Tuesday, 26 October 2021
There are numerous travel guides and blogs out there that will tell you, in more detail than I care to do here, about the history and traditions of the picturesque "undefeated" City of Porto. It is a beautiful city and well worth a visit if you ever get the chance. This blog post is simply a record of our walk from Porto to the small fishing village of São Pedro da Afurada located on the Vila Nova de Gaia side of the Douro River.
Sunday, 02 May 2021
We could see across the River Colne to Brightlingsea on a previous walk around Mersea and were intrigued by our companions' lack of enthusiasm for the town. We thought we would go and check it out with a bit of a walk around Brightlingsea Marsh National Nature Reserve.
Sunday, 04 October 2020
After the thorough soaking we received yesterday we expected nothing less than the same today. Heavy rain had fallen during the night, but by morning the clouds had lifted, and there were signs of hope. We did our best to dry the few items left that could be dried and gave up on the rest. Beech Croft Farm was a good site with some excellent facilities, but after our summer in France and Germany, we had come to resent the £23 price tag. Luckily, we had already paid when we had made our original booking earlier in the year and before our summer trip.
Saturday, 03 October 2020
We knew as the weekend approached, that the weather was going to be wet and windy. The summer had been so fantastic that the idea of walking in the rain seemed strange and somewhat disconcerting. Our friend had arranged the walk, and as the weekend approached, she had highlighted the fact that one of the hills on the walk, Parkhouse Hill, was incredibly steep and slippy even in the dry. Our friend recommended an alternative walk, but the rest of the group opted to stick with the planned route. “It’s the peak district,” I thought. “How bad can it be?”
Sunday, 13 September 2020
Bianca Bongo had performed wonderfully on our European adventure, so we wanted to give her a little treat. We booked Bianca in for some anti-rust treatment at a place in the Midlands and, wanting to make the most of it; we arranged to meet a friend and do a little walk in the Malvern Hills while we were there.
Sunday, 26 July 2020
“Steeple?” said one of our friends. “Why Steeple? There is nothing there!” And there really isn’t. “Exactly” I replied. “That is exactly why Steeple”. Steeple is a one-street village, and that street is about a kilometre long. It has a church, two pubs of which one has closed down, a bus stop and few houses. It sits on the Dengie peninsula in Essex, and I imagine that most people barely notice the village during the sixty or so seconds it takes to exit on the other side.