Lake District photo dump

Day 1:

We stopped at Rufford Old Hall for a lunch break on the drive up. We enjoyed the drifts of snowdrops, the very friendly volunteers, and the binoculars! When we arrived at Grange-over-Sands, we went for an evening walk along the promenade.

Day 2:

We went on the Windermere Lake Cruise, starting off on the top deck and retreating to underneath the seats, and ultimately the covered lower deck when it began to rain.

Day 3:

We spent the morning at the very well-stocked Lakeland Motor Museum, packed with cars, bikes, motorbikes, toy cars and much more. Then we drove up to Skelwith Bridge for lunch (the cafe we had hoped to go to was packed out, so we had a picnic instead) and walked along the River Brathay. There was a small but fierce waterfall, and the boys enthusiastically dissected a rotting tree. It took so long to drive back down the M6 that we were forced to stop at McDonalds for tea.

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National Forest Way: The End!

The National Forest Way finishes at Beacon Hill, Leicestershire, with beautiful wide-ranging views in all directions. I'd been hoping for a sunny day, and this one certainly fit the bill. The frosty earth lay under a glorious canopy of shining blue sky. I parked at Swithland Wood, close to where we finished the previous walk. Finding the waymarker on the first gate was bittersweet - this was the last time I would be following these familiar circles. Swithland Wood had been acquired by the Rotary Club in 1931, and later passed on to Bradgate Park Trust. The lumpy terrain was due to slate quarrying. I skirted a couple of fenced-off pits. As I left the wood, I passed a lake which I assumed was another flooded quarry, but with an odd little tower next to the water. I followed a road up a steady hill towards Woodhouse Eaves. Many of the houses were surrounded by walls of the local slate. Woodhouse Eaves was a prosperous-looking village with some nice old buildings. Crossing the wide ...

The Original Limestone Way

Back in March, I finished a blog post with the words: "If I disappear for two sunny days, I'll be walking from Matlock to Castleton." And on a hot sunny day in August, Mom and I put on our hiking shoes and did exactly that, following the original route of the Limestone Way. Day 1 First, there was a hill: a steady climb through fields and along holly-enclosed paths, with a wide view up the Derwent Valley as our reward. We dropped down again on a stone-paved track and emerged in the village square at Bonsall. The cross was decked with rainbow ribbons, and bunting fluttered above us. All very cheerful. Another ascent took us to Upper Town, and then we were out into open fields heading towards Winster. The Limestone Way seemed a little shy of villages; the official route often avoided them. Mom and I preferred to visit, though, and enjoy such delights as public conveniences, postbox toppers and the local church. Winster is a pretty little place, I'm glad we didn't mi...

Monthly Munch: July

The weather this month has been beautiful, so we've been out enjoying it as much as we can - fruit picking, fete attending, gardening and walking. Preschool is finished for the summer; I've planned weekly themes in an effort to stay sane during the holidays, so expect a few activity posts coming up. Toby He wanted me to make a box into a TV. Here he is eating his lunch in it. - has made friends with the girls next door, and is getting much more confident socially - still insists on always wearing odd socks - has been loving the sandbox our neighbours gave us. Apparently they nicknamed him "The Sandman" at preschool due to his love of digging - pounced on a writing practice book I bought him, and worked his way all the way through to P, doing really well at tracing all the letters. - won the hula hoop race at his first preschool sports day Athlete in action One of his great big Megabloks trucks Drawing a car with about a million wind...

Martha's Marvellous Munchies

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