Vintage Train to Carlisle

At the end of May, me and my mam travelled to Carlisle via the Settle to Carlisle vintage train.  We boarded the train at Darlington and passed through stations at York and Leeds before heading off towards Settle.  

During the journey we were brought pastries and tea to eat whilst we enjoyed the views of the countryside out of the window.  I did try to take a few photos but it’s hard when you’re moving so fast so they might be a bit blurry.

The Settle to Carlisle line is a 73-mile long railway line in northern England. The route takes you through the Yorkshire Dales and the North Pennines and crosses the impressive Ribblehead Viaduct just outside of Settle.  The stretch of railway was built in the 1870s and has several tunnels (which are quite scary!)

Treasurer's House, York

It was pouring down when we visited the Treasurer’s House in York, so much so in fact, that I forgot to get a photo of the entrance to the house. It’s a grade I listed building owned by the National Trust and is in the centre of York near to York Minster. 

The first treasurer for the Minster was appointed in 1091 but the house was almost entirely rebuilt in the early 17^th century. The house was built directly over one of the main Roman roads in Roman York; one Roman column base can be found in the cellar of the Treasurer’s House, with one being used in the main hall. The house is reportedly haunted by several ghost, including a group of Roman soldiers who have been seen in the cellar of the property.

Goddard's House and Gardens, York

It was raining when we visited York a couple of weeks back to look round Goddard’s house and garden. Goddard’s is a grade 1 listed arts and crafts house in York, now owned by the National Trust who acquired the house in 1984, however it wasn’t opened to the public until 2012.  It was built in 1927 for the Terry family of the famed chocolate manufacturing family, Terry’s.

The garden spans 4 acres and includes a tennis court and croquet lawn. Beyond the gardens, you can see York racecourse.  As it was pouring down when we were there, we were the only ones out in the garden so we got the whole place to ourselves.  My favourite part was the rock garden in the pictures below.

Rowing Boats, Preston Park

I’ll add links to my earlier posts on Preston Park and Butterfly World at Preston park, so you can read them if you fancy.  This post is about the rowing boats that are there.  You can opt for an hour or half an hour out on the water; we chose half an hour and this was plenty of time to row up and down the River Tees.  Rowing boats are available for £10 per boat for 30 minutes or £15 for a full hour. 

We had to wear life jackets, which we didn’t on the rowing boats at Ruswarp, but I suppose the water here was a lot deeper.  After a few safety instructions we were off. (I didn’t row if you were wondering.)  It was such a warm day as you can see from the lovely blue skies in the photos below.

Cragside

Cragside has to be one of my favourite places that I’ve visited.  We visited on the way home from Northumberland; it’s only about 20 minutes away from where we were in Alnwick.  Cragside is a Victorian country house built in the 19^th century and was the first house in the world to be lit using hydroelectric power. It is also National Trust property and you can pay to go into the house, gardens or both.

The House

The house has been a grade I listed building since 1953.  The Victorian kitchen features a lift and a spit both run on hydraulic power.  Other rooms include the library, which has amazing views over the bridge and the formal garden, the dining room, drawing room and billiard room.  The dining room features a large marble fireplace.

Hydroelectricity

The hydroelectricity is one on the main features of the house as it was the first in England to use this.

The Iron Bridge

Built from steel made in Middlesbrough, the bridge allows you a different view of the gardens and house behind it.

The Gardens

There are a number of different walks to do and a selection of maps to follow.  The most popular walk takes you around the lake, past the Archimedean screw and the bridge, to the pump house, then back along through the trees to the house.  The rhododendrons were just starting to bloom when we were there, but I’d like to come back when they’re out.  There's also a large cafe and a gift shop near to where you can pick up a map.