Newcastle Cathedral is Grade I listed and dates from the early 14th century. For over 900 years it has been at the centre of the city’s spiritual and civic life as evidenced by its memorials and ledger stones (grave covers) which, together, reveal much of the heritage of Newcastle and the wider region.

The Cathedral boasts one of the finest lantern towers in the country, dominating the skyline since the 15th century. Pevsner describes it as “Four flying buttresses leaning against each other and holding up a tall square lantern, battlemented and pinnacled – a rare form of medieval crown in Britain”. The building retains substantial elements of medieval fabric as well as evidence of its development over a number of historical periods, with examples of work by prominent architects including Daniel Garrett, John and Benjamin Green, John Dobson, and George Gilbert Scott.

Internally the Cathedral contains one of the largest collections of monuments and ledger stones in northern England; it also boasts medieval heraldic bosses and a fine medieval font with a contemporary wooden cover with elaborate gothic tracery, and a stone effigy of an unknown medieval knight. The 19th century chancel embellishments showcase wood and stone working skills by Ralph Hedley, Robert Beall and J S Westmacott. The whole presents a beautifully integrated appearance, displaying superb artistry and craftsmanship executed in the medieval style.

It is probable that the steep sided valley we know as Jesmond Dene has always been wooded, but gradually, industries crept in and by the 19th century the Dene was home to watermills, various quarries and pits and an iron foundry. Prior to the mid 1800s the woodland was probably more straggly than today and interspersed with a heavy undergrowth of gorse, brambles and the like.

In the 1850s William George Armstrong (later Lord Armstrong) the armament manufacturer, (later Lord Armstrong of Cragside, Northumberland) bought up large areas of the valley. With his wife, he enclosed the land and transformed it into the landscaped parkland that we know today. With his fascination for water it is no surprise that he altered the river. A large waterfall, weirs and rock islands were created near to the mill, along with several bridges including the one from which to view the waterfall, and a network of footpaths. The waterfall is the biggest alteration to the river and was a result of blasting out the river bed downstream, while building up the area upstream. He also had a bridge installed to enable viewing of the waterfall. They additionally introduced exotic non-native species of trees and shrubs such as cedars, junipers, Californian Redwoods and the rhododendron.

In the 1850s, William George Armstrong (later Lord Armstrong) the armament manufacturer, acquired at various times the land which now forms Jesmond Dene. He enclosed the land and planted it with exotic trees and shrubs, laid paths and built bridges. Lord Armstrong used the Dene as his own private parkland but allowed access to it by the public twice weekly, on payment of a small entrance fee which went to the local hospital.

In 1883 Lord Armstrong presented the main area of Jesmond Dene to the Corporation of Newcastle upon Tyne for the benefit of its citizens and in 1884, the park was formally opened by the Prince and Princess of Wales. To commemorate the occasion, the Princess planted a turkey Oak near the Banqueting Hall. This tree, now mature, can still be seen adjacent to the South end of the Banqueting Hall, near to a second tree planted by Alderman H Benson in 1933 to mark the 50th anniversary of the occasion. Since then, the Dene has remained a popular resort for the citizens of Newcastle and, despite heavy pressures put upon it, still retains a particular charm of its own.

More history of Jesmond Dene and a history walking trail can be found on the following link:

History of The Dene

For breakfast I chose the continental option which was delicious. Afterwards, we returned to the Cathedral to appreciate some of the things that I had learned about in the guidebook I purchased the previous day. Some of the Cathedral’s features were now temporarily covered over for a student graduation event. It was lucky that we had visited the day before because I would have missed out on the new guidebook and getting my pilgrim passport stamped.

We drove to Alnwick. Mr C wanted to visit the castle because of current interest in the Wars of the Roses. Despite having to book a time slot, the castle seemed a lot busier that I remembered it on previous visits. Visitors were asked to keep a respectable distance from others but many people ignored this. One woman was herding me along, almost in my pocket. I stepped to one side to let her go in front. She muttered an apology and someone else got herded along.

Mr C visited the military museum in one of the castle’s turrets. I chose to wait outside soaking up the rays. The castle shop turned out to be disappointing and Mr C didn’t find any books on his subject. We had hoped to have lunch in the café but it was shut due to staff shortages. The only food outlet at the castle was a concession that sold Greek kebabs. The teashop next to Alnwick Garden was limited to mostly cake, the main café being inside the garden which we had decided not to visit. We had a quick look around the shop before heading into town for lunch. We found a takeaway sandwich bar where I chose a chicken and stuffing roll, which when it arrived was enormous. I enjoyed the delicious sandwich sitting on a bench next to the market square.

By the time we had finished our lunch it was too late to visit Cragside (as I had hoped) for its formal garden and pleasure drive. Instead we headed off along the ‘coastal route’, eventually stopping at Warkworth where we found a teashop that had a piece of raspberry Bakewell tart with my name on it. Before leaving Warkworth, we visited St Lawrence Church and explored its treasures.

The carparking area around the hotel was in utter chaos when we arrived. Mr C grabbed the last pay and display space rather than struggle to see if a space could be found on the hotel carpark. After we had parked we learned that the reason for the chaos was due to some students having their graduation celebration in one of the hotel’s function rooms.

Safely back in the room, we freshened up before dining in The French Quarter, Arch 6, the arch being one of the arches under the railway viaduct. We found that the French cuisine was served in a Spanish Tapas style and whilst we perused the menu we enjoyed a glass of bubbly Prosecco.

The Vermont breakfast was up to its usual standard.  We had become accustomed during our recent hotel stays to table service being the only option due to Covid safety issues but unexpectedly the usual buffet service was on offer.   However, a time slot needed to be booked in advance to restrict the flow of people in the breakfast room. My choice of breakfast was scrambled eggs on toast which was one of the items that is cooked to order.

After breakfast we visited St Nicholas Cathedral and were surprised to see it had changed a lot since our previous visits. The space had been opened up to let in more light. Later, I found out from the latest guidebook that this was due to a project to make the Cathedral more open and accessible. Part of the project involved removing the Victorian pews and tiles which revealed secrets beneath.  The transformation is amazing. Whilst in the Cathedral I got my Pilgrimage Passport stamped with both a stamp and sticker, the latter being placed carefully to cover the bleed from a stamp on the reverse page. We had hoped to visit the Catholic Cathedral and bookshop but on arrival we found that it was closed on Wednesdays. So we returned to St Nicholas Cathedral tea shop for elevenses before driving to Jesmond Dene.

We had lovely walk around the parkland at Jesmond Dene taking in some of the historical features along the way. After our walk we shared a tuna baguette from the cafe, sitting outside in the sunshine until it was time to meet JD. On our way to his house we had a mini adventure. All the local carparks required coins to pay rather than a card payment so Mr C stopped off to visit a bank which he found was closed on Wednesdays. He found a nearby bank that was open. The cashier was bemused by his request for coins; “We don’t hold coins,”

After this diversion we  continued on our journey. We had a lovely afternoon chatting with JD and came away with a generous gift of paintings including one that Mr C had liked on two of our previous visits (the photo does not do the painting justice).

Back at the hotel, with the help of the concierge, we were able to get a space on the hotel carpark. When we entered our room, we were pleased to find that it had been serviced despite being told that it would not be when we checked in.

Dinner was in Restaurant 21. The food was a little slow to arrive due to the restaurant being unexpectedly (for them) busy. The service and food were excellent.

We walked back to the hotel along the quayside. I was amused to find that the Sage Gateshead building that appears as a giant slug by day had resembed a sailing ship at night, the structure almost invisible with the insides glowing.

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.

Aristotle

Cullercoats is a sandy bay enclosed by small piers:

The village has been popular with generations of visitors with its secluded bay the highlight. The beach has a Seaside Award and is ideal for bathing. The south of the bay is used as a launch site for recreational crafts. Cullercoats had a thriving fishing industry in the 1800s and small fishing boats – cobles – can still be seen in and around the bay today. Dove Marine Laboratory, on the bay itself, is an important research centre for Newcastle University’s School of Marine Science.

The Victorian RNLI Lifeboat Station is still active today. At the top of the north bank is Cullercoats Watch House. In the 19th Century Cullercoats developed a reputation as a popular artists’ colony with the everyday lives of the fishing folk often used as subjects.

We enjoyed our brief visit to Jesmond Dene and hope to return soon to further explore the tranquil delight.

In the 1850s, William Armstrong acquired the land which is now known as Jesmond Dene:

It is probable that the area we know as Jesmond Dene has always been wooded but, prior to the mid 1800s the wood was probably straggly and interspersed with a heavy undergrowth of gorse, brambles and the like. The trees present were mostly oak, ash, holly and hazel, all indigenous to this country, and this tree selection can still be seen near Castles Farm Bridge at the North end of the Dene.

In the 1850s, William George Armstrong (later Lord Armstrong) the armament manufacturer, acquired at various times the land which now forms Jesmond Dene. He enclosed the land and planted it with exotic trees and shrubs, laid paths and built bridges. Lord Armstrong used the Dene as his own private parkland but allowed access to it by the public twice weekly, on payment of a small entrance fee which went to the local hospital.

In 1883 Lord Armstrong presented the main area of Jesmond Dene to the Corporation of Newcastle upon Tyne for the benefit of its citizens and in 1884, the park was formally opened by the Prince and Princess of Wales. To commemorate the occasion, the Princess planted a turkey Oak near the Banqueting Hall.

This tree, now mature, can still be seen adjacent to the South end of the Banqueting Hall, near to a second tree planted by Alderman H Benson in 1933 to mark the 50th anniversary of the occasion. Since then, the Dene has remained a popular resort for the citizens of Newcastle and, despite heavy pressures put upon it, still retains a particular charm of its own.