Wooler, with visitors!

The first morning we went on a walk that took us out of the back of the campsite and up to the summit of Gains Law, one of the Cheviot hills which stands at 1,030 feet and offers fantastic views over the Cheviots on the Western side and out to the coast on the East. We had our lunch by the trig point on the top of the hill and then headed back over Humbleton Hill, a 960 foot hill which has the remains of a fort on the top, we then finished our 5 mile walk by heading straight down the hill and onto the lane at the back of the campsite. That evening Neil and Phil headed into Wooler to watch the first England game of the world cup, 1:1 with the US, was disappointing.














Slightly hungover, Neil and Phil headed out on their bikes the next morning, the 16 mile route took them into the heart of the Cheviots with some excellent climbs and descents, we had a few stops for photos and Phil got a puncture at one stage. We were both surprised that despite being in a National Park on a Sunday we only saw 2 bikers and 2 sets of walkers! The weather and the views were perfect for biking and it meant our hangovers were soon cleared and we felt much more sprightly when we got back.
After lunch we headed out in Tonks to Bamburgh where we walked through the village admiring the huge castle. We headed over the sand dunes and out onto the long beach behind the castle. The dogs loved it, Roxy and Prince in particular running around like loons and splashing in the water. We went in for a paddle but the water was bloody freezing so after a while the shoes were back on, we had a play in the dunes before heading back to the village where we had an ice cream each!




Neil had to pack up his stuff and head off the next morning, he left early so that he could stop off on the way home to go for a ride at Whinlatter in the Lake District. Once we had waved him off we popped into the village for a mooch around while we waited for our next guests, Marilyn and Ian, to arrive.
They arrived at around 5pm and Prince gave them an incredibly vocal welcome! Ben (the dog, 16 last week!) came too and stamped his authority over Prince straight away as we sat in the awning and had a couple of drinks and a catch up.


Phil got up at very early the next morning so that he could go and check out the downhill tracks he had read about in the TIC the day before. I found 2 very steep and twisty narrow tracks which I rode several times before heading up to the top of the forest where I found even more downhill runs, these were much less steep but much faster, with hand built berms, jumps and drops amongst the roots and rocks. Again, I did several runs before it was time to head back. Showered and fed, we headed out to pick up the folks before we all jumped in Tonks and made for Holy Island. None of us had ever been before, so it was a new experience to be driving over the causeway with the tide completely out. We passed the emergency tide shelter which we have seen photos of people using when they have been stranded by the tide. We parked up in the main car park, and Mum and Ian decided to jump on the shuttle bus to the castle as Ben’s little legs might not make the walk (he’s over 100 in human years!). We went into the castle (Lindesfarne) which was originally built in the 1570’s to protect the harbour using stones from the previously dissolved priory. The fort had an uneventful military history and the soldiers eventually left in 1893 when the building was acquired by Edward Hudson, founder of Country Life magazine who then converted the castle into a holiday retreat. The castle is now in the care of the National Trust who have restored the decoration and furniture to how Hudson would have had it. We had a very enjoyable explore around the labyrinth of rooms, corridors and staircases, as well as a look at the view from the battery on the top of the castle before heading back down and out to have a walk around the grounds. The former lime kilns were built in the 1860’s to take advantage of the quality limestone available on the island, they were used for around 40 years before manufacture stopped and the kilns fell into disrepair. We also looked at the walled garden, designed in 1911 by noted gardener Gertrude Jekyll, and recently restored to its former glory by the National Trust, it is a summer flower garden so is best viewed at the height of the English summer.
We then headed back towards the village past a rubbish bagpipe busker and on to the Priory. The priory is now in the hands of English Heritage, but it was originally founded in AD 635, and St Cuthbert, prior of Lindesfarne, who died in 687 is still the most celebrated of the priory’s holy men. The existing priory was built in 1150, and a small community lived there until the suppression of the monastery in 1537, soon afterwards the priory was dismantled and the stones used to build the castle. We had a walk around the grounds of the priory and a look inside the nearby church (where they had a very spooky wooden statue of some monk pall bearers carrying a coffin) after which we headed back to Tonks to avoid getting trapped by the tide!


The next day we met up again and went to Dunstanburgh Castle. We parked in the car park by Embleton, and walked the 1 mile along the footpath up to the very imposing castle ruins (you can only access the castle by foot). It was built in 1313, and was subsequently strengthened and improved, the castle saw numerous military action before it fell into decay. We had a stroll around the impressive ruins (and even up to the top of one of the towers) and enjoyed the great views from the castle both out to sea and over the land below. Luckily the sun stayed out for the duration and for the mile walk back along the side of a golf course.
We then decided to make a trip to Alnwick to have a glimpse of the castle and to have a look at the bookshop. Barter Books was founded in 1991 by Mary Manly and her husband in the front room of his factory in the former Alnwick railway station. It is a bookshop based on the swap system and is now one of the largest secondhand bookshops in Britain with over 350,000 books. Even the listed station building it is housed in is impressive, and the shop has made a big effort to keep the railway theme running throughout the shop. A few books were bought by all before we wandered into the town centre where we had our lunch sat outside a café on the market square. Suitably refreshed we had a walk down the town and down the hill next to the castle entrance where we walked along the river bank which gave us a very impressive view of the huge castle which was used as Hogwarts in the Harry Potter films and is still a private residence.


Mum and Ian had to leave the next day. They arrived at the van just before 9:00, and we piled their car full with some stuff we decided we didn’t need (thanks you two!) before reluctantly handing back Ben and waving them goodbye. We then headed out for a walk with the dogs into the nearby woods, Phil took his bike and we walked up the steep hill where he had a bit of a play on the downhill tracks being chased by Prince and Smudge, Linda sustained a major injury (scuffed knee) when she lost traction and had a crash, then Phil had a puncture which put paid to all the fun. On the way back we stopped where a stream went through a pipe under the road so that Prince could have a play in the pipe and the pool on the other side. Back at the van we were visited by the campsite ducks and their children on a few occasions, and they came over again to say bye.

We have now moved to Melrose Caravan Club site, crossing the border for the first time into Scotland!