Sunday 12th October 2025
We drove Tilly to the cattery at 10am this morning before heading down the M6 to Rutland Water where we’d booked a couple of nights in a posh hotel courtesy of Secret Escapes. The weather forecast was for the early morning mist to clear, but it didn’t, and we so arrived at Belvoir Castle at 1.45 still in the mist/drizzle. We’d thought we would visit the castle grounds, but in view of the weather, we just stayed for a brew in the retail park before deciding to continue to the hotel and go for a walk by Rutland Water instead. We were only five minutes down the road when suddenly, the sun broke through so we decided to turn around and visit the castle grounds after all.
This was certainly the right decision, since the weather was glorious all afternoon, affording beautiful vistas in the woods and gardens which were resplendent in their autumn colours. We didn’t go into the castle, which seemingly is the fourth incarnation on that site. The first was built in 1067, then rebuilt in 1508, 1654 & 1801. The latest incarnation is quite splendid though. The gardens were spectacular with plenty of things to see but not overwhelmingly large. The forager in me was very impressed by the vast numbers of sweet chestnuts just waiting to be gathered, but I resisted the urge, mainly because I’d no suitable bag and secondly because they were extremely spiky.
We left at 4.20 to drive the additional 25 miles to our hotel beside Rutland Water. Diverting to drop off Tilly this morning meant that I didn’t pass a fuel station before joining the motorway so I needed to fill up, but in refusing to pay the prices on the A1, by the time we arrived at the Rutland Hall hotel, the car was running on fumes. We left at 4.20 to drive the additional 25 miles to our hotel beside Rutland Water. Diverting to drop off Tilly this morning meant that I didn’t pass a fuel station before joining the motorway so I needed to fill up, but in refusing to pay the prices on the A1, by the time we arrived at the Rutland Hall hotel, the car was running on fumes. Refuelling the car is the first job tomorrow.
The hotel was very grand and had recently undergone an extensive refurbishment but they may have skimped on the staffing levels especially on reception. Eventually we checked in and realised that it was a quirky sort of place. The main hotel building (a former stately home) contained some rooms (I think they were the suites), but oddly enough it didn’t have a restaurant. The room we were allocated was wonderful (I think we’d been upgraded), but it was in a separate block which was accessed by a flight of concrete steps outside the building! But still no restaurant. That was in a yet another building up even more outside steps and beyond the kitchens.
Our room was very spacious and well-appointed and even had a bottle of Prosecco chilling for us. The room heating was odd. There were two pieces of art on the walls which, if the room became chilly, heated up and acted as very effective radiators.
We had a dinner reservation at 7.15, and when we arrived a fellow guest stopped me to ask if we were part of the Jaguar Owners club who were also staying in the hotel. We must’ve looked like Jaguar owners! We’d previously commented on the high ratio of Jaguars (about 12 out of 20) in the car park nearest the main hotel, but I just assumed that the hotel attracted that calibre of clientele. Once I explained that I drove a Honda Jazz we were encouraged to take seats in the main dining room whilst the Jaguar owners were escorted to an adjacent private dining suite.
I was very happy with the plebs’ restaurant however; there was a lovely atmosphere with a grand piano playing on its own beside our table. Once more, service was very slow. Our drinks (draft beer and cider) took almost half an hour to arrive. The food, however, was good even though the portions were rather small. I enjoyed wild mushroom arancini followed by salmon, whilst Gee had ham hock followed by a very substantial burger.
We had left home with just one episode remaining of The Hack (an ITV series about the phone hacking scandal), and since the TV in the room had a Chromecast option, I dialled up the programme on my phone and started to watch. But sadly the technology failed me. After about half an hour the programme stopped and refused to restart despite numerous attempts, so we ended up watching the rest of it crouched over a tablet.
Our bedroom had a fancy coffee machine which we used instead of having coffee in the restaurant, but it was naff (if it had been Neff, it might’ve been OK). The coffee wasn’t a good flavour and barely warm. We’ll stick to drinking tea in the room in future.
Monday 13th October 2025
This morning, we traipsed up the steps in the drizzle to go for breakfast which had plenty of promise, but little things let it down. Eggs, for instance. The breakfast items were all available under hot lamps for self-service but the fried eggs could’ve been used to sole your shoes. An alternative to fried eggs was offered in some beautifully presented individual bowls of shatshuka (eggs baked in a tomato sauce). Whilst I was very tempted, I couldn’t be persuaded to try one since the egg whites appeared to be transparent. They may have cooked if left under the heat lamps for a bit longer, but I didn’t fancy that. Whilst I’m in a grumbly mood, I can report that the half-tomatoes were barely warm, the bacon was so thinly sliced and crispy that it shattered upon the first bite and the coffee was of doubtful provenance – the machine delivered it far too rapidly for it to have been ground coffee.
I’m being very picky, though. Overall, I really enjoyed the breakfast since there was plenty of choice and the croissants and Danish pastries were delicious. And we got in before the Jaguar owners so there were no queues.
After a walk down to the lake, we headed off for fuel before driving along the peninsula across from the hotel to a village called Hambleton which was outrageously pretty in a Cotswoldy way. It was also very quiet, being three miles along a dead-end road with no signs advertising the many attractions.
I was interested to note that the sheep here appeared very fond of acorns and a group of them were steadily munching away each time an acorn fell. I reckon they’ll be very full this year with the volume of nuts produced.
We then drove on to Stamford, which was a lovely town with a very impressive range of good shops. How come I’ve never heard of the place before? We were also amazed at the number of cafés which appeared to form a third of the retail space.
Heading back to the hotel, we diverted to see Normanton church which was right beside the reservoir. When the Gwash valley was flooded in 1976 creating Rutland Water, the church was going to be destroyed, but local protests ensured its survival by agreeing that the lower section could be filled with rubble and concrete and a new, much higher floor be built inside. Since by now it was sitting within the reservoir, a causeway to it was built allowing pedestrian access. The deconsecrated church is now used as a wedding venue and very popular tourist attraction.
We had an early tea tonight to avoid clashing with a large private dining party and the service was much slicker. I had the ham hock and burger, whilst Gee had soup (with additional small loaves as a side) and cod loin. The food was just as good, but the portions were still a bit meagre. We’ll make up for it at breakfast, however.
Tuesday 14th October 2025
Breakfast today was much better, with a wider selection of fruit on offer. I tried the shakshuka since they looked properly cooked and I’m now sold on that dish – it was delicious. After breakfast, I noticed that the Jaguars in the car park had never moved since Sunday. What’s the point of coming away on a car owners club trip if you don’t drive anywhere? I don’t get it.
After we’d checked out (very slowly once more) we drove the few miles to Burghley Hall which was a huge place which was clearly used to handling vast numbers of tourists very efficiently. Once more, we only booked the gardens since we were on a tight schedule, not wanting to delay starting the 3-hour drive home.
I loved the Garden of Surprises which was a compact area packed with water features and sculptures, many of which were animated. We got lost in the mirror maze which was much more difficult than I’d anticipated. Very confusing! To exit the Garden of Surprises necessitated walking towards a fountain which formed a barrier across the path. However, as you approached, the water stopped allowing a dry passage through.
We spent most of the time in the Sculpture Park where we were really taken with some of the dramatic pieces. My favourite was one called the Vertical Face which appeared to change as you saw it from different angles.
We hoped to get away soon after 1pm to avoid the worst of the M62 traffic, but we got chatting to an interesting couple from our hotel which delayed us considerably. We enjoyed a visit to the café and then walked round to the Lion Bridge to admire the house’s front elevation. On the way we saw a white buck galloping through the park. He was a bit too far away to photograph clearly, but he looked wonderful.
It was after 2.30 before we got on the road and then an accident on the A1 delayed us another 15 minutes which confirmed that we’d be passing by Leeds and Manchester at peak rush hour. This led me to think that a diversion to see Emily in Sheffield would be a good alternative, so we left the A1 and drove along the A57 past Worksop to arrive in Bradway at 5pm. It was a great pleasure to spend an unexpected couple of hours with her. After a brew and a snack we went for a short walk before it went dark. A smooth drive over the Snake Pass saw us home by 9pm after a lovely few days.