Classy Cally

Another travel day! Got the day started with a 7km run setting out on the usual local trails. Once things were tidied and packed up, we were off to Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

Our route took us along A689 through the North Pennines (AONB - Area of Natural Beauty) as we traversed through Northumberia and into Cumberia. Earlier on we saw a number of signs posted for a fair in Walsingham, that we did pass through. Apparently the Agricultural Fair is one of the oldest in Britain, or maybe a local claim to fame. 🤷‍♂️

The route followed various valleys, sometimes paralleling a creek, and sometimes through denser forest. Mostly, the hillsides were open and carved up by rock walls (fences) and dotted with sheep or cattle. As we drove further in to the nature reserve we climed higher into the moors, covered in blooming purple heather, and dappled in sun and intermittent showers.

We passed through a number of quaint villages where the buildings were mostly made of rough or chiseled rock with slate tile roofs; a big change from the red brick in Yorkshire and eastern Durham county. Driving through the market town of Stanhope, we passed the Stanhope Castle, built in the 18th Century, that is now a hotel! https://stanhopecastle.co.uk/

And just a bit farther up the road we passed the Kilnhope Lead Mining Museum. https://killhope.org.uk/

We took a number of slower side roads to enjoy the scenery, and avoid the congested motorway exchanges as we got closer to Scotland. Our first stop in Scotland was in Annan at the Annandale Distillery. The distillery was only recently revived in 2014, but was originally built in the 1830s, only to be abandoned in the early 1900s. Too many delicious choices in the store. We shyed away from the top, triple digit option 😲Thankfully they had a wee sampler pack of six flavours.
https://www.annandaledistillery.com/

We finally arrived at our evening accommodation, The Cally Palace Hotel. Originally called Cally House, it was initially built in 1766 for James Murray. The hotel has warm personality including gently creaking floors, thick walls, and the Bow Lounge with its magnificent gilt cuppola ceiling. We enjoyed the pool area, though it is certainly in need of a refresh past the 90s!
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cally_PalaceRead more