North East Archives - Scottish Outlander

04/07/2016This post may contain affiliate links.

A Walk from Craster to Dunstanburgh Castle

04/07/2016This post may contain affiliate links.

If you’re looking for a nice easy coastal walk in Northumberland with stunning views I would thoroughly recommend the walk from Craster to Dunstanburgh Castle.

You can park in the pay and display which is on the right as you enter the village and walk down towards the harbour. When you get to the harbour it’s clear to see which way to go as the impressive ruin of Dunstanburgh Castle sits high on the headland and can be seen from miles around.

The walk to the castle is 1.3 miles and a word of warning, there are no loos on site!

And quite a few locals so make sure to keep your dog on a lead.

Dunstanburgh Castle is managed by English Heritage and is free for National Trust members. If you don’t have a membership and want to venture in entry is £5.20 per person with gift aid. The ruins are open from 10am – 6pm during the summer season but having visited before we decided the walk itself was enough for us.

We refuelled at The Shoreline Cafe in the centre of Craster with an open prawn sandwich on sourbread and a tuna and red onion panini. Both were delicious and much cheaper than a pub lunch, plus you can take your four legged friend inside with you!

If you’d like some other ideas for things to do in Northumberland why not have a look at some of my other posts?

The Alnwick Garden and Treehouse
Camping at Budle Bay
Housesteads Roman Fort
Craster Harbour
Holy Island at Dusk
Bamburgh Castle and Farne Islands Boat Trip

22/10/2015This post may contain affiliate links.

#Bloggerlodge at Travelodge Gateshead Hotel

22/10/2015This post may contain affiliate links.

The North East is one of our favourite places so when we were given the opportunity to spend two nights in a hotel near the Metrocentre in Gateshead we jumped at the chance.

After work on Friday we made the relatively short trip over to Gateshead. We were staying at Travelodge Gateshead Hotel just 3.1 miles from Newcastle City Center. The hotel is just off the A1 and is pretty easy to get to. When we arrived we were given some tips on where to eat before heading up to our room to get settled in.

The room was a good size, nice and clean and had everything we needed. Stomachs rumbling we headed out in search of somewhere nice to eat. The lady who had welcomed us had recommended the pub next door for tasty homemade food so we decided to give it a go.

The Skiff Inn is a typical local pub with a wide range of dishes on offer and friendly, attentive staff. The Skiff is named after the boat Harry Clasper, a professional rower from Tyneside, used to race and is decorated with nautical items including a rowing boat that hangs from the ceiling.

For our starter we chose to share a portion of calamari and we were so glad we only ordered one as there was more than enough for both of us. It was crispy, tasty and came with a spicy tomato dip.

For our main courses I opted for a garlic chicken pizza and John chose a chicken burger.

My pizza was huge and very tasty and John really enjoyed his burger although wasn’t that impressed with the chips.

Feeling pretty full we headed back to the hotel to relax.

The hotel doesn’t have a restaurant so in the morning we got ready and headed to the Metrocentre to get something to eat before getting the train into Newcastle.

The area around the hotel is mainly retail park so there are lots of busy roads but there is a path by the river that takes you directly to the Metrocentre. It takes about 20-25 minutes and delivers you to the transport interchange.

We decided to get something cheap and cheerful for breakfast so popped into Wetherspoons. John had his typical full English while I had a bagel with salmon and cream cheese.

Fenwicks had just opened a Christmas pop up shop so we had a look around and even bought our first Christmas present. After a quick look around the Metrocentre we caught the train to Newcastle City Center and spent the next few hours shopping, something we don’t usually do and aren’t very good at! (We mainly played with toys and looked at tents!)

Before long we were ready for a bit of refreshment. I had wanted to show John The Botanist for a while so I thought we could pop in for a cocktail but it was absolutely packed.

Instead we decided to go for a drink and a snack at dAt bAr on Market Street. dAt bAr is popular for it’s urban style, craft beers and tasty food and I love the relaxed atmosphere.

We ordered some shoestring fries and sourdough bread with french butter, mainly because I couldn’t remember having ever tasted sourdough bread and we weren’t that hungry.

The shoestring fries were amazing. Honestly. And the sourdough bread was very tasty. Next time we visit we’ll be sure to bring our appetites and sample some more of the menu.

All shopped out we got the train back to the Metrocentre and made a beeline for somewhere a bit more exiting than the shops… Namco Funscape! We played a few games, won plenty of tickets and got way too excited when we discovered we could trade them in for a prize. (We chose a minion slinky and three maoam bars, easy pleased!)

No trip to Gateshead is complete without a trip to everyone’s favourite Swedish furniture shop, IKEA where we picked up some bits and bobs before heading back to the Metrocentre in search of some dinner. There are over 50 restaurants and you’re sure to find one of your favourite chains. We found one of ours, Nandos, and treated ourselves to some Afro-Portuguese chicken.

On Sunday morning we had a bit of a lie in (check out isn’t till 12 so you’re free to make the most of that king sized bed) before grabbing some breakfast at Frankie & Benny’s just around the corner from the hotel. Breakfast is served till 12 but the food was very slow to come out.

Typically John had another full English and I decided to try the eggs royale which was a toaster muffin, two poached eggs and slices of smoked salmon topped with hollandaise sauce and chopped chives.

The eggs royale was lovely but very rich, especially after such a food filled couple of days!

We had a lovely weekend thanks to Travelodge although I’m not sure my waistline will be as appreciative!

03/10/2015This post may contain affiliate links.

The Alnwick Garden and Treehouse‏

03/10/2015This post may contain affiliate links.

To celebrate our first anniversary John and I decided to go back to one of our favourite places, Northumberland. Northumberland has a special place in our hearts as we’ve visited it throughout our relationship and we can’t get enough of the white sandy beaches, fishing villages and outstanding scenery. Having camped around the Bamburgh area on our last few trips we decided to try something a little different and explore in land. We booked a stay at Clennell Hall Hotel on the edge of Northumberland National Park but decided to stop off in Alnwick first for a long overdue visit to The Alnwick Garden.

We had both visited The Alnwick Garden years before so we were excited to see what was new. Tickets for the garden are £12.10 per adult which is quite pricey but there is plenty to see and do. The Treehouse was closing early for a function so we headed there first.

The Treehouse is one of the largest in Europe and we loved bouncing around on the rope bridges and exploring the wooden structure. As well as the restaurant there is now a bar called The Potting Shed which serves cocktails and light bites. We had already eaten but it looked well worth a visit.

The view that greeted us as we entered the garden certainly hadn’t changed. The fountain, the Grand Cascade, is an impressive center piece and mini tractors line the base of the water feature for kids to play on.

Armed with a map we were determined to explore every part of the gardens and started with the labyrinth. Lined with bamboo it twists and turns until you reach the center stone.

We wandered around the rose garden then got a little bit damp in the serpent garden! The serpent garden is full of interactive water features and I just couldn’t help myself..

… I got soaked all down my back!

The ornamental garden sits at the top of the Grand Cascade inside 16th century Venetian gates and is filled with one of the countries largest collections of European plants.

We also took a tour of the Poison Garden and discovered that our garden houses quite a few plants we didn’t know were poisonous! We really enjoyed the tour which was very interesting but if you decide to go on it remember to heed the warning..

After stocking up on snacks and wine we headed off to find our hotel. Clennell Hall Hotel is in a remote location near Alwinton at the foot of the Cheviot Hills, 18 miles west of Alnwick. The historic manor house and it’s grounds are beautiful but the hotel itself is a little faulty towers. We had the oldest room in the house which was pleasant enough, breakfast was nice and we spotted a red squirrel which really made our day.

By happy coincidence my Mum was also in Northumberland for the weekend so we made plans to meet her for lunch on Sunday. We had a couple of hours free beforehand and the sun was shining so we couldn’t think of anything better than to head to Bamburgh for a walk on the beach.

We always seem to be drawn to Bamburgh and it’s beautiful stretch of coastline. I’m not sure how anyone could visit the Northumberland coast and not fall in love with it.

We rounded off our trip with lunch and a walk by the river in Warkworth with Mum before dropping her off at the train station and heading home.

16/10/2014This post may contain affiliate links.

Craster Harbour

16/10/2014This post may contain affiliate links.

The last day of our last camping trip of the season came around far too quickly and on a sunny Sunday morning we packed up the tent for the last time this year. Determined not to waste the day we took a trip to Craster in the hope of catching some fish off the pier.

Craster is a lovely little fishing village famous for herring-curing and the Craster kipper. From the harbour you can see the ruins of Dunstanburgh Castle. Owned by English Heritage you can reach it by a grassy path, well worth the walk if the weather is on your side.

This hasn’t been my year for fishing and after getting a little bit chilly we left empty handed but happy that we had given it a go.

On the way home we decided to pop into Alnwick for some lunch. I went to highschool in Alnwick and wanted to show John some of my favourite places. One of them is Grannies, a tiny tea room where we were lucky enough to get a table. Hidden away downstairs the farmhouse style cafe serves beautiful home cooked food and is a must to visit if you’re in the area.

I drove home thinking about our summer full of adventures and how much I had loved camping and the immense feeling of freedom it gives you.