Alnwick Tour

Writing from a holiday villa in the Corfu hills,

finding the time to chronicle the latest walk with the wife is much easier than back in the UK. This time, tagging along for what was originally Rachael’s solo weekend away in Alnwick, we decided to kill two birds and chalk off the Alnwick Tour from the guidebook.

Wandering downhill from our accommodation at the Howick Hideaway,

we got our priorities right with hot drinks and cake from the Costa Coffee and nearby bakery and took a quick peak inside the relatively new Harry Potter-themed shop before arriving at the first point in the Alnwick Tour. 

At the Haary Hotspur (which feels like what you’d say if you were trying to say Harry Potter while extremely drunk) Statue, Rachael consulted the public map to orient herself before setting off.

Being a relatively short loop, we decided to go in the opposite direction of the guide and head in the direction of descent that ended with the uphill, hopefully concluding with a pint.

As we turned away from Alnwicks most famous Knight (and equally renowned Shakespearean character), we rounded the corner to the entrance of Alnwick Castle before heading down the relatively steep road towards Lion’s Bridge.

The straight tail of the lion statue felt like an error, but after consulting the guidebook and doing a quick Google search, it became clear that it is the intentional symbol of the Percy Family, which owns and manages the castle today.

At this point, the sun broke through, and as Rachael wandered past an impressive tree, the vibe felt very Lord of the Rings on a journey through Middle Earth. That said, I won’t make a comparison to Rachael and a Hobbit here, as life may no longer be worth living if I do…

Along the way, we saw several cattle near the river, either taking a dip or a drink, with many of the recently born calves learning how to do so safely from their mothers. 

As we pressed on, it became clear that wearing white Nikes on this walk was a mistake. My focus changed to ascertaining where the firm ground was as the path went from flat to grassy, marshy, and finally muddy.

To avoid the same brown shoe fate as Shaun on the previous expedition, I managed to hopscotch my way across the entire path, stopping only to take a picture of a photogenic tree stump. 

Exiting the field, we crossed the road by Denwick Bridge and down the other side into the woods, closely following another couple who seemed to be on their own walk.

The young couple seemed to be on an Alnwick amble and not an Alnwick Tour, and our pace eventually spooked them to the point that they turned back as we pressed onto the next gate.

The following field was also home to grazing cattle, and as we progressed, we became accidental herders as a large fleet of cows and calfs kept moving further and further away from us, but unfortunately for them, in the direction we needed to head.

While we slowed our pace to avoid upsetting the herd, my friend Stephen texted me to find out what I was up to.

Sending him a picture of the glorious day and walk we were enjoying, he answered that he was also enjoying a walk. When I enquired as to where – he sent me a picture of his computer monitor playing World of Warcraft with the words ‘virtual walk lol’ 😅 

Rounding the corner of the field, we were left with no option but to walk through the path of the oncoming herd. Some cattle slid down the hill into the river, and a matriarchal-looking heffer eyed us up. We apologized and swiftly got out of their path.

Officially past the halfway point, we crept around the first underpass of the A1 and along one more field, which terminated at Peter’s Mill bridge. Walking across, I felt it was in pretty good nick for such a rural bridge, with my suspicions confirmed upon reaching the other side, where a plaque explained it had been rebuilt 20 years ago. 

As we officially began the ascent to the finishing line, the guidebook mentioned rural land with disused farm buildings, which shows the age of the writing as a significant and complete Story Homes development has replaced them.

After checking out the prices of the homes and considering pretending to be potential buyers in the show homes, we blew off the fleeting thought and pressed on to the summit, where we rejoined the A1068 at Windy Edge, which connects back down to the town centre.

Walking down the main road, passing lots of lovely period buildings along the way, we stopped at The Oaks Hotel just shy of the official end of the Alnwick Tour to have a pint.

After a refreshing beverage, we headed down the road and to the right onto Alnwick Gardens towards the Treehouse restaurant, where Raschael had booked lunch.

Sublime surroundings and delicious food rounded out our Alnwick Tour in style, even if the portions were a little too fine dining [read: small] for my appetite.