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Showing posts from September, 2020

River Breamish

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This is night No.27/2020 living in the caravan. It's also the 4th and final night staying at the River Breamish C&MC Site near Powburn in Northumberland. Last night saw some fine weather as I went a walk around the nearby nature reserve. However, today was a different story! It started raining around 0700 and it's been light and heavy all day, so I had hardly any opportunity to take pictures. I took the dogs, as usual, around the Brandon Lakes before breakfast, and after breakfast we headed into Powburn for a walk along the River Breamish. It was a bit wet! Returned to the van and got some reading done. I'm reading an excellent history of James IV and the Battle of Flodden. I had visited that site on Monday. After a bowl of soup for lunch, we headed south to Thurston Wood, where it continued to rain. It was still a good walk for the dogs. I was keen to get another throw for the seats of the van of a similar quality I'd bought last year, so from Thurston, we headed f

Edlingham Castle

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  This is night No.26/2020 living in the caravan. This will be our third night at River Breamish C&MC near Powburn in Northumberland. Woke to a cold, clear morning and took the dogs around the nature reserve next door. Returned to the van and after some breakfast, we took the 10min drive to Thrunton Wood, not far from Rothbury. Been here many times in the past, and is a bit of a regular haunt when down this way as it has some excellent way marked routes. Quite a hilly forest, the walk takes you through some crags and boulders. A spaniel is included for scale. After the walk, I thought we would do a triangular route back to the site, visiting Edlingham Castle, then Alnwick, then back. Next to the castle is a 5th century church. Very impressive but closed. Next, we took the short grassy path down to the remains of Edlingham Castle and its impressive 'Solar Tower'. The castle started life as a Hall House, but was fortified and the tower built during the times of the Border Rei

Flodden

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  This is night No.25/2020 living in the caravan. This is our second night at the River Breamish C&MC Site near Powburn in Northumberland. It was a very cold night last night, but woke to really good weather. Took the dogs a circular walk round the nearby Nature Reserve, then into the village of Branton. Continued onto the footbridge across the river to Brandon (there's a Branton, Brandon, and Branxton round here). Across the bridge, there is now a new CL. Looked really good, and a great location. After lunch, I headed north to visit the site of the Battle of Flodden, where James IV of Scotland died on the field. A very impressive place and excellent boards describing the scene of the battle. Looking up to Branxton Hill where the Scots thought they had the advantage, but the lower ground between the hills in front of them was too boggy to make decent progress across. The nearby village of Branxton from the monument. On the drive back, stopped just south of Milfield to visit the
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 This is night No24/2020 living in the caravan. We're (me and the 2 dogs) are now pitched at the River Breamish C&MC Site, near Powburn. It's about 10 miles south of Wooler in Northumberland. Left around 0930 for the 4hr drive south. The weather was fine and apart from the Edinburgh Bypass, the traffic was moving easy. Pitched up the van, and took the dogs for a walk around the site dog walk/nature trail. The River Breamish runs along the site. There was a small sign asking for dogs to be kept on leads. Keen to comply (during daylight anyway!), I put them on the extending leads which just means they walk at the absolute extreme length of the cord! After unpacking the car and setting up the van, drove 5 mins to just outside Powburn to walk a nice riverside Public Path along the banks of the River Breamish through some redundant gravel pits which are now wildlife areas. A lovely walk, even spotted a Dragonfly! A fine day weather wise. Bright but chilly.