Alnwick Castle, Northumberland, England

Alnwick Castle, Northumberland, England

Alnwick (locals pronounce it "Annick", by the way) was a place that I only met on journeys bound for Newcastle and often with onward travel home in my mind. Even on these, it looked appealing enough for further exploration, so I stopped there for a few hours on the last Saturday of May 2012. The day was a warm one, and I wasn't long after a heavy cold, so a walking trip didn't seem sensible. As I trotted around the town, I made for its castle and this is its northern side. Most folk go to its southern aspect since this is where you can pay to have a look around the place, and it isn't a cheap venture either, so you have been warned. Those entry fees are high enough to make the £5 paid to look around Edinburgh Castle in 1995 look like bargain-basement territory.

Since I wasn't planning on spending more than a few hours there, I contented myself with the views like that seen from the Lion Bridge and here is one of those. There was a bit of pottering by the banks of the River Aln too in an effort to seek out more angles to the castle. Given the strong light, returning when levels are more amenable to photography looks possible if not probable. Maybe an overnight stay in the place is forthcoming.

See more photos from this album (Northumberland)