Winterfell

The Hot Springs

Place Dawn Age The Courtyard

The castle was raised over natural hot springs, and the water has never stopped. It runs in pipes through the walls and under the floors, and in the bitterest months a hand laid on the right stone comes away warm.

The heat is uneven. Some chambers are warmer than others, and the lady’s rooms are said to be the warmest in the castle. In the godswood the springs break the surface as steaming pools, and the glass gardens draw on the same water to keep their soil from freezing.

The smallfolk tell it differently. In the winter town some will say that a dragon sleeps under the castle, and that the springs are warm with its breath.

Read next

  • The Glass Gardens

    Glasshouses warmed by the springs, where fruit and greens ripen while snow lies on the panes.

  • The Godswood

    Three acres of the old forest, never cut, kept inside the walls because the castle was raised around them.

  • The Guest House

    Lodging for Winterfell’s guests, on the edge of the godswood across from the heart tree, with warm pools below its windows.

  • The Courtyard

    The greatest of Winterfell’s many yards, beaten hard by drill and hooves, with the Great Hall’s doors on one side.

In the journey: The Courtyard