Muncaster Castle

Well, Easter weekend has arrived and Scott, for the first time in memory, has a 4 day holiday! The weather here promised to be sunny, cloudy, and rainy-not all at the same time, of course, but any of those at any given moment. It's still quite cool here with temperatures in the mid-40's. Scott and I decided to take a short drive to Muncaster Castle, located a few miles away in the fells. Muncaster Castle has been the continuous residence of the Pennington family since 1208. It is also advertised as a haunted castle. Scott does not believe in such things, but I, on the other hand, tend to think that anything is possible. The castle is situated on beautiful grounds and is noted for the outstanding gardens. The World Owl Trust also maintains a center within the gardens.

It is still early April, but we were treated to some beautiful spots of color here and their in the gardens. We will be excited to return in a few weeks when the trees will have leaves and more flowers will be in bloom.  We did enjoy a tour of some of the inside of the castle and we wandered through the gardens to an old cemetery and church, which is still in use. As for the ghosts, well, there's a story. As Scott and I wandered from room to room inside the castle we entered one of 3 bedrooms on the second floor. The hair on the back of my neck stood on end and I felt goosebumps! I turned to Scott and said, "This room is haunted!". He, typically, scoffed at the idea until a few minutes later he found an article written about the room and the castle. Apparently scientists have been investigating the strange goings on at this castle since 1992. It is believed to be one of the most haunted buildings in England.....if you believe in such things. For the bold and daring, there are "ghost sits" held right in the very room we were standing in. Also, overnight ghost vigils are available for the daring. The goosebumps were enough for me, and I was out of there!!

Still, ghosts or not, we will return often to enjoy the beautiful grounds.