Derelict Cafe, Hartside Top

After our fabulous blippers' week with John and Debs at LPH, we reluctantly said our fond farewells (or should I say, our "see you again soon"s, as I'm sure we'll all be back just as soon as we can!) and went our separate ways.

I took my favourite route back to Newcastle, over Hartside Pass and through Alston. It was a bit misty on the top and I stopped to take a look at the old cafe which sadly suffered a devastating fire in March. We'd stopped there ourselves for a coffee on several occasions in the past, and it was a popular rest stop for motorcyclists and for cyclists pedalling along the C2C route (no, I sadly never did that and my ageing knees wouldn't allow me to do so nowadays even if I had the energy!).

I thought the mist added to the sense of devastation so I took some photos and I'll tag this one for this week's Derelict Sunday challenge, hosted by Marlieske. (Look large for best effect.)

Interestingly, I've since noticed that the plot has just gone up for sale, at  price of £300,000. I don't think I'll be buying it though....it can be a bit bleak up there! (Seemingly the fire crews in March had to follow a snowplough.)

On a more cheerful note, the autumn colours on the road near Langley Castle were gorgeous! (See the extra.)