Kenilworth Castle Feb 2014

A few weeks ago on a very breezy February day we ventured into Warwickshire for a visit to Kenilworth Castle. Despite having lived in Leamington Spa for a couple of years I’d never been to the castle, so a trip was well overdue!

The castle is well worth a visit. The ruins are eerily beautiful (if a little exposed on a windy day!) while the Gatehouse tells the story of royal favourite Robert Dudley. I had no idea of Kenilworth’s significance or that Elizabeth I had visited Dudley here no less than 4 times.

As well as looking around we also headed out for a short walk of a couple of miles or so. From the castle you can easily access the Millennium Way and the Centenary Way for a longer outing. We however  headed round the north side of the castle and picked up the Millennium Way. This heads North West towards Chase Lane, here we turned left and followed the lane as far as Chase Wood. We turned left around the wood and picked up the footpath heading back towards the castle. This stretch was boggy to say the least (oh how I cannot wait for Spring and an end to all this mud!) but afforded brilliant views back towards the castle. It also gives you a chance to see the site of The Pleasance which lies about 1km to the West of the castle and was built by Henry V as a fishing lodge.

Returning to our starting point we donned our trusty shoe covers (stolen from the gym) and popped into the rather impressive tearooms housed in the old stables for a warming bowl of soup.

I have to say this was one of my favourite jaunts this winter. Informative and picturesque, with plenty of photo opportunities. Also lots of options for walks long and short, I’m sure we’ll be back-hopefully when the weather is a little calmer.