Pictures of England

Search:

Historic Towns & Picturesque Villages

The meeting place, St Pancras Station

St Pancras

in the county of Greater London

Village cottages

Castle Acre

in the county of Norfolk

Vince Hawthorn

Vince Hawthorn's Reviews (6)

Now That Has Got To Hurt5 stars
Pembroke Castle(12th October 2014)

Pembroke Castle
If history is your thing then take a peek at Pembroke Castle. Access is from a point in the town which is up steep slopes whichever way you come but there is a bus stop/ drop off point right at the entrance. One buys a ticket in the well stocked gift shop before a short slope up and into the castle itself. I must say that access to the shop does have a fair step so an issue for a wheelchair user ( we did not ask for a ramp to be provided but according to the website one can be made available ). One thing about this castle is that as soon as you have gone through the gatehouse you are in the castle itself and throughout the grounds we could get the wheelchair all round. As with all castles the access to the towers, walls and lower rooms it becomes more of a problem but for those more mobile the exhibits in the gatehouse are very interesting and well worth the time spent there. A climb and I mean a climb up the spiral staircase to the top of the Keep or Great Tower as it is known is rewarded with stunning 360 degrees of views of Pembroke and the Welsh countryside. If after all this exploring a drink is required then the cafe is a good stop, it is slightly hidden in a sunken position to not be out of place within the castle itself and the eats we sampled were well good.Do not forget to have a look at the castle from the bridge out of Pembroke to the north or from the cycle and pedestrian path to the west of the castle. In all well worth a visit.
5 stars - Excellent!

Pembroke Castle hotels   Pembroke Castle cottages

Sunset on the Coast near Kidwelly5 stars
Kidwelly(11th October 2014)

Kidwelly Castle
If you like looking round castles, then this one will not disappoint. The castle although a ruin is in good condition to see it's layout and there are castle walls to walk along with extensive views . It is in the hands of Cadw which is the Welsh equivalent to English Heritage and there is a small shop where one's tickets are bought. Access is up a slope to the gatehouse and once into the castle there is level access on some paths or grass, for a wheelchair user a rare chance to get into a castle and feel right inside with high walls all around. Obviously to get to the wall walks and other higher areas or down into a number of underground areas the usual castle steps need to be negotiated so not possible for the wheelchair user. Overall though this is a great castle to look round and see the views from it.
5 stars - Excellent!

Kidwelly hotels   Kidwelly cottages

Now that Is a sharp frost!4 stars
Great Bookham(24th July 2014)

A Surrey Place -Great Bookham
The centre of Great Bookham is the cross roads by the Church and it is known as the Squareabout, yes a squareabout and it is a raised area on the cross roads and where no one has right of way and it seems the rule of give way to the right does not apply. What it does do is make everyone stop and only go when safe. The Church is the church of St. Nicolas and goes back about one thousand years. The Crown public house takes another corner spot along with Lloyds bank and the fourth spot is waiting new owner's after the estate agents there moved to the High Street. The High Street and Church Street/Road ( I have seen it refered to as both ) has a pretty broad range of shops catering for most needs and a smaller shopping area over the A246 even has a wet fish shop. On the outskirts on the Dorking Road is the National Trust property Polsden Lacey with it's famous house and gardens. Travel down Church Road towards the railway station and one comes to Bookham Common, an area of woods and lakes where many folk walk and cycle to see the abundance of fora and fauna. The centre of the village for the community is The Old Barn Hall, venue for meetings and entertainments of all kinds. By and large it is a residential area with many dwellings ranging from the small to the the rather large and plush.
4 stars - Good

Great Bookham hotels   Great Bookham cottages

A View From Cousin Jack's Garden4 stars
Heartlands(16th July 2014)


This is a fairly recent facility at Pool which is in between Camborne and Redruth. Over many years I have visited the area and seen the engine house of Robinson's Shaft but it was in the middle of a desolate and abandoned area of industrial past. The engine house and the engine held within was left in the care of the National Trust but just locked away. Thus the last Cornish Beam Engine came to rest in 1955, it was all electric after that. But now, the whole site has been totally developed and the engine house renovated but the engine inside will never pump again with a ginormous crack across the cylinder head. One can have a look around the engine house on one of the two guided tours each day, I had a one to one tour on the day I went. The site is a free to enter resource for both the visitor and the local community. On site can be found a visitor centre with museum, exhibition and an information video film. You can also find the Red River cafe which is to be very much endorsed ( I did find out the pasties sold there are from Anne's Pasties of Lizard ). For various functions and talks there is a lecture centre, a collection of units for local artist types to make and sell their products and a landscaped area along with various industrial bulidings. The whole area is meant to be an education on the effect Cornish Mining had and is actually part of the World Heritage site and acts as a gateway to find out what and where can be seen in the ten areas of the UNESCO site. Cornish miners left Cornwall to mines overseas when the mining failed at home and there is a collection of different gardens to represent the main countries that the diaspora traveled to with native plants from each of the countries in each relevant garden. Thus that is Heartlands- oh the name, it is to represent the heart of the mining area but a lot of local folk felt that the name should have been something in Cornish. We like the place , I hope you do to. ( the whole site is very flat and constructed so that it is wheelchair friendly with a designated disabled parking area ).
4 stars - Good

Heartlands hotels   Heartlands cottages

Wheal Peevor5 stars
Wheal Peevor(14th July 2014)


Anyone travelling the A30 through Cornwall cannot fail to see the three engine houses clustered together near to Redruth. The three engine houses are a pumping ( the largest ), a whim and a stamps. The pump does what it sounds like raising water from the depths of the mine. The whim is the engine that raised the ore to the surface and the stamps engine drove the crushers to break up the ore. Also here are remains of the buddles where the tin ore could be separated from the unwanted materials. So here at Wheal Peevor are the main buildings preserved and stabalised for all to see with plenty of information boards dotted around to provide information. The whole area is part of the World Heritage site for Mining of Cornwall and West Devon. There is a car park ( free when I last visited ) and fairly good access for wheelchair users, although getting into the engine houses would involve steps. So for someone looking to understand the principles of Cornish Mining and the relevance of the engine house dotted around Cornwall this would be a very good spot to see.
5 stars - Excellent!

Wheal Peevor hotels   Wheal Peevor cottages

Where's my dinner5 stars
Warnham Nature Reserve(13th July 2014)


You only have to look at the photos here of the reserve to see that it is a gem of a place for nature lovers and photographers alike. There is plenty of shaded parking, a refreshment area with eating inside and out ( and loos of course )before paying to get in. At £1.50 it is worth every penny and there is plenty to see. A great deal is around a very large lake with plenty of birds to see, also there are a number of other habitats with a range of plants and animals. There are three hides for use, two face the lake ( in one you could see the elusive kingfisher- but not for me so far ), the third hide faces inland with plenty of creatures making a call to see what food is on offer. At the far end of the site is a boardwalk, again full of plenty to see- but do watch out for the midges in this area, they do pack a bite. All in all a great day out, take your camera and binoculars and be at one with nature. AND I will get a shot of that kingfisher one day!
5 stars - Excellent!

Warnham Nature Reserve hotels   Warnham Nature Reserve cottages