Crook Hall visit

Crook Hall is one of those places on your doorstep that you always mean to visit but never get round to doing.  Well yesterday we finally went there with the U3A gardening club (no we're not keen gardeners just like to see what other people have achieved and drool over them).   There has been a hall on this site since the 13th century, added to in the Jacobean perios and again in the Georgian period.  The gardens have an eclectic cottagey feel to them, small, secret and beautifully scented.   Best of all they have a wonderful view of Durham Cathedral almost as good as that from Durham train station.

Although a lot of the medieval hall  was standing it had fallen into disrepair.  It is now restored using the original materials where possible and is typical of halls of this period.   The hall comes complete with an offset fireplace and a minstrals gallery.   In the far left hand corner is an alcove supposedly where a soldier died and visitors are invited to stand in it with their hands on the walls to see if they are 'ghost receptive'.  

I tried standing in the alcove but I could only feel was the walls,   The Jacobean hall is much cosier but it is reputed to have a ghost.  The Grey Lady has been seen by lots of people but she was keeping herself to herself yesterday.

The Georgean part of the hall is ghost free and lived in by the family so we weren't allowed to go there. The gardens though, as I said before were lovely and when we were there the rain stopped, the wind dropped and the sun came out.   There is a small solar garden at the end of the medieval hall, tiny, packed with plants and peaceful. 

This was the Shakespeare garden and is planted with the flowers in his plays such as forget-me-nots, pansies (heartsease) and many other.  There is also a moat pool, a woodland walk and the present owners have planted a small maze which although not at full height yet is still fun to walk through.

Now its time to get down to some work and make a start on my May journal page.