Innisfree Guest House

Stanley Crook

Co Durham

Places to go, things to see

  Let Simon Calder introduce you.
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Durham from Enjoy England on Vimeo.

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To experience the Simon's ride in the Video visit ride-of-your-life.com

Innisfree makes an excellent base from which to explore the Durham Dales, www.durhamdales.co.uk.  To get an idea of the delights that await you, why not watch the Durham Dales Video.

The Durham Dales Visitor Centre in Stanhope provides full tourist information facilities as well as an opportunity to see and purchase the work of local Artisans

Further up the dale you can find the village of Ireshopburn where you will find the Weardale Museum.  A volunteer run organisation which  aims to tell the  stories of  Local Lead Mining and  Farming families plus the visits of John Wesley.  You can also find the Weardale Tapestry

The North is bristling with roman heritage and we are lucky enough to have two examples nearby
Bincester Fort
Corbridge Roman Town

Less than half an hour of driving takes you to the world famous Beamish open air Museum

For the garden enthusiast:
Eggleston Hall Gardens open all year
Birkheads Secret Garden, Open from March to October

County Durham has historic links to the railways and within easy traveling distance from Innisfree there are a number of attractions for the rail enthusiast.
Locomotion, The National Railway Museum at Shildon
Weardale Railway
Tanfield Railway

In days gone by mining of Lead Ore (gallium) was a mainstay of the economy of the dales. The Killhope Mining Centre allows you to see first hand the conditions the men worked in as well as see some of the things they created in their spare time. It also offers some excellent woodland walks.

If you fancy a bit of outdoor adventure, try Weardale Outdoor Centre. Here you can enjoy Quad bike Treks, Rock climbing, Clay Pidgeon Shooting, Archery, Off road driving and a host of other outdoor activities.

You could always try a little Karting at Top Gear

County Durham's roads are a haven for cyclists and at Hamsterley Forest they are in for a real treat.  Forest tracks and a specially designed mountain bike track provide endless fun for all ages.

We are about half a mile from  Crook Golf Club Tel: 01388 762429

Horse Riding is available from the Hole in the Wall riding centre.

Places to Eat


The Colliery  Inn, High Jobs Hill, Crook. tel:  01388 762511 .  I can't vouch for this one personally but I have heard no bad reports and as you can see from the web site, it gets good reviews.

The Red Lion North Bitchburn. tel: 01388 763561. comes highly recommended. listed in both the good beer guide and the good pub guide. I have had good reports of the food and they stock a range of beers, ales and ciders

The Farrers Arms, Bank Foot, Roddy Moor. tel: 01388 768473 sells good food in a pleasant restaurant with a children's  play area  just outside the window.

Bradley Burn Farm Shop a good place for lunch on a fine day.  The food is good and the views from the terrace are wonderful.

The Black Bull Inn , Bridge End, Frosterly.  Listed in the Guardian's top 10 cosy pubs, this one will take you back  about 100 years.