Saving baby red squirrels

Some time ago we had made a small post about the time we rescued three baby red squirrels.

Since then we have quite a few requests for more pictures. Well we can do that ...but we can also show a short video.

First a brief reminder of what happened.

We were walking in the woods near the river Gelt and came across 4 baby squirrels which had, so it seemed, fallen from their dray.One was dead but the other 3 were just stunned. So we put them in our pockets and took them to a friendly neighbour who is great with animals.

He built the cage below and fed them on bananas. Unfortunately one sickened and died but the other two , with help of some antibiotics from the vet lived and grew to be healthy beautiful red squirrels.Below the video there are more pictures

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So next time you travel up to Northumberland spare a thought for these beautiful squirrels.

Mesolithic history in Northumberland

This story board from Maelmin talks about the mesolithic era. From 10,000 BC , when the ice sheets retreated, through to approximately 4,000 BC, when farming began to be established.This was the time of the hunter gatherers who wandered across the country side.

As the ice melted the sea levels rose and Britain became separated from Europe. Around 6500 BC the temperatures were at their highest, up to 2 degrees centigrade higher

than the present day. Vast broad leaf forests would have covered the landscape and the area would have been rich in fauna and flora.

We have beautiful cottages to rent across the fertile Northumberland plains. The area is tranquil and unhurried. From Bamburgh and Seahouses on the Northumberland Coast across to the Cheviot Hills you are guaranteed a lovely vacation.

I Know North East

Here at Northumbria byways we aim to offer as wide a range of properties as possible across Northumberland, the North Pennines and up into the Scottish Borders. We know that our vistors come from all over the UK and when you look at the beautiful countryside we have up here it is easy to see the attraction. Throughout the year we try to find new ways to introduce new visitors and recently we have teamed up with IKnow UK to try and spread the message http://www.iknow-northeast.co.uk/northumberland/hotels/"

Autumn in the Valley

The small summer house which looks out from Hethpool towards the road in from Kirknewton. Also beautiful autumn leaves along the driveway at Hethpool.

Where to eat out - Wetheral

We often get asked by holiday makers if we could recommend restaurants and village pubs serving good food. This can be a personal choice so our suggestions are based on our preferences. There are numerous such establishments throughtout our region. Many serving locally sourced produce. One excellent restaurant is The Fantails in Wetheral, located near to Hadrian's Wall, the Eden Valley and the Border city of Carlisle. The cosy relaxing atmosphere is enhanced by real log fires creating an intimate candle lit venue for a memorable dining experience. It is also a short drive from our office so usually the venue for our annual Christmas Party. Just across the village green in Wetheral opposite The Fantails we have a fabulous cottage called Rivermead. The house is decorated and furnished to a very high standard perfect for a relaxing break and is still available for Christmas or New Year.

Hethpool Linn,waterfall and autumn berries

Lovely colours and shades in autumn, but of all these our favourite must be the bright red berries on the Rowans.

Hethpool lake

Hethpool Lake.Showing the boathouse and the fish run which was built to allow fish to access the lake.By all accounts the "run" wasn't quite right as to the ease of access and it is gently turning back to nature, as the saying goes.

Maelmin and thirlings

This story board from Maelmin talks about how the settlement was created back in approx. 650 AD. As you look out over the airfield you are told that the settlement lies below the surface, visible from aerial photographs.

You can see the timber fence, great hall and settlements. Very similar to what has been found at Ad Gefrin near to Yeavering.

Sunsets in the Valley

No need for words...these pictures help to show just how dramatic a sunset in the Cheviots can be.

Old Bewick Church

We had forgotten to upload these pictures taken at Old Bewick Church. Hopefully they will give

some idea of the atmosphere of this special place.

Nearby are the market towns of Wooler and Rothbury.

Kite flying

Kite flying on the beach between Seahouses and Bamburgh is great fun...but it's even better when you have a beach buggy for the kite to tow you.

Cannon in the Valley

Knowing the history of the College Valley and it's association with Admiral Collingwood we had thought that these cannon alongside Hethpool house were maybe from one of the ships which fought at Trafalgar. However this visit we found a small plate attached to the cannon saying that in reality they were from Newcastle castle.

Oh...one final point our friends have asked us to point out how good the cottages in the Valley are for dog friendly holidays.

Ancient woodlands in Northumberland

Around 8000 bc...some 2,000 years or so after the last of the ice had retreated, the woodland cover had established it across the North Northumberland plain. There were dense broadleave forests of oak, birch and pine. The rivers ran through marshy wetlands of willow and alder.

Higher up on the hills birch trees were more common.

Throughout the area there is a sense of history and despite some of the more modern developments this has never really been lost.

Old Bewick Village

Walking around the beautiful Holy Trinity Church at Old Bewick we came across a short pamphlet talking about the history of the area.

The Church itself dates from at least 1695 but in all reality is probably much older.

The village itself is described as follows

"Quiet and isolated with a few cottages nestling under the surrounding hill it scarcely is large enough to be called a hamlet.Yet back in the medieval ages it was a thriving market town. In 1253 Henry III granted a charter to hold a weekly market. There was also a Pele tower, described by Sir Robert Bowes, in 1550, as in need of some repair. Only the foundations remain.

Appropriately it goes on to speculate that the name comes from

Beau ( norman french for beautiful) and wick ( saxon for a village)

If true then there is a certain irony that the Norman invaders could have joined with the Saxons to leave us a name which is truly beautiful.

Nearby is the market town of Wooler.

Grace Darling & self catering in Northumberland

Crime thrillers are great reads and anyone who has ever read John Connolly's books will remember how he talks about the honeycomb world, where the past lies just below the present and what we see and do are so strongly influenced by what went before. This holds true for Northumberland where in many places the past sits alongside us.

For instance....Grace Darling, who, through one heroic act has left a legacy which endures down the years.

To quote from the Grace Darling Museum

Grace Darling was 22 years old when she risked her life in an open boat to help the survivors of the wrecked SS Forfarshire on 7 September 1838. With her father, she rowed for over a mile through raging seas to reach them. The courage that Grace and her family showed on that day is now legendary.
Grace was the media celebrity of her day. She was celebrated internationally and was showered with honours, including the RNLI's Silver Medal for Gallantry.

Even in these busy modern times it is amazing how many people know her story and ask about her.

Large group bookings - chosing the best house

Large group cottages

We often get calls form people arranging a family reunion. They want a house which will accommodate 8 , maybe 12 people. So you need the extra bedrooms and you certainly need plenty of toilets and maybe two bathrooms.

Ideally the house will have an open aspect and plenty of parking space... maybe a small fell just to allow the family and friends to unwind and not have to trip over each other.

Although houses like this are not common they can provide remarkably good value on a cost per person basis.

Why not give us a call on 016977 46777 and we can find you a large house for that family reunion somewhere in beautiful Northumberland.

Two rulers joined across 1,500 years.

Visiting Bewcastle recently we struck by how history repeats itself.

Although well to the north of the Wall at Birdoswald the Romans built Castra Exploratorum at Netherby in the Esk Valley.

1500 years later Queen Elizabeth 1st and her governor took the same stone used by the Romans and built a small squat fort.

Both had the same purpose ...to control the warriors and bandits who would periodically descend from Redesdale and plunder the land. An early sign of Border Reivers indeed.

Dog friendly holidays in Northumberland

We all love to take our dogs on holiday. What would it be like without them? Well i know some people would say a lot easier but to me its not quite the same. But what makes a good holiday house for you and the your dogs? What should you look for , what should you expect?

These are just a few good guidelines.

1. To us the important thing is that the house is rented from someone who understands dogs. Someone who understands that most dog owners are desperate to keep the house clean and tidy, to prove that their dogs can go on holiday too and that they are responsible. Find a house like this and you will return time and time again.

2. Decent secure garden. Oh how important and what joy when you find that you can let your dog outside on a cold winter evening and not have to worry about it chasing the cat next door or running onto the busy road which you hadn't known was there.

3. Pebbled or concrete area outside. It really helps if your dog has a non muddy area to stand outside the door as you start to clean those paws. I know of people who don't like pebbled areas and they say its sore on the dogs feet. But to us it is so much easier to clean them on hard standing.

4. An external hose to wash them down. Or joy of joys a stream or river to really wash them in after that visit to the beach.

5.External safe area or kennels. Sometimes when you return from that river walk they are just so muddy and you are so tired that you absolutely have to leave them to dry off outside. Having a kennel or secure area is so useful.

6. A non carpeted area inside. We love kitchens with tiles. The dogs can come in clean....but if you have been on the beach then the chances are that there is sand still on them. So they can lie down on the tiles and dry properly whilst you open that bottle of wine which you thought about all the way home.

7.No ornaments at a low level. We have all been into houses where the ornaments just fill every table, shelf and mantlepiece. Well any decent labrador will have a tail designed to knock them off.

8.Walks nearby. It helps if you can walk them straight from the house and it's not a question of getting in the car and driving away. This is a luxury, just leave the back door and the walk starts immediately.

So what else do you think? Why not drop us an email and tell us about your favourite dog holiday places and what makes them special.

Guidance on chosing a holiday cottage

Booking your holiday - helpful advice

We have compiled a list of suggestions and comments which our customers have found useful over the years.

Hopefully this will help ensure that you make the best choice for your holidays.

1. The first and most useful suggestion is call us and explain what you want. If you haven't been to the cottage which you are considering booking then why not give us a call. Explain what you want to get out of holiday and we can advise whether or not you are looking at the best property.

2. Types of holiday home. Although we tend to refer to all the properties as cottages they are in reality all different. Most are houses, some are semi detached and some apartments. We try to make this clear through either the text or pictures.

3.Facilities. We all have different requirements. Things which we expect to see when we arrive at the holiday cottage. Sure there are the basics, a decent oven, freezer, washing machine and so on. But then there are the smaller items which are not automatically in every cottage. From hair dryers through to coffee percolators, if there is something which you really want to see on your arrival then please ask and we will check to make sure it is available.

4. Location, location. It can be very difficult to know exactly what the location is like. We have probably all seen the estate agent pictures which show the house but somehow miss the motorway outside. It can be a simple thing like a busy road or a caravan park next door. Most customers will not mind, but it is worth checking. Use the map facility which we provide on the cottage page and also check to see if there are any links on the same page to flickr photographs.

5. Not enough room. The property owners supply the words for their own cottages. Mostly what is said is true and accurate but it can be notoriously difficult to describe a relative concept. What is large to one person might be medium to another. Its always worth checking with us, asking questions & letting us know your views, for example,

"We have young children and like a large floor area in the lounge for playing on"

6. It's just like our house. A lot of the cottages we help promote are truly unique. They are different from other houses and that is part of their attraction. However there are also other houses which are probably going to be very similar to your own house. This is particularly true with the coastal properties where easy access to the beaches is critical. Please also remember that our cottage owners will generally try to decorate their houses in a neutral way but that there are some cottages where the owners might have chosen a style of decoration which is less common.

7. But I can't see the sea! We will always do our best to ensure that there are no misleading claims within the cottage descriptions. However we really do encourage our customers to use the mapping facilities on the website and to ask us if there is any doubt.

8.Not available...but what else? During peak season most of the properties end up being booked. If you are thinking about a holiday and you can't find an available cottage please ask us to recommend others. There are some great properties just a little bit further inland from the coast.

9. But it's not value for money. All our cottages are regularly let so we know that generally they are promoted at a reasonable market rate. But please remember that sometimes the price you pay will have a premium for benefits like easy access to the beach.

10. But there's nothing else here! Some of our cottages are truly remote and it's often this isolation and tranquility which is their selling point. If you are chosing a remote cottage then please remember...it is remote!

11. It's not what we wanted. There's a problem. Firstly please call the cottage owner or call us. We are here to help. It is no good telling us about a problem after your return home.

We hope that these points are useful and have a happy holiday!

Romantic holidays in Northumberland

We often get couples asking us if we have any romantic cottages we would recommend. This of course starts us thinking what really makes a romantic holiday house?


Well having canvassed our friends this is the list we came up with;


1. Clean and tidy. Surprisingly this came up on everyones wish list. A grubby dark house is not romantic. It needs to be clean and tidy.


2. Unique. There has to be something unusual about the house. It has to have that wow factor. From a small snug of a cottage up to a beautiful four bedroom house with views it just needs to be different so that you are not thinking this is like being back home. Something to remember fondly.

3. And the most important room? Well the sitting room of course. A good TV, sound system and plenty of books to chose from. Our romantic couples wanted to relax, chill out and forget the world.


4. And isolated? Well the reply was mixed here. Sure some wanted a house high in the Cheviot with no one within 10 miles, but we were surprised by the number who said they wanted to be in a community. A pub, a cafe, a shop and all within walking distance. These were important to them. Relaxed and mingling but not too busy.


5. Safe. This was important to everyone. The house had to feel safe, safe and cosy.

So there you are the top 5 things our romantic couples were looking for.


What do you think? if you would like a house like this why not call us on 016977 46777

Chosing a letting agency

Thoughts on chosing a letting agency

Many times we have cottage owners ask us about the issues to consider when chosing a letting agency. Should they go with a large national chain, a small local agency or maybe one which concentrates on the county and area where they are.

To be truthful all these options have their advantages, but to us an agency which can offer good local knowledge, a large customer base and many more benefits is ideal.

This is the article we have written to explain these views. We hope you find it useful.

Chosing a holiday letting agency can be a difficult decision when there are so many pros and cons to weigh up.

Here at Northumbria byways we believe in being upfront and transparent with what we can offer.

Many times we find that the most difficult part of our service to talk about is the marketing and promotional work which we do. There are often no easy ways to distinguish between agencies and everyone has their own opinion on what matters.

This is what we think.

Broadly there are three types of agencies which you can partner with.

Small local agencies. These will typically concentrate on just one area or one town.

Medium sized agencies which specialise in a county wide area. This is where Byways are.

Large nationwide agencies.

So how do you chose? Well lets put the facts down on paper.

Commission rates. The larger agencies will generally be in the 20% to 25% range. Small and medium agencies should have rates just below 20%.

Exclusivity. Be very careful about surrendering your exclusivity to market your holiday house. You might want to have your own website to help bookings. Also we know that the larger agencies will sometimes require commission for owner bookings during the summer.

Visitor numbers. This is a key number to look at when chosing your agency. You really need to know how many visitors they get to their website. But take care here as there are traps for the unwary.

Be careful to make sure you know what you are being told. The most useful statistic is actual visitors. At Byways we have well over 100,000 a year. But sometimes you will be quoted "hits". This is closest to the number of pages seen by a visitor and is usually much higher as people look at more than one page. At Byways we have over 1 million hits a year.

Make sure that you only look at relevant visitors. Our experience is that when visitors come to a website they generally have a specific area in mind.

There are always opportunities to change their mind. For instance someone looking for a holiday in Seahouses might be persuaded to try Bamburgh or Craster.

During peak season we can also persuade visitors to try a little further away from their chosen area. If you look at an agency which specialises in just one village or town you need to ask yourself are they going to get enough visitors to offer these opportunities to persuade them to come to your cottage?

Remote holiday homes. Having a property by the beach is great,most visitors will know the area and their main requirement is proximity to the sand! But what if your house is hidden away in the Cheviot hills? The chances are that most people will not have a clue as to where you are and what the area is like. You will need an agency who offer more than just a "listing" on their website. They should talk about the local area, have pictures, talk about it in a blog and so on. Without information like this on their website any agency will find it difficult to promote remote cottages.

Email campaigns. Loyalty is worth a lot. Customers who come back time and again are worth their weight in gold. A good agency will email their customer list on a regular basis. At byways we will send out over 25,000 emails during 2010.

A quality brochure. The internet has changed the holiday letting world with more and more people looking and booking online.

However there are still many people who prefer a hard copy brochure. Not everyone has access to the internet and there are still customers who prefer the more traditional quality brochure. Here at Byways we produce a quality brochure which is designed to last.

Search engines. Sometimes we hear people say " If you search on google then they are top for this or that village".

On the face of it this is a good selling point. However what is not explained is the idea of the "long tail". Unless you are in a market where just one word or one combination of words are used to explain what you sell then your customers will come to you through many different search terms. As an example if you look at Seahouses then Google lists at least 10 commonly used search terms. You might prefer an agency who ranks well on most of these as opposed to just one or two.

Adwords. Google adwords is a way in which you can buy visitors to your website.The cost per visitor can be small, often 50 pence or less but you have to remember that there will be potentially thousands of people looking so it can cost a fortune.

Most agencies just advertise themselves on adwords. You click on the advert and go straight through to the home page of their website. At Byways we are the only agency we have seen who will advertise a specific cottage and when clicked that cottage comes up in Google.

Marketing around the edges. There are so many ways to promote your cottage over and beyond the basic idea of being found in the search engines.

As an agency grows in size then the percentage of visitors coming from other areas will also increase ( source:alexa). You should talk to any prospective agency about how else they can promote your cottage. In addition to the points above this is just a small list of the other ways:-

Are they using Social Media, for example facebook?

Do they have multi lingual pages on their website?

Are they taking advantage of the geographical mapping websites like Panoramio?

Do they have partnerships with specialist websites, for instance those who cater for customers looking for Dog Friendly accommodation?

So in conclusion what we wanted to say is that marketing your property is often much more complex than it seems. There are good opportunities out there and you need to ensure that you chose an agency which will take advantage of them to help you get more bookings.