June 25 & 26, Alnwick

The adventure continues! Yesterday I biked from Berwick to Alnwick (pronounced Annick), totalling about 45 miles, with no flat tires or mechanical failures! The scenery was the best yet, with dramatic red cliffs and waves crashing down below, sand dunes with large tufts of grass, pastures with countless wildflowers, and gently rolling hills dotted with cows and sheep. Again, it was a wonderful sunny day in the high 60s with a sometimes strong wind since I was near the coast. There were, of course, wrong turns, reroutes across footpaths and pastures, as well as healthy bouts of cursing. I'm so glad I have touring bike and not a skinny road bike- otherwise I wouldn't have survived long on the national cycle routes! I even took pictures at points in the route where I thought incredulously to myself, 'you've got to be kidding!' I opened many gates into pastures filled with cows and sheep where the 'bike path' was simply the ruts made by tractors. The ride certainly gave me a full sensory, up-close-and-personal experience of the English countryside!

To get to the B&B at the end of the day - whose driveway was off the main coastal highway, I was directed by the owners to bike down a slightly less busy road, turn into a lane with a sign that says East Cawledge Park, and walk through several fields along a footpath until I saw a house with a chair on the roof (it doubles as an antique store). Sure enough, no such sign could be found which caused much cursing. I decided to turn down Middle Cawledge Park instead, and a nice farmer at the end of the lane showed me the fields at the back of his property that I had to cross. I can say that I was very happy to see the chair on the roof as I approached!

It was hard to find places to stay in Alnwick since it's a posh little town, so I stayed a bit out of the town center at Alnwick Lodge. Although it's not that expensive, it's a beautiful place and I got my own room with an ensuite bath that has a bathtub! Ah, the simple pleasures :)  I was knackered and went to bed (10 pm) before it was totally dark out.

Breakfast this morning was a lovely traditional English breakfast, with fried eggs, tomatos and mushrooms, as well as sausage and country-style bacon. There was homemade bread and fresh butter and orange marmalade. Yum! So I got off to a good start, knowing that i'd have to hike back through the fields to get on the road to Alnwick. Only this time, the gate at the farm where I got directions the day before was closed with a padlock! I tried to find another way around, but no luck. I ended up hoisting the bike and bags separately over the gate, of course dropping them in a patch of stinging nettle! Ouch! The rest of the day I spent visiting Alnwick castle and gardens- the castle is impressive and where the first Harry Potter film was shot. Alnwick gardens has a section filled entirely with poisonous plants! The first plant pointed out on the tour was stinging nettle :) Romans are said to have rubbed it on their skin in the winter time to feel 'warm'! Now I'm at the Alnmouth train station where I'll catch the train to Newcastle. Cheers for now!