<a href="http://pigyard.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/boathouse-vistaapr19.jpg"><img class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-5577" src="http://pigyard.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/boathouse-vistaapr19-200x150.jpg" alt="" width="200" height="150" /></a>And so we left the Moray Firth to head for our stay at the Boathouse.

We stayed on the country estate of Middleton Hall a year ago and promised ourselves we would return to stay in the Boathouse, overlooking the lake and it's wildlife. Whilst sitting on the verandah we witnessed a tree creeper working it's way up the nearby trees and a hare visited us on more than one occasion. The boathouse was very comfortable, warm and snug and it was tempting to see outside in the sunshine and just soak it all up but we did manage several walks of around 8 miles.

We did a circular walk through woods and moorland where we discovered strange outcrops of rock and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Cuthbert%27s_Cave" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">St Cuthberts cave</a>.

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The Northumberland coast was calling us and we did a couple of walks along the coastal path and then back along the beach or vice versa. There was a brisk easterly wind which kept the temperatures down so we didn't overheat but warm enough to sit in a pub garden  and quench our thirsts.

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There were several times when we were the only people on the beach and it had the feel of a desert island. Someone had taken time to draw an elaborate celtic not in the sand only for it to be washed away in the next high tide.

We completed our short stay in Northumberland with an evening out for dinner at Alnwick Gardens Treehouse. It's a magical environment.

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And all too soon we returned home with plenty of happy memories filed away for future reference...

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