AvailablePitch.com Camping Blog

Plassey Leisure Park, Wrexham

2008-07-01T15:32:00.002Z

It's easy to see why The Plassey Leisure Park keeps winning awards from the minute you arrive up the sweeping drive. Staying here is like being a special guest on a private country estate. The welcome is warm and slick. Once checked in, you follow a warden on a buggie, who guides you to your pitch and ensures you are safely settled in.

It all started over 40 years ago, when Mrs Brookshaw Senior spotted caravans heading past the family dairy farm on the way to Wales, and thought "I'll have a piece of that!" She stuck a sign at the entrance and started taking touring caravans on what was then just a farmer's field. Since then this 250 acre site has evolved into the 5 star luxury park of today, still family run by the Brookshaws. It includes a 9 hole golf course and driving range, a luxury heated indoor swimming pool, sauna, covered badminton, pool and table tennis (all free), children's playground, lots of open spaces for games, and many walks on the estate - perfect for visitors with dogs.

This isn't just a caravan park, however. At it's heart is an award-winning craft centre, museum and visitor's centre, a tearoom and a high quality restaurant, all of which have been carefully created from the former Victorian model dairy, seamlessly incorporating many original features into the design. This provides an unusual and attractive reason to visit Plassey Leisure, whether as a camper, caravanner or tourist.

Plassey is a Park for everyone of any age, from tots to seniors, and there is always something to do, whatever the weather. Open all year round, tourers have a choice of 120 touring pitches in different meadows (and there are a further 100 seasonal pitches). 12 staff lovingly look after visitors' needs, tend and patrol the Park and keep everywhere spotlessly neat and tidy.

The site was almost full when we visited, mainly with families, and the loudest noise we heard was birdsong. If you can tear yourself away from the site, there are many attractions in the area of both English and Welsh varieties, ranging from the dizzying heights of the Pontcyllyte Aquaduct (free to walk across for those with a head for it), NT properties of Erdigg House and Chirk Castle, the delightful town of Llangollen and slightly further afield, the cities of Chester and Shrewsbury.

John - a huge thank you both to yourself and your lovely staff for making us so welcome. We thoroughly enjoyed our brief stay on your Park - and congratulations on being voted Practical Caravan's Top Site for 2008!

Steadstead Hall CL and B&B, Suffolk

2008-06-19T14:27:00.001Z

Dear Sue

As promised, we returned to your wonderful CL recently and brought Mum and Aunty to test out your brand new B+B. We all want to say what a really lovely holiday we had, and how difficult was to leave to return home after a few relaxing days away.

Whilst you couldn't do anything about the delay on the A14, you kindly arranged warm and sunny weather for the duration, and the special aerial display by bats on one evening was mesmerising.

And what better setting for your B+B than your amazing historic farmhouse? You are unsure of it's age but I recall you effortlessly dropped into the conversation that the building is mentioned in the Doomsday Book. Mum commented that it reminded her very much of something out of "Darling Buds of May", with geese, hens, cats, Bonnie the labrador and horses making various guest appearances throughout the weekend.

You made us all extremely welcome, and a special thanks for the arrangements for Mum's elderly little dog, who needs special care - that was much appreciated.

When we asked whether living and working in such an amazing place was as idyllic as it looked, you just laughed and said "we have our moments". Well, we'd like to share some more of those "moments" in future - so we'll be back. Your site has become one of our favourites, and judging by the popularity on AvailablePitch.com, is a lot of other people's too.

Yours sincerely

Kevin and Catherine
June 2008

Strange Encounters

2008-06-10T15:56:00.005Z

It's every motorhomer's worst nightmare - to find your next door neighbour is, er, a little strange. The venue? Peterborough Motorhome Show 2008. The dates? 25 - 27 April 2008.

Anyone who attends these shows will know that you park where the marshalls position you, and that's it for the weekend. No escape. It wasn't long before we realised that the bloke in the motorhome next door was, shall we say, somewhat eccentric? Luckily we managed to avoid eye contact all weekend so didn't actually have to have any sort of conversation.

If anyone knows who this particular individual is, please, by all means, post a reply, likewise, if anyone knows EXACTLY what he is wearing round his ears - it would be great to know.

We just feel sorry for his wife ...............and kids .............

The battle against midges and Avon Skin So Soft

2008-05-23T16:53:00.000Z

Read any article about midges and Avon Skin So Soft is often mentioned in the same sentence. But does it work? Well, I think so. Here is a summary of an entertaining article courtesy of Scotsman.com:

"Avon's spray finds calling as midge repellent for Royal Marines, by Arthur MacMillan

They are famed for their ability to operate at sea, in the jungle or in the Arctic wastes of Norway. Battles throughout the centuries have won the Royal Marine Commandos a reputation as one of the world's elite fighting forces. But on the home front, our toughest soldiers are prepared to pander to their softer side to combat Scotland's most persistent foe: the midge. For years the Marines at Faslane who guard nuclear missiles and the submarines capable of firing them have looked for an answer. They've finally found it in a brand of women's skin cream.

Instead of using mosquito repellent, soldiers are buying Avon body lotion to repel midges on the West Coast. The company traditionally associated women selling cosmetics door-to-door is experiencing an unexpected boom thanks to the pesky insect. A Royal Navy spokesman at HMS Clyde said: "It's not official kit but nothing works better and the Marines are buying it themselves because the midges are so bad up there." The wonder cure is a £5 bottle of dry oil body spray from Avon's Skin So Soft range. The midge problem at the base where Trident missiles and Vanguard submarines are stationed is so bad it recently installed a MidgeEater machine at the front gate and workers at the camp can be seen wearing midge nets on their heads.

A stores sergeant said: "There is nothing effeminate about it. The reason the Nods [Marines] are using it is because it is good kit. It works. It's as simple as that." It is thought that the oily base of the body spray is the ingredient that repels midges. Made with shea butter and vitamins, Avon's packaging boasts that it will "ensure your skin feels velvety soft, hour after hour".

Sales of the spray have gone through the roof with some Avon ladies selling hundreds of bottles. Avon's area manager said word of the body spray's ability to repel midges had spread since the wives of servicemen discovered its hidden qualities. She added "We sell it as a body moisturiser but many people tell us they are only buying it to get rid of midges. We don't market it as an insect repellent because its primary use is to soften your skin. But it is undoubtedly one of our best sellers, with our best agents having to order up to 200 bottles every three weeks."

Word of the spray's ability to fight midges has now spread throughout the entire West Coast, with sales being picked up in Dumbarton, Campbeltown, Oban and Dunoon. It has also been claimed that both the US army and the SAS use it as mosquito repellent in the jungle.

Scottish Water engineers in the Highlands and forestry workers are also placing orders. In recent years a more terminal approach to tackling midges has been the MidgeEater range of traps, which generate carbon dioxide to mimic the exhaled breath of humans which are the midge's favoured haunt. Once fooled into coming within range, the hapless insects are then sucked into the trap at high speed.

There are more than 30 species of midge in Scotland but it is the female Culicoides impunctatus variety that causes torment. It is the only type of midge that bites. The crew responsible for the final episodes of Monarch of the Glen set at Ardverikie estate, near Loch Laggan, wore anti-midge body suits and veiled headgear while filming".

AvailablePitch Footnote: Avon Skin So Soft Dry Oil Spray comes in 3 fragrances in blue, yellow and pink bottles, and it’s the blue bottle which is effective against the midges – “Soft and Fresh”. Midges still land on you, but don’t like and/or drown in the oil! Used dilligently, it does work, but you need to spray yourself regularly to keep it effective. No need to find yourself an Avon Lady -Avon Skin So Soft can be ordered online from the Avon Shop.

Midges in Scotland

2008-05-10T16:28:00.001Z

The threat of midges made us think very hard about island hopping in our motorhome in Scotland, but luckily, it did not put us off and as earlier blogs tell, we had an amazing holiday. We were relatively fortunate where the little blighters were concerned, however, because we went in early September, and not in the peak midge season which is June - August. Tiny as they are, midges DO bite, and leave a nasty itchy scab, which takes time to heal. Now the male half of AvailablePitch has buffalo hide, through which nothing penetrates, however, I am not so lucky and clearly have an invisible notice on my body which says “all flying insects please feel free to bite any time, any place, anywhere”.

In theory, campsites by the sea should suffer less. In reality, whilst they are less bothered than non-coastal sites, there will still be a few midges around. However, we found it tolerable, and there are things you can do which DO help. The day time was fine, the problem came early evening – 5-ish onwards. If the weather was fine and we wanted to sit out in an evening, we pulled the motorhome’s awning out, and lit several sticks of incense both citronella and lavender which was extremely effective. The smoke and fragrance from the incense was held under the awning, and we were able to sit out trouble free. The campfire also helped alot, however, you do end up smelling of wood smoke!

The other thing you can do is to use Avon Skin-So-Soft Dry Oil spray (blue bottle), which, whilst not being designed as an insect repellent, if used dilligently, seems to help. More about this in a later blog.

In summary, pick your time of year, go prepared, and don't let the possibility of midges put you off.

Picture above - Sunset, motorhome with awning out, campfire burning, 6 pm-ish, Muasdale Touring Park, Kintyre.

Island Hopping Scotland - What You Really Need to Know!

2008-04-13T16:10:00.003Z

Here's a quick checklist of what we learned on our fabulous Scottish Island Hopping Tour:

Island hopping in Scotland in a large motorhome is much easier than you think
“Hebridean Island Hopping” by Martin Coventry, became our bible and is well worth buying either in advance or on the ferry.
Fill up with diesel when you can - there are some extremely long stretches of road with no petrol stations
The islands are incredibly friendly places – expect waves from random car drivers and white van men as you are travelling round – particularly on Islay.
Parking a large motorhome is generally not a problem in Scotland or the islands we visited
Most supermarkets are Co-Ops, the occasional Tesco and a rare M&S
Midges are not such a problem as you might expect in September, and can be minimised with incense and Avon Skin-so-Soft
Wild camping is permitted in Scotland as long as you are considerate and get permission if appropriate. We didn’t do it, because we prefer the security and facilities of campsites, but plenty of motorhomes did.
Mobile phones (02) work in most locations
Expect bad weather, anything better is a bonus. Have a range of clothing, particularly good waterproofs, including over-trousers.
The ferries might seem expensive at first, but compared to Cross Channel ferries, they represent extremely good value for money.
Give the CalMac office your mobile number so they can contact you if there are ferry changes – and these DO happen quite regularly.
Our tour took us two weeks. We never felt rushed, and when we got back, it seemed like we'd been away for at least a month!

You will come back with many photographs and even more wonderful memories, so just get out there and do it!

Greendale Farm Adult Only Caravan and Camping Park, Rutland

2008-04-02T15:37:00.002Z

We are very fortunate in our job that we get to visit lots of caravan parks. We’d been trying to get in at Greendale Farm Adult Only Caravan & Camping Park, Rutland, for three years, but such is the popularity of this site, that we had never managed it. Then last September an offer dropped into our inbox – we were invited to Greendale’s end-of-season knees-up by special invitation only. We accepted immediately!

If you could take the best of all caravan parks and distill them down, if you were lucky, you’d end up with Greendale. So what are the elusive ingredients that makes this small, adult only park, such a success?

♦Friendly owners, Sue and Ian Barron, who are passionate about their site ♦ An incredibly friendly welcome, with high levels of customer care ♦ Genuine interest in everyone who stays on the site – no strangers here ♦ A pristine site which is lovingly landscaped, tended, nourished and cared for ♦ extreme pride in the site, the surroundings and the environment ♦ The shop including info/ library/ refreshment area, run on an honesty basis ♦ Thoughtful items to buy - one plaster, a few Piriton tablets or single tealights ♦ Strong environmental credentials – Greendale has a David Bellamy Gold Award ♦ Information, education, explanation, pictures and advice throughout the site ♦ An extremely quiet site ethic, operated in a strong but friendly manner ♦ Sensible rules, gently enforced with humour, for the benefit of all ♦

The park is set in gentle rolling Leicestershire countryside, close to Rutland Water, with the market town of Oakham, and Stamford nearby. There is so much to do in the area, that a weekend simply isn’t enough. We managed to fit in a circular walk around the Upper Hambleton peninsula one day, and a very careful stroll (hangover permitting) on Sunday along the North Shore of the reservoir.

Back at Greendale, the highlight of the weekend was a barbeque on the Saturday night – something about as common as an orgy in a convent - to which all the weekend “residents” were invited. There was a great crowd and we met some lovely people including Pete (“Mate”) and Linda, Steve and Jackie, Pete and Isla, Terry and Anne and Jane and Clive. The party started at 5 pm and was still going strong at midnight, so not surprisingly, there were a few hangovers the next morning.

The peace and quiet of this site gently embraces you, and it was extremely difficult to leave on Sunday afternoon. Let’s hope we behaved ourselves enough to be invited back next year!

One comment in the Visitors Book sums it up for us “We arrived as strangers and left as friends”. Couldn’t have put it better myself.

Vacant Pitches Available for Easter, May Day and Spring Bank Holiday 2008

2008-03-20T09:49:00.001Z

Looking for a vacant touring pitch for Easter, May Day or Spring Bank Holiday? There are hundreds of camping sites and caravan parks on AvailablePitch.com with pitches available now! Click Here to search for a campsite with vacancies for Easter, May Day and Spring Bank Holiday. Let's hope for decent weather!

Island Hopping Scotland - Loch Lomond to Lower Wensleydale - and home

2008-03-16T09:47:00.001Z

Nearly the last day of our Scottish Island Hopping holiday in a motorhome, and an early-ish start was required to pulll in a visit to the Maid of the Loch the other end of Loch Lomond. The Maid of the Loch was the last paddle steamer and the largest inland waterway passenger vessel to be built in Britain. Launched in 1953 – Coronation Year, it was built for service on Loch Lomond, the largest lake in Britain. Withdrawn from service in 1981, and vandalised thereafter, the Maid was rescued from dereliction in 1992 and as the first stage in restoring her to service is now open to the public in a static role.

As luck would have it, whilst not fully open on the day we were there, a group of school children were visiting the Maid, the Winch House and Slipway, and the boiler in the Winch House was actually in steam, so we were able to tag along and see things we would not normally have been able to. After a couple of hours anorak time, we needed to be heading south as time was pressing on, and we needed to be in Yorkshire by the evening. The SatNav was set for Leyburn - 205 miles and 5 hours later (after a detour due to roadworks), we arrived at the Caravan Club Lower Wensleydale site, near Bedale.

As soon as we came over the border from Scotland to England, the sun came out, and apparantly, most of England had had hot and sunny weather the whole time we were away. Typical.

This was our last stop and was nothing more than a pitch for the night before our last 125 miles home to Derbyshire the following day. The Wardens were extremely welcoming, the facilities, as ever with the Caravan Club, were excellent, but as we were late arriving, our pitch was one of the least popular, with our nose against one access road and our bike rack abutting the other. We were pleased M&S had changed their carrier bags to fluorescent green, as two were deployed to stop any passing site traffic catching us.

Once set up, we got the chilled champagne out of the fridge, lit the candles, and sat in the last rays of the evening sunshine, and celebrated what a totally wonderful holiday experience we’d had.

Hodsock Snowdrops

2008-02-08T14:48:00.002Z

"A magical sight you will never forget - myriads of flowers in the five-acre gardens plus a half mile walk through the wood with sheets of snowdrops to delight you. Certainly worth travelling a considerable distance to see"

Just up the road from Clumber Park Caravan Club site, Nottinghamshire, is Hodsock Priory, near Blyth, home to one of the best snowdrop collections and displays in the country, with 5 acres of formal gardens containing snowdrops and other fragrant flowering winter borders.

Not a Priory at all, but a stately home, Hodsock Priory, garden and snowdrop wood are situated in the middle of the 800 acre Hodsock Estate, which has been owned by the Buchanan family since 1765. The 700-acre farm is run by Sir Andrew Buchanan and grows carrots, sugar beet, wheat and barley. There are nearly 100 acres of woodland, which is actively managed and the whole Estate is run in an environmentally friendly way

Entry costs £4.50 for Adults, £1.00 for kiddies, with under-5's free. Dress warmly, with good footwear and allow a good three hours for the visit. Start off with a stroll round the gardens, taking in the wide variety of Snowdrops, Sarcococca, Daphne, Winter Honeysuckle, Leucojums, Golden Aconites, Cyclamen and Irises. Follow that with a gentle walk in the 12 hectare ancient woodland, with millions of snowdrops growing underneath the trees. Warm yourself by the bonfire and have a cup of tea from the cabin (or take a flask), and finish off buying some snowdrops, bluebells or winter flowering jasmin from the plant stall close to the exit.

The Priory is only open for 4 or 5 weeks during February and early March, and attracts over 40,000 visitors from all over the world. It's a magical day out for everyone young and old, with wheelchair/pushchair access to many parts, brand new tea rooms, an informative history room and the best toilets ever. Oh, and don't forget your camera to capture some beautiful and memorable winter scenes.

More information at http://www.snowdrops.co.uk/.

Island Hopping Scotland - Loch Lomond

2008-02-01T11:32:00.000Z

There are two Camping and Caravanning Club sites at Loch Lomond (greedy or what?), Luss on the west side and Milarrochy Bay on the east. Because Luss is situated immediately off the A82 Glasgow road, it is an ideal, and very beautiful, stopping off point. The only trouble was, one night was not enough and we didn’t want to leave! This site is incredibly popular, and booking well in advance is essential. The decision had been made some weeks earlier that this was to be the last campsite stop in Scotland and a pitch had therefore been booked. A good job too, as the site was completely full that evening.

On arrival, we were amazed to be allocated a loch-side pitch with stunning views through the shoreside shrubs down to our own private beach, and across the loch to the mountains. The friendly Warden walked us down and guided us onto the grass pitch and we parked sideways on to the Loch, with the 'van door opening straight onto the view – absolute bliss.

The village of Luss is very pretty, and is a model village, having been built on the wealth of slate. An untaxing circular walk of about an hour (map available from Reception) goes through the village, across ancient woodland, past the old slate mines and gives a good feel for the area.

Being at the side of a main road, there is some road noise, however, this is more background than intrusive. Midges? Yes, a few around at dusk, but our well practiced trick of pulling the awning out and lighting incense sticks made sitting outside comfortable.

Tomorrow, the journey south would continue, but for tonight, a leisurely evening meal of seafood from the Loch Fyne shop, cooked on the outdoor griddle and a cold bottle of Chablis whilst soaking up that fabulous view, ended yet another wonderful day.

Scottish Island Hopping - Kintyre to Inveraray

2008-01-12T08:11:00.000Z

So, having caught an earlier ferry from Islay back to Kintyre, we could now travel a little further towards home, before pitching up for the night. Loch Gilphead Caravan Park looked very nice and was our original choice when we thought we were catching the 3:30 pm ferry (no bookings taken for stays of one night - just turn up), however, we pushed on towards Inveraray. The choice of sites in this area was not great, and we’d seen an advert for Argyll Caravan Park earlier in some tourist information.

Now, due to bad experiences in the past, we would not normally choose a site on the basis of an advert, preferring to use the internet and word of mouth to find a site that suits us. We drove straight past this site once, because from the road it looks like a huge static park, however, not finding anything further along, we turned back and asked at Reception whether they had touring pitches. They did, which were located right through the site at the other end. This site was OK, but expensive at £18.00 night and we were pitched in an area that felt like a concrete car park. Granted, we DID have views of Loch Fynne, however, this was over a stretch of brown smelly weed and stagnant water, with millions of midges in attendance. I think tourers tend to use this site for just one night because when we woke the next morning, everyone else had gone – it was like the Marie Celeste! However, for a convenient stop-off on the journey south, its adequate if pricey.

Inveraray is well worthy of exploration, however, there was no parking to be had for our motorhome as the town was full of tourists - Japanese, American and Australian mainly. Inveraray Castle has a huge car park, and parking is free, and it’s about a 5 minute walk down the drive into the town from there. The castle itself is fantastic and should be visited if time allows. We didn’t have very long to explore the town, as we wanted to stop off at the Loch Fyne shop a short drive away. Parking at the restaurant/shop was no problem and we stocked up on fresh fish, sea food and gifts at the fabulous shop, which is very similar in style to the Farm Shop at Chatsworth House.

Our destination for our penultimate night was the Camping and Caravanning Club site at Luss, Loch Lomond, a site we’d stuck our nose into last year whilst walking round the Loch and really, REALLY liked the look of. We were not disappointed..............

Islay to Kintyre - The Journey Home Begins

2007-12-27T17:27:00.000Z

A word of warning at this point about the importance of re-
confirming ferry bookings. Our departure plans from Islay back to Kintyre Peninsula were changed by a text message the day before from CalMac advising that the ferry was departing at 14:00 hours, not 15:30 as booked (luckily, there is a good signal on Islay). A motorhome nearby had not left a contact mobile number, and only discovered by chance from us about the time change. Had he turned up for the 15:30 pm ferry, it would have been long gone, with the next one leaving 48 hours later.

But that’s not all. We got talking to a couple on the ferry back to Kintyre, who should have been going on to Oban, where their car was, but that journey had been cancelled and no onward arrangements were offered to get them back. Luckily, they’d persuaded friends to meet them and drive them the 70 mile trip to Oban!!! Apparantly, CalMac were one ferry down due to pre-winter maintenance, and some services were being changed or cancelled at short notice. Goodness knows what happens to those folks who are not contactable! It’s therefore advisable to make sure the CalMac office has a mobile number, AND that you ring to re-check the ferry well in advance of the return journey.

Islay - The Whisky Isle

2007-11-20T07:41:00.001Z

Until recently, there was just one campsite on Islay – Kintra Farm, 3 miles out of Port Ellen. Then, in 2007, another site opened – Port Mor Centre and Campsite at Port Charlotte. We can’t comment on Port Mor campsite because time did not permit us to visit it, however, a fellow motorhomer staying at Kintra Farm spoke very highly of it.

We use the internet extensively for researching our motorhoming holidays, and had seen some amazing images of Kintra. We chose it because pitching is possible right up to the beach and the views looked abolutely stunning. They were, and more.

This is without doubt one of the most beautiful and natural locations we have ever camped in our motorhome. The wide, sweeping, windswept beach is right in front of your door and the white sandy beach is just a step away. After checking in at the farmhouse, you make your way slowly over the solid grass-covered sand dunes to pick a pitching area of your choice. There were just a handful of fellow campers whilst we were there: a few tents and a couple of other motorhomes but we did not see any caravans in the two and a half days we were there.

Now, it has to be said that the facilities are basic, the welcome is brusque and the list of do’s and don’ts is very long and strictly enforced. A strange situation is that the site has no facilities for chemical toilet disposal. Apparantly the septic tank cannot cope, and there is an essay in the advance information emailed out that they are not a dumping station for campers who have stayed elsewhere. So the tone is pretty much set from before you arrive. We were only there for a couple of days, so it wasn’t a problem, but I have no idea what you would do if you wanted to stay there for a week or more. Now, I thought that it was a minimum requirement that campsite had to provide a CDP?

On the subject of water, this comes out of the taps brown and has to be boiled. We'd filled up before arriving, and had plenty on board to last us, but campers may wish to take an ample supply of bottled water for drinking purposes.

We paid £15.00 per night in September for our motorhome with no hook-up, to include showers and use of kettle, however, any other electricity used is charged for – ie mobile phone charging or hair-dryer!! Dogs are tolerated, and, disappointingly, there is a 4 mile circular walk from the site, on which dogs are not allowed. That put me in a right bad temper, I can tell you.

Once pitched up, we spent our time walking on the 10 mile beach, or just soaking up the amazing views. It was extremely windy whilst we were there, so sitting outside for any length of time was not pleasant and having planned to do the walk above, Plan B was a linear walk back down the single track road towards Port Ellen, and down towards Mull of Mu, which took us about three hours and is well worth doing.

We wished we'd booked longer on this site, and we would have loved more time to explore Islay, however, a text message from CalMac meant we had to adjust our return journey arrangements ................

Kintyre to Islay

2007-11-05T10:07:00.000Z

There are two things I don’t like – walking up hills or getting up early. So an 05:00 hrs start on holiday made me pretty grumpy. However, if we wanted to catch the 07:00 hrs ferry from Kennecraig (Kintyre) to Port Ellen (Island of Islay), it had to be done. Generally in summer there are two ferries a day from Kennacraig to Port Ellen - 07:00 hrs and 09:45 hrs, but not every day, so careful checking of timetables is essential. The 09:45 ferry was fully booked on the day we wanted to travel, with several on the waiting list, and no chance of a large motorhome sneaking on, so 07:00 hrs it was. And we are pleased we did this, because it gave us the whole day in Islay.

The crossing is 2.5 hours, the first part of which is an extremely picturesque cruise down West Loch Tarbert. Approaching the end of the Loch, the Paps of Jura were clearly visible, and to the east the Island of Gigha.

On arrival at Islay, driving was a doddle, and we able to park almost anywhere wiithout worrying – unusual in a 23 foot motorhome. Rather than going straight to the campsite, we decided on the spur of the moment to do a bit of a whisky trail. Now, not being a whisky drinker myself (although I kept that quiet on the tour), I did not expect to be enthralled by a distillery visit, but I have to say it was incredibly interesting. If you believe the guidebooks, distillery tours are by appointment only and should be pre-booked, but we decided to turn up and blag it, and sure enough, tours run regularly thoughout the day.

Our first stop was Lagavulin, and we had the tour all to ourselves. It took much longer than the usual hour, because we met the Head Distiller halfway round, got inside information, and ended up sampling of the whisky at various stages of its short fermentation process (when it’s more like a weak beer, apparantly). The statistics are mind-boggling. Millions of litres of water and thousands of tonnes of barley are used every year at this distillery alone. Multiply that by the eight distilleries on Islay, and that’s a phenomenal amount of raw materials producing this amber nectar annually. Once made, it then has to be stashed away for 10, 16 or more years just sitting maturing in bonded warehouses.

We left the ‘van in Lagavulin’s car park (after checking that was OK) and walked up the narrow road to Ardbeg – 20 minutes away, which has a café with outdoor tables, where we could sit with our little dog. The food here is fantastic and well worth a visit even if you are not interested in whisky. Ardbeg has a mascot called Shorty – a very pushy Jack Russell who is clearly used to getting his own way. He took great interest in our Jack Russell, Holly, until she saw him off, following which he turned his affections to a more timid little dog on the next table and amused everyone for the next hour with his antics (except the owners of said timid JR).

Last stop was Laphroaig, where there is a large car park, and we just stuck our nose into the Visitor’s Centre and Shop and picked up some little souvenirs. Time was getting on and we needed to get the the campsite, so we headed for the wide, windswept beauty of the site at Kintra Farm, 3 miles out of Port Ellen....... more about our stay in the next blog........

Island Hopping Scotland - Day Trip to Gigha

2007-10-29T07:29:00.000Z

The small island of Gigha - not pronounced Gig-Hah, but Gee-ahh, (not to rhyme with pier) is well worth a trip. Five minutes drive up the road from Muasdale is the tiny hamlet of Tayinloan, where the ferry departs every day to Gigha. We discovered that this runs every hour, except between 12 noon and 2 pm, when we turned up at 12:05 pm to see the ferry hairing off at high speed. Never mind, instead of having lunch on Gigha as anticipate, we had a very pleasant meal at the MacDonald Arms Hotel just down the road from the ferry port.

It’s really not worth taking the car over to Gigha. It costs about £36 and there is only one road of approx 5 miles. It’s best to take bikes, but we weren’t sufficiently well organised to do that, however going as a foot passenger (approx £5.00) is a good alternative. We only had 2 hours there, because the last ferry back on a Sunday departs at 4:30 pm, and we didn’t want to be stranded overnight, but still had a good stroll round and got a feel for this lovely island.

The Isle of Gigha has a total population of approx 150 people, and has been community-owned since 2002. One of the must-see attractions is the Achamore Gardens (honesty box entry) and we had plenty of time to walk to and have a look round the beautiful gardens – and dogs are allowed!

We’d just missed a music festival which was finishing as we arrived on the island, as evidenced by dead tents, sleeping bags, bin liners and other detritus scattered around. Camping is possible on Gigha – there is a field in front of the Gigha Hotel, but pre-booking is required with the Hotel. As we waited for the last ferry to arrive, the heavens opened and we took shelter in a very, er, basic waiting room in a shed. Meanwhile, our ‘van was back at Muasdale and a bottle of wine was chilling in the fridge.

Kintyre Continued

2007-10-22T20:31:00.000Z

The Kintyre Peninsula is almost an island, and is well worthy of further exploration. It attracts many walkers and nature lovers, and the Kintyre Way is a recently-designated long distance walk, which, by co-incidence, a friend of our was doing, using the Jura Apartment at Muasdale Touring Park as their base. Now this is an 89 mile waymarked walk, which sounds “easy” however, experienced as he was, by day three he had to pull out due to a blister severe enough to need medical treatment, and instructions not to do anymore walking that week, so it’s not an activity to be undertaken by the inexperienced. Apparantly, what finally did him in was walking over a boggy peat surface, which acted as a suction on the walking boots, leading to the horrendous blister.

The main town on Kintyre is Campbeltown, approx 17 miles from Muasdale, where there is an excellent range of independent shops as well as takeaways, the ubiquitous Co-Op and a surprisingly largeTesco Metro. We decided we HAD to visit the Mull of Kintyre, but to be honest, were a little disappointed. “Oh Mist Rolling in from the Sea” sums up the day we visited, and we could very little. The drive down to the Mull is 7 miles on a single track road, which is a spectacular drive (there are plenty of passing places clearly marked with black and wide striped poles) but it would have been crazy to take the motorhome down. There’s a small car park at the end – for approx 10 cars, and from there you continue on foot to the lighthouse, down an EXTREMELY steep hill. We ventured about half way then decided we could see what we needed from there, thank you very much.

The small east coast fishing village of Carradale is worth a visit, but our favourite place was Southend, in the south, where seals were close to the shore and totally unfazed by humans. There are prehistoric caves to explore too, where stoneage man (and woman) would have lived pretty cold, wet and miserable lives.

A must-do trip on the Kintyre peninsula is the circular drive round the coast road, stopping off at places of interest on the way, and this is do-able either in a day or, as we did, in bite-sized chunks.
What we noticed most about Kintyre was the sheer peace, quiet and lack of other people - wonderful! We had most places to ourselves, and it was rare to meet anyone else.

No trip to the Kintyre Peninsula is complete without a visit to Gigha, so the day before we left, we took a day trip as foot passengers across to this small island, which is owned by it's residents ..........

Scottish Island Hopping - Kintyre Peninsula

2007-10-15T10:36:00.000Z

It was the aerial view shot of Muasdale Touring Park that sowed the seed, and when Alison emailed a picture taken of a motorhome on the beach, that was it – our main destination for our summer holiday was decided. Of course, as earlier postings tell, we island hopped either side of Muasdale, but spent several nights on this small ocean-side site to explore the Kintyre Peninsula

thoroughly. A quick search for available pitches showed that Muasdale had limited vacancies for early September, and so the rest of the holiday was arranged around those dates.

Alison and Adrian have owned Muasdale for about 5 years, having decided on a lifestyle change from accountancy, and have been developing the business since. In addition to the touring park, they have the Jura Apartment and 4 static caravans for hire. We had a good nose around the Jura Apartment between lettings – a fine Victorian property, furnished true to the period, on the first floor of the large “extension” to the original house. Alison and Adrian’s winter project is creating a downstairs apartment ready for the 2008 season, which will make their letting portfolio complete.

The 10 pitch touring field immediately over the road is right next to a white sandy beach and turquoise sea, with lovely sea views (weather permitting) across to the islands of Cara, Gigha and Islay, with the Paps of Jura visible on clear days. All sorts of wildlife can be spotted with patience, including seals, and Alison is happy to share her knowledge of the flora and fauna of the area. The weather was not kind whilst we were there, in fact we were confined to barracks on our first day because of heavy rain. It picked up the next day, and we even had a pretty sunset, although we were assured that glorious sunsets are the norm, not the exception.

Alison told us, without any hint of boasting, that they own both the grass AND the beach, up to the high tide mark, so I suppose their land ownership ebbs and flows (so to say). Unusually, camp fires are allowed on the beach, and as we had taken our own firepit, logs and axe, (our motorhome has a large garage), we had a campfire on several evenings. Beachcombing for driftwood is encouraged, and the local shop, just 5 minutes walk away, sells peat logs. Campfires are great, but in the romance of it all, you forget how much they smoke, and with a dodgy wind, we filled the campervan with smoke on several occasions – boy how that smell lingers.

With Adrian’s help we had pre-booked a small hire car from the Vauxhall Garage in Campbeltown, which meant we could tour the Kintyre Peninsula, and beyond, over the next few days............

Isle of Arran

2007-10-08T08:49:00.000Z

Apparantly, most folks just pass through the Isle of Arran, by arriving at Brodick then driving to Lochranza, for the ferry to Kintyre, without stopping. Big mistake. We wished we had longer on the Island, but two days was all we had, and we made the most of it.

Seal Shore Campsite is a very laid back site tucked away in the south corner of the island. The site owners sell absolutely delicious freshly caught lobster and crab (which you have to dress yourself) at very reasonable prices – and are well worth tackling with any tools handy – in our case a hammer and an axe! Why we were carrying an axe will be revealed when we get to Muasdale Touring Park.

There are two areas to the site – pre-booked and non-booked, the pre-booked area being nearer the sea, with hook-ups, and is mainly for caravans and motorhomes. Tents are pitched to the rear of the site. The weather was kind to us on Arran, with sunshine on both days, but midges could be a problem as evening appproached, despite being on the coast. We quickly learned how to deal with them – see later blog “Midges”.

One small niggle with this site was that motorhomes and tents turned up early evening and pitched up on the narrow strip right at the front of the site between the beach and the campsite, thus blocking the view for everyone else. So having picked a pitch for its great sea view, you found yourself overlooking the side of a campervan or acres of canvas. This could be solved by only allowing small, low tents along that area but ………………………..

A 20 minute walk or 5 minute bike ride from the site is a brilliant village shop and Post Office – Kildonan Store,– a veritable Tardis with a huge range of food and drink goodies. We even got an elusive bottle of sparkling red Ozzie wine, which we couldn't find in Tesco or Oddbins.

On the way to the ferry port of Lochranza, the departure point for the Kintyre Peninsula, we called in at several tourist places including the delightful Museum of Arran life, Arran Brewery and Arran Aromatics and had no problems parking the ‘van at any of these places. Arran in September was very quiet, and had we been on the island longer we would have had no quarms about taking the ’van out for the day.

The ferry port at Lochranza, destination Claonaig (on the Kintyre peninsula) is tiny, literally a small grid-like car park with a ramp down to the sea, and the ferry is not bookable. You just turn up and wait. We were first in the queue, and had plenty of time for a cup of tea and crab mousse on hot toast, (much to the envy of the motorcyclist in the queue behind us!).

This ferry was much smaller than the previous one, and was open air (to allow for larger, taller vehicles to be loaded). As we departed Arran for the short crossing, we left the sunshine behind, and approached the Kintyre Peninsula shrouded in mist. Our destination – Muasdale Touring Park, Muasdale, Kintyre.

Island Hopping Second Leg Ardrossan to Isle of Arran

2007-09-28T09:42:00.000Z

Three hours and 166 miles after leaving Kendal, we arrived at the ferry port of Ardrossan, north of Irvine. Whilst we normally buy all manner of things online, because of the nature of this trip, we wanted to ensure that our plans would work, and needed to check ferry times/days – especially ferries for Islay, which were particularly confusing. The staff were very patient with all our questions, and pre-booked all our ferry crossings with the exception of Arran to Claonaig, which is not bookable. It's important to reserve crossings for motorhome/ caravans to and from Islay as these get booked up very quickly. £220 lighter and wanting to fill up with diesel before embarking on our adventure, we drove back down the port approach road and fuelled up. An Asda Supermarket being built adjacent to the port, which will be ideal for stocking up on essential before departing for the sticks. Back at the port, we were first in the queue, and first on the 5 pm ferry to Brodick, the main town on Arran.

Caledonian Macbrayne Ferries pretty much have the monopoly on the ferries in this part of Scotland, and run an incredibly efficient, and (we think), value-for-money service. The ferries hurry into the port, their front ramp coming down as they approach, the anchors are crammed on and within seconds of docking, vehicles of all sizes, including juggernauts, pour off. In no time, the waiting vehicles are loaded with expert guidance from port staff, and off the ferry goes on it’s return journey. We were both excited and nervous about taking our beloved motorhome on so many ferries, but there’s no need to worry about anything. It’s a whole lot easier than Cross Channel ferries, and really nothing like it. Dogs are allowed on board and there is a lounge where they are welcome with well-behaved owners, and you can walk them on deck too. The cafe on the larger ferries serves reasonable food relevant to the time of day, and there’s a small shop selling newspapers, sweets, gifts and books. It’s well worth having a look at the books – we picked up “Hebridean Island Hopping” by Martin Coventry, which became our bible for the islands we visited.

The crossing to Brodick, the main town on Arran, was smooth and took just 55 minutes. On arriving at Arran, we turned left and headed for Seal Shore Campsite, Kildonan, on the south of the Island – a pictureque journey of 12 miles, 40 minutes. We were nervous about travelling on narrow roads, but the journey was a doddle – we hardly met another vehicle, and there was plenty of room for passing at most places when we did. The short drive down to Seal Shore had us full of anticipation at what looked like a beautiful site......

Island Hopping - The First Leg - Derbyshire to Ardrossan

2007-09-22T16:00:00.000Z

The AA route planner advised that our original plan of driving from Derbyshire to the Kintyre Peninsula would take 8.22 hours (based on a car) – a distance of 413 miles – flamin’ heck – we’d be exhausted. Plan B – Island Hopping had us driving to Ardrossan at 5.39 hrs, 315 miles – still a long haul in a motorhome, so an overnight stay was advisable. We broke our journey at Ashes Exclusively Adult Caravan Park, south of Kendal in the Lake District, so we could take in some of this beautiful area. This site is ideal for stopping off, as it's only 3 miles from the M6 motorway.

Ashes used to be a CL, then a few years ago gained permission to become a 25 van site. Run extremely professionally by Alison and Ian Mason, the site is set in lovely countryside about 3 miles from Kendal. With country views from all pitches, this was a very quiet and peaceful site, despite being full. The pretty, small, but very adequate, heated stone-built toilet and shower block is luxurious – hotel standard in fact, and there are two separate unisex toilets with washbasin, which are equipped for the less abled.

Walking or cycling into Kendal isn’t really an option from the site, unless you are super-fit, and taking our motorhome in to the town wasn’t something we wanted to do on a Saturday, so we got a taxi both ways, at a cost of £10 per journey. Kendal was delightful on the weekend we were there as there was a Street Art Festival, with all sorts of performers doing weird and funny activities. Did anyone else see the bloke in the window of Toni and Guys with a huge blob of shaving foam in a strategic place (which wasn’t his face) or the Black and White Men on the minute tandem? It was a great start to the holiday.

Back at Ashes, there are several walks from the site, and Alison has folders of information on the area which can be borrowed for the duration of your stay. This is also a site where you can just sit and enjoy the views and the fabulous English sunshine(!). We could have stayed on longer, but Scotland was calling, and our ferry was departing soon………

Scottish Island Hopping in a Motorhome?

2007-09-19T17:32:00.000Z

We’d not planned to go Island Hopping in Scotland, but that’s what we ended up doing. Island hopping in a 23 foot motorhome? A crazy idea? Were we mad? No! It’s dead easy. So here’s the story.

Originally, the plan was to drive from Derbyshire to the Kintyre Peninsula and back, taking in various stops both ways. Then a friend asked had we thought of taking the ferry from Ardrossan to Brodick, and another from Lochranza to Claonaig? Where to where? Who was Brodick and what was Claonaig?

A visit to the excellent Caledonian MacBrayne Ferries Website, and online ordering of their brochure made things a little clearer. We ended up chosing Island Hopscotch 16 ticket (£220 for up to 10m motorhome and 2 passengers) – Arran – Kintyre – Islay, which took us from Ardrossan to Brodick, Lochranza to Claonaig, Kennecraig to Port Ellen, and Port Askaig to Kintyre. Sounds confusing? Yes, a bit, but all will become clear in future blogs.

One hiccup occurred, resulting in us having to change our return journey plans at short notice - we mistakenly thought the Hopscotch ticket got us back to our starting place of Ardrossan – uh-uhh - not true – it only got us back to Kintyre Peninsula. That’s what happens when you don’t read the small print. So instead of retracing our steps, we travelled back via Inveraray and Loch Lomond, down through Yorkshire, and back to Derbyshire - seeing places we would otherwise have missed. All done in two weeks – and it felt like we’d been away for a month.

And what an absolutely amazing holiday experience it was. We will be writing about it in bite-sized chunks in the next few blogs.

Woodland Caravan Park Revisited

2007-09-15T15:39:00.000Z

The sun came out at last, and everyone was looking for available pitches for the weekend – including us. We were very fortunate to get in at Woodland Caravan Park,just outside Ashbourne in Derbyshire.
This is a new site; it only opened at Easter 2007 and we were invited to their launch day, so it was great to actually stop for the weekend. The setting of the Park is delightful and access is a doddle, being almost immediately off the A515. The level spacious pitches have been thoughtfully integrated into the ancient woodland, and the pitches arranged so that you do not directly overlook your neighbours or the folks opposite. The dappled sunlight through the trees is enchanting, and the natural woodland and bracken setting creates a lovely restful atmosphere.

Linda-Jane and Charles are working extremely hard to make this site a very special place. The shower and toilet block are kept scrupulously clean and there is a useful laundry room (sleeping bags washed and dried in a trice). L-J is also planning to put a microwave oven in there too for the use of caravanners shortly. Exclusive walks in their grounds can be arranged with the gamekeeper, although we did it DIY and got hopelessly lost, and somewhat covered in cow dung and nettle stings. I understand that signposts to help the cartographically challenged are imminent.

Ashbourne is a short drive away, and the site is very convenient for Dovedale and Ilam. However, on a rare hot and sunny weekend, Dovedale was more like Blackpool, with hundreds of people picnicking, paddling, boating and sunbathing.

Back to Woodland, and we were pleased to see food available from The Two Women in a Kitchen (the Lemon Drizzle Cake is still wonderful), and special orders are taken. Five minutes walk down the lane is a stall selling plants at extremely welcome prices. There is a pub within walking distance, but it’s a reasonable hike, and uphill on the way back.

We loved this site – its less than 20 miles from home and the very warm welcome from L-J and Charles makes you instantly relaxed. We’ll be back in Autumn when the trees will be particularly wonderful and the crowds should have gone from Dovedale.

Race for Life 2007, Western Park, Leicester

2007-08-30T16:02:00.000Z

Last year’s Race for Life was at Holme Pierrepont. This year’s event scheduled for 29 July was postponed due to flooding, so we transferred to the event at Leicester. Big mistake. Holme Pierrepont is flat, Western Park is hilly. I don’t do hills. Never has 5 km seemed so long.

We set off with the runners (the walkers set off from a different point) and within 15 seconds my team mates had hared off like whippets. Not me, I settled down into my steady pace – didn’t know what this course had in store. Glad I did as it turned out. Overtaken by dozens of women for first 15 minutes, then it was my turn to overtake all those who were now walking. Tortoise and Hare. This was a grass course, and trailed all round the park. It wasn’t too hot, and despite HUGE black thunder clouds, stayed dry.

My time last year was 39 minutes (on the flat) and I was desperate to beat that, and all looked good until the final 500 metre sign, when ahead of me I saw a steep hill. Did I mentioned I don’t do hills? I finished in 39 minutes and 16 seconds, extremely out of breath and red in the face, but I’d run all the way. Tortoise and Hare. The winner did it in 21 minutes but I wasn’t there to race, I was there to do it – and raised nearly £100 in the process.

We're all going on a wet holiday

2007-08-27T08:04:00.000Z

According to the Mail on Sunday this week, "The rain has made it feel more like winter than summer, but surprisingly, the latest holiday figures show that domestic tourism is up on last year. Figures compiled by three leading leisure organisations show that we have continued to go to seaside resorts and cities despite some of the worst weather on record. Domestic holidays account for 80% of Britain's £85 billion-a-year tourism industry, and figures from The Caravan Club, budget hotel chain Travelodge and Merlin Entertainments which owns Madame Tussauds, Alton Towers and the London Eye, suggest that it has still been a good season, with more than 50 million visitors.

The Caravan Club, which represents more than a million caravanners, says August bookings are up 7%. Catherine Ford, Head of Sites Marketing for the Club says 'Our customers enjoy caravanning in all seasons and tour primarily for history and heritage, not sunshine'. Occupancy at Travelodge's seaside hotels, where the company has invested most heavily, are also up 7%. But cities have been the biggest winners with holidaymakers sick of long queues at airports, deciding to holiday at home".

Source: Mail on Sunday Financial Mail, Sunday 26 August 2007.