NO BALL GAMES - at a miniature golf course

While playing on the Putting Green at Knaresborough's Castle Yard in 2015 we noticed an interesting sign on the course!

NO BALL GAMES

We're looking forward to going back to Knaresborough, it's one of our favourite places.

Related blog posts:
- NO GOLF
- Knaresborough

Minigolf Putting in Knaresborough

A look at the grass Putting course at Knaresborough's Castle Yard.

Time really does fly! Looking through our records it's been five years since we visited Knaresborough in North Yorkshire!

The last time we were there we enjoyed playing the grass Putting course at Knaresborough's Castle Yard. It was a course we missed on our first visit to the town in 2010.

The grass Putting course at Knaresborough's Castle Yard became the 357th course played and 591st visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. We've now been to 948 courses since our travels began in 2006.

The course is the first we've ever been to that had a sallyport and secret tunnel running underneath it!

The tunnel was built in the late 13th or mid 14th century and was large enough for a small group of armed men to leave the castle secretly at night and launch an attack on any besieging troops.

Knaresborough is definitely on our list of places to go to post-lockdown.

 

Gluten free at Six Poor Folk in Knaresborough

A gluten free meal at the Six Poor Følk restaurant in Knaresborough.

While in Knaresborough we were looking for somewhere to eat and while checking the restaurants in the town centre we spotted a bottle of Mongozo gluten free beer lined up with some other beers in the window at Six Poor Følk at Castlegate.

We checked the menu and noticed it said gluten free options were available. We managed to get a table for two and I double checked with the waiter what was gluten free. I was told that much of the menu was gluten free, so it was one of those occasions when I had to pick something and get the waiter to double check with the kitchen if it was OK. Unfortunately the Pork Belly dish I had spotted on the menu outside had run out, but there were options for a starter and main so we decided to dine there. I also ordered a bottle of Mongozo.

Emily had the Ham Hock Terrine, Chicken Schnitzel and Lemon Posset. My gluten free choices were the Warm Duck Salad, Pan Fried Coley (pictured) and another Mongozo beer for pudding

Six Poor Følk is worth a visit. We had very good service and tasty food. Emily really enjoyed her (non-gluten free) three courses too.

For more information visit the Six Poor Følk website. Interestingly when looking at the menus online there is an Allergy Menu that can be viewed/downloaded (April 2015 here). As mentioned, when I ordered in the restaurant I wasn't given a copy of the allergy menu, but had to relay my choices from the 'normal menu' via the waiter, to the kitchen and back to me again.

Link:
- Six Poor Følk website

Related blog posts:
- Gluten free
- Coeliac
- Knaresborough
- Gluten free beer

Mini Golf courses in Knaresborough

Playing minigolf at Knaresborough's Castle Yard and a revisit to Conyngham Hall.

Mini Golf grass Putting at Knaresborough Castle

Back in September 2010 we visited Knaresborough in North Yorkshire and enjoyed an afternoon wandering around the town and playing some Mini and Crazy Golf at Conyngham Hall. Last March I found out that on that visit we'd actually missed the other miniature golf course in the town! It's situated in the Castle Yard.

Emily putting at Knaresborough's Castle Yard course

Note the interesting sign on the drainpipe

The Castle Yard Putting course in Knaresborough is an 18-hole layout

The course is the first we've ever played that had a sallyport and secret tunnel running underneath it!

The tunnel was built in the late 13th or mid 14th century and was large enough for a small group of armed men to leave the castle secretly at night and launch an attack on any besieging troops.

The sallyport on the left and hole 8 on the right. While we were playing, the sallyport was opened up for a group on a tour

On this trip to Knaresborough we spent the night in the town before heading back home. On our arrival it was very nice to receive a special welcome from Andy at Art in the Mill!

Andy Grinter from Art in the Mill is a local businessman and minigolf enthusiast. Ahead of our arrival in town he'd chalked up a message for us on our visit to Knaresborough

The grass Putting course at Knaresborough's Castle Yard became the 357th course played and 591st visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. It was also the second course in a row that was played near a castle, as last month we played Crazy Golf in Tamworth's Castle Grounds.

Hole 1 and Knaresborough Castle in the background. A very nice location for a round of minigolf

Putting on the 13th hole

In our minigolf match-up on the Castle Yard Putting course I beat Emily with a score of 43 to 49.

As well as the Putting you can play Bowling on a nice looking green at the Castle

While in Knaresborough we also revisited Conyngham Hall grounds where you can find a grass Putting course, Crazy Golf and a Pitch & Putt layout.

Crazy Golf at Conyngham Hall

The Pitch & Putt layout at Conyngham Hall

When we arrrived at Conyngham Hall only one of the flags was still out on the Putting Green - it was about to close, so it's a good job we'd played the good little layout five years ago

We're looking forward to our next visit to the town already.

Knaresborough Castle

A view of the viaduct in Knaresborough from the Castle Yard

Our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour has taken us to other courses in the Harrogate district, including Harrogate itself and Ripon's Spa Gardens.

Putting at Knaresborough's Castle Yard costs £2.30 per adult. You get to use some odd headed putters for your game!

Links:

- Sports and Games in Harrogate and District

- Games in the Park - Knaresborough Castle Yard

- Games in the Parks - Conyngham Hall

- Art in the Mill

Related blog posts:

- Knaresborough

- Conyngham Hall, Knaresborough, Yorkshire - Minigolf courses played #201 and 202

- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

Conyngham Hall, Knaresborough, Yorkshire - Minigolf courses played #201 and 202

Following the playing of our 200th Minigolf course on the Crazy World of Minigolf, and prior to reaching Newcastle to practice for the Newcastle Open tournament, we stopped off at Knaresborough in Yorkshire as the course list on MiniatureGolfer.com showed there were courses there and it wasn't too far off the beaten track to visit.


We did find the courses, and very good they were too.

Course played #201 was the 18-hole Minigolf Putting Course at Knaresborough's Conyngham Hall Gardens. #202 was the 9-hole Crazy Golf course next to it. In all of our travels the Crazy Golf was definitely the best example of its type (that being a fibreglass base with metal obstacles). We've played versions of the course that have been truly horrible, but this - along with the very well maintained Putting Course - were a pleasure to play. There was also a Mini Golf/Pitch & Putt course that looked fantastic and was quite busy too, unfortunately we didn't have time to play it as well.














As the winner of the Knaresborough-leg of the Irregular Mini Golf Tour competition I received a wood-turned Mushroom 'Trophy', made by a local artisan. A very fine addition to my trophy shelf!

Knaresborough itself was a lovely town to spend some time in, with some very nice views to be had (the town's train bridge/viaduct over the river looks great) and many houses throughout the town have painted doorways, and some have artwork like the Civil War piece below.









Links:
- Conyngham Hall Grounds website
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour