Laverock Hall, Laverock Lodge and Sheep Haven Cottage are situated in the North Pennines AONB (Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty) ½ mile outside the village of Eggleston, which in turn is 6 miles from the town of Barnard Castle in County Durham, Northern England.
Barnard Castle is in the very South of County Durham and borders the River Tees, which has for a long time been a border between Durham and North Yorkshire.
15 miles to the West is the border with Cumbria meaning the Cottages are well placed for trips out to the Yorkshire Dales, the Lake District or travelling north to Durham and Newcastle.
However, don’t be too quick to rush off, the dale itself (Teesdale) is a beautiful unspoilt area of wild fells, reservoirs, pretty villages and country pubs as well as quietly enjoying High Force (England’s highest Waterfall) as one of its main tourist attractions.
The area was recently awarded UNESCO European and Global GeoPark as the North Pennines is an excellent place to get to grips with nature - 22,000 pairs of wading birds nest in the area, red squirrels are easy to spot, upland hay meadows are blooming.
In the North Pennines you'll find 40% of the UK's upland hay meadows; 30% of England's upland heathland and 27% of its blanket bog; 80% of England's black grouse, red squirrels, otters and rare arctic alpine plants.
Things To Do
There are loads of things to do during your stay at Laverock Holiday cottages. Originally we added our own starting as "A Typical Day". However, we decided to add a couple of "actuals" from the Visitors books so you can read what previous visitors got up to..... (some suggestions weather/time of year dependant).
Taken from Visitors book end of August/beg Sept:
- Day 1 - When we arrived we enjoyed a lovely meal at the Three Tuns Inn
- Day 2 - Walk along the Teesdale Way, stunning views and had an even better meal at the Moorcock Inn
- Day 3 - Visited Bowes Museum and The Crown, Mickleton. Excellent meal at reasonable price.
- Day 4 - Off to the Lakes for the day, trip to Windermere, Hawkshead and Coniston. Indian Tandoori from Tandoori Nights, Barnard Castle - excellent!
- Day 5 - Visited Bambrough Beach. Long trip but worth it. The Castle is amazing and the beach is vast and dog friendly. 2nd visit to The Moorcock Inn, great meal again!
- Day 6 - Visited Hartlepool and Darlington. The Quayside at Hartlepool with HMS Trimecolee (the worlds 2nd oldest ship) is worth a visit. 2nd visit to The Crown at Mickleton.
- Day 7 - Barnard Castle trip - nice walk near the river followed by shopping, a few nice shops worth visiting. PM visited Eggleston Gardens - worth a trip and nice plants for sale too. Evening meal at The Rose and Crown, Romaldkirk - excellent. Still lots to see and do, so hope to be back next year!!
A Typical Day……
- Let your dog out in your enclosed garden and admire the fabulous view!
- If you are brave enough, go to where our free range hens or geese live and collect your eggs for breakfast. All we ask is you keep a tally of how many you have and leave us the money (25p per hen egg/£1 per goose egg) at the end of the week.
- Take your dogs for an early morning run in the designated stock free field we will have shown you.
- Load up the van to take the dogs out remembering to give the pet lambs a scratch when you go past!
- Enjoy a walk around one of the 9 fabulous reservoirs that nestle in the local hills or visit High Force – Englands Highest Waterfall.
- Have a late lunch at one of the dog friendly pubs we will tell you about on your arrival.
- Return home to help out on the farm with various ‘sheep’ jobs, feed the pet lambs in spring, watch the sheep being shorn in summer. Give your dog a training session whatever the weather in the Indoor Agility Arena, have a 1:1 sheepdog training lesson or watch the dogs at work.
- Enjoy the fabulous views whilst making tea whilst your shattered but clean dogs sleep it off in the dog shower room!
- Roll down the road to the 2 local village pubs for the evening. Sit out in the gardens weather permitting.
- Return home (avoiding the wild rabbits and pheasants) and collapse into bed drifting off to the sound of gentle baahing……
PLACES TO GO
There will be a file full of info when you come but here are a few suggestions.
In the locality:
- Cow Green Reservoir – located in ‘England’s Last Wilderness’ about 20 mins away
- High Force – England’s highest waterfall, great walk with picnic areas and pub
- Middleton in Teesdale – small pretty village with loads of cafes and a Co-op
- Barnard Castle – bustling Market Town (Wednesday is market day), full of antique shops, gift shops, café’s and a Morrisons!!
- Bowes Museum – fantastic country house in french Chateau style, features many priceless works of art.
- Raby Castle – Home of Lord Barnard, well worth a visit
- Barnard Castle Golf Club – for those who like their golf!
- Grassholme Reservoir – Fishing available, walks and café.
- Deepdale Off Road – Off Road driving fun on a 20 acre purpose built site.
- Hamsterley Forest - Superb wooded forest with 1, 3, 5 mile off lead walks. Very very highly recommended, with teashop as well!
- Teesdale Sports Centre – Swimming pool, badminton, squash etc.
- Various Horse Riding Centres
Indoor Agility Arena
Don’t forget our on site Indoor Agility Arena. 120 feet x 45 feet long and complete with a full set of equipment. Come, train, go!! Available for hire from £14 per hour for 2 people/£16 per hour for 4 people.
AGILITY LESSONS AVAILABLE on site - All ages and abilities catered for - From 'taster' lessons/fun pet lessons to Championship Competition Level.
SHEEPDOG TRAINING LESSONS AVAILABLE on site - Introductions to Sheepdog Training, have a go with your dog in controlled circumstances.
Further Afield (45 – 90 mins)
- East Coast Seaside, Redcar, Cleveland – 50 mins
- West Coast Seaside, Grange over Sands, Cumbria – 90 mins
- The Lake District - Kendal, Windermere, Kirkby Stephen – 45-90 mins
- The Yorkshire Dales – 30 mins
- Durham and Beamish Museum* – 45 mins
- Newcastle and The Metro Centre – 60 mins
- Hartlepool Shopping Centre and Marina – 60 mins
- Diggerland* - 45 mins
- Lightwater Valley Theme Park and Shopping Outlet* – 45 mins
* If you wish to go out for the day and leave the dogs in the shower room, it may be possible to arrange with a local dog walker to exercise the dogs for you. Please Ask!
Some Agility Shows in the Area:
- Wigton show, Carlisle (June) – 60 mins
- Otley show (June) – 75 mins
- Cornforth show, Raygill, Barnard Castle (July) – 10 mins
- Barnard Castle show (July) – 15 mins
- Weardale Champ Show (July) – 25 mins
- Hare n Hounds Summer Shows, Primrose Hill, Barnard Castle (August) – 15 mins
- Northern (Wilton) Champ week, (August) – 50 mins
- Adams Agility, Primrose Hill, Barnard Castle (Sept) – 15 mins
- Hare n Hounds Summer Shows, Primrose Hill, Barnard Castle (Sept) – 15 mins
- All Myerscough indoor shows – 90 mins
The Farm:
As Laverock Hall is a working farm there are certain things going on all year round. You are more than welcome to join in if you are happy to get your hands dirty!!
December – March:
- General Sheepcare for the winter months and in preparation for lambing – worming, supplementary feeding with the quad bike, hoof trimming/foot rot check etc. Possibly bringing in pregnant ewes from the fells if weather is inclement.
April – May:
- Lambing!!! – Bi-hourly checks round the field for any lambing Ewes, problem spotting, 4 hourly feeding of any orphan (pet) lambs, tagging of new lambs etc.
June – July
- Speyning of the lambs (taking them off their Mums, be prepared for a bit of baahing!). General sheepcare, Drontal injections for worms etc. Possible hay timing or silaging depending on weather. Walking Mum and young lambs back out to the fell.
August
- Clipping of 200+ sheep, possible hay timing or silaging depending on weather.
September
- Preparing any excess breeding ewes for Annual Autumn Sales.
- Eggleston Local Agricultural Show
October
- Preparing breeding ewes for the Rams
November
- Tupping (mating) Time!!