a refreshing cup of tea. The wasps were out in force so I had to keep my pastry half wrapped in its bag to keep them at bay.

Our lunch stop was Kirkby Lonsdale. After struggling to park we found a sandwich bar where I chose chicken salad and watched the chicken being freshly sliced. Whilst the sandwiches were being made we chatted to the lady serving us. She mentioned that she often had customers who were cycling from Lands End to John o’ Groats. We ate our sandwiches sitting under the town’s market cross and enjoying views of the distant hills.

After lunch we rejoined the M6 before travelling through Kirkby Stephen where we realised that we had mixed our Kirkbys up (again) and this was where we had intended to stop for lunch. Our journey took us past Brough towards Scotch Corner and  Mainsgill Farm Shop where we stopped for a cup of tea. It has changed a lot since our previous visit a few years ago so we took the opportunity to browse around the shop. I enjoyed seeing the resident camels, although I still miss Kevin who was such a character, often wandering over to customers and posing for photos.

Later, we arrived at the Vermont to find that the hotel carpark was full and we had to pay to park the car overnight. After checking in and unloading the car we headed into Newcastle. Whilst in town we spent some time in Waterstones both ending up with a purchase, mine being a cookbook ‘Simply Raymond’ which I had had my eye on for some time.

Back at the hotel we freshened up before dining in the hotel restaurant. We found that the menu had become more down market than on our previous stays, although when the food (Haddock and Chips for me) arrived it was both excellent and delicious. We had a nightcap in the hotel bar before retiring for the evening.