Craghead (near Durham)

After a very comfortable night in one of the most comfortable beds we’ve had, and a big breakfast, we thought we’d take advantage of the fact it was not raining and went for a 1 1/2 hour walk along the edge of Rydal Water, a beautiful lake near the pub. The scenery was great, with hills behind hills and cloud at various levels. There were many people walking and we would have loved to spend a lot more time in the area walking/exploring. The Lakes district really is beautiful. Even though we planned to not travel too far and spend more time in places, we still don’t have anywhere the time that we’d really like.

We dragged ourselves away and headed off to Richmond, a town with a very attractive market square (actually circular) with shops and cafes around it. We walked the “Castle Walk”, around the castle walls and for a while, followed the river. We all agreed that the coffee we had in the tea rooms in the square was the best coffee we’ve had in the UK. There was nothing bitter about the coffee and it was the first time time in the UK that Rick didn’t need sugar. Coffee was so good, Gary had 2 cups.

On to Durham. We got there around around 4:30, so we thought that we’d better find a bed, or beds, for the night. after trying a few places, we realised that Durham is busy and expensive, as are most cities. All the places we tried either didn’t have accommodation or were full. We drove out of town, asking at a few places on the way, and ended up here at Craghead. There is not much around this pub and there is a very casual attitude here. When Gary asked about accommodation, the publican, who was sitting with feet up having a beer, said to wait a few minutes because he’d broken his foot and would get up soon. He did have a limp, but we thought he just wanted to finish his drink. Apparently the chef had gone home, so they weren’t able to cook dinner or provide breakfast. We could work with that, so we drove to the next village (although I don’t think we could call where we were a village) and went to the ASDA supermarket and bought a tasty selection of meats, cheeses, bread, salads etc. ASDA had both Bannockburn and McGuigan wines on special, 3 for £12, so we bought for tonight and stocked up for a couple of days. We also bought some yummy pastries for breakfast, so the fact that we couldn’t get food here was no issue. While, initially, things seemed very casual, the publican and wife? have been fussing over us and keep checking that we have all the coffee, milk etc that we want and that all is OK. Travel is all about experiences and we are having them.

Into Durham tomorrow to look at the cathedral, where one of Gill’s ancestors feature in one of the stained glass windows.