Today we had another one of our many trips to the Isle of Wight on the ferry. The last few times it was too cold to be out on deck so being able to sit outside this time was great. We didn't stay out too long in the morning because it was still a bit chilly.
So today I decided to visit
Carisbrooke Castle. We were so close by it would be silly not to.
Early History from Wiki says:
The site of Carisbrooke Castle may have been occupied in pre-Roman times. A ruined wall suggests that there was a building there in late Roman times. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle mentions that Wihtgar, cousin of King Cynric of Wessex, died in AD 544, and was buried there. The Jutes may have taken over the fort by the late 7th century. An Anglo-Saxon stronghold occupied the site during the 8th century. Around 1000, a wall was built around the hill as a defence against Viking raids.
 |
| The Great Hall (view from atop the keep) |
This place is huge and you could easily spend a few hours here just looking around the grounds. There's also a museum and a cafe area to have some tea and cakes. I got here as soon as it opened and there were already a couple people waiting to get in. There was also a couple of classes of kids from a school on a field trip. I was hoping they wouldn't be in the way of my photos but as you will see, the place is so big they were nowhere to be seen. Yay! :)
 |
| The Gate House |
Carisbrooke Castle is a historic motte-and-bailey castle located in the village of Carisbrooke, near Newport on the Isle of Wight. A motte-and-bailey castle is a castle with a defense wall or other reinforcement built to strengthen a place against attack, with a keep built on a raised earthwork called a motte. It has an enclosed courtyard or bailey surrounded by a protective ditch.
 |
| The Keep - Carisbrooke Castle |
This is MY photo. I was standing here! Seeing it back feels so surreal and like I wasn't there at all. Anyway, before I did anything my goal was to go up to the keep and get those awesome views I knew were awaiting me. I knew this would be a challenge and the 71 steps leading up to it would kick my ass, but in the end I was sure it would be worth it.
For some silly reason I felt that the stairs looked easy peasy going up and even down, but they were not. They were very uneven and cracked some shorter and others a little higher. Thank goodness I'm not afraid of heights and I was happy there were railings to hold onto.
Even though going down was less tiring, it seemed more nerve-wrecking and harder to come down because you could then see how steep they were and it was a bit hard to determine which steps were the short ones and which were a little higher. As long as I took my time and held on for dear life, I was ok ;) At least I wasn't the only one who got tired on these stairs, as I was just getting to the half way point to walk along the top wall bit, the kiddies were coming up, huffing and puffing away about how tired they were. I felt a little better about that :)
 |
| Entrance to the keep from the stairs |
 |
| English Heritage flag in the keep |
 |
| Inside the keep |
The views were pretty awesome from up here and the wind was nice too. After that climb to the top I needed some fresh air to cool me off. I could of stayed up here forever. Here were the views from different angles...
After getting my breath back & taking lots of photos, I head back down the stairs of hell. :P
 |
| Me just after defeating the stairs! :) |
I didn't have much more time to check out a lot of other parts of the castle I would of liked but this is the perfect type of place to come back again to so there is always another time. And I found out that there are holiday flats here to stay the night for a really affordable price. I love stuff like this. You get to have the whole castle to yourself once it closes and can walk it in the evening. This sounds like it would be really awesome to do and scary fun. This place is awesome, I can imagine how cool it would be here at night.
 |
| These buildings are part of the holiday apartments to stay the night |
Before heading out I made a stop at the chapel. It was a small chapel but very beautiful as they are all in my eyes...
 |
Chapel - Carisbrooke Castle
|
 |
| Inside the Chapel |
 |
| Inside the Chapel |
This time I felt like I had a very educational trip to the Isle of Wight. This castle was a pretty cool experience and I'm glad I got to check it out.
By the end of the day the sun was out more than ever and the timing couldn't have been more better as we were getting back on the ferry we could get some vitamin D out on the deck this time without it being a bit cold.
 |
| Yarmouth, Isle of Wight |
 |
| Yarmouth Castle - Isle of Wight |
Now that it's going on 3 years that I've been here I've learned to be prepared for the ever changing weather at all times! :) I already had my flip flops in the car and changed into them from my tennis soon after I got back from the castle. I already had capris on and a sleeveless top. So all that I had to do was get rid of the cardigan and I was set and ready for the semi-hot weather! :)
