July 30, 2018 - Scotland Trip Day 1 - Lake District and Penrith

After a later-than-expected start due to Heidi's train to the airport never arriving and, therefore, needing to help her figure out other transportation to the airport, Mark's parents and the three of us set out on a six-day driving tour of Northern England and Scotland.  We drove up the western side of England, through the beautiful Lake District and then west to Penrith for the night (See map below).

The Lake District




The Lake District is abundantly cute, with innumerable stone buildings, surrounded by spectacular lakes and mountains. As we went north, the architecture changed slightly, as did the rock types used, no doubt due to different stone availability. Unfortunately we did not get many pictures of the beautiful old row houses and stone homes, because pictures out the car window don't work well, and we had many miles to cover.














Aira Force and Ullswater

After several hours in the car, we were ready for the chance to go on a beautiful walk.  Aira Force and Ullswater (a National Trust-run place of beauty) with their huge trees, picturesque stone bridges, and beautiful water falls, were just what we needed! The pine tree below was incredibly huge. The picture does not capture it's size, but it must have been very old.













The bench below is a log with thousands of coins hammered into it.




Penrith

We spent the night in an AirBnB apartment above the Beehive Pub in Penrith. It was probably the worst AirBnB experience we have had on our entire trip, but, that said, it was fine for one night.  We had our classic English pub experience, eating at the Beehive for dinner. Many pubs have an outside eating area for socializing, often called a "Beer Garden." Heather just thought the sign below seemed a little funny.


The door at the top of the stairs in the picture below is the entrance to our apartment.












The bun sort of things below are called "Yorkshire Puddings," but when they are served with gravy and sausage, they are called, "Toad in the Hole." 😆Pretty yummy!




Arthur's Round Table

Right across the street from our apartment was a prehistoric henge called Arthur's Round Table.  The English Heritage organization, that owns and takes care of the site, says the following about it:

King Arthur's Round Table is a Neolithic earthwork henge, dating from about 2000 BC, but much later believed to be King Arthur's jousting arena.






Lowther Castle

After exploring Arthur's Round Table we decided to take a little drive to see what else we could find in the area.  We were delighted to find a couple of impressive castles.  The first was Lowther Castle.  Their website says the following about the estate:

Of the many treasures waiting to be discovered in the English Lake District, Lowther Castle is a particular gem. Built at the turn of the 19th century, on the site of two previous houses, the castle was a grand affair boasting a room for every day of the year. Its gardens were the envy of the north. But in 1957 the castle was demolished. Just the façade and outer walls remained standing and for over half a century, the place was empty – home only to chickens, pigs and the odd bat. The gardens were lost to wilderness.

It was clear that there has been some sort of renovation starting to happen, and some big social or sporting event was set up in a nearby field, so the castle is used for some things. It is open for tours, but we were there after closing time. We would have loved to see it up closer and inside!






We also enjoyed exploring the associated church and graveyard.






Brougham Castle and Hall

We then followed signs to Brougham Castle.  Wikipedia says the following about it:

Brougham Castle (pronounced /ˈbruːm/) is a medieval building about 2 miles (3.2 km) south-east of Penrith, Cumbria, England. The castle was founded by Robert I de Vieuxpont in the early 13th century. The site, near the confluence of the rivers, Eamont and Lowther, had been chosen by the Romans for a Roman fort called Brocavum. The castle is scheduled as an Ancient Monument, along with the fort, as "Brougham Roman fort and Brougham Castle".






We also passed Brougham Hall and decided to stop and explore.  It was fun to wander and scramble through the old structures. Their website says the following:

Brougham Hall, just a mile south of Penrith, Cumbria, was built in the 14th century and has a fascinating history. Rescued from dereliction in 1985, today it is one of the largest country house restoration projects in England and is home to an array of arts and craft workshops and businesses.


























If you look closely, you can see Grandpa waving back at Hannah.





     


It was a fun way to end the first day of our journey!

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