Cairn Lodge

As I was leaving the Westmorland Hotel this morning they told me at reception the Westmorland family had recently acquired the Cairn Lodge services.

It so happened that due to my travels in the suburbs of London my northward refuelling schedule was slightly different to normal. So I decided to refuel at Cairn Lodge, whereas I normally leave Tebay with a full tank.

I was curious to see if the new ownership had any noticeable impact on the Services. It is actually hard for me to know since it is several years since I last stopped there, and that was in the late evening.

I was surprised to find, right next to the service area, within a few meters there is this building, I hesitate to call it a castle, despite the crenellation. The imposing gateway leads to the rear of the building, essentially a garden gate with no defensive purpose, and the building itself is quite small (by castle standards). I have no idea whether or not it has anything to do with the immediately adjacent service area.

The services itself is tidy, but the shop has some empty space and I think the facilities in general are yet to realise their full potential. The restaurant area is large, but there were very few people there at the time of my visit.