Day 1 Friday the 13th
With such an auspicious date coupled with a full moon you’d be forgiven for wondering about ghostly goings-on in our weekend abode of Dunstan Hall near Craster. A property dating back to the 13th century and full of rich history. It was not creepy at all in the full light of day apart from the few eight legged creatures making an occasional appearance. Cue Neil and his hoover removals team. In the dark though it was a different prospect but more of that a bit later.
For those planning to ride today, it was arranged to meet at lunch time and head off for “wee tootle” down the coast to Amble and back. The weather held fair as we followed the route taken by the Tour of Britain. Lucky for them they had closed roads, however for us, the constant stream of traffic queuing up behind us spoilt our pleasant outing (and no doubt led to few curses from irate drivers). Little did we know that on the other side of the roadside hedge was a perfectly good cycle path. Duh!
Getting ready for our ride to Amble 
Sharrin outside Dunstan Hall
On reaching Warkworth we decided to stop and have our refreshments instead of continuing further to Amble. Basking in the sunshine below the impressive motte and bailey Warkworth Castle we repaired to the appropriately named Sun Hotel before returning back to Dunstan.
Friday crew at Boulmer
As everyone began to congregate in the “snug” the conversation turned spiritual with each recounting tales of ghostly sightings while others pooh-poohed the whole idea. It did get a bit scary when Sarah started reading out some of the entries from the comments book with references to “friendly” ghosts making appearances.
A bit later it was time for fun and games. Enjoying the late afternoon sun we all sat outside in the garden with our refreshment of choice and a few peanuts to tide us over till the steaks arrived. Some hilarious antics and banter ensued as we all took part in a game of molkky By the time “bragging rights” had been established, the “dinner bell” sounded.
Kevin demonstrating his skills 
Neil feeling forlorn after being knocked out
Wonderful steaks provided courtesy of Stephen filled the plates as well as the bellies. As the wine and beer flowed the raucous level slowly increased until the “chairman” rattling his glass brought a sense of order before running through the weekend agenda. Normal service was then resumed. Mark became an early contender for the “Mr Grumpy” award after casting aspersions about the musical tastes of some of the group as each person nominated a favourite song to be played.
The raucous end 
The sensible end
At some point during proceedings the lights “failed” as a ghostly apparition appeared in the doorway. Kevin’s attempt to scare Sarah seemed to work (at least momentarily) much to the hilarity of everyone else.
The day’s “Mrs Grumpy” award was eventually awarded to Vicky following a further tirade concerning the choice of music. The “Mrs Happy” award went to Carol after displaying her prowess with a PINT of gin and tonic. A great start to our weekend away.