Five Weeks In!!!

We have finally started now and have been under way for five weeks.After collecting ‘HMS Robyn’ from the storage site at Chalgrove on Friday 16th January 2009 we set off for Oxford Caravan and Camping Club site behind the Go Outdoors shop. We stayed there for a couple of nights before heading off to a site in Taunton to have some items fitted to the van. The items were as follows:-

· Satellite system. (For accessing the internet as well as TV).
· Battery to Battery charging system. (For use when off grid)!
· A 1600 Watt Inverter. (So we can plug things in without tripping out).
· A bike rack. (Obvious really).
· A fresh water tank heater. (For when the temperature drops below zero, have already used this a few times)!!!!

After spending a few nights at Taunton we set off for the Lake District, but rather than driving there in one go we stopped off for a couple of nights in Upton upon Severn.En route to The Lakes we took a detour to the Towsure shop in Halesowen (Birmingham). This is a store that caters for everything related to camping and caravanning/motorhome. We purchased a few items that we needed and set off again.

We arrived at ‘Sykeside Camping Park’, Brothers Water, Patterdale in the early afternoon (one of the main reasons for choosing this site was that it is one of the few sites that are open all year and we had already checked it out on a previous visit). The site backs on to a working farm so most days we saw the farmer riding around on a quad bike, on the back was strapped a bread basket where one of his sheepdogs was carried.

We arrived after they had had a week of snow but it was sunny and clear. The roads were cleared only two days before and the fell tops were covered in snow still. The views were spectacular.
We booked in for a week but because of the snow we ended up staying longer.It is a lovely site, but after a week we felt a bit isolated as we were surrounded by fells and it was an hour walk into the nearest village. We were limited to watching TV and could not use the internet as the wind was too strong. (Our satellite dish should not be raised in winds higher than 30 mph).
We kept up to date with the news by reading the newspapers in the pub at the top of the hill. It did seem that we were doing better than down south as the snow was causing chaos. (February 2009).

The first walk we did was a round trip to Patterdale (to get a newspaper) along the shore of Brothers Water. It took 3 hours! We did stop for a few photos on the route as well as taking in the wildlife. We saw various birds including a Dipper, Tree Creeper and a Robin that followed us everywhere.

Whilst out walking we kept an eye out for a bus. Not because we were struggling but for later on that week. We never saw one so when we got back to the site we went up to the pub.........as you do! I asked the landlord about the bus service and was amazed to hear that the next bus was not until April. Whilst living at my mum’s we took for granted the frequency of the buses.

After finding out that there was no bus service into Ambleside we decided that we would cycle the seven miles in, do a bit of shopping, then cycle back............great idea but we (Dean actually) had not realised that the first three miles to the ‘Kirkstone Pass Inn’ was all uphill (13% in places and 20% in others).The Inn is at a height of 1500ft. Oh! I forgot to mention that it was also freezing cold and foggy nearer the top. There was one consolation in that we spotted what we think was a Peregrine Falcon.
After about 1.5 hours we reached the Inn but were not much in the mood for conversation. This could have been due to the fact that as Angela put it “her head had frozen”. It was decided (jointly) that we should lock the bikes up and go in for a drink of steaming hot coffee, much to our delight there was a roaring fire. It is amazing what a real fire can do for your spirits when at a low ebb.
We ordered a coffee and sat by the fire. Angela’s head must have defrosted as we began to converse. The conversation was mainly about whether we really need to go into Ambleside or not!After defrosting we made the wise choice of returning back to the site, and were back within 20 minutes!Following our abortive efforts of trying to cycle in, we then made the decision a day or so later to walk into Ambleside over the Scandale Pass.
It was a lovely sunny day with snow still on the top of the fells, and it took us four hours to walk in.
There were a fair few people on the fells too, some equipped with ice axes and crampons.
We took lots of photos on the way but on our descent (somewhere near High Sweden Bridge) Dean decided to set the camera up on the tripod at the edge of the water, promptly dropping it through a gap in the rock! A rescue mission was mounted to recover it from a gap under the rock with the aid of a walking pole, and it still works! (He’s already dropped it at Patterdale and cracked the viewing screen – we can recommend the durability of Panasonic Lumix TZ2!)

It took us four hours in so we could only spend a couple of hours in Ambleside and got a taxi back - £12.50 well spent!

Later on that week we also cycled a 20 mile trip along the edge of Ullswater to Pooley Bridge. Had the best bowl of soup ever at the Pooley Bridge Inn next to a roaring fire, but slightly over-estimated Angela’s stamina. Dean provided a little light relief on the journey home, by performing a comedy fall off his bike into the verge. He’d forgotten to remove his foot from the toe-clips in time...

During our stay here, we’ve found that the food on offer at the Inn was excellent and we met many friendly people over the two weeks. There was a good mixture of characters and one night we joined some for the whole evening and had a great night.

We spent 12 days at Patterdale and on the 6th February we moved onto Keswick, right on the shoreline of Derwent Water. It had snowed again the night before so it was a fairly nervous journey but nowhere near as bad as down south had been experiencing.
The site is five minutes’ walk from the town, facilities were excellent and the view was stunning! One day we walked up Cat Bells (one of the Wainwrights), and another day cycled round Derwent Water taking a detour up to Ashness Bridge and Surprise View. Again, we had been really lucky with the weather and it was nice to get out of base layers (otherwise known as thermals!) for a change.

Another day we took the bus into Ambleside (it had been snowing again) and had a lovely day there this time – it does feel like home to us.

12 February

We set off to Moffat as a stop-over on our journey through Scotland. It was glorious sunshine when we left but as we passed the sign saying ‘Welcome to Scotland’ the snow arrived. Stopping to get some fuel the station delighted in letting us know it was -7 degrees and as we went along the motorway it disappeared down to one lane!
Luckily we only had another two miles from the motorway so crawled to the campsite in a complete white-out. Although everyone was very friendly, the town was very small so we treated ourselves to a day in Dumfries....

16 Februay

Arrived at Edinburgh and stayed five nights – tried to stay longer but they were fully booked. They were the best showers so far.
This week has been the best so far. Edinburgh is such a beautiful city with so much to see and do, and it’s got a lovely relaxed atmosphere you felt really safe. There was a bus from the site into Edinburgh so we used this every day to explore. The first day we just wandered around (for six hours) looking at what we could go and visit.

The next day we got on the open-top bus that took us to the Royal Yacht Britannia that is moored at the Port of Leith. It was a great place to visit but the decor was not as opulent as you would have expected, and it was even worse if you had been crew!
Following on from there we took a trip to the Palace of Holyrood House (the Royal residence). The information they provided, especially about poor old Queen Mary (who was mightily stitched up) was really interesting and we spent hours in there.
The only disappointment was on your departure you could see the monstrosity that is the new Scottish Parliament building. Who designed that?!You’ve got all these beautiful Georgian buildings and two eras of architecture in both the Old and New Towns, and someone saw fit to build this white elephant with bamboo sticks all over it. It is worth viewing just to ‘appreciate’ its ugliness!
Anyway, the day after that we wandered off to Edinburgh Castle. That is an impressive vantage point for a Castle – built on volcanic rock with access on one side only. They provided so much information on both Edinburgh and the Castle that we ended up spending nearly four hours there.
There are museums there of the Scottish regiments, a prison tour detailing who had been held there over the centuries, and the 1 o’clock gun that is supposed to be so loud you can hear it miles away...we didn’t! Also on display were the Royal Honours (The Scottish crown jewels, consisting of a sceptre given to James IV (1488-1513) by Pope Alexander VI (1494), a sword from Pope Julius II (1507), and a crown made for James V (1513-42) in 1540. Buried in Kinneff Kirk (1652-60) to avoid Oliver Cromwell’s attentions, the Honours were feared lost following the Union (1707). They were found hidden in Edinburgh castle by Sir Walter Scott (1818), and remain there today) but that would have taken another hour!
After leaving the Castle we had planned to visit one of the many museums and art galleries that are free. We wanted to go and visit the People’s Museum but we ran out of time. As you can see, anyone thinking of going there needs to allow plenty of time to experience all it has to offer. We would definitely recommend it, and we are going back in the future.

21 February

As we are going back to the Lakes at the end of the month, we took a journey back down South to Ayr on the West Coast. It has a nice town centre with normal shops! Also, the seaside is within walking distance and we imagine that in the summer it is beautiful – you can wave to the Isle of Arran on a clear day! We also spotted an Oyster Catcher feeding.

We tried to learn a bit more French on another day, and got back into the 21st Century and bought a pay as you go dongle as our satellite system seemed to forget that Scotland is part of Europe. We were both chuffed to be able to get back on line.

24 February

Our next stop was Dalbeattie, just outside Castle Douglas in Dumfries & Galloway. The journey along the A713 was very scenic – we’ve now discovered another joy of doing this in a motor-home (obvious really we know) that the journey is just as much a part of the experience as is the destination.
We pulled over along the way to have a cuppa and enjoy the views over a small loch. Having passed numerous vehicles that had spun into ditches; we were then told by a policeman that there had been a diesel spillage for three miles. Just meant we had to go slower ;-)

The site was tucked away alongside a working farm, and we heard a tawny owl one night. Dalbeattie has a town forest and we spent a number of hours wandering around it, watching the herons build their nest. It is well known for its mountain bike trail and there is a lake in the middle called Loch Plaintain, with a couple of viewing points.

Off back to the Lakes in a couple of days time...

Pictures will be added at a later date!