We’ve had a really successful opening at Wray Castle. Since 2nd April well over 4,000 visitors have come to see this new attraction and the ‘Café in the Castle’ is proving very popular indeed. Here is Elaine, our tenant from the Tower Bank Arms pub in Near Sawrey, who is running it for us this year, with a selection of their excellent cakes!
You can get into the café without having to pay for entry to the Castle (which is free to NT members of course!) so if you are out for a walk or just having a break from a drive, it’s a great place to stop-off.
Wray Castle is open every day and if you really want to make a great day out, come across by boat from Ambleside. Here’s the view back across towards Ambleside with the Fairfield Horseshoe in the background. Click here to find out more about Wray Castle.
Looking ahead, Wray Castle is going to be at the heart of our own South Lakes contribution to the National Trust's '50 Things to do before you're Eleven and Three Quarters' campaign which has been getting quite a bit of publicity recently. The rangers are currently busy helping to put in place some extra fun for kids in the grounds (like rope swings etc) all with the aim to encourage kids to get outside and enjoy themselves in ways we did when we were young. If you'd like to know more about the 50 Things Campaign here's the link to the National Trust's own 50 Things website.
We plan to have our selection of '50 Things' fun ready by the June Half-Term holiday but in the meantime there are some you can do without waiting, like Number 6 'Run around in the Rain'... although actually unlike the rest of the country we've had a dry spell of weather recently. There's never rain around when you need it!
post by John Moffat, General Manager and Linda
photos by John