Full steam ahead for trip back in time
The National
Railway Museum’s schedule for 2023 Flying Scotsman events is at railwaymuseum.org. uk/flying-scotsman.
East Lancashire Railway’s schedule is at eastlancsrailway. org.uk
Rooms at the Crow Wood Hotel and Spa Resort in Burnley start from £180 a night B&B. Visit crowwoodhotel.com
visitlancashire.com starter came Scotch broth. After that came Balmoral chicken – stuffed with haggis and wrapped in bacon – served with clapshot, an Orkney dish of mashed swede, turnips and potatoes.
To round off, we had panna cotta with Cranachan – a mix of whipped cream, whisky and oatmeal – with, of course, Scottish shortbread. The tasty menu was beautifully thought out.
Our trip came to an end as grandly as it had started, with the Bolton Caledonia Pipe Band playing us off the train in Bury. It was a special experience neither of us will ever forget.
We’d decided to make a break of it and stay in Lancashire for a couple of days, basing ourselves at Crow Wood Hotel and Spa Resort in Burnley. Set in 40 acres of private parkland and overlooking the dramatic Pendle Hill, this luxury independent hotel has only been open since the end of 2019 and we couldn’t fault a thing.
Our twin room had two comfy small double beds rather than singles and a lovely view overlooking a lake and fountain. And the menu at the lively but laidback 2AA Rosette Bertram’s restaurant had a fun and inventive side.
My starter of garlic mushrooms and Blacksticks Blue cheese fritter on toast followed by stone bass with a seaweed cracker, lemon gel and broccoli puree was fabulous. Mum went traditional with a mighty portion of fish and chips while a dark chocolate Bailey’s cheesecake shared between us topped it off beautifully.
The restaurant was separate from the hotel – and to save us and other guests from the rain, the concierge gave