Rock House Estate, Alston

The North Pennines is a relatively unknown area, but the scenery is fantastic. The Rock House Estate is about 100 acres between Alston & Nenthead. This is an area for outdoor activities - you can put on your walking boots and walk from the cottage! but there are also lots of places to visit. When you are out and about there are plenty of places to eat ranging from cafes & pubs to excellent restaurants.

Writers Cottage is a cosy cottage for two with a four poster bed and a corner spa bath. Sunrise, which is for four, also has a four poster bed and an en-suite bathroom. There is also a sauna. Ramblers Rest sleeps 5 - a double bedroom and a bedroom with 3 singles. A double sofa bed in the lounge sleeps an extra 2. Ramblers Rest has the added attraction of a sauna.

Nentside Barn sleeps 5 to 7 - like Ramblers Rest it has a double bedroom, a bedroom with 3 singles, and a double sofa bed in the lounge. Nentside Barn, Ramblers Rest and Writers Cottage are close together and together can sleep up to 16. Nentside Barn has a table that can be extended to seat 14. So for large groups they are a good alternative to Rock House Farm which sleeps 14. For really large groups, all 5 cottages can sleep up to 34.

Walking is probably the most popular activity around here. All the cottages have a folder of walks and an Ordnance Survey Map. You don't have to drive somewhere for a walk - you can go for a 20 minute stroll along the river to the pub in Nenthead, or put your boots on and walk up through our Christmas Trees to the top of the fell where there are superb views north to Hadrians Wall & Scotland and south to the peaks of the Pennines (Cross Fell, Great Dun Fell, etc).

Hadrian's Wall is about an hour by car, and the best walk is from Steele Rigg to Housesteads. Part way along the walk is 'Robin Hood's Tree' where they filmed Kevin Costner as Robin Hood. Our favourite walk is from the nearby village of Garrigill to Ashgill Force, a spectacular waterfall that you can walk behin.