Penrith and Huddersfield

17th Sep

Sunrise - credit: S

Woke up early to a spectacular sunrise, so went for a walk to enjoy it, and to look for otters. Didn't see any, but the sunrise was revitalising for the soul! Then it was time to clean up the cottage and get ourselves to the ferry terminal. The last drive over our increasingly bumpy unmade road, past the highland coos, past the cemetery, through the Port Ellen maltings smoking another batch of barley. We were the last to arrive at the ferry (although we were there at 9:15 on the dot) so the last on board for the 2 hour trip to Kennacraig.

Barnacle Cottage (on right) from the ferry - credit:J

It was sad to be leaving Islay, such a wonderful place: wide boggy moors dotted with white cottages, pockets of pretty woodland, secret golden sand coves, picture postcard fishing villages, infused with history and brimming with wildlife. Then there's the ever changing weather, inducing wildly differing moods and lights, from stormy gloom and crashing waves, through misty mystery to blue sunny calm. Mind you, I bet the winters are tough!

The drive to Penrith took about 5 hours, once again skirting the shores of Loch Lomand, this time stopping for a late lunch in Luss, where we had a typical Scottish delicacy: fries topped with grilled cheddar!

Penrith Market Square - credit:S

We checked in to our very nice B&B in Penrith, just an overnight stopping point near the M6, then went for a look at the centre of this small market town. We had a quick drink in The Robin Hood pub before searching for dinner, deciding in the end to opt for a selection of ready-made delicacies from the local M&S Food Hall: salads, Eccles cakes, raspberries and scones already made up with the cream and jam.






18th Sep
Today was our the completion of our trip to Huddersfield to spend time with Jeremy's Aunt Sally, his cousins Tessa and Kay and spouses. The weather started out much better than expected, so we got on our way promptly (after yet another huge B&B breakfast) to give us time to visit Ullswater before heading south. You just can't be so near the Lake District without seeing a lake!

Ullswater - credit:S

Pooley Bridge, at the head of Ullswater, was less than 15 minutes from Penrith. It's named after the 18th stone bridge spanning the small River Eamont that flows into the lake. Sadly, it was washed away in the floods of 2015, but still a pretty spot. We went for a short walk along the shore, in the crisp morning sun, with the sheep, crows and heaps of dog walkers. The water was glassy smooth at first, so lovely reflections for our photos.

Ullswater Steamer - credit:J

The steamer ferry left the pier just as we got to the shore - a very cute wee version of the larger steamers on Lake Windermere.

Then it was off to the M6 for the 2 hour trip to Huddersfield, listening to podcasts on the car stereo via Bluetooth to pass the time.

Jeremy's cousin Kay is a manager at the large chemical factory, a major employer in these parts since the early 20th century, and in fact, today was their 100th centenary celebrated with an open day. Sam, Kay's wife, took us out to the factory where Kay was running the Kid's Lab demo - lots of fun with litmus paper and chromatography! We met up with Tessa, Martin and Nicholas, their son, for a tour of the Paraquat plant. Unlike our last factory tour, we weren't interested in tasting the end product!

That evening, we all headed off to a country pub called the Woodman Inn in the delightfully named Thunder Bridge. This part of Yorkshire is very hilly, so we had a great view in the last of the light. We had an excellent meal of, what else, but roast beef and Yorkshire pudding, albeit a slightly gourmet version.

19th Sep

Royal Armouries - credit:J

I decided to have a quiet day at home with Sally, while Jeremy headed off to the Royal Armouries museum in Leeds. We started the day with morning tea at Sam's florist/cafe - wonderful cakes! I then dropped Jeremy at the Huddersfield railway station. He spent a few hours wandering around the museum and was suitably impressed. It has a wide range of weapons from 10,000BC to Afghanistan, with dioramas of the Battle of Agincourt and Waterloo.

We finished the day with delicious home made pizza followed by brownie and fresh berries, courtesy of Sam.