Written by Simon Whaley (A Runner-up entry in the Off the Beaten Track Writing Competition.) “You’re in the School Room,” advises the Under Butler, as he carries my flimsy outlet-shopping-centre-bought suitcase into the room. I’m greeted by the beautiful, classical tones of Claude Debussy’s ‘Clair de Lume’ drifting through the air from the Roberts radio […]
Yorkshire, England’s largest county, is a great place to visit if you are a heritage fan with both English Heritage and the National Trust having a wide range of sites. The many ruined abbeys around the county are testament to its rich agricultural land which proved attractive to monastic communities. Castles are also well represented […]
Written by Julie Noble (A highly commended runner-up entry in the Travel and Water Writing Competition.) The week before we go on the boat, roads all round England are gridlocked and people wait for days to enter the Channel tunnel and escape that way. When the radio features canals, we dream of forthcoming peace while […]
After reading The Road to Little Dribbling, I realise that Bill Bryson is not just a renowned senior traveller (he is 65 this year), but also a ‘grumpy old man’, albeit a very amusing, grumpy old man. The book is sub-titled More Notes from a Small Island, and that explains it well. Twenty years after […]
Written by Julia Thorley (One of two winning entries in the Travel & Water Writing Competition.) Begin at Bamburgh Castle, holding firm its position on the Northumbria coastline for centuries. It is built on an outcrop of volcanic dolerite, a grim rock with toughness reflected in black and grey intrusions. The rock is part of the Great Whin […]
• For a £5 discount on new membership, use code STEW05 on the Historic Houses website.
• To get a £10 National Trust gift card with membership by direct debit, click on National Trust.
Just My Cup of Tea – Isaac’s Tea Trail in the North Pennines
Written by Anne Leuchars (A Runner-up entry in the Off the Beaten Track Writing Competition.) I never thought I’d do anything worthy of the record books, but surely taking six months to walk 36 miles wins the prize for ‘Slowest Completion of a Long Distance Trail’? But when those miles progress through the deliciously varied […]