Raby Castle & High Force
Raby Castle
The estate was originally owned by the Viking King, King Cnut, the self proclaimed Emperor of the North.
​
Raby (Ray-bee) Castle was built in the 14th century by John Neville the 3rd Baron Neville de Raby between 1367 1390. Cecily Neville Duchess of York was the mother of two Kings of England, Edward IV & Richard III. King Edward IV died in 1483, leaving his 2 sons aged 13 and 10. The eldest known as King Edward V. Their uncle Richard was appointed their protector in Edward’s will. Richard had them put in the Tower of London, as was the custom for Kings awaiting their coronation. The prince’s were declared illegitimate by an act of Parliament in 1484. They became known as the Princes in the Tower. At which point Richard was crowned Richard III. His reign was brief, when he was defeated and killed at the Battle of Bosworth in 1485 by Henry Tudor.
​
Cecily’s granddaughter Elizabeth of York, the eldest daughter of Edward IV married Henry Tudor (King Henry VII).
After the failed Rising of the North in 1569, Raby Castle was taken into Royal custody. The castle was purchased along with Barnard Castle from the Crown in 1626, by Sir Henry Vane the Elder. The castle today is still owned by the Vane family. The present owner being the 12th Lord Barnard.
Raby Castle
On 11/02/2023 I left home around 08:30, driving the 66 miles to Raby Castle, arriving at around 10:00am. Once off the motorway and onto the A & B roads, the scenery was stunning! I could really understand Robsons' passion for the area!
​
After parking up and putting my boots on and sorting out my camera gear, I headed towards the castle. There is what looks like a small horse box by the entrance, this is the ticket booth. It costs £6.50 to enter the Deer Park, £13 for the castle & Deer Park! The castle is closed until March, this didn’t bother me as I was only interested in taking photos of the Deer (they have 2 types of Deer on the estate, Fallow and Red Deer). Even though the castle is closed to the public at this time of year, you can still get up close to it, it is very impressive.
A Fallow Deer
The lady in the ticket booth told me that if I was lucky, I might spot a Peregrine Falcon, as one had been photographed the day before. After purchasing my ticket for the Deer Park, I asked the lady if she knew where the Deer might be? She said it was early and no one had reported as to where they were, but if I went to the rise by the castle, I might spot them!
The front view of Raby Castle
Off I went to the Rise, but I couldn’t see any Deer! At which point I said to myself, I should have brought my binoculars, but then again I was carrying all my camera gear which was enough to be lugging around as it was!
From the Rise I headed towards the woods to my right. I thought that they could be in there. After a short distance I headed into the woods to see if they were in there or the other side! I was just about to head somewhere else within the park when I spotted something moving further into the woods! I stopped and looked again, and sure enough there was a Deer in the distance! I put my 600mm lens on my camera, by the time I had done this, I had lost sight of the Deer! I headed further into the woods taking it slowly so as not to disturb any Deer that may still be about!
My 1st photo of a Raby Fallow Deer
I continued through the woods, then I saw it! The Deer I had seen from a distance was laid down amongst the trees. I moved closer as quietly as I could. By luck more than good planning I was down wind from him! He had his back to me so I managed to get a little closer. I got a couple of photos, then I made my way out of the woods to try and get a better angle, which I managed to do, getting a few more photos. He decided to get up at this point, he still didn’t move away at first, but then he started to move. It was at this point I noticed he had a limp. There was no one about, so I tried to phone the Castle phone number, I tried 4 or 5 times but no one is answered. I made my way back to the ticket booth and told the lady. She told me that during the weekend there was no one in the office, but she would inform the duty manager about the Deer, she thanked me for letting her know.
The injured Fallow Deer
I then headed back up the rise, but this time I headed between the 2 lakes and up the next rise. I continued looking around to try and spot some more Deer, still none to be seen, until I went a little further down the hill. There they were! Loads of them, some stood up a lot of them were having a lay down! I made my way down towards them, trying to get as close as possible, which was quite close indeed! After taking quite a few photos I made my way back to my car.
A herd of Fallow Deer
High Force
High Force is a 21-meter cascade waterfall, which was created by water from the torrential meltwaters released at the end of the last ice age, to today’s River Tees.
High Force Waterfall
From Raby Castle I made my way to High Force around a 30-minute drive away. During the journey you pass through some wonderfull scenery, especially when the road takes you through the high moors. I had to stop in a layby to take in the views and take a few photos (see below).
The car park at The High Force Hotel costs £3 per 3 hours to park, then there is a £2.50 entrance fee to the waterfall, this goes towards the upkeep of the High Force trail.
View Towards Mickleton Taken From The B6282
The walk to the waterfall is on a well-made track, you can hear the River Tees running below, but that is nothing compared to the noise of the waterfall as you get closer, it is thunderous! It is a marvellous sight to behold the 21-meter cascade is very impressive. I made my way to the bank side, where I took quite a few photos. I then headed back to my car and then home.
​
As you can see from the photos, it was a lovely sunny day, a bit chilly when the wind picked up, but I totally enjoyed my visit to both Raby Castle and then to High Force.
To my view, Raby Castle wasn't busy, but I would imagine once the Castle re-opens in March, and especially during the summer months it could be very busy, so I would advise getting there early!
As for High Force, this was quite busy when I visited in the afternoon, it gets quite crowded at the bottom of the steps leading to the bankside by the waterfall. Again, I would advise to get there early, but if you are going to visit both locations, then it is down to what you want to see the most, the Castle or the waterfall! For me I would go to the waterfall 1st, as it has limited space in the car park and by the waterfall it's self, where the Castle has wide open space to walk around.
​
There is a another waterfall not far from High Force called Low Force, so this would make a great day out in it's self. I think this is something I would love to do at some point (see the map below).
​
On my way home I went through the town of Barnard Castle (this was also featured in Robson Green's Weekend Escapes). This looks like another lovely place to visit, there is also the Castle and the Bowes Museum. I didn't have the time to stop here on my way home, but it is somewhere I would like to visit in the future.
Map of the High Force & Low Force walk