Rain ,rain and more rain,the sky has opened and out poured the rain.
We walked to the railway station and boarded the train to Pickering .It is mid semester break here so we have children everywhere and they were on the train having a great time.
It was unfortunate as it was raining and very difficult for us to appreciate the countryside as we could not see it out of the window and because it was a steam train this added to the fogged up windows.
Beautiful old trains and we really enjoyed the journey to Pickering.Pickering is an ancient market town in the civil parish of Ryedale district of a North Yorkshire.The town as it exists today is of medieval origin.
We walked through the town and explored the surrounds.We then headed to Pickering Castle.
It stands on the edge of the North Yorkshire moors,with extensive views over the surrounding countryside.
It is a fine example of motte and bailey design. First built in earth and timber by William the Conquerer in the years following the Norman Conquest.It was rebuilt in stone and extended by subsequent kings,notably Henry III and Edward II ,in response to the threat posed at different times by rebellious barons and the Scots .
For most of its life the castle's role was to provide fine accommodation for the king and his retinue when he visited the northern countries.
This is a beautiful setting and the rain helped to provide a sombre stark feel to the environment.
After our visit we headed back to the station and jumped on another train to Goathland.
Goathland station -aka Aidensfield Station,also Hogsmeade Station in one of Harry Potter films is considered the celebrity station on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway.The goods shed has been converted into a tearoom,where visitors can sample the refreshments on offer in one of the restored wagons.
We leave the train and walk up to the village green,by this stage it is pouring with rain ,breezy and well, quite cool and very damp and overcast .
We visit the Aidensfield Arms,view Scripps's Garage and view the original Heartbeat Police Car.
We walked past The Aidensfield Store and Post Office and head to a tea room for some warm sustenance.
This is a very pretty area and we tried hard to take photos to show this despite the weather.
We head back to the train
and wait for the train to Whitby but it was running late,the waiting room was packed and the tearoom had closed so we had to wait on the platform in the pouring rain.
The steam train arrived and we headed back.
A great day but a very damp cool overcast one.