“UK Smashes June Temperature Record Twice in 48 Hours”
“Met Office Extends Rare Red Extreme Heat Warning into Friday”
“Unrelenting Heat Dome Creates a ‘Feels Like’ Temperature of 41°C”
Nah. Move up to the Northumberland Coast! 16.5C and foggy. I almost broke my holiday code and put socks on, but only because they look sh1t when wearing ‘posh crocs’ (faux leather upper, no holes for ‘Jibbitz’).
Choose the sock colour correctly and you can sneak those ‘shoe liner’ versions on under sandals though. “I have only been told this & have no prior personal experience, Officer”.
It’s our last full day here and we now realise we should have booked two weeks! It’s the most brilliant area of the UK we’ve ever been to* & haven’t even scratched the surface of it yet.
*It’s not. But our friends Betty & David, Martin, Peter, Lisa & a few others know where is. But this is a well placed top 3 easily.
We’ve started to pack & tidy. Ugh. It does bring it home that we really haven’t stayed long enough. Especially in this cottage! It’s turned out that we are staying here in one of its last rentals, before the owners move back to live here. You lucky buggers! How fantastic!
We’ve hardly used the downstairs lounge, even though it’s nice and I bet brilliant in winder with its log fire. The lounge got used only because the World Cup was on and that’s where the telly is. But this place has the most amazing “TV” that you can watch for free all day and all night if you want to.
That view! Ever changing, with the tides, the wind direction, the clouds, the sunlight and shadows. It’s such a wonderful thing to watch.
Anyway, it’s cold and foggy. So bugger that when the rest of you lot are getting par-boiled! We’re off inland today!
Dead simple plan:
- NT Cragside House & Gardens
- Tea, on way back to The Gap
- Enjoy view from that window for the last time
It’s about a 30 minute journey from Boulmer, through Alnwick and then out inland. (“Out inland “? What drivel. Lazy). It took about 15 of those to clear the sea mist (fog). The temp then jumped to 24.5C. Lovely! If you’re in an air conditioned vehicle, but not if you’re a dog walking on hot tarmac. (I’ll address this shortly).
On arrival, we paid our way in (plus gift-aid of course), and parked up in the upper car park.
Doggos sorted, sated and hydrated, we set off! In the wrong direction. The impressive and massive ‘house’ that you see as you pay up? Thats just the gift shop and cafe! After correcting our navigation, we went up a path to the proper house.
Loads of scaffolding around the central section at the mo’ but that is for the good.
I love loads of things (I’m definitely one that’s could tick a few of these newer acronyms and spectra), including a love of Frank Lloyd Wright architecture & design (come one! The ‘Falling Water House’ on its own, says most things). So much so that when Lurchio was a kid playing Minecraft, I built a Minecraft homage to that building that still ‘exists’ apparently!
This house is internally arts & crafts, innovation (first hydroelectric house, including a sawmill, a water-powered laundry, early versions of a dishwasher and a dumb waiter, a hydraulic lift and a hydroelectric rotisserie!
Outside its apparently Tudor revival, but read the WiKi part – no one can clearly categorise it. And that’s why it’s amazing! Helps they had loads of dosh through being “the worlds first arms dealer”, along with more philanthropic ideals.
Mum & I did the first tour, while Jane calmly took the dogs on a well-behaved walk. On-lead, in the shade and on stone and grass, not melting tar.
Then we swapped. We dog-wrangled. Whilst Mum was dragged down the rock garden and I kept partially strangling a dog because ‘he didn’t want to leave his mum behind’ so stopped suddenly and sat, waiting to go back the way we’d come from.
Eventually we got both of them to the ‘Formal Garden’ and found a bench in the shade, where we calmed them down & gave them more water. In a lovely cooling breeze, thankfully.
Sorry to stereotype, but history states that it was Mrs Armstrong that ‘did the garden’. What an underplaying! Again, read up – it’s an incredible feat, borne of ingenuity & travel and an important acceptance of other cultures that led to the amazing grounds that we walked. Bloody miles of them as well! About 40-odd miles of paths across the Estate, apparently.
After Jane joined us, and Toby made peace with me, we headed to the gift shoppe and had Lemonade and cake, and then headed back to the van. More hydration, then a track back to Alnwick where we filled up with ab exact £100.00 if diesel. Yees!)
Then a very short stint back to Lesbury and the Old Coach Inn, where we stopped on the first day. Same servers, different table by 4ft. There seems to be a scampi thing going on, as I was the only one that didn’t order that. I went “Pie of The Day”. Steak & Ale.
Then back to The Gap to begin the decamp. Boo-hoo.
We’re out by 10am tomorrow, so up earlyish, and the plan is the journey here in reverse with a possible lunch stop back in the “Twice Brewed” (it may be Thrice Brewed by now).
This is likely the last of these blog posts for now as I doubt motorway/Shevington/Cheadle Hulme/House burned down/feral offspring makes good reading , so thanks for reading, and putting vicarious pressure on me to write this crap each evening.
Thank goodness I’m not going away again in the next 4 weeks!
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