After an unexpected summer day in Tynemouth it was time to say goodbye to both Newcastle and Tynemouth and journey to our next destination.

On Sunday Mr C went to the Derby wargame show with a couple of his mates.  I was asked if I wanted to go and I considered perhaps being dropped of at a Stately home nearby.  I decided to stay at home, I thought there might be too much wargame talk in the car.

I had just finished reading a chapter in a book about The Battle of Flodden to help me with a post I was writing for Vision & Verb, when the phone rang.  It was Mr C.  He started off by telling me that a Battle of Flodden re-enactment game was going on at the show.  But more importantly as he arrived at the show he bumped into Gavin & Jen (two of the Aussies we met at the Coach House).  It turns out that he is a wargamer too!!

What are the chances of that?

The alarm seemed to go off very early this morning…

Mr C quickly did his packing before we went for breakfast.  There was a lot of banter as Toby served breakfast.  When one of the other guests asked him if he was alright this morning, he looked at us and said  ‘No not really’ and we fell about laughing, much to the puzzlement of the other guests.

After breakfast we loaded up the car and settled up the bill with Toby who then went to get Leona so we could say our goodbyes.  We exchanged email addresses and Leona said next time we are in the area, we must call in to have a coffee together, because at the end of this season they will no longer be running the Coach House  It was a sad moment that we were all rescued from by another client turning up to pay his bill.

We set off on our journey home via Mainsgill Farm thinking we might have lunch there.  It was very busy and crowded and not what we were in the mood for so we decided to drive on.   Whilst we were there I noticed that Kevin the camel was not around but I noticed two younger camels who turned out to be Doris and Delilah. Later I found out that Kevin was no longer with us.  He will be missed, he was a magnificent creature.

After driving a little further we arrived in Brough where we found just the right sort of tea shop for our mood.  It was small, busy and quiet.  Overlooking the tea shop were the ruins of Brough Castle which we went to explore after lunch.  We then resumed our homeward journey.

In the morning we visited Alnwick Castle which was labelled a ‘must do’ on Mr C’s list.  We both enjoyed revisiting the castle and were rather relieved that we were English Heritage members, which allowed us discounted entry to the castle which normally costs £14.50.  After I bought up yet another book from the gift shop, we lunched in the cafe before driving along the spectacular coastal route towards Bamburgh Castle.

We stopped in Bamburgh so that we could visit St. Aidan’s Church, a place I had never even noticed let alone visited before.  In the graveyard there is shrine over the grave of Grace Darling who was famed for rescuing survivors of a shipwreck in 1838.  Opposite the church is a museum dedicated to Grace Darling, which we have penciled in for a visit next time we are in the area. The church itself was very interesting and well worth a visit. I was quite fascinated by the shadows cast by the Angels that top a recently installed commemoration to St. Aidan.

After which we made our way back towards Crookham so that we could experience the ‘Flodden Drive’ as described in ‘The Battle of Flodden Why & How’ by Clive Hallum-Barker.  Along the way we called in at the Chain Bridge honey farm for a cup of tea in their tea shop which is a converted red double decker bus.  I eyed up the cakes but resisted temptation.  The tour around the battle field was very interesting and gave us more insight into the battle and the Scots’ difficulties due to the contours of the land.  We then returned to the Coach House where I packed my bags before our last dinner of this trip.

When we retired to the guest lounge for after-dinner coffee, Leona commented that she wouldn’t pop over later (to lock up); she needed an early night.  But to our surprise as the last of the other guests were leaving the residents’ lounge, both she and Toby turned up for a quick drink with us on our last night. Suddenly it was 1.45am!!!

Preparing breakfasts and long journeys back home sprung immediately to our minds…

Needless to say I went straight to bed after I entered my room

Over breakfast we decided that we would venture across the border into Scotland to visit Traquair House which had been recommended to us by the guests we had been chatting with in the lounge the previous evening. As we left the breakfast room Toby then Leona followed us out into the porch.  They had mentioned when we first arrived that one evening a lot of guests from a television company would be staying one of the nights.  What they had come to tell us was the Roy (Chubby) Brown was staying that night and they hadn’t realised.  They told us to expect some noise in the residents lounge, which was next to our bedroom as sandwiches were being laid on for the television crew after recording his show that evening.

After this surprising bit of information we set off on what was a wonderfully sunny morning towards Scotland, passing some very beautiful scenery as we drove along.  Traquair House was very interesting and there was a brilliant maze with a twist to the solution.  The tea room was exceptional.  The salad garnish that came with my sandwich was almost a meal in itself and leaf tea was served which is unusual these days.

During our drive back to the Coach House we detoured via Melrose Abbey.  I had been once before, many years ago so I had forgotten how impressive it is.  There was scaffolding on one side of the Abbey causing me to be creative with my photography.  When we arrived back at the Coach House later than usual we were advised by Leona that dinner was to be fifteen minutes early because Chubby Brown had given them tickets for his show in Berwick.

Dinner was even quieter than the previous day, there was only one other couple dining in.  Later, after dinner, we carried on chatting in the residents lounge as usual.  As the couple we were chatting to left, Tony and Leona arrived and sat with us.  We sat up ‘very’ late chatting whilst Roy Brown and the TV crew enjoyed their sandwiches at the other end of the room.

After checking the weather forecast we decided to visit Cragside because the weather was going to be favourable. On our way there we detoured via Rothbury in order to find a cash point.  Whilst we were in Rothbury Mr C insisted on locating for me the nice ladies clothes shop that I visited last time we were there.  Our shopping expedtion resulted in a lot of banter and laughter between us, the staff and the other customers.  I am not sure how that happened but it is a regular occurrence  Ultimately I left the shop with a nice two piece outfit with jacket cardigan to match.

After the detour to Rothbury, we continued on our way to Cragside and its formal garden which is always our first port of call when we visit.  The garden was spectacular as always and I noticed that the Dalhia bedding was different this year.  I gave myself a personal challenge of photographing the garden with my ‘macro lens’ to provide a different perspective from my previous visits to the garden.

After the formal garden and a walk to one of the four 150th anniversary featured artworks, it was time for lunch in the tea shop.  After lunch we had intended to visit the house but it was rather busy so we elected to do the leisure drive.  After the leisure drive we found that the house was still too busy so we had an enjoyable walk around the rock garden whilst we waited for the house’s congestion to subside.  Eventually the house was quiet enough; we entered and re-acquainted ourselves with our favourite house features.  Then we returned to The Coach House where once again we had interesting conversations as we dined and later enjoyed coffee in the lounge with other guests including a group of Aussies. The other guests retired just before Leona (then Toby) arrived and we all sat up chatting a little too late.

We packed our bags, had breakfast and checked out of the hotel before setting off for Tynemouth in glorious sunshine.  We enjoyed a short walk around the Spanish Battery and the towering Collingwood monument before visiting Tynemouth Priory & Castle.  The site contains interesting history including gun batteries that were used in the first and second world wars and a former coast guard station (not open to the public).  It was all very photogenic.

After the visit we strolled into town and had lunch in a bakery tea room which was sadly due to close down the following week and be turned into a Fish and Chip shop.  After lunch we left Tynemouth, following the coastal route towards Alnwick where we stopped briefly to visit Barter Books.  Some things just have to be done

After a purchase or two we resumed our journey to the Coach House at Crookham.  It was lovely to see Leona again and the place still feels like home from home.  We dined in as we always do when we visit; the food is so good and there are always interesting people to talk to so there is no reason to look elsewhere.

I returned from my early Autumn break yesterday with around 700 photographs. I had a wonderful time and visited many interesting places. When I have gathered my thoughts and photographs, I shall share my holiday journey with you.

Augustus Hare

I am going to be busy for a few days, so take a seat and enjoy the view.  I may be quiet but regular posts will still appear below this one…

If the view and the posts are not enough you could always pick up your favourite drink from the honesty bar in the lounge to help you soak up the atmosphere.

Enjoy