Whitehaven

 On the first full day of our holiday, we headed off to Whitehaven for a look round - it was a brand new destination for all of us and we weren't disappointed.   It was a chilly, but brilliantly sunny, day and we spent ages deciding which boat we wanted!

We parked down in the harbour area and had a lovely walk in the sunshine along the sea and harbour wall.

Holiday Randoms - St Bees

 Back at the end of September 2020, Mum and Dad, Amanda and I were lucky enough to get a holiday in between Covid lockdowns - in fact, I suspect that we only just got in as I'm fairly sure we went straight back into lockdown in the middle of October.  

We had a wonderful holiday cottage right on the front behind the lifeboat station - a bungalow with two bedrooms (Mum and Dad, and Amanda) and a fabulously comfy sofa in the large living room (me!).   It was all on one level and it didn't take us long at all to feel completely at home.    Over the course of the week, we had a number of days sightseeing and I had two days of coastal walking too, one with Amanda and one on my own.

Every evening, Amanda and I went out for a walk along the prom - and we regularly saw lights on some of the boats out at sea.   Most of our ridiculous conversations revolved around pirates and smugglers communicating with people onshore to bring all sorts of contraband in!

The week started off beautifully warm and Amanda and I even sat out in the small garden on the Sunday with coffee to soak up the warmth, but the weather did get colder and wetter towards the end of the week.  

Not that it stopped us of course!

Monmouth and Tintern

 While staying at the caravan for a week in September 2020, I took the opportunity to visit Monmouth and Tintern one day while Andy was at work.

If I had been to Monmouth before, I certainly didn't remember that, and had a lovely time exploring the town, visiting a local church, having a coffee, etc.   I spent a good couple of hours here before heading back to the caravan via Tintern, a place I visit a LOT while I'm at the caravan!

It was such a beautiful day - although very hot - so most of my time was spent taking refreshments!   

Being September, it's lovely to visit a touristy place without the hordes of visitors you might expect at busier weekends and school holidays.   

Fishing in Somerset

 

During Finn's life, Andy pretty much only ever went fishing at dog friendly lakes so that we could go with him, but, without our dear boy, we were able to visit a fishery not far from the caravan back in September 2020.

Andy tells me that he did catch fish this weekend, but for some reason I don't have any photographic evidence.  (I'm assuming that the photos are on my dead hard drive, and the only photos I've managed to find have been those I posted on social media at the time.)  I do remember spending lots of time relaxing, but not much with any fish!

Holiday Randoms - Severn Beach

 My first trip to Severn Beach after losing Finn in September 2020 was very strange as I didn't really know what to do with myself.  My first thought was to go for a walk down to the river - as I would have done immediately on arrival with Finn - and it was sad, but I was glad to do it, despite the wind and the ridiculously cold temperatures!  

Of course, there was a bonus in that I could actually go inside a tea room for a change rather than having to sit outside with Finn.   And as it was so cold, it was a relief to go inside for a coffee and a warm cheese scone.

By the end of the week, the weather had turned warmer again and the winds had dropped.  Luckily, I'd packed for all weathers that week!

In Search of Cream Tea!

 Shannon and I do love a jolly to Sheringham, especially if a cream tea is involved, and this day back in September 2020 not only included a cream tea, but a beach walk and rock pool exploration as well!

After a walk along the beach from East Runton to Sheringham, we decided to reward ourselves with a cream tea to provide the fuel for the walk back!