Hill Fort Camping - a trip into Stumble Head

We took our usual Summer trip to Wales this year, it was as always wonderful and the weather was great, we went to two new campsites this year and I was blown away by one that I have decided to blog solely about this site.

A few years ago, 6 in fact we took a trip to a wild and wonderful campsite in Dorset, we had found out about it on a blog and I remember feeling such joy at the sharing of it, I chose to then to blog myself about it Jim's Camping and even now it's my most popular blog written, finding these hidden treasures is so important and the sharing of them is even greater (Sam feels otherwise, he likes to keep them to just us, ha).

Each year we attempt to take on another part of the Pembrokeshire Coast Trail, we knew we were going back to our usual haunt of Caerfai Bay, so decided to split the journey by staying at Strumble Head as our 2nd stop. Strumble Head is another wonderful part of the coastal path situated in North Pembrokeshire and is known for its rocky landscape and famous lighthouse. Both friends and family had trekked this part of the trail last year and shared it's beauty so it was an obvious stop for us.
Sadly in serious of actual twists and turns I managed to dislocate my ankle so didn't manage to walk any of the coastal path, so my time in Stumble Head was spent mostly at the campsite which wasn't so bad with the sun shining and our aces camp spot. I managed a smile climb and got a couple of shots of the views.

Hill Fort Tipi's is a greener camping club member, which means a number of the facilities must meet certain standards.   Hill Fort is a national trust land (I believe) and only allows a certain number of campers to stay, each spot is secluded and feels your wild camping. There is the option to stay in the larger field where kids usually stay so they can play together. As you can imagine we took a spot far away from everyone and spent 3 days only seeing Katie and Johnny (the owners of the Campsite).  

We had our new awning to play with also,  we were so pleased with it and it worked great for allowing us to have shade and sun, Socks took the opportunity to laze the day away under it also. We had decided we wanted a different awning to normal campervan one's and knew we wanted a festival style, tent like awning. Cloudhouses were great at delivering just that and it has a hint of purple, everything needs purple.

Johnny and Katie the owners of the campsite were awesome, individual and very sociable, but great hosts, looking after my swollen ankle, bringing wood when needed and being on hand to help with food, walking, local information.

Before my ankle went we did manage to climb one of the hill's and watched sunset up the top, it was spectacular seeing the landscape in front of us and enjoying the views. On the evening we enjoyed fires in the fire pit provided and ate al fresco  at the home made tables. It was just a perfect few days and have already planned to go back next year, this time with a bit more walking. 

I Climbed a Mountain!!

It's been a long time since I blogged and sometimes blogging in itself can feel like climbing a mountain, I have so many ideas but articulating and getting them down can feel a challenging at times. There is always something else to do, somewhere else to be or no time to write, sometimes the words just don't  come. I have these dreams of sunshine, outdoors and lazy afternoon blogs, like I used to do when travelling,  today I decided I am putting that dream back into action, so with the bbq going, a cider next to me and my laptop in hand I am set to write. 

So let's start with talking about my adventure last weekend as it was one to remember and for me a real accomplishment. 

I have been wanting to take on a big mountain for some time now, however with my knackered knees I always stay away and stick to slow rambles and small hills. I decided I needed a challenge and with my knees staying good for some time now this was the time to test them. 

Sam was away on my brothers stag so I planned a camping night away with a friend and we made a plan to hike Whernside, I was told it was the slowest incline out of the 3 Yorkshire peaks, so felt the best peak for me. I had no idea what to expect, however when I turned up Friday to camp at Philpin Farm, I saw the beautiful mountain positioned in front of us in all her glory. I was nervous, worried I wouldn't be able to complete the climb and worried my knees would go on me, when they do, they hurt bad. However I believed in myself and knew with the support of my friend we could go at our own pace and time without pressure or stress. 

 Luckily the walk to Whernside was only 15mins (ish) from our campsite so was a nice easy stroll to the start. I was shocked when we reached the start the climb up was only around 2 mile, this set my mind at rest a little more. it was a beautiful slow incline and I was surprised how many folk were coming down from the other side. We soon realised there was a race on and these were most of our passerby's. We took our time, enjoyed the views, stopped for sweets and nuts and allowed Socks the rest she needed (as she isn't made for climbing mountains). It was gorgeous chatting to others and slowly seeing the landscape in front of us, as you all know Yorkshire is a favourite of mine but this was phenomenal and seeing the other peaks, Pen y ghent and Ingleborough looming behind and in front of us was breath taking.  

I was amazed at how many people take on the 3 peaks without training or hiking shoes, we saw so many people struggling with sore feet and tired bones, however their determination to finish (i.e. climb another mountain after) was astonishing and at one point made me tempted to do more. My brain quickly changed when Socks refused to head up the more challenging part of the climb, basically putting the brakes on and attempting to head down, rather than up. I sat with her for 10mins and gave her water, pretending my encouragement was going in, she then picked herself up and managed to climb, only to find what looked like the top was a blind summit and there was still a way to go. Luckily it evened out and the rest wasn't such a pull. 

Making the top was a wonderful feeling and my friend had packed cake from the little shop at our campsite, yep she knows me well. We munched it up, enjoying watching what everyone had in their lunches/snack pots. It was lovely, we looked over Ingleborough with such pride. I was shown different points of the lake district and other parts of Yorkshire, it felt very special and surreal sat up there watching the world go by. Socks took a sleep and we lazed a good half hour away. 

The trip back down is always a worry, the pressure that hits the knees has knocked me before (in India monks blessed them when I struggled to make it down Triund Hill), and although at times I was aware there were creeping out, they held up and I made it down okay, obviously some bum scrambles but it led a number of other walkers to follow suit which felt nice and to feel it's okay to hike down however feels best for you. We smiled and giggled at the conversations being had around us, hearing folk talk about what they were most looking forward to when finishing their hike, however long or small that was, there was a sense of achievement floating in the air. 

We finished back at our campsite and enjoyed the masses of folk snacking and resting around the campsite shop, more cake, yes please. The sun was shining and a huge sense of enjoyment was being had, the joy of walkers, it feels forever thankful for the nature we are in and the beauty it gives us to enjoy these hikes, rambles, strolls and walks. 

Jim’s Camping

When planning our first years anniversary we both knew we wanted to go camping, it was important for us to bring the element of our wedding into our anniversary and wanted to spend time on a farm, away from the world and camp, when Sam showed me Jim’s camping it couldn't have been more perfect. 

We arrived on the road to Jim’s Camping and Sam informed me there was no signs and was a little side entrance, the road had a number of caravan club sites along it and I was certain there would be some form of signage – how wrong I was. Sam suddenly recognised the side path (from pictures) and took a quick right into a beautiful serene open field with two other campers. We found our spot and unloaded our car, making our home for the weekend, my first thoughts were just blissful and happy, I loved the openness of the campsite but the peacefulness also and the wonderful surrounding nature hugging the campsite. 

We spent the evening wandering around the farm and even had the pleasure of meeting Jim, he informed us the peacock had passed away the week before after 25yrs of living on the farm, Jim talked of the birds that were left and the flowers he was growing for the flower farm on Sunday. I loved Jim’s idle way of living and basic need to get by, he explained he had owned the farm for 65yrs and made enough to just get by, he explained his days are spent tending to the growing vegetables and flowers and making bouquets up for the local markets, he explained most of the money comes from the flowers. I envy people who live so basic, I feel over the years I have taught myself better more ethical ways to live where tv is not the focal point of my life and spending more time looking after me with more holistic ways is better than partying and working long hours. I never understand people who commit so much to work when we were put on this world to live not to work – it’s so important to have that balance as when I grow old I want to look back and feel I got the most out of my life and not that I worked it away committing more time to things that don’t have any meaning or won’t have any meaning when I am older. Jim’s camping really made me go back to the basic routes of living and feel relaxed and happy in the environment I was in and not needing outside stimulus to enjoy a beautiful evening ahead. 

After cooking a delightful BBQ and making a toasty fire, with our tummies full and hearts warm the scrabble board made its first appearance for the weekend and we set in for a relaxing evening of 4 letter word making. 

We awoke the next morning, enjoyed a breakfast of eggs and went off for a day at the beach (and to collect some tasty fish for that evening BBQ). We decided to head to a National Trust owned beach called Studland Bay, it was beautiful the sun shone and the day was spent reading and relaxing. At around 4pm we decided to walk to Durdle Door, as a child we used to holiday to the south coast all the time I couldn't recall the Durdle Door so was excited to take the walk up a zillion stairs to see what was hidden at the end of it all. What an amazing site and beautiful walk, it was nice to take the walk as the evening was cooling and soak in all the wonders around it, you could see Lulworth Cove from the top of the stairs, the south coast is so beautiful and I can imagine myself coming back here time and time again. We walked along the trail and eventually came to the Durdle Door, I was so overwhelmed with the beauty of the limestone arch that we sat for some time taking pictures and just looking at the amazement of the naturally formed structure. 

We spent the evening similar as we had the previous one, relaxing with the fire and cooking some amazing fish with delicious salad. 

I did spend some time walking around the campsite with my camera; there were so many amazing flowers and oddments of old worn down pots where beautiful herbs were growing. The flower farm was so beautiful on the evening with the sun setting and I really did feel blessed with the experience we were having and the beauty of Jim’s camping. 
The next morning came and a year to the date was the day we got married, it was a surreal feeling that a year had passed, I can’t believe how quick time has gone and that a year ago I was preparing for such a special unforgettable day.  To celebrate we brought our letters from our wedding day, we had a typewriter on our wedding day which we asked everyone to type a letter for us to open on our 1st wedding anniversary also known as the paper anniversary. It was brilliant opening the letters with messages of all kinds being given to us, it made us both smile, shed a tear and laugh (a lot) at the drunk funny words written down – a number of them starting off with how difficult it is to use a typewriter. We then enjoyed a anniversary breakfast and prepared for another fun day at the beach. 

We decided to visit Ringstead Bay another beautiful beach on the South coast, it was another sunshine day and we spent the early afternoon again reading, relaxing and dipping in the freezing cold water. It was just such a perfect way to celebrate one year away from the hustle and bustle and just me and curly together, we decided to set off from the beach around 3ish to find a tasty public house to have a Sunday anniversary lunch – we found a relaxed pub with tasty eats and a big beer garden, no better way to complete perfect weekend. 

Our drive back home we reminisced our wedding day and our future to come, we smiled at how lucky we are and how our 2nd anniversary will be spent on a beach again somewhere in South East Asia, bring on another brilliant year with a world of adventures ahead. 

Glastonbury Greatness.

I turned 29 and Sam and I decided to take a adventure and head to the worthiest farm to see what life is like there without the hustle and bustle of festival life. The weekend was amazing, not only did the sun come out, the campsite was incredible cute and Worthy Farm was as blissful as ever. We camped in Whooton 2.5 mile out of Pilton, from there we walked into the festival sight and with our oldskool maps in hand we found the entrance to the festival site. As we walked in we recognised the entrance as the coach parking and reminicised of rain and waiting in 2011, then the coach journey home lots sleeping festival goers and memories of another great weekend. We spent our time, walking around, sitting in front of the pyramid stage with cider in hand and working out the different fields that held corn and crops rather then wonky adults and excited children. As we made our way to the stone circle we cam across the green fields pirate boat, excitement built and i climbed aboard. The view of the pyramid stage in the background was amazing, so clear and such a different view to the one i was used to. We arrived at the stone circle and enjoyed the sunshine and relaxation, to be at the stones without thousands of people and hundreds of flares was a strange experience, it was relaxing and lovely and not the usual manicness i tend to feel when arriving there through the Glastonbury nights.

The farm still held the same feelings of excitment, merriment and warm happiness inside, it was so great to see it in its natural enviroment and the farm living and growing, normally when i leave i see such choas and ruined land and feel it must take years to repair but from what i see this weekend the crops grow, the grass is green and the cows have the best land to graize on.

Once again Glastonbury great times, roll on 2013.