Morning
Well that was a surprise!
I had heard the wind during the night, and it was chilly enough to add a
blanket over my duvet, but I hadn’t expected rain! Then some $%^&*# had
left a plastic bag of food out, rather than put it in the bins (by the
entrance) and a seagull and several crows were ripping it apart on the path
outside our pitch. I tried to intervene but I only had my stick and it was too
far to walk to the bins. To get my chair out, I’d have needed Neil. Anyway,
eventually, he woke to the noise and (bless him) got up and took the rubbish to
the bin.
Unlike yesterday, we
hadn’t planned an early getaway, so poor Neil… but hey ho! We got up and ready,
and off we went.
Alnwick Castle
It wasn’t technically far
to the castle but as Google Maps instructions go, this one was truly terrible! The
car parking situation was a little unclear from the website, so I was hoping
for some kind of human interaction to guide us… and maybe some local signage.
Well the signage was only marginally more helpful than Google but it was at
least sufficient to tell us that Mrs Google had got the whole thing completely
wrong. Unfortunately, that only became clear once we had passed the entrance to
the car park. So for once, it was me telling poor Neil to ‘make a U-turn as
soon as possible’. Have you ever tried making a literal U-turn in a 7m vehicle?
Well Neil has, and did a superb job of it.
I was looking for coach
parking and/or accessible parking. Well there was accessible parking with a
coach drop off, so we figured the place must be big enough for us and we could
always perform another U-turn if necessary. Fortunately my friendly human was
on the gate and told us where to park in the accessible car park.
From the car park,
signage was still a little lacking in places but there were members of staff
everywhere to ask and they were all lovely, though mostly just wanted to fuss
Liggy.
This was the first
attraction this week where dogs are not allowed… only assistance dogs. In some
ways, I prefer this because there are no other dogs to distract Liggy. On the
other hand, it is when she’s the lone wolf that everybody (yes, I mean
everybody) wants to pet her, ask questions about her and tell me about their experience
of being a puppy parent for Guide Dogs for the Blind (or whatever they call
their puppy parents). To be fair, if we’re just having a day out, I don’t mind
so much. Liggy loves all the fuss and as it’s her holiday too, I don’t mind her
getting all the attention. Most people are actually very polite about it. Yesterday,
several people asked before touching and asked if I minded telling them what
she does to help me. It’s a great opportunity to sell Canine Partners.
The castle itself was
semi-accessible. As at Beamish, I decided it was a Loopwheels/Freewheel kind of
day. There were a few steps to get in but Neil helped me up and then carried my
chair. Then there was a lift – the smallest lift I have ever seen! Good job I’m
not remotely claustrophobic! Going round the castle was interesting. I hadn’t
realised that somebody actually lived there. It was funny having a mixture of
all the medieval stuff with modern things like a bar and foosball table.
In the grounds, there were various talks. We stopped to listen to one about the history and chemistry of soap. Picked up some interesting tips there! Then we listened to one about armour and weapons. No useful tips there, given we don’t live in a battle zone… but relatable to putting on the full armour of God, and all that.
From the castle, we wandered into the town of Alnwick, but it was just a normal town centre and was narrow and busy so we went back and had a hot chocolate in the grounds instead.
Bellingham Camping and Caravanning Club Site
By the time we left, we
had forgiven Mrs Google for her earlier misdemeanours and gave her a second
chance to prove herself. I popped in the site name and clicked Start, as you
do, and off we went… past the U-turn place and through town. As I confirmed to
Neil that yet, we are going straight on at the junction, I also saw the sign.
Low bridge, height 9’ 6”. Let’s turn left instead, eh? Thankfully, it worked
out fine.
The rest of the journey,
she performed well… except that it was an hour and a bit’s drive along a B
road. It was narrow, windy, hilly but through the Northumberland National Park,
which is an area of outstanding national beauty… and it really is! It was a
real balancing act between watching the road and being drawn to the amazing landscapes
before us.
The campsite is totally different to Beadnell Bay… much quieter, even though it is full, and really pretty. We took Liggy for her acclimatisation walk once we were set up, and lots of people wanted to chat, do doggy introductions and so on. We’re sited right near the entrance, such that the motorhome service point is right in front of us, which will be dead handy in the morning!
After dinner, we decided
to take a walk into the village, where we’d seen a Co-op. It looked like a half
decent pavement, though quite narrow, so Neil took Liggy and I took my Freewheel.
Apart from a couple of missing dropped curbs and a car parked blocking the pavement,
it was an easy enough walk, about a mile and back into town. We also took the
opportunity to take a look at our options for roads out, as the main road south
is currently closed. We bumped into a couple of locals and one used to work for
the highways agency and knew the exact height of a bridge on one of our
options. He said it is 3.5 m. That’s going to be a little close for my liking
so we’ll take the slightly longer route and avoid it.
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