The Lakes Weekend

Friday I met the Besties at Sizergh Castle just outside Kendal in the Lakes. We were going to a lodge in Troutbeck for the weekend. I had to leave Sunday instead of Monday as its Simon's brother's funeral Monday. 
We had lunch at Sizergh, walked around the house then the gardens which were spectacular as the autumn colours were so vibrant. We just made it to the lodge then the rain came. It rained and rained  and rained and rained. We thought we may have to build an ark to leave! It rained all night and Saturday morning it was still raining as we set off in waterproofs and with umbrellas heading for a National Trust property called Townend. We had to walk up a narrow road which had a river running  down it. A motorist stopped and said it was like a lake at the top of the road ..... many drains were blocked or couldn't cope with the torrent of water. We abandoned our trip and went round the church instead. It was lovely. We went back to the lodge then out for lunch in the pub on the site. Two games of pool, I was the referee and it was almost evening.  The rain had stopped so we went a walk around the site, the river was so high we were glad we were at the top of the hill. We found the dog field and it was under water! Suddenly the heavens opened again and we got soaked! A bit of TV then we played Trivial Pursuits and the chase. Its so good having company. 
This morning the rain had stopped and the ground was drying up. We decided to have another go at getting to Townend. The road was still running with water, see the drain in the collage but it was passable. We made it to the house and it was fascinating. We had a guided tour the only ones at 11am. So glad we made it, well worth a visit. A coffee stop at the cafe in the village then back to the lodge as blue sky was appearing in the sky and the sun was coming out. On the way back a detour past the dog field to see if it was still flooded. Amazingly there was no sign of water, as seen in the collage. Back to the lodge and time to get in the hot tub !! It was fabulous sitting in lovely hot water with the the sun shining looking at the beautiful autumn scene around us. We sat outside and had lunch then I had to leave. Yesterday roads were flooded and we were worried. Today the roads were clear and I had a great journey home. I'd had a fabulous weekend in the Lakes with great friends and although we experienced storm Callum the Lakes put on an amazing autumn show, superb colours.