A new site

13th to 15th April 2014

We like to try a new site every now and then, and we have been meaning to try the Buxton Caravan Club site for a while now.  We booked it a twice last year, but had to cancel both times, once because of the weather and once for some other reason which eludes us!

A typical Caravan Club site, with massive hard standing pitches and excellent facilities, and not too far from Buxton town centre, albeit a bit of an uphill slog on the way back.

Sunday

A Sunday start, due to work getting in the way of life!  We arrived early and were soon tucking into lunch and a cup of tea, outside the caravan for a change.

 

After lunch we headed up into the hills around the site and visited Solomon’s Temple, which has excellent views of the surrounding countryside and the town of Buxton.  Quite a popular spot, so we didn’t have it to ourselves.

Solomon’s Temple, also known as Grinlow Tower, is a Victorian Fortified hill marker near the spa town of Buxton in the Derbyshire Peak District.  It is said to have been built by Solomon Mycock in the 1890s, paid for by public subscription to provide work for the locally unemployed with assistance of the seventh Duke of Devonshire. The tower was restored in 1998 by public subscription.  The structure is a 20-foot-high, two-storey tower built on top of a Bronze Age barrow, sitting on top of a ridge at a height of 440 metres (1,440 ft) above sea level. From the open top of the tower there are good views over the town and the surrounding countryside and parts of the Peak District. The tower does not contain anything other than the staircase to the top.

View of the site from near Solomon’s Temple 

Then we descended into Buxton and had a cup of tea in the park and listened to a brass band.  Didn’t get charged for the cakes we had with our tea…hurrah.

Afterwards we went to the Buxton Brewery Tap Room and sampled some of their beers (D’s favourite was Buxton Spa).  We had dinner there, too, before the long, mostly uphill, walk back to the site.  Quite a windy night!

Monday

Much less windy today, in fact a really nice day for a gentle stroll through Wolfscote and Biggin Dales, starting and ending in Hartington.  About 6 miles in total.

More pics in the gallery, including the usual cute lamb pics we always take around this time of year.

As on our last trip, we toyed with the idea of having a barbecue, stopping of at a supermarket on the way back and buying burgers and sausages before deciding it was too cold.  Partly because we were shaded from the sun by the caravan, partly because of the wind.  Anyway, the result was another indoor barbecue!

In the evening we walked up to Solomon’s Temple and enjoyed the sunset.  We almost had the place to ourselves this time.

Tuesday

A bit of a disaster on the way home!  We forgot to pack the microwave away and it fell off the shelf above the fridge in transit, resulting in lots of broken glass from it’s shattered door.  Luckily no damage to the caravan, but we will have to invest in a new microwave before our next trip.

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Coming soon…

A three night trip to Hendre Mynach, Barmouth.

A pitch with a view

21st to 24th March 2014

A three night trip to Castlerigg Hall, Keswick, and at last a pitch with a view.  We have been to this site a few times but have never been able to get a pitch with a view, but we did this time…

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The view from our pitch

It would have been even better if Spring hadn’t been put on hold and it was warm enough to sit outside and admire the view, but you can’t have everything.

Friday

It’s a long journey to Keswick, but we managed to get there quite early in the afternoon and after setting everything up we decided to go for a walk up nearby Walla crag instead of heading for the nearest pub.  Only just over a mile, but quite a steep climb.  The blue skies quickly gave way to cloudy, showery weather, but still excellent views from the top.

 

The weather deteriorated, so much so that we didn’t dare venture outside the caravan in the evening, so we stayed in trying to listen to the radio over the sound of heavy rainfall.  We got a shower going for a shower!

Saturday

Not a particularly good day weather wise, so we strolled into Keswick and had a look around the town.  Don’t mention waterproof jackets to D!  He bought one, but changed his mind after wearing it for about half an hour.  It couldn’t be returned as it was worn in the rain and the tags were taken off, so its now on eBay!

In the evening we had dinner at the onsite restaurant and then a quick drink at the Crag Bar, part of the nearby Heights Hotel.  The only pub we visited this weekend, which is something of a record for us!  The Crag Bar is okay (it sells Loweswater Gold) but somewhat lacking in atmosphere, and the only other nearby pubs are in Keswick.

Sunday

Much better weather today, so we drove to Bassenthwaite for a short but steep walk up Barf (468 metres) and Lord’s Seat (552 metres).

 

There are two ways of getting up Barf.  A direct ascent, which is a steep scramble over loose scree via “The Bishop”, or a (not) much easier route alongside Beckstones Gill.  We chose the easier route, which was still pretty hard going.

 

The Bishop of Barf

On a rocky site at 700 ft and clearly visible from the Cockermouth to Keswick road, is the "Bishop of Barf", a white painted stone marking the spot where, according to local legend, the Bishop of Derry was killed falling from his horse in 1783, after drunkenly betting he could ride up the hill. Both the Bishop and his horse are said to be buried near a smaller stone, the Clerk, at the base of the hill. The stone was whitewashed each year by staff at the nearby Swan Hotel, until the Hotel was converted to apartments. The whitewashing is now carried out by members of Keswick Mountain Rescue.

Excellent views from the summit.  Lots of pics in the gallery.

 

A not very well hidden geo-cache near the summit of Lord’s Seat, and the view from the cache site…

 

The plan was to come down through Whinlatter forest, but there was a mountain bike race on and we would have had to keep jumping out of the way of cyclists, so we decided to more or less retrace our steps.  It was actually harder going down than coming up! Luckily D found a good stick…

The weather was so nice we toyed with the idea of having a barbecue, to the point of buying coals and sausages and burgers, but it was just a bit too cold!  We lost our nerve and cooked them in the caravan instead.

The onsite shop had a very good selection of bottled beers, so we stayed in again.  A very cold night, minus 6 according to the very friendly warden, whose caravan was opposite ours.  Nice sunset, which we enjoyed from our pitch with a view…

Monday

A birthday breakfast for D today in the onsite restaurant!  Then the long journey home….

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Coming soon…

Nothing booked, D struggling to get time off work at the moment!

Windermere…again

14th to 16th March 2014

Our most visited site…the C&CC site at Windermere.  Must be in double figures now.  There’s not much wrong with it…easy to get to, quiet, good facilities and nice pubs a short walk away in Staveley.

Friday

It doesn’t take us long to set everything up these days, especially if we don’t bother with the awning, but D had to replace the freshly cleaned flyscreens this time.  Losing one of the end clips and breaking another one didn’t help, but they do look much better now so it was worth doing.  We found the missing one when we got home!

As is customary when we visit this site, we headed off across the fields to Staveley, stopping to check on our geocache on the way.  Still nice and dry, and still being regularly found.

A couple of drinks in the Eagle & Child, then off to the Hawkshead brewery beer hall, the intention being to eat there.  They do really nice beer tapas…usually.  Not today, though, because it was the weekend of their Spring beer festival

D managed to sample quite a few, not all pints, though!  J stuck to Lakeland Lager.  The trouble with beer festivals is…too many people!  Couldn’t get near the bar, and nowhere to sit.  We managed to perch on some packing cases for a while.

Saturday

A short drive to Troutbeck to bag a couple of Wainwrights – Sour Hows (483 metres) and Sallows (516 metres).  About 4.5 miles in total.  We are running out of easy to get to Wainwrights now, might have to start walking longer distances soon!

 

Not especially high, but pretty wild and windy at the top.  Quite a grey day, so not many pics…not much sign of spring today. Hardly saw any other walkers, but a popular route for cyclists

In the evening we headed back to the beer festival and managed to sample a few more beers.  D’s favourite of the weekend was Lumford from Thornbridge brewery.

“Pale ale brewed using New Zealand hops creating aromas of pear, peach and pineapple.  Flavours are floral, apples, peach and orange peel.  Hoppy bitter finish with clean and crisp passion fruit, grapefruit and gooseberry.”

A bit of everything really!

A spectacular sunset over Staveley which we all but missed because we were too busy drinking! Didn’t stay all night, but it was still a 40 minute walk back in the dark.  Stopped off for a giant tray of chips for sustenance!

Sunday

Listened to the Archers on the way home, followed by most of Desert Island Discs featuring the voice of F1…Murray Walker.  Did you know he had a successful career in advertising, too?  “Opal Fruits…made to make your mouth water” was one of his slogans.  You probably wont know what Opal Fruits are if you are under a certain age!

 

Coming soon…

Three nights at Castlerigg Hall, Keswick.  D’s birthday treat!