A Night in Blanchland

Shortly after packing the tent away from our campsite along Hadrian's Wall, we decided to head to Newcastle for the morning, our first visit to a city during this trip around the UK.

Having only been to Newcastle to watch football, it was nice to spend some time strolling around the city.

After a quick bite to eat and a coffee, we headed across the River Tyne to Gateshead via the Millennium Bridge and spent a few hours walking around the Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art — it's free to get in! Housed in the impressive Baltic Flour Mills, built in the late-1930s, the structure was once home to 22,000 tons of grain in its hey day. Head up to the viewing platform for a great view of the Tyne River.

After lunch at Greggs — don't judge me, I'm in the North, we headed to my mystery location, The Lord Crewe Arms in the village of Blanchland.

My criteria when researching places in the area was simple...

• Picturesque location
• Good food menu
• Comfortable looking beds

This place ticked all the boxes.

On arrival, we decided to go for a walk around the village, which took all of 10 minutes. It's tiny. One thing we did notice whilst walking around was that pretty much every single front door is the same colour — red. How odd.

I asked the receptionist once we got back to the hotel, and she explained the reasoning. Blanchland is today owned by a number of Lord Crewe Trustees, a charity established in 1721, and have since set out to preserve the village and it's buildings. The majority of the buildings belonging to the trust, are noticeable by the red door.

It's a very unique place, and am quite glad to have spent some time here. With a population of 135 (according to the 2011 census), a post office, a tea room and a church, it's the perfect spot to spend a night after you've been camping for 2 weeks.