AA Walk 148 Goathland – 3.5 miles

Yorkshire Dales are a beautiful and calming area of the UK.

We drove into Goathland, and lovely memories of the 80s TV series Heartbeat came flooding back.

We arrived in the village and before the walk took a small divert to the local train station. Apparently the station is the setting for the Hogwarth’s Station in the Harry Potter films. I had a very excited boy.

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We started the walk, as per the instructions from the carpark in the village. We set off along the old railway line, walking slowly downhill.

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Once we turned off the path at Incline Cottage, we started to realise how much we had walked downhill – the next route was up many many steps!

Kissing Gate

The instructions mentioned a few stiles, these have all been replaced my kissing gates.

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In the woods, at the split in the path, we head towards a well signposted Mallyan Spout Waterfall. Worthwhile a visit, the only downside was scrambling across the fallen rocks which could be tricky if wet.

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Back up more steps out of the woods, and this brought us back into the village. We love how the sheep ruled the road and wondered across the road anywhere they wanted.

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Through a couple of local fields, and pretty wild flowers.

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A lovely 3.5mile village walk and if you are in the area, its worth visiting the station and village shops. Memories of Hearthbeat are all around you.

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Walk Stats:

Time: 1.45 hour

NO Stiles, just kissing gates.

Lots of steps

Animals: Owl, Robins, Blackbirds, Sheep, Lambs.

Tom enjoyed a Calipo icecream at the end.

Weather: Cloudy 17oC

Similar Walk Details: AA Goathland the walk on the website appears to be in the opposite direction and is slightly different to the one originally published in the 1001 AA Walks Book.

 

Attenborough Nature Reserve 2.7 miles walk

It’s the last day of the summer holidays. Yesterday was one of the few wet days we have had, with the sun pepping through today we have been up early exercising. 

Tom started the day with our local junor park run and he managed his best time yet! It was his 10th time and a fab 11.16 minutes. I attempted a small walk/jog around the local area too, nearly 3 miles.

After a spot of lunch and the sun coming out we headed over to Attenborough for a gentle walk.

We took the Skylark Nature Trail around the east side of the reserve.

Tom decided to bring his scooter and we headed north towards the train line. 

There were boats put on the lake  and lots of lovely blackcurrants everywhere along the route.

The path was ideal for scootering. We walked past a field with sheep, goats and lamas.

Love our selfies.

There was some beautiful  properties across the other side of the river Trent.

Walking back to the centre.

Pretty snapdragons.

We headed back to the centre to finish the 2.7 mile stroll. 

Our last naughtiness of the summer  a quick stop for tea and cake.

It’s the second visit we have taken to Attenborough and I really don’t understand the love affair people have with the area. It’s nice enough, and I love water, but it just doesn’t give me any buzz. Such a shame as it’s a lovely flat area for walking. Who knows we may go back again.

The weather was kind today at 21°C

Not as busy as I was expecting for a Sunday afternoon stroll,  but the cafe was full outside.

We arrived home and Phil cooked a nice Sunday dinner.

With the sun still shining, let’s not let the evening finish without putting on the chimenea. 

We have been truely blessed with such a sunny, fun filled Summer. Love my boys x

AA walk Old Sarum – 5 miles

We decided today was going to be a nice calm day to walk in Sailsbury,  however we didn’t plan for it to be a stuffy 25°C warm temperature.

We decided to start the walk from the Old Sarum in Sailsbury. We arrived early to enjoy looking around the Old Sarum first.

Lovely views back to Sailsbury  and although it’s hard to imagine the original town being here it was nice to have a nosey.

We headed down the road to pick up the path around the base of the Old Sarum. You need to ensure you pick up the footpath and not the cyleroute.

Along this path it was meadow like with many beautiful flowers.

With beautiful views across the countryside.

It was a nice rest down the lane from the sunshine.

We walked into the lovely village of Stratford sub Castle and admired the Church (with the one handed clock) and  Mawarden Court.

The old slight change to the directions would be to remove the telephone box comment as it is no longer there.

After leaving the village, we crossed the river Avon and walked along the footpath where there where amble of blackberries which we enjoyed. Shane we didn’t gave any boxes to take some home.

We stopped at a local recreation park and enjoyed our sandwiches overlooking the river Avon. The water is so clear you could see the many fishes.

We didnt walk the short path i to Sailsbury ad we had walked atoud the tiwn earlier in the week. The walk was peaceful and the walk up the lane back to Old Sarum was quiet.

We passed the site of the Parliament Tree.

We ve also spotted a few of these bright red plants over the past two weeks of our holiday.

Having googled the picture since we have arrived home the plant it called the Cuckoo Pint, which as we guessed with its bright red berries is poisonous. It is from the Arum family. It is also called Starchwort and was used in Elizabeth an times to starch cuffs and ruffs.

Love the views back to Old Sarum.

Thanks for a fab walk.

Walk Sats 

Weather: 25°C warm with a mix of cloud and sunshine. Two weeks of warm weather has left the ground dry and walk ok with just trainers on.

Time: 2hours 15 mins including a stop for lunch.

Miles 5 miles?(Need to check againSt maverick).

Wildlife: lots of bright butterflies today.

Cycling Rempstone Ride – 20 miles : Summer 2016

Why do I have two sporty boys who love to be on the go?

Today it was all about cycling from Corfe Castle to Studland Beach.
Before the holiday I found a fab ride here, and I downloaded the route and route discription. Although we extended the route, the information they gave was very good and we didn’t get lost once.

We started the route from the pretty Corfe Castle village. Following the busy main road carefully we pick up the route at Norden.

Well signposted with a mixture of road, grass, stone, shingle and sand paths it was a nice gentle mixture of different surfaces.

The countryside was lovely, the 20°C sunshine helped but so did the wildlife, beautiful wild flowers and local animals.

The only downside was there was no benches to stop and have a breather, we found a grassy field to enjoy a spot of lunch.

The main road down to Studland was with fast moving traffic, but the South Beach was well worth the visit with beautiful views over to Old Harry rocks and coastline.

We followed the route and the way back was slightly different and included more roads which made the way back slightly easier. It also gave the boys a chance at showing me how they can cycle with no hands!!

Close to the end we encountered some friendly cows blocking the route. After plucking up the courage we walked slowly through them.

A tiring and exhilarating reward getting back to our campsite. We should all sleep tonight.

Our 11 year old would highly recommend this cycleride to anyone ready for an enjoyable day out!

Dorset Summer Holiday 2016

We are staying in the local area and decided to spend a day at Lulworth Cove. My childhood memories are coming here on a school trip, and walking with my mum, dad and sister. I’m sure I have some old photos somewhere.

We walk the short distance from the car park to firstly admire the views of Stair Hole. Phil and Tom took a walk down into the cove, while Nigel and me admired the beauty from the top.

There are alot of visitors to the cove today so what we imagine is going to be peaceful isn’t quite but this doesn’t spoil the beauty of the place.

After a short walk to the cove the boys enjoy skimming stones before we enjoy our picnic lunch. The weather is cloudy but still a warm day at 20°C. Toms record was 10 skims, pretty good effort!!!!

With Durdle Door just over the next hill we decide to take the 1 mile stroll over the coastal path. It’s tough going but we take it slowly stopping to enjoy the views.

Stunning views from the top. The boys enjoy looking at the ships and use an app on Phils phone to identify them.

As we head over the brow we get a peak at the Durdle Door. It’s too much of a temptation, so Phil and I enjoy the short but another steep incline.

A quick photo, then we set off back. It took 1.5 hours to see some really stunning beauty and admire the old historical coast. 

The last stop of the day is to enjoy a well earned drink and cake in the pretty Lulworth Cove Inn.

Well worth a visit if you are in the area.

Robin Hood Way Section 8: Theives Wood to Blidworth

It’s been a couple of weeks since we have been for a walk. The sun is shining unexpectedly today so we decide to take full advantage and set off to tackle section 8.

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Thieves Wood Car Park

We start the walk at the car park and decide to enjoy our sarnies here at the picnic benches.

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Before setting off we read the instructions so we had a good idea of where we were going. Today was well signposted and I think only refered to the instructions once.

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The route through Theives wood was full of sunshine and good paths. We are certainly going to come back here on our bikes.

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We headed across the road into Harlow Woods. Unfortunately we were passed by some locals speeding through the woods on their motorbikes. Not a pleasent experience as they were all going far to fast. Tom was quite upset and kept worrying that they would be back.

Doesn’t it help …. every very child surely loves walking through muddy puddles?

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Loving the local history.

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Always great to find a Geocache.

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Looks like there has been quite a bit of work on the nearby well.

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We are going to come back here in 6 months to see how the area has changed.

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With the recent hot weathe, the daisy and dandilions are in full bloom.

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As we walked near a local farm we were all suprised to see a fox on the path. It looked young, the horses didn’t appear to be bothered. We also saw little rabbits today too.

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Walking up New Road we came across another couple of bikes which left Tom worrying again.

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A nice walk back to Blidworth.

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We finished the walk at the local Tesco where we waited for our lift and enjoyed a well earned ice cream.

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Love our selfies. Warm enough for no coats today.

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Walk Stats
Weather: 15°C sunshine and clouds.
Time: 1pm for 2 hours and 6 minutes
Geocaches: Two both found by Tom today.
Miles: the book reads 6.25miles, but my reader only showed 4.65 upto Tesco in Blidworth.

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Wildlife: all the birds were enjoying the sunshine and singing lots. We saw plenty of Robins, Horses, Fox and Rabbits.
Instructions: were good today.
Distance on Route 42 miles, 61 still to go.

Granny Square Crochet Cushion

I’m new to crochetting, I started a year ago to make a blanket for when my nephew was born. Over the past year I have made 3 blankets and 1 cushion and I love them all. It’s such a delight to hold my finished project.

I thought I would share my latest … my granny square and stripe cushion. We bought an old caravan last autumn and I knew I could make a few accessories for it.

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I’ve used three different brands of wool for my cushion:
Purple – New Fashion (John Lewis 02341)
Green – Patons  (1218)
Cream – my favourite Stylecraft DK Parchment  (1218)

I started making the granny squares first. With cream in the middle and alternative green and purple, I made 3 rounds of treble crochet granny clusters.

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Small Granny Squares

I decided to try join as you go to join the squares. I’m a fan of attic24 and you can find good instructions on her website here.

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Join as you go.

I would definitely try join as you go again, although I would try one continous join, rather than small squares.

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The back.

Sewing in the threads can take its time.

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Front completed.

I tried the front next to a 50×50 inner but because I crochet so tight it was a bit small. I tried a 40×40 and fit seemed good.

I decided the back would be slightly different, working two rows of triple crochet clusters to make a pretty granny stripe. It took me a while to get the right size to match the width of the front.

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The back.

I made two rectangles for the back which overlap so I can put the cushion in.

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I used a double crochet stitch all the way around.

To finish off I stitched on three buttons to keep the flat secure on the back.
And ta-dah!!

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Completed Back

We love it.

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I used a 3.5 crochet hook and less than one ball of wool of each of the colours.

Onto my next challenge.

Robin Hood Way Section 6: Papplewick to Blidworth

We are enjoying the Easter Holiday. As it’s the weekend Phil is off work so we head out in the sunshine for the next section of the Robin Hood Way walk.

Last time we finished the walk early, so we park up in Papplewick and head to start the walk on Moor Road (B683).

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Start of walk.

We’ve had some rain over the past week so some of the ground was quite muddy.

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Spring
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The Moore's

On my timeline this morning on facebook, it showed we had been geocaching for 3 years, where does the time go. We have clocked up over 400 caches since then and still love it. Found a few more today to add to our total.

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Geocache, fab hiding place!

We continued along the path towards Burnt Stump.

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We arrive at Burntstump and my phone has already clicked up 3 miles, akkk.

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Enjoyed a quick stop and cuppa.

We pick up today’s walk and we are truely enjoying the sunshine, all our coats are off.
Tom finds a rope swing amongst the trees in the park. At each swing we hear a cracking,  until on the 4 time it snaps! Whoops.

We walk past the woods  and walk a stretch on the road, such a shame there is no route in the forest and I hope this is something they continue to work with the foresty commission. The Papplewick Pumping Station is closed today. I’ve been in Nottingham over 10 years and have still not visited here, something on my to do list.

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Outside Papplewick Pumping Station.

We continue walking to Blidworth Woods, the sun is still shining, and after a stop for sandwiches we set off walking up small inclines.

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The foresty commission have been busy felling trees. We chat about the trees and are amazing at how large and small the trunks are.

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We are getting tired now and continue  walking past lots of horses and pigs. Tom continues to question us about different types of farmers.
We reach Blidworth very tired and we have walked 8.76 miles in total, phew!
Throughly enjoyed the spring sunshine today.

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Blidworth

Luckily the walk comes out right next to the local bus stop. Phil has worked out that we can catch the 141 Trent Barton bus back to Papplewick. We wait a short 10 minutes and if by magic the bus arrives.

Walk Stats
Weather: sunshine and cloudy 10oC
Time: 4 hours with two stops.
Geocaches: 4, 1 for Tracey, 3 for Phil
Miles: 8.75
Wildlife: local dog walkers, Horses,  pigs
Route Instructions: good, no direction on the last walk up Beck Lane
Distance on Route 30.25 miles walked, 76.75 miles remaining.

Spring bike ride: Newstead Abbey

Loving the first signs of spring, and warm weather.

We started this morning with Tom taking part in his first 2k junior parkrun.

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We met a friend up the park for a scooter around before lunch.

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With the weather dry and a nice 13oC we decided to set off after lunch for a bike ride to Newstead Abbey.

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We cycle via Linby and what is known locally as the yellow brick road, along the cycle route 6. We take the road into Newstead Abbey and enjoy cycling into the Abbey grounds.

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Cafe

We enjoy stopping for ice cream, tea (and cakes!).

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Newstead full of daffodils.
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Selfie Time.
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Tom enjoying the waterfall.
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Newstead Lake

We head back along the road and this time continue Newstead Village, and homeward bound along the Hucknall Bypass.

Today’s Stats
Distance: 10 miles approx.
Time: 1.30-4.00pm with a couple of stops.
Weather: 13oC
No unusual animals today, but loving the birds in spring voice calling to their loved ones. Peacocks in the Abbey.

Ending the ride with a tired cuppa tea.

Happy Easter 2016 – 27th March

What a lovely way to enjoy the Easter Break by getting away for a few days over the bank holiday.

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Easter Eggs

We have come away in our caravan to Kingsbury Waterpark. So peaceful here with the sounds of water and all the local wildlife. Friday we walked into the park, and followed the red Woodland 1.5 mile walk.

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Walk in the woods.
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Exercise time
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Phil looking into the mirror.

It was quite busy due to the lovely sunny weather, and nice to go for an afternoon walk with just jumpers on at 15oC

Saturday was a bit wet, so we head into Birmingham for shopping. The centres were full of people but we picked up some birthday goodies for me and new school shoes for Tom.

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Yummy Lindt giveaways.

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We finished the day off by stopping at Krispy Kreme, and bought back some goodies for pudding.

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Very Yummy.

Happy Easter. Tom is awake early even with the clock change today.

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Phil makes us tea and breakfast in bed. We are still getting used to the small caravan space, and have yet to buy an awing. It means lots of patience which can be challenging at times.

We head off for on the purple Broomey 1.5 mile walk around Canal Pool, and we enjoy feeding the ducks.

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Off to the cinema later at Toms request. For the time being Toms at the park let’s enjoy the Easter sunshine!

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Happy Easter x