2021 - A Year in Review

Well, this is why I should do regular blogging - because trying to catch up on a whole year at once takes forever! But it's kind of fun looking back.

It feels like a long time ago that we were homeschooling in lockdown, back in January and February! As the restrictions eased and the weather improved, we got out to some new places and some old favourites. We visited family (and they visited us!), kept busy at work and school, followed England's football fortunes in the Euros, and made some furry friends.

A local alpaca farm

Of course, these are the edited highlights. We had a few ongoing issues as well - some have resolved themselves, so that I look back and think, "Oh yes, I'd almost forgotten we spent ages dealing with that," while others are still chuntering along in the background.

Big events

We had a summer holiday in Somerset - we stayed in a dinky little AirBnB cottage and visited Wells Cathedral, Glastonbury Tor, the Fleet Air Arm Museum, Blue Anchor Bay, and Taunton.

Picnic on the beach

Playground at Fleet Air Arm Museum

Rainbow path in Taunton

Wells Cathedral Close

We had a weekend in Wales in a big blue camper van - and I did blog about that!

We bought a convertible Mini (the MG died)

It holds all four of us!

And we smartened up the house a bit, with new windows, a new front door, and a few licks of paint.

Toby

Had his first overnight trip away with school, to an outdoor activity centre near Buxton

Achieved Merit on his Grade 1 keyboard exam

Went to basketball, dodgeball and zorbing clubs, and tried karting.

Took some friends to Nottingham for his 11th birthday, to see Ron's Gone Wrong and eat at Taco Bell.

Applied for secondary school (eek!)

Theo

Got a bike and pizza for his 7th birthday

Enjoyed playing guitar

Tried to make things explode

Got covid - entirely symptom-free

Graham

Learned archery and joined a club

Celebrated his birthday in style

Went for long bike rides with friends

Was very busy at work

Martha

Wasn't able to open the cafe until May, so I painted a labyrinth and sold afternoon tea boxes instead.

Kept on reading

Got given some flowers

And grew stuff, as usual (lots of tomatoes this year!)

The wider family

Exchanged Christmas presents with my parents in February - but we still couldn't let them in the house!

Visited John (my brother) and Katie in Glasgow, where they've recently moved.

Met up with Mark (Graham's cousin) and Andy not once but twice this year - possibly a record!

Smashed up a sideboard for Graham's mum, and enjoyed a trip to the Media Museum in Bradford with Colette (Graham's sister) and Karl.

Finally got together for a meal to celebrate Graham's dad's life, only a year and a half after he passed away.

And my grandma sadly died in October, at the age of 92.

And we got outdoors...

...in floods and ice and snow...

...in mud...

...and in sunshine.

There's been some ups and downs, but lots of smiles too.

Let's see what 2022 brings!

Comments

Limestone Way - the end! (for now...)

Bonsall is a pretty little village just up the road from Cromford. It was the centre point for my final Limestone Way walk. First I walked one way, back towards Ible, then I walked the other way to Matlock. I started at the fountain and climbed up to a tree in which a mistle thrush was singing loudly (helpfully identified by the Merlin app). A few fields took me across to the hamlet of Slaley. Then there was a pleasant walk through the woods, which dropped steeply to my left down to the Via Gellia. At Dunsley Springs the stream went right over the edge. I made my way down more gradually, and then was faced with the long climb up again to the point near Leys Farm where I was rejoining the Limestone Way. Tree down! Rejoining the Limestone Way Once I'd reached the top, it was a very pleasant walk across dry grassy fields. There were signs of old mining activity, which suddenly made the ground feel less solid under my feet - how many holes were hiding under the turf? Back at Bonsall, ...

Derwent Valley Heritage Way: Steep drops ahead

It's been a long time since I fitted that much up and down into an eight-mile walk! 740m of steep climbs and steps. My legs were not very happy with me the next day. Between Matlock and Cromford, the Derwent River runs through a deep valley, with Matlock Bath - a landlocked town which pretends to be a seaside resort - down at the bottom. The ridge of high ground used to run all the way round to Scarthin Rock, cutting off Cromford from the rest of the valley, until somebody blasted a hole through it to build the A6. Matlock Bath: pavilion and amusement park I started in Cromford and climbed over the ridge at Harp Edge, then followed a path along through the woods, with the ground dropping sharply away to my right. There were a few small caves among the trees. At Upperwood someone had thoughtfully provided a bench. I wasn't in need of a rest just yet, though. In fact, I was feeling so bouncy that I went down an entirely unnecessary flight of steps, instead of staying on the reaso...

Limestone Way: Grangemill and Ible

It was getting mistier and mistier. As I drove past Carsington Water, the world around grew dimmer, and when I parked near Brassington, the nearby trees were hazy shadows in the murk. I was glad I was wearing a red coat as I started off along Manystones Lane. At least I had some chance of being visible. Fortunately it was a short road section. I navigated my way across a series of small fields, from one dry stone wall to the next, and crossed the old railway line which is now the High Peak Trail. I could just imagine a steam train emerging out of the fog. The next fields were larger. It was as if the landscape was being sketched around me as I walked across it. A tree or an electricity pylon would appear as a few faint lines, increasing in detail when I got closer, and fading away behind. Up ahead, the land dropped into a huge hole - Longcliffe Quarries. I couldn't see much, but the noise from the machinery dominated the next section of the walk. I skirted the edge of the quarry a...

Martha's Marvellous Munchies

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