BROUGHAM CASTLE

A day of changed plans again.  Yesterday, when the weather was lovely, I decided it was time I visited Shap Abbey. So I looked up a nice easy walk  that I could do, taking in Keld as well as the Abbey and starting off in Shap at the at the Abbey Kitchens Cafe.  I printed out proper written directions for the walk, checked the Abbey Kitchens website to  ensure they were open - Wednesdays to Saturdays 8.30 to 4.30 it said (and still does).

This morning the weather was grey so we decided we would still go.  Checking the forecast it said sunny and rainy intervals - that's OK I thought. 

So we headed off up the A590, up to the top end of the A591 and onto the A5284 going through the top end of Kendal, thus avoiding driving through the centre to get onto the A6.

A pleasant drive most of the way, however on nearly getting to Shap it started to rain, and quite heavily and was persisting it down when we arrived.  As we drove through Shap I noticed that the Abbey Kitchens has closed down - permanently apparently - all the furniture and trappings have gone!!!!

Doesn't look like anything else was open in Shop for coffee so a quick change of plan on to the Larch Cottage Nurseries for fika, coffee and Danish Apple Cake!!!  

What to do after that.  Then I thought I haven't been to Brougham Castle for years and it's not far so we went there.  Considering the weather there were quite a few people around and we were lucky enough to get the last remaining parking space by the road.  There is no car park, you just need to park by the road, which is usually not too bad but today Open Reach were doing something using a crane type thingy and taking up quite a few spaces, but obviously important work.  Still we got parked OK.

We went on through the castle, sheltered in the archway for a while as a heavy downpour suddenly sprung into life. Actually walked all the way round the castle, which I'd never done before, so you get a different perspective of it.  Didn't go up the tower though, but I have done that before.  A very pleasant 90 minutes or so there, just walking around, avoiding the rain, reading the information boards etc.  If the weather had been better would have stayed in the area and go to the nearby Roman Fort and look very various stone circles, stones etc, but it was so changeable that we decided we were doing fine as we were.

Then we wondered what to do for lunch, after all fika was well over 2 hours ago now so need to start thinking of somewhere.  I thought of going back to the Larch Cottage Nurseries again, but we knew it would be very busy because there were a lot of tables already reserved so I thought, Brougham Hall, there's a pleasant enough cafe there and it's just up the road.  Last time I was there with Garron we had Stone Soup, which had a really interesting and funny story with it (basically a vegetable broth).  WRONG.  The cafe is no more, they do have an "honesty cafe" which basically means helping yourself to drinks from flasks and a snack maybe and leave your money in a box.  Which is such a shame because then we would have stayed and browsed around the craft shops, but we just moved on.  I  doubt I will visit again now that the cafe has gone, such a shame.  Probably wasn't viable and they couldn't get the staff.  So I thought I know we'll go to a pub in Clifton, not far away.  WRONG AGAIN, closed for re-decorating!! OK so we will go to Orton Scar cafe via Shap. 

So we headed off for Shap again, turned up the road to go to Orton - guess what - CLOSED for refurbishment!!!! So we simply joined the M6 and went to Orton turning off at Junction 38.

We had a very pleasant homemade butternut squash and sweet potato soup with a toastie instead of just a chunk of bread.  A proper toastie too, with both slices individually toasted and not stuck into a toastie machine and squishing it all - very very nice.

Now we are back home.  Again it hasn't really rained in Grange, still very grey and autumnal though.

A pleasant day really, despite all the changes and the weather.  Just as well to have back-ups, especially in Cumbria

Now to go and edit the photos I've taken.  I thought this would be a good one for a Blip, so here you are.