Going back in time

We have turned around and headed to Chirk Castle where we have finally decided to join the National Trust! (There’s a slight ulterior motive, it means we won’t have to pay to use their car parks with the motorhome when we head to Cornwall in May!) But it’s made me feel very grown up and responsible!!

I’m not sure what either of us were expecting from this castle, we’ve gone past the signs for it numerous times either on the road or on canal. I certainly hadn’t anticipated seeing a complete castle that is still lived in today. As you walk around it you see a history spanning over 800 years. It was originally built in 1295 by an English Marcher Lord Robert Mortimer who was granted the Lordship of Chirklands by King Edward I. It was built as a defensive medieval fortress along the Welsh-English border and was an important part of the king’s efforts to keep the Welsh under English rule. In 1595 it became a family home to the Myddeltons until ownership was transferred to the National Trust in 1981. There were some very worn stone steps and dark corners so I did ask one of the volunteers if there were any ghosts. Apparently not, just some “atmospheric” corners!

There are interiors and artefacts from just about every period of English history including the civil war. It’s a fascinating place to visit and is set in extensive gardens and grounds. It was a chilly day, so the café was the busiest section, but the food was great. The medieval dungeons and Adam’s Tower were well worth a visit and made a huge contrast to the parts of the castle that were lived in and decorated during the last 400 years!

Back on the boat it turns out I’d asked the wrong person about the ghosts! Chirk is said to be haunted by a lady dressed in green, a dog, crying children, and soldiers carrying an injured comrade on a stretcher. And, there are even reports of tiny invisible hands, grabbing at unexpecting passers-by who dare to walk the corridors of Castle Chirk. I’m relieved to have escaped without those experiences!

Back on the canal and we continued downstream through yet another tunnel and we stayed for a few days beside Blake Mere. This is a favourite spot for us as the mere (lake) is within a sticks throw of the canal. It’s quite stunning with lots of ducks, swans and anglers!