Category: walks

Castles old and new

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Google informs me that Scotland has over 2,000 castles, of which 1,500 are still standing, or there are significant remains. Therefore I was never going to do more than scratch the surface on my quest to visit more of them after I left Speyside. I had naively thought that at least I could do most of the ones in the area around the Tarland campsite, there is actually a castle trail in the area as there are so many, but only managed a few in the week I was there. Lots to do when I go back!

Scottish castles are really unique, as many of them have a very distinctive architectural style, and lots are pink, or greyish pink in hue. They really do have a Disney castle feel, and none more so than the beautiful Craigievar Castle Sadly this was one of the ones that I didn’t get a chance to see inside, as most of them only allow guided tours, and by the time I got there, all were booked up for theafternoon before I had to head to the campsite.

It was a beautiful day for a wander though, and the grounds and surrounding area is just stunning. Not that there are many parts of Scotland that aren’t, except perhaps the motorways around Glasgow, which confused me a lot!

After leaving Tarland I headed back to the coast, to Stonehaven. I mentioned in a previous post that it had been too windy to walk along the coast to Slains Castle, but this was an absolutely gorgeous day, perfect for a walk along the coastal path to see the dramatic ruins of Dunnottar.

I am collecting photos that I particularly love to be printed onto canvas eventually, and I think this will have to be added to that collection. Such an amazing landscape, and I was so lucky to see it in such beautiful weather.

As well as the castles there are so many beautiful baronial houses, and after leaving the Grampian Aire I went to Leith Hall Dating from the mid 1600s, it has been extensively remodelled and is now mainly Georgian inside. Again I had an excellent guided tour of the house, memorable for several curiosities as well as the wealth of textile treasure.

If you visit any heritage house you will come across taxidermy, a favourite pastime of the Victorian collectors, but Leith has a very special display, of boxing squirrels!

This has to rate as the most unusual piece of taxidermy that I have ever seen. No clear idea of the provenance, but I can only assume they were specially commissioned.

Sometimes there are just little things that really catch your eye as well, not only for their beauty, but imagining how they were acquired, and the recipient using them. I like to imagine that this beautiful desk set was a very special gift, and that happy hours were spent here writing letters and journals.

Another really interesting find was this gift of a photo montage of all of the tenants of the estate, given to General Leith Hay in 1902. A fascinating piece of social history, and one that is great for anyone tracing family history in the area, as many of these people wouldn’t have necessarily have had other photos taken of themselves.

One of the members of the Leith Hay family was a very keen needlewoman, and one of the corridors was lined with needlepoint pictures, all from kits popular in Victorian times. There musty have been at least twenty of these, along with all the fire screens and chairs. I know I have marvelled at this before, but how many hours of work does this represent!

I have been thinking about doing some needlepoint again, not that I need another crafting project ! However I used to love it, so am on the hunt for a nice kit that I can do for the caravan.

Someone was clearly a keen collector of embroidery as well, as there was this display case. Sorry for the poor picture, but there is a Georgian waistcoat, as well as shoes and bags.

There were also some beautiful bedspreads, in crochet and lace work.

I have been spending some time here working on my crochet skills, and have successfully made my first hat! After so many years of struggling crochet seems to have just clicked in my brain, which I am very happy about. Pictures of that and other recent makes soon. I have also been doing some writing, so feel like I’ve had a very productive week.

It is a balmy 23 degrees this weekend, and I am looking forward to another lovely week of social activities. We have a packed programme of coach trips to visit Christmas lights, and Christmas celebrations starting this Friday, and I had better finish making the Christmas gifts as there are only 18 days to go! My poker skills are coming along nicely as well, I won 9 hands last night and came 4th out of 8 players, so very happy with that.

Until next time, take care, have fun and thanks for visiting.

The wind and the waves

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After I left Speyside I went to the coast. There were so many beautiful places that I wanted to visit, and some park ups that I had on my list for my coastal tour. I will talk about the park ups in a later post, this one is all about the power of nature, and the importance of the wind and the waves.

I started my day with the most amazing sunset, and stood and watched as the early morning surfers took their boards out at Lossiemouth. The power of the waves was just incredible, after the stormy conditions of the previous day, but these confident surfers were out there loving it.

This part of the Scottish coast has some unique rock features, developed over time by the power of water against stone, wearing away in such minute steps, over millennia. Bow Fiddle Rick, just outside Portknockie, was my first stop on this journey.

The day I visited was very windy, but beautifully sunny, perfect for watching the waves crashing against the rocks here. Most of these small towns are also fishing ports, most now only used for leisure, rather than commercial fishing, superseded by the large Atlantic trawlers.

However the wind, and the waves, are still important here, it may not affect livelihood in the same way as when hundreds of fishermen lived here, but this area has a number of offshore wind farms, and the coastal town of Buckie is a centre for the offshore support.

The towns of Banff and Macduff, separated by the River Deveron, are still important ports, but I had come to see a lesser known area, just a bit further along from the port of Macduff.

The Needle’s Eye rock formation is another magical creation of the sea, and a little further on is somewhere I had been alerted to by one of the many van lifers I follow on Instagram.

The Tarlair Open Air Swimming Pools were built in the 1930s, and was open until the 1990s. The gorgeous Art Deco cafe has been restored and I had a very nice lunch there. The cafe is run by volunteers, has a great photo display of the pool’s history, and it is hoped that the pools will be open again at some point soon.

There are also open air pools at Gourock, a place I briefly visited last summer, and at Stonehaven, my destination a few days later when I went back to the coast. It was another gorgeous sunny day, for my cliff top walk along to Dunnottar Castle.

There is something so magical about watching the waves against the cliffs, knowing that this landscape is not permanent, that over time it will change, and that we won’t be here to see much of that change.

There is such a thrill at being at the edge of the land, just staring out at the horizon. I can’t imagine what it must be like to have never seen the sea, to never feel this wind, or watch the waves. It is such an amazing and mesmerising thing to do.

However, wind and waves can also destroy. I had a brief visit to Crovie, or to the cliffs above the village. It was too windy to walk down to the village, which was badly flooded in the 1950s, leaving it devastated as a fishing village.

It is a reminder, as we see almost daily on the news with severe storms and flooding, of the power of nature to obliterate.

I am currently at another incredible coastline, in North Yorkshire, enjoying more cliff top walks, which I will tell you about in a future post. Meanwhile enjoy life and thanks for visiting. 

The magic of the sea

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Maybe it’s because I am a water sign, or maybe it’s something else but I just love being beside the sea. Even if it’s just having a glimpse of it as I travel, or the little view from my house in Spain. It just instantly makes me feel calm and happy.

I was lucky enough to have four sets of visitors this summer, and so spent more time at the coast again with them, revisiting some of the coastal beauties of this part of the UK. 

I did have sometime off for some of these visits, though not when Dave and Louise came from Somerset.  We did have the evenings together,  and my first bbq of the season. 

This really is an undiscovered area for me, I had no idea how stunning these places were, and will always feel blessed that my first job with the club was in such an amazing area.

I now know where I am.going to be next year,  it was a surprise to me, and everyone else, and I shall reveal all in a bit.

Most of my coastal trips were beautiful weather, however the only inclement one was when my sister, Jacky, and her dog Ryan arrived at the end of July. This was the week before that very big storm that hit Scotland, and poor Jacky was in Orkney by then!

We had a visit to Spey Bay, to the dolphin centre there, and although it was grey and damp, and there were no dolphins, it was still a lovely place for a walk, at the mouth of the Spey River and the start of the Speyside Way. 

When my friend Sharon arrived from Yorkshire we were a lot luckier, and visited the fishing village of Buckie, and then on to Findhorn again, for glorious views. I think Findhorn may be one of my favourite places on this coast, but there are other strong contenders.

Maggie and Peter, also from Yorkshire,  and the previous owners of Lotte my lovely caravan,  also came that same weekend,  and we went back to Cullen, to do the coastal walk, on a wonderful hot, sunny Sunday.  My photos just don’t do justice to this amazing coastline. 

At the very end of my contract, on the last weekend,  I used my welfare nights to go to Rosemarkie, one of our sites on the Black Isle above Inverness.  Rosemarkie is famous for dolphin spotting, and I did see some, but the choppy waves made it difficult to photograph them.

It was a beautiful evening walk to the lighthouse though,  and more chance to.practice arty photography. 

I also took a trip to Cromarty, at the end of the Black Isle, one of the many historic fishing villages in this area, now home to oilfield pipe terminals, and a cruise ship port in the Firth.

There is still so much to see and do in this area, and I will come back at some point. I am now on my end of contract busman’s holiday, making my way down the coast, via Northumberland to Yorkshire for a catch up with friends, before I fly back to Spain at the end of October.

However I won’t be back next year,  as my contract is going to be at Glencoe! I was really surprised, as thought I would be staying but am so excited to be given this site. I stayed there for a few nights last year so know a bit of what to expect.  It is going to be a very busy site, and very different to Speyside. This will be my office view though, so I think I am going to have an amazing time there. 

Lotte has been moved to winter storage, and I am going to be back to pick her up in early March. Meanwhile there are historic houses galore, and the excitement of getting back to Spain and planning more adventures. 

So I hope that you are all still enjoying life as much as I am. I can’t tell you how brilliant this summer has been, and I am so looking forward to next year.  See you soon and thanks for visiting. 

Highland highlights

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I have so enjoyed being in this part of Scotland for the summer. I love the gentle forested hills, the sparkling rivers, and the stunning coast with its layers of misty blues.

I will find out in a few days where my contract will be for next year. Fingers crossed it is here, as there is so much more to explore, but anywhere in Scotland will be fantastic. 

I have spent some more time in the local village of Aberlour recently, firstly doing the walk up to the Linn Falls. This takes you past the distillery, and you can just get a glimpse of it through the trees.

You can see one of the huge copper stills at the back of the distillery, as always the smells are amazing.

The village itself is very pretty, it is a planned development built in the 1812 by Charles Grant, and named after one of his sons.

Its full name is Charlestown of Aberlour, and there is a smaller village just up from our campsite, named Archiestown, after his other son.

As well as being the site of a great local Co-op,  butchers and deli, it also gives you access to the river and the Speyside Way.  There are many of these beautiful bridges over the river here.

Like many of the places round here Aberlour hosts a Highland Games, and I was lucky enough to be able to visit, as I have had weekends off.

It was amazing, all of the surrounding towns and villages support each others’ games, so there were dance, athletic competitors, and pipe bands from the local area. This meant there was a great attendance and atmosphere, and thankfully fantastic weather.

My favourite part was definitely the pipe bands, there is just something about pipes and drums that touches your soul, and the drum majors were particularly impressive.

The Highland Dancing, and ‘heavy’ competitions such as tossing weights and hammers were also wonderful to watch. I can finally say I have a seen someone toss a caber, and it is very impressive!

I have also been being creative during my time off, and have painted lots of stones to decorate the campsite. These are some of the types of campers that we have had visit this summer, and they are on display near our facilities block.

I got chance to do a little bit of caravan upgrading as well, with fablon covering the kitchen area. You can see the original surface in the second photo. I have also bought new fleeces and cushion covers for the colder evenings. It is starting to feel very autumnal here now. 

Sadly my trip to Dingwall, that I wrote about last post, did not end well. It  was the week of Storm Floris, and although I got there OK on the Friday, the weather was bad again on Saturday, so I decided to come home, getting a split pole in the process of taking the tent down.

I have another welfare weekend planned next weekend, at one of our coastal sites, so hopefully that will go really well, and I can share the photos of that, along with some more coastal trips in my next post. 

Meanwhile I hope you are having as much fun as I am. Thanks, as always for visiting, and putting up with the less than frequent posts!

Paddles and pebbles

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I don’t wish to start this post with a complaint but it has been so hot in Scotland whilst I have been here. As you may know, I can’t tolerate heat, which is part of the reason that I leave Spain for the summer.

When I got the contract through for a season in Scotland I was expecting a cool, and damp summer, which was fine. I ordered lots of practical uniform, such as waterproof overtrousers and fleecey layers.

However it has been a consistent 24 to the dizzy heights of 32 degrees for the last few months, and I have been sweltering!

Thank goodness that the coast is only a short drive away, so I can not only get cooler weather, but enjoy the amazing scenery.

My first coastal trip was to the village of Portsoy, for their annual traditional boat festival. As well as the boats on display, there were related events, such as skiff rowing, a raft race, and demonstrations and displays of boat building. 

There was also lots of music, dancing, and a food festival. It was a wonderful introduction to maritime Highland culture.

The town is centred around the 17th century harbour, which has been beautifully restored, and has an amazing coastline.

I stayed overnight at an aire just a few minutes drive away, at Cullen, birthplace of the fish soup, Cullen Skink. The aire is in a gorgeous location, right on the coastal path.  I spent a very happy evening watching the sunset.

I also had some very delicious locally smoked Mackerel for tea.

My next coastal trip was on the hottest weekend so far, to Lossiemouth for a very welcome paddle. Lossiemouth was a key part of coastal defences during WW2, and still has the concrete blocks put there to prevent tank invasion. 

The views across the Moray Firth were just gorgeous.  Over the water is Caithness, part of Scotland I have yet to explore.

Last weekend I had another overnight, at the aire at Findhorn.  This open expanse of beach leads to the bay, and the River Findhorn, and the village was an important harbour in the 1700 and 1800s.

So many beautiful pebbles, the variety of stones were amazing. I have brought some back for some painted stones I am doing for the campsite, that I will share when they are finished.

There is a very interesting little heritage centre, with some great interpretation and photos. 

I have plans to visit more of this coast in the next few weeks, I only have 7 weeks left of my contract, but am then spending the rest of September in this wonderful country.

I love it so much, and am so happy to have had the chance to explore more. Love the job, love living in my little caravan, very, very happy 😊

I hope you are all happy whatever you are doing, thanks for visiting and see you soon.

Highland beauty

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This area of the country often gets overlooked, there is so much else in Scotland to see, so it is easy to miss. That has lots of advantages though, as roads are quiet, and it is easy to park, unlike at Glencoe last year!

I have been doing some exploring of the local area, in between the domestic duties. The nearest supermarkets are about 30 mins away, though there is a little Co op in the nearest town 5 mins drive. That means trying to combine my fortnightly shop with other adventures.

Much of my time has been spent along the beautiful Spey River. The Speyside Way runs from the coast down for about 70 miles, using parts of the old railway line, and provides brilliant forest walks and cycling.

The above photos were taken on one of my first walks, at the little town of Charlestown of Aberlour, our nearest place. One of the features of these rivers are the gorgeous Victorian bridges that cross them.

Yesterday I went to visit one of the most famous. Built by Thomas Telford and erected in 1814, it was the main road crossing at Craigellachie until the 1970s.

The area is also famous for it’s distilleries, using water from the Spey. There are over 30 in the area, and while I don’t like the taste of whisky,  the smell when they are roasting is lovely. 

I recently went on a walk near the Tamdhu distillery, which is next to the old railway station.  Such a gorgeous forest trail with glimpses of the river.

Life has been very busy, the last two weekends I have been away, firstly to a very interesting training course, where I met lots of other new staff. It was fun to hear about their experiences so far. Last week I went to the coast, so will tell you about that in the next post.

I have also visited my first castle of 2025. I hope to see many more after I finish working, as there are lots in the areas I am travelling to then, but this was the lovely Brodie Castle, near Forres.

The castle was closed as there was a function on, but the grounds and the lake were enough to keep me happy.

I really am so happy here, I love life in my little caravan, and really enjoy the job. I am meeting so many people who love exactly the same things that I do, and feel so blessed to be able to do this in this gorgeous place.

It may not have the dramatic scenery of other places I have visited in Scotland, but it is a wonderful place to call home for the summer.

I shall hopefully be able to post again sooner than a month from now. The app is so slow that this has taken me nearly two hours, with waiting for it to respond, so it is not that I am neglecting the blog, it is just technical issues. Thanks for bearing with me, and fingers crossed see you soon.

Meet the latest member of the family!

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Well of course you should have been reading all about the gorgeous fiestas I went to in Spain in this post, however I have skipped ahead for very good reasons.

I will get back to my time in Spain as soon as possible, but on the day that I was scheduled to post, we had a major power blackout that affected most of Spain, Portugal, and other parts of Europe. 

That was ‘interesting’, and made you quickly realise how very much we rely on having working phones, access to the Internet, ATM etc. 

One of my main concerns was that I was due to fly back to the UK two days later on the Weds, to be reunited with a very special new addition.  I have previously hinted at changes for this year but I would like you to meet Lotte.

Lotte is a ‘new to me’ 33 year old caravan, that I bought from my very good friends, Maggie and Peter in Yorkshire, last year. There have been lots of preparations in place surrounding the purchase and subsequent removal of Lotte to Scotland. Here she is on the haulage lorry in Yorkshire, and arriving in a very sunny Speyside 🌞

I needed a caravan to live in as last year I applied for, and was successful in getting,  a post as a Site Assistant with the Camping and Caravanning Club! The interview process started in October, and involved me flying back to the UK in early December for a recruitment day, and I got a job 🙃

I was so thrilled as this has been a long held dream post retirement from teaching. I was over the moon when a couple of days before Christmas I found out my post would be in Scotland.   

There have been a few stressful moments along the way. In the same week I had the blackout, finding out that the caravan towing company wouldn’t take her to Scotland last minute, and Katy having a seized handbrake and having to spend two days in the garage. However all got sorted and a day later than planned I set off for Scotland in Katy.

Lotte arrived last Wednesday evening, and I have been spending the last few days moving all of my new things in, and sorting everything out.

She is absolutely gorgeous and I already love living here in her. I have a lovely staff pitch, very shady, with lots of trees and birds around.

I have a fixed bedroom, which is great, with so much storage space.

Also a cute little kitchen area, and most exciting, a bathroom.  I have a toilet, and running water and everything 🙃

Also a lovely comfy lounge area, so I can sit and craft in the evenings as I listen to the birds. It is all just perfect and I am over the moon about it all.

I start work tomorrow, which I am so looking forward to.  Most of this week will be training, and at the moment I have the weekends off, so I will still be going out exploring this gorgeous part of the country in Katy. I plan to use the many stop overs and aires here.

I am further north than I have been before, just above Aviemore, so really looking forward to exploring. I took 10 days to make the journey up to my site, so got to visit some new places.

My first stop was at The Nook Cafe, in the beautiful Northern Pennines. They offer overnight camper stops for £5, with use of toilets if wanted. I had a very peaceful evening, watching the sheep graze.

I then stayed overnight with my very good friends, Sue and Chris at their house, before going on to the Oban campsite for four nights. 

That is a very pretty site, in a walled garden, with beach access across the road, and a beautiful set of forest walks next door in Sutherland’s Grove.

I also had an afternoon walk around the headland at Port Appin, with stunning views across to Mull and Lismore.

Then it was on to Loch Ness Shores campsite for another four nights.

The weather has just been amazing all the time I have been here, I am so lucky. On my last day I did the forest walk to the Falls of Foyers.

One of the best things about being here in May is that the rhododendrons and gorse are blooming, so gorgeous.

So here is one very happy little camper signing off. I will be back as soon as possible, work and lack of WiFi may slow things a little, but thanks as always for being here for my new adventure.  Hope you are all having fun and enjoying life.

On top of the world in Wales!

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My Welsh adventures continued with a visit to somewhere that is very special to me. When I retired, nearly four years ago I went on a bus and train camping trip, for seven weeks. Having not passed my test, due to delays caused by Covid, I had a wonderful time, visiting Devon and Wales with my new tiny tent, and all my possessions in a rucksack and a large bag.

All the time I was hoping, and dreaming about passing my test and getting a little van. As you know it all came true, and this visit I came back to the last place I camped at, Fairbourne, near Barmouth, to stay at the new aire they now have!

I saw this being built when I was last here, and though it may not be the most glamourous of park ups, I was so happy to be there in Katy. I sat and watched the little trains go past, and had a lovely peaceful night there.

My next location was in West Wales, a stunning drive from Barmouth to Aberystwyth for supplies, then on to New Quay. I remember being on the bus four years ago, just marvelling at how beautiful this part of the country was, and was so excited to spend more time here this year.

My accommodation was a very luxurious three bedroomed caravan, on the Haven site at New Quay, just outside the town, again a wonderful bargain. I had a very large lounge, TV, and a beautiful kitchen, with sea views.

It was a really gorgeous site, overlooking the bay, and once again I was so lucky with the weather.

I managed to get a few more miles of the Wales coastal path done. The first walk was along the beach from the site, only accessible at low tide.

My aim was to get to the cliff top part of the coastal path, not only were the views wonderful, but I was also lucky enough to see dolphins, and seals on the same trip. No pictures of the dolphins as they were too far away and moved off quickly, but here is one of the seals. They were so close I could hear them barking to each other.

I love taking pictures of the signs for paths, and there was this wonderful old one hidden in the gorse bushes along the route.

The coloured houses in New Quay make it look so pretty from across the bay.

I also visited Aberaeron, another place I remember from the last trip, again with lots of beautiful painted houses, old Georgian buildings, and a pretty river walk. The town was once a thriving ship building community and port, and this is reflected in its gorgeous architecture.

I was only in the area for a week, so not too much time for exploring, but lots of lovely coastal and woodland walks.

I will definitely be back, and am very much a fan of the bargain Haven stays. I love caravan life as well as van life, and am looking forward to the ones I have booked for autumn in Northumberland and Yorkshire.

I was headed across Wales, en route to my sister’s in Worcester, again an area that I have never explored, and the drive was wonderful, so much so that I had to stop and take photos.

My next park up was somewhere I had heard a lot about, a bit of a legend in the van life and camping community, Coco’s Wild Camping. My photos really don’t do it justice, it is one of the most beautiful places that I have ever been to. Just miles of stunning views, from what feels like the top of the world.

I can’t tell you how happy I was to be there in Katy, especially as the road up was very steep and quite rocky in parts, but we made it!

I am so proud of myself for having these adventures, and challenging myself. Facebook keeps reminding me at the moment that a year ago I was driving back through France in Katy. Even though I wanted to learn to drive for so long, I never thought that I would end up having so many amazing trips, so many wonderful park ups and such fun, though sometimes I end up on some very scary roads!

After a very relaxing two days at Coco’s it was time time to hit the road again. I had a stop off, and overnight park up, in Hay on Wye, somewhere else that has been on my list for along time. You can park overnight for free in the main car park, which is very convenient. I forgot to get a photo, but again it was a nice peaceful night, just a couple of other motorhomes there.

Hay on Wye is famous for its bookshops, and is such a pretty place to visit, with the castle and lots of gift shops and eateries. I was really good and only bought six books, restocking the box in Katy for the summer. There were some beautiful shops though, look at these gorgeous books! One even had a craft area with a display of Liberty fabric and I managed to resist that, on the grounds that I have so much here in Spain already.

My last stop before Worcester, was to two villages in Herefordshire, on the black and white villages trail. Weobley is one of the bigger villages in the area, and has its own heritage trail, with info boards about the buildings.

Eardisland is not only gorgeous for the black and white houses, but also the little river running through it, the Georgian Dovecote which is now the village shop, and the quintessentially English church. A stunning spring day, with drives through some gorgeous countryside.

I have already decided that I will come back to Wales next year as part of my spring adventures. There is so much still left to see, and it was a brilliant trip. There is so much beauty in the world. I know it can often get lost in all of the horrible things that are happening, but trips like these help me focus on all the loveliness, rather than the bad.

I have been having a very busy and sociable time here, with Easter fiestas, all of the wonderful things that Spain does so well, so will be back soon with that to share with you. Have also been doing some crafting in readiness for the end of the year’s fundraising, so will show you that as well next post.

Until then hope that you find joy in the little things, and happiness in what you do. Thanks, as always for visiting, and see you all soon.

Welsh wanders and wonders

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I was so lucky with the weather during my time in Wales. Considering it was March, and the reputation the country has for rain, I saw very little of it in the month that I was there. This allowed me to do so much lovely walking, along more of the coastal path, but also exploring other parts of both the Llyn Peninsula, and inland, near the English border.

As I mentioned in my last post, I had two weeks at the Haven site just outside Criccieth, so was able to explore a lot more of that coast. The Lynn Peninsula is very narrow and it was amazing to be able to see both sides of it, while I was doing the circular walk on the cliff top at LLanbedrog.

Part of the walk was closed due to previous storm damage, as many trees had been blown over, which gave me chance to walk around the beach. I was admiring the views of Snowdon, which at that point still had snow on the top, and taking lots of shots of the beach.

I really love how this one came out.

I also visited the beach at Borth Y Gest, which must be one of the most beautiful places that I have ever been. Just such an unspoilt place, with amazing views across to Harlech.

There was also a very warm afternoon at Criccieth, walking along the beach, exploring the town. I had to have an ice cream, it was that hot, 17 degrees that day!

I also got another lovely reflection picture as there was an Airstream caravan, used as a coffee takeaway, next to the beach.

There are lots of National Trust areas in the Llyn Penisula, but only one property. I had a gorgeous day for my visit to Plas yn Rhiw, towards the very end of the land. The property was bought in 1938 by three sisters from Nottingham, Eileen, Lorna and Honora Keating, who restored it to its current state. It was so good to see all of the primroses, daffodils and magnolias, and I had a picnic overlooking the bay. The magnolia tree here was planted by Honora in 1949.

After leaving the Llyn Penisula I spent a brilliant weekend with a friend who I met at Polytechnic, so we have known each other for a mere 42 years! We have met up quite regularly over that time, but not often recently in Wales.

Nia is a Welsh speaker, and passionate and knowledgeable about her country and its heritage. She was very kind and gave me a guided tour of all the canal heritage in her area, including something that has been on my bucket list for a long time, the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct, which is a World Heritage site.

We started at the Chirk Aqudeuct and viaduct, which is nearby.

You may remember that I spent a lot of my time in Scotland visiting canals, and there is so much rich heritage in Wales, built to supply the Industrial Revolution with coal, bricks and supplies for cities like Manchester and Liverpool. Nearby Ruabon was the centre of brick making in the area, and this is celebrated in an innovative sculpture at the aqueduct site.

This celebration of the tools and products of the industries is just brilliant, a fantastic way to celebrate these artisans.

The Pontcysyllte Aqueduct is a very unique structure, a real feeling of being up in the air, and such a marvellous piece of forward thinking and engineering, from Thomas Telford and his colleagues. It must have taken such determination to convince people, and especially investors, that they could build this, ‘stream in the sky’.

It can feel a bit scary walking along, as there is only a rail on one side, but I was assured that the water is only 5 feet deep. However you have to be very careful if you are in a boat. There are the holes for railings on the other side, but they were never fitted!

We then went to Llangollen, to do the canal walk down to Horseshoe Falls and the Chain Bridge. You can still experience the horse drawn barges along this part of the canal. This was actually the only real rain I had in the whole of my month in Wales, but that didn’t spoil the day.

There was time for a quick visit to Chirk Castle, another Trust property to cross off my list. Although it was a dull day the gardens were still very impressive, and the parkland is stunning. The castle has a long history, sadly initially of suppressing the Welsh, from the 1300s, but most of the tour was of the Georgian room with their ornate ceilings. One of which has been partly cleaned to show the effects of coal fires on the paint work.

I then continued south, which I will have to tell you about in another post, as I am running out of time and space here. I am now back in Spain, and am off out with my Mum tonight, a belated Mother’s Day meal.

While I have been having gorgeous weather in Wales, they have had four named storms in a month, with another one due this weekend, so they have not been able to enjoy the outdoor life much recently. Hopefully the rest of spring will be better here, and of course summer will be baking!

I will return sooner than a month, lack of Wifi in my last couple of weeks in Wales meant that this post has been much delayed. Thank you as always for visiting, over 1500 of you in March, which is wonderful. Take care of yourselves, enjoy life and I will see you again soon!

A few of the 870 miles!

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I left Antalaya last Monday, and spent two days putting Katy back to being a micro camper, before we set off again on Wednesday. Ellen has been using Katy for the last few months, as she gave up her car just before she went to Japan last Nov. The lease was coming to an end, and it seemed a waste for Katy to just sit idle, so she has been a normal van for a while, working at the food bank in Worksop. Katy I were very excited to be on the road again for her first adventure to Wales!

I love Wales, I was actually born in Cardiff, but moved when I was one, so was never brought up there. Frequent visits to the south to see family over the years, and then later lots of family holidays to the north, plus visits to Snowdonia over the years have given me a deep love of my homeland. In fact at one stage I was going to retire to very near to where I am now, to Porthmadog. My plan was to buy a static caravan, use that as my base, and travel the world. Then my Mum moved to Spain, and plans changed.

I drove from Ellen’s to mid Wales on day one. My first park up was at a farm shop, about 11 miles from Bala Lake. Rhug Farmshop offer free park ups overnight, and welcome you to visit the shop and cafe, where I bought very nice cheeses, and kebabs for tea.

Day two was a bit wetter, but it did start off sunny, so I had a walk around the Conwy Falls, and then headed to Dollgellau for park up number two.

I stayed at a newly opened aire, which I found on Park4Nite. No pictures, as it started raining just after I’d finished setting up, and I forgot in the morning! It was a nice quiet night in what looks to be the car park of an old chapel, just outside the centre of the town. I took the scenic route, via Barmouth, passing Harlech Castle, with views of Snowdonia on my right and the Cambrian Coast on my left.

In all these years of visiting Wales, I have never been to the Llyn Peninsula, which is very remiss of me, so that is where I am now. Many people have recommended it to me, and I am so glad I came, as it is stunning. For those of you without a detailed knowledge of Welsh geography, it is the part at the top, that sticks out into the Atlantic, sometimes referred to as ‘Welsh Land’s End’.

It is an area with lots of little seaside towns, inland villages, and amazing coastline. As you know I do love a good coastal path, and Wales has one of the best, a whole 870 miles of it. And in the two weeks I am here, I am attempting to walk a small part of it. I probably won’t do more than 50 out of the total mileage, but it’s a start.

Wales is, as the info tells me, the only country in the world with a continuous waymarked path round its entire coastline. I think this is a pretty cool thing, especially if you love to walk where the mountains meet the sea, which is probably my favourite type of walking.

I am staying on a Haven caravan site. When my children were young we came to lots of these sites, but I hadn’t really considered it for my travels, until a post about touring pitches on one of my van life sites. It was then that I discovered that off season they offer bargain breaks, hence my booking two weeks here now.

I have another week later in the month a bit further down the coast, and in October have also booked some time at two of their Yorkshire sites. They really are fantastic value for money, this one is costing the same as an aire per night, around £15. Much as I love living in Katy, March can be a bit cold, so having this luxurious, for me, option is great.

I have got a cute little first floor apartment, with a fabulous kitchen, so I’ve been cooking lots. I loved being in Turkiye, and ate out almost every night, which was great, but I am really enjoying having such wonderful cooking facilities. I even have a microwave, which I haven’t got in Spain, and have just bought myself a little slow cooker, so there is beef stew on the menu tonight. Mine is the apartment on the bottom left, and is in small complex near one of the main entertainment areas.

The site is lovely, it is very large as you can see from the map below, but beautifully landscaped with lots of trees, lakes, and wildlife areas. It was busy at the weekend but really quiet now all the children are back at school.

There are so many gorgeous caravans here. We went to a site in Somerset every year when I was a child, and seeing them brings back so many memories, and of holidays with my children as well. The caravans here are so luxurious though, compared to what they used to be like when we were young, with gas mantles and no running water.

The best bit is that the site has direct access onto the coastal path, so the first day I walked around to Penychain, about 4 miles there and back. The views over towards Porthmadog and Snowdonia were stunning, and I love the contrast of the gorse against the blue sky.

I have been so lucky with the weather so far, it has been 16 degrees up until today. It is a little colder now, but still so sunny, and I have a view of the hills from my apartment as well. As in Turkiye, I am planning to do some writing while I’m here, so it is nice to have such a lovely place to work.

The following two days I have been to the other side of the peninsula, a mere 20 minutes drive. Firstly to Trefor, where there is a walk along the headland with views of the quarry, and some wonderful sea stacks. There were so many gulls and cormorants on them, which were great to watch. There is a detailed map of the walk here. I love the way the misty mountains just melt into the sea.

The second visit was to another Morfa, Morfa Nefyn , again a National Trust area, where there is a walk along the beach and up the headland, passing the village of Porthdinllean, with its famous pub, and headland golf course. There was no-one on the greens, but I did meet the pub cat!

I still have so many places to visit, I may well have to come back next year. There is so much to do here.

When I’m not walking I have lots planned. As well as my writing, and the cross stitched Christmas ornaments, I have started a crochet blanket. I always promised myself that when I learnt how to do a granny square that I would make one, so bought the wool whilst in Yorkshire. I am going for a moorland colour scheme, a little more muted than my pinks and turquoises in Katy, and have a lovely selection of blues, greens, purple and grey.

As well as the farm business at the Rhug park up, there was a really nice fabric shop, called Amanda’s Fabrics, so I had to have a little visit.

It would have been very rude not to buy anything 😉 so I chose some wool at random, only to find when I unpacked all of my craft stash here that it co-ordinates perfectly with the blanket colours. I am intending to try some squares in the variegated wool, or make a companion cushion cover.

I am so happy here, I love being back in the UK. Much as I love Spain, and my other travels, driving around in Katy is the ultimate joy, even if it involves narrow roads and dodging tractors! My winter exile seems to have gone really quickly this time, it only seems like a few days ago that I was making my way to Jane’s in Yorkshire to house sit for Frankie, and I now have less than a month before I return to Spain.

I shall return again next week, with more lovely Welsh coast for you to admire. Meanwhile, have fun, take care, stay safe, and thanks for visiting.