By keef and annie hellinger, Jul 6 2019 04:38PM Motorhome trip No38 : May 5th – July 3rd 2019 A KeefH Web Designs Travel Blog NOTTS (home)->Faroes & Iceland via Holland, Germany & Denmark ->NOTTS (home) 5257 miles MENU Introduction Diary Calendar (3 months) Campsites (1) Faroes Slideshows (8) Iceland Slideshows (11) The Talkies (3) Full Slideshows with Audiobook (3) Audio Diaries (3) Tags / End of Blog James Bond #spoileralert on Kalsoy Arctic Circle (+ Arctic Henge, Wiltshire's equivalent ) The Wild Arctic Way (the Wild Atlantic Way in Eire ) Introduction What a fantastic 2 months away, scenery to die for, lovely people, couldn’t have asked for better weather in Iceland, as an example the preceding June it rained non stop for 28 days. We had 16 consecutive days of 24 hour sun. You get used to the sun falling and then re-arising moments later. It just never got dark in either the Faroes nor Iceland so it was really weird when returning to Germany via Denmark when it did go dark. This trip meant along with our previous trip to Scandinavia ( Blog 100 ) we have now been to all the countries in Scandinavia in our lovely Wendy house, VW Autosleeper Clubman Anniversary motorhome #proud Suggest using the menu to find your way around this blog if you want to dip in and out of specific bits, or you can of course just carry on from here and go all the way through, the choice is clearly yours Here is a selection of some of our photos to get you started, you can also see them with others across our motorhome-travels via the gallery in the dropdown, enjoy. Back to the Menu Diary It is worth saying that the Faroes has 18 islands connected either via Ferry, Bridge or undersea Tunnel. Some we weren’t able to do especially Sandoy… ferry over subscribed and the far north islands as the tunnel at 3.1m was a little too low for comfort when taking the van thru. The Smyril line provide you with a booklet for download of the Faroes campsites. A selection of our fave places where Gasadalur on Vagar, Torshavn campsite views of Hestur, Kaldbak on Streymoy,Vestmanna, Gjogv on Eysturoy, Hosvik, Saksun (both Streymoy),Vikings at Leirvik, Trollanes on Kalsoy. See the pictures to get a feel. We loved it , a week and a half is probably enough but you are guided by the ferry timetable! Also glad we went there 1st before Iceland, I think on balance it’s the right order. Iceland is a magnificent place to visit. Absolutely bowled over by it. Apart from my scary 2nd day morning climbing over the mountain out of Seydisfjordur in driving snow and winds where you could barely see the road, much less that it was surrounded on both sides by frozen lakes… it was all a joy! Get an Iceland camping card if you are staying more than 2 weeks, sites are plentiful in the east, south west, western fjords and the north… not so in big stretches of the southern coast. Sites are not great but mostly adequate with the exception of Reydarfjordur, Isafjordur and Siglufjordur which are wonderful. If you are not using the card it can be very costly. Reyjkavik for example is not part of this scheme and about £39 / night. Take as much canned food, rice, pasta etc with you that you can fit in your van to control your expenditure. Sadly whale watching for us at Husavik was off, foggy and blowing a hoolie! A selection of our fave places were Reydarfjordur (east) and areas out to Nordfjord, whole of the western Fjords, Vatnajokull NP, Jokulsarlon Lagoon Icebergs,Porshavn (north),many of the lovely fjords and Waterfalls, the Kerfla active volcano area (north west) , Siglufjordur (north),Husavik (north), Grindavik (south west) and as a city Akureyri. See the pictures to get a feel. We went past Sumburgh head , the Shetlands en route , if you would like to read about our time in the Shetlands see Blog 82 , thanks Sunday 5th May 2019 Having packed the van in advance we set off once again for Harwich, we had booked into the Castle Inn just outside Harwich but when we saw that it was just a pub car park decided against that. We stopped in Harwich town for a good look around, including the harbour area with the Boat that rocked from the film of the same name featuring Bill Nighy, the garden areas, sea front, real ale beer festival on the pier, old town areas, most nautical, a nice fish and chip supper and finally decided to park up opposite the care home on the front. Went to bed early as up early for ferry to Hoek Van Holland tomorrow. After seeing the campsite last time and this in future if we are going across to Europe via Harwich, we would do the same. Not really having seen Harwich before we would rate it, a very interesting place with history, Samuel Pepys and the Mayflower, men of war ships built here 1660-1827, the treadwheel crane, Gill cartoons, house of correction and fab architecture. Monday 6th May 2019 As we were effectively wild camping, we got up early, it was a very quiet night, and drove the short distance to the port and joined the ferry queue for 8 a.m. The Stena line ferry was not leaving until 9 a.m. so we had our breakfast and read in line. The ferry was incredibly empty of passengers, mostly cargo lorry drivers who get sleeping quarters on board. We wouldn’t be surprised if this service dies like many of the DFDS services, as just not enough passengers. Eventually sadly it will probably only be possible to cross at Dover to Europe making journeys up to Scandinavia very long. Indeed, this trip is that already. Back in the day when we were in the Orkneys you could go to the Faroes via Aberdeen – Stromness – Lerwick – Torshavn, indeed we did think about it back in the 80s but as the kids were very young gave it a miss. Now you can only go either flying from Copenhagen or as we are doing ferry from the top of Denmark. On board we sat and read in the café and had lunch there. Annie didn’t fancy any of the movies, having fallen asleep just when Harrison Ford died in the last one when we saw the latest Star Wars movie in 2016. Keef went to see the hustlers movie with Rebel Wilson and Anne Hathaway, quite amusing but I and only one other were in the cinema. On arrival we faced the same issue at the same roundabout with our TruckNav but eventually mastered it and got out of Rotterdam, then drove back to Gouda, missing however the right turning for the Klein Amerika Aire behind the Library which meant we travelled the narrow canal side roads, not clever, lucky no one coming the other way. Eventually got there, parked up, no electrics as all slots taken for that but no worry, still a very convenient site #recommended We walked into Gouda again and visited the cheese shop where they last told us that we had a royal heir. We bought quite a few nice cheeses. We love the town of Gouda. Tuesday 7th May 2019 Up early having part filled the water tank at the aire and set off to join the A1 bypassing Utrecht, Apeldoorn and onto near Osnabruck where we headed north entering Germany still on the A1 past Bremen (almost the same route as on the way back in 2016) Turned off at K15 through rural Buntberg and onto Heidenau, Germany. It was quite a weird site and we stayed almost alone in the grassed motorhome section outside the main entrance, however it had a barrier which was control by a payment machine, took us quite a while to work out what you need do with your credit card but once in we were ok, filled to the top with water and set up the electrics. The facilities were quite a way off through the bigger site. We had a bit of a look around got changed and went to the Greek restaurant on site for an evening meal, all very nice, then to bed, we had driven for about 4 hours and done 270 miles through two countries, just a wee bit tired. Wednesday 8th May 2019 Left the Heidenau campsite for Flensburg today, just below the german border with Denmark. Luckily the barrier opened for us and we didn’t remain trapped inside that strange campsite field, we had lost all confidence in the auto payment scheme and its automated control, we would never stay there again although the traditional wooden hut with woodland creature carvings was a joy. Anyhow it was back onto the A1 and turned onto the A7 near Rosengarten, then bypass the amazingly busy Hamburg, there is always a hold up there in our humble opinion and this time was no exception, a huge port had massive roadworks pulling traffic down into 1 lane most of the way around, when crossing some of the bridges on route we got a glimpse of just how large the port is. I have a certain allegiance to Hamburg as it was the port my ancestors used to escape the Pogroms back in the 1880s. After Eidelstedt we turned off the A7 onto the E45 and steadily made our way north from Saxony into the state of Schleswig-Holstein and Flensburg, here we turned off onto the B199 to the very nice site we had pre-booked at Medelby, we would use that site again to break the journey on our way back from Iceland. Mr and Mrs Lund a nice Danish couple run the site, we were on pitch one , huge green open fields, fab facilities block, lots of space, nice indoor pool, although we didn’t use it, and outside seating area for an ice cream which we did do. All in all, a very pleasant stay #recommended Thursday 9th May 2019 Packed up after brekkie and left the Lund’s, checking out and saying goodbye, we will be back as Arnie once said. So back along the B199 having had a quick look around the area and re-joined the motorway E45 up across the border into Denmark, there we a few borders crossing folk at the checkpoint, but they took one look at our number plate , UK, and just waved us through. On past Kolding and Vejle which we had seen in 2016 and through Arhus to our ACSI campsite at Lisbjerg called Aarhus camping off Randersveg. It was in a very green area, nicely laid out, we were on pitch 83. Set up and had a good look around and used the facilities. They had nice little huts for kids to play in, a huge outdoor chess set, and flowers blooming everywhere, a very nice site, we had driven for about 2hours 10 mins and 120 miles to get here from Germany. We then left our marker on the pitch and set off to have a look around Arhus, a university town, that we had not been into in 2016. Quite nice in parts but not that interesting, some unique Danish architecture though, the Danes are so good at design, have a look at the Danish images if you want to see what we saw in Arhus. We then returned to our Roholm mose area campsite in Lisbjerg. Friday 10th May 2019 Left Aarhus camping site and travelled the hour journey via the minor road to Odum and then back on the E45 motorway turning off onto the 507 through the big town of Randers , its huge hospital and bridge across the Gudena onto Hadsund across the Marianger fjord. At Hadsund we called into a Lidl to do our food shopping, we like Lidl both for price and layout in goreign lands, they often keep the same layout so it makes it easy for us to find stuff. After stocking up with provisions it was on from Hadsund to Oster Harup heading out on the 541 road towards the coast and going along the coastal road turning at Aals which was a very interesting old village with nice traditional buildings. It was only 20 minutes to Oster Harup. We parked up in what is quite a touristy area and went for a nice breezy walk around the marina, boardwalks and jetties plus had a look as some of the for hire coastal holiday shacks, which all had fab views and Danish style. Quite impressed. This was a true seaside town. We then carried along the coast to Egense where we waited for and caught the ferry across the Limfjorden to Hals. An interesting experience as you had to purchase your ferry ticket via a machine before travel, clearly saving them work on the chain ferry for this short journey. What fun. Fab views out to sea as well. From Hals we carried on up the coast to the larger town of Frederikshavn (havn meaning port in Danish) We stopped in the town centre but weren’t sure of the parking charges or how to pay so decided just to drive around as much as we could seeing the big port area which felt very industrial, so we then moved onto our campsite for the night at Hjorring. It was only a 45-minute drive through Sindal and some very green hilly terrain. A large site with not many people on it, we set up on the grass with electrics , the first thing we saw was a huge mountain hare, fascinating, as we had arrived quite early in the afternoon we went for a brief walk around the large site and then returned to chill, listen to music, read, eat, and bed. Happy bunnies as they say. Saturday 11th May 2019 No rush today our ferry doesn’t leave Hirtshal until 3 p.m. Had a leisurely breakfast , packed up the van, disconnected the electrics, wound up the rear steadies, made sure the cable flaps were pushed in, step and waste bucket securely stored away in the side pannier and then saying goodbye to the campsite guy, he was very friendly, we initially went into old Hjorring parking in the supermarket area for free. Had a good look around the older area and gardens, especially liked the old warehouse. We then set off the short 25-minute drive to Hirtshal, Jutland from Horring. We had been here briefly in 2016 but did not visit the port. Some aussies we met back then were using it to get to Norway. We stopped on the hill approaching Hirtshal town to take a lot of photos then Keef realising he had forgotten to bring his hat and gloves and it was going to be cold went along the port area to a fishing type shop and bought his Icelandic hat and gloves, I am so proud of them, I even wore them at night when we did the NC500 in 2022 as it was so cold ( Blog 177 ). We then had a good look around town having paid to park. After that we had lunch and then drove from town to the port to join the queue for the Symril line ferry. In the queue we saw some outlandish motorhomes, one from guys from Czech Republic which was a true outback almost armoured vehicle with solar panels for power plus a huge lorry transporting what can only have been a bridge under wraps. We eventually got on the ship but not without some interesting stuff, Annie had to go on as a passenger leaving the van and being driven to the gang plank. I waited patiently in line as was the next to last vehicle on the ship, boarding 20 minutes after the scheduled departure time ha-ha #scary. Parking was reversing and wedged in as close as possible but as I am right hand drive, I had to shimmy over to get out of the motorhome. I carried lots of stuff with me and had to wait ages to get the lift to our floor and our cabin where Annie had been waiting ages a little worried that the boat would leave without me, as if, ha-ha. Nice cabin had all we needed for our 3-day , 2-night boat trip. I think we were on floor 13 but could be wrong. Our ferry was the MS Norrona. As it departed, we went outside sunny and windy on deck 8 to wave goodbye to Hirtshal, Denmark… next stop Torshavn, Faroe Islands, Denmark, but the Denmark bit is another story I will cover later. Went into the bar on deck 5 for coffee, cinnamon bun and keef bought his new fave chocolate covered liquorish, a Faroese delight! Keef went outside to take some pictures as we went past Sumner Head on the Shetlands, where we had been way back when (2001), see Blog 82. Sunday 12th May 2019 At sea. The MS Norrona by Symril Lines, wholly owned by the Faroes, has fab food. Whilst queuing for some drinks for us a guy started up a conversation with us, he lived in the North of the Faroes but had been working away from home in Norway. He was so friendly and indeed at the end of the trip as we got off in Torshavn gave us a book of the Faroes and his phone number and said if we were in his area come and visit him and his family how kind is that! Sadly, we didn’t have time to do so. Mealtime was allocated by the lady at the door, breakfast, lunch and dinner. On our first dinner the table allocated was already full so we went back to let her know, not repeating a camping pitch calamity we experienced in 2016, ha-ha. They shifted us to nearby tables with apologies. We struck up a conversation with the folk on the table who were teachers , with fab English, returning with their teenage school party from a singing visit to Copenhagen. They invited us to their decktop concert given by the teenagers at 10 p.m. It was lovely, lots of traditional Faroese folk songs and they even did a few classic tunes in English especially for us, just wonderful, we slept reasonably well that night although as the winds and waves got up it was especially rocky, we found we had to cling on to get dressed. We watched the TV in the room briefly to get a hang of Danish culture but mostly ads. Keef watched a Danish subtitled version of Morse, ha-ha. Not one I’d seen before. Monday 13th May 2019 The ship finally docked in Torshavn harbour at 6 a.m. and we went up on deck to get our first views of the Faroe Islands, just magical as the sun had already risen, indeed this far north in the world at this time of year it hardly even sets, not sure I’d want the reverse of total darkness in winter though. It took a while to get off the boat, cargo first, and the smell of fish near out van was intense, they carry in frozen storage containers and sometimes they defrost, ugh! We drove off the ferry up to the car park by the sports stadium and had a snack and a drink whilst planning what we would do this morning as not allowed in the campsite until 1 p.m. We then drove back to the harbour area and parked in the car park area by the ferry and had a good look around there taking many photos of our ship, before it departed for Iceland. We then drove back to the empty car park near the marina and more central for town, looked for pay machines, couldn’t find any so naively assumed it was free. We then went off for a long early morning walk around the marina area and along some of the back streets. Although sunny grateful for hats and coats as a bitter wind. When we returned the car park was full of shoppers and workers. We had what seemed to be a parking ticket under the windscreen, as it was written in Faroese I couldn’t read it, asked a nice lady next to us who said we had to pay a fine as we were not displaying the timer clock, which you set to say how long you will be there based on your arrival time, e.g. if you arrive at 10 a.m. you set it to 10, then if you are only allowed to stay for 2 hours the wardens know and will issue a fine if you overrun. Clearly as new arrivals we knew none of this, a different culture. She told us we had to pay the fine at the local police station, it took us a while to find it, Keef had a bit of a row with the Chief of Police claiming it wasn’t a great way to greet tourists, I had to pay about 200 Danish Krona £25. The police chief claimed it was the ferry’s responsibility to tell passengers of these rules, I told him they hadn’t and if I was him and they wanted the tourist economy he should use his position to influence them, anyhow his secretary told us we could get the clock disk from any petrol station so we did, now we know what to do we would not fall foul of that again. Anyhow despite this totally un-transparent process we had a nice morning, arrived at the campsite, locked, rang the number on the gate and the lady who lived nearby came and checked us in, and we got coins for showers and washing machines and hooked up overlooking the sea, a lovely view, and a nice site. Did some cooking, cleaning and washing and then relaxed for the rest of the day. Tuesday 14th May 2019 Had a shower, pretty good facilities, talked to some folk in tents in the very high winds today, so glad we have progressed to a motorhome at our age, breakfasted , had a look up at the traditional dwellings overlooking the site and the sea, and then headed back out of Torshavn centre along to where they are building the new hotels and turned right out of town. Initially we visited Kaldbaksfjordur, so many waterfalls on route which the drizzle helped to swell. Had a lovely look around, took some photos, so quiet so peaceful. Even the sheep were trying to get out of the rain and the road. Saw quite a few salmon farms in the fjord. We then decided today we would not use the 550 tunnel to get through the mountain which became a firm favourite in latter days and often essential. So we turned back into Torshavn at the opposite end and headed south west to Kirkjubour, the mist high up was so close to your nose, meaning you could hardle see anything, so glad I was going slowly as a Faroese guy pulled out right in front of me from a side road going so fast he could easily have hit me, he just didn’t see me, a lucky escape but quite shaking, so I drove even more slowly to Kirkjubour, luckily hardly any traffic. We parked near the bus station, basically the end of the line. Had a look around the grass thatched tourist house which doubled as a bus terminal. Then we walked up the road to the oldest inhabited house in the faroes, named Roykstovan. Free entry and very interesting it was, we then walked further up to the now derelict St Magnus ’s Cathedral, it had no roof but was under repair as a historic building, it was even true that the nearby domkirke (church) with fab views across to kirkjuboholmur island was also being repainted and repaired after a winter bashing so we couldn’t enter as workman were busy. What a lovely setting though really liked Kirkjubour. The stromo island mountains were still in mist as we made our way back to Torshavn, highway 54, so once again I took it easy and safely. From here we headed out to our campsite at Vestmanna, also on the island of Streymoy, 40 minutes back out of town on the 550 through the mountain and past Hoyvik (a place we would later come to love). The road to Vestmanna was so scenerific, we were stopping endlessly to take pictures. We went through Leynar and Kvivik on the 40 and around the fab bay between Valur and Vestmanna, holding the hydro electric plant on its mountain side, self-sustainability for the locals. The campsite was fine, interestingly with metal hoops concreted into the ground to tie vans and caravans down during high storms, not something I have come across before. The lady who ran the site was just lovely, a sea captains wife, he being away fishing off Greenland in a huge floating canning factory, you learn something new every day #tick Nice facilities, nice new showers and inside rooms Her English was great, we even broached the subject of the whale killing festivals and understood her culture but not the practice, she said dried whale meat was a treat for the Faroese people, we have seen images of the mass blood and culling during their festivals #notnice for us Brits. Had a very nice stay here, so much so we decided to return later on in the holiday. Wednesday 15th May 2019 Now as far as we can go on Stromo island in the west, had a leisurely breakfast then traversed our route back just past Leynar, which we stopped at for both the views and a look at the village or town if you prefer, then onto highway 40 to join the tunnel (vagartunnelin) across to the island of Vagar. You must pay your toll for the crossing in a petrol station which we did and kept the receipt, it was the price as well for the return journey. Vagar Island has the Faroes airport on it and quite a few Americans come over to trek. We decided we were going to see the whole of Vagar today and set off up to Gasadular in the northwest of the island. Initially we stopped at Sandvagur, parked up and walked to the church which like all Faroese churches was locked, sadly they have had a spate of thefts from churches on all islands, so it was a government directive. We walked over the bridge and had a look around some of the houses, all very interesting. Lots of school kids walking around. It was then back on the road past miovagur and all the way along the edge of sovagsvatn (vatn means lake in Faroese) , great views, then we joined the Buttercup route (road 452) just past sorvagur. This ran all the way along the edge of the sea inlet, fab sunshine and great views of the island of Tindholmur with its pointy rock side. Lots of pictures were taken. So much better weather today, how lucky were we. There were lots of waterfall and towards the end we got a glimpse of the small island of Glasholmur. We had to take the tunnel to emerge at Gasadular. What a place parked up and went for a walk down to see the cliff edge waterfall called mulafossur. We then came back through the island to have a look at the campsite we had proposed staying on Vagur, just awful, looked like camping on a garage forecourt so we decided to give that a miss and travelled back through various tunnels to Kaldbakfjord and this time took the coastal road down to Kaldbak to have a look at the ancient church and the village, all amazingly interesting and well worth the visit. We then returned to the site at Torshavn, rang the warden lady and booked in again for the night. It wasn’t very busy. We met an American couple who had returned on the ferry from Iceland but because of the cargo going to Hirtshal were told they couldn’t get their Motorhome off in Torshavn and had to wait for it to be returned on the next trip out, they were loaned a car and a caravan whilst in the Faroes. It was their honeymoon, I would have been furious with Symril line, just not acceptable. Thursday 16th May 2019 Up early for a shower, put our coins in it was freezing water, had to call the lady out, no recompense of money but an apology, these things happen, she got someone out to sort it. Whilst she was there I got her to sort the padlock on the chemical toilet disposal lid, it was still locked from winter which surprised me as meant no camper up to May had ever emptied their waste unless they did it down the loo, not good. Anyhow the warden couldn’t open it, so I struggled and eventually freed it, the lock had rusted in the inclement weather. So, it was a late start for us , we went back into Torshavn and had a look around the town, and walked up to the parliament buildings. Then it was back to the Torshavn campsite to relax, lovely views outside our campervan window. Friday 17th May 2019 Time to leave Torshavn again, it really doent take very long to get anywhere on the Faroes so as we liked the lady in Vestmanna so much we went back there this time taking the road over the top of the mountains rather than through the tunnel to the top of the west coast of Streymoy, Stromo island, just spectacular views from the top and clear enough, mostly, for us to take pictures. Wow! We settled into a slightly different pitch this time refilling our water which the campsite lady helped us with, what a lovely lady. We relaxed after another walk around Vestmanna, there being some craft shops on the harbour area and some lovely bridges and boats to look at, all in all a lovely day. Saturday 18th May 2019 Said our goodbyes to Mrs Campsite, sea captain’s wife, and returned as far through Streymoy as Oyrareingir and joined highway 10 heading northeast as far as you can go on Stromo. Why it is called both Stromo Island and Streymoy I’m not quite sure, maybe one is English the other Faroese, but who knows. We stopped at Hosvik to have a walk around the harbour, keef picked some wildflowers for annie to press in her book. Lovely yellows everywhere, no wonder it is called the buttercup route. At Hvalvik we turned off onto the single track road to Saksun where we parked up for a walk around, past the old museum with its grass roof and down to the church on the coast. A nice place, we then returned and carried on up the 10 to Haldarsvik where we stopped to see the sailor’s memorial and the town houses with goats and sheep kept on a cliff edge. The church was closed but as the vicar was there we asked if we could come in as from the UK, he said yes which was so kind, some lovely views through fascinating windows, then it was back in the van and onto the end of the road at tjornuvik a traditional fishing village, parked up with view of the rock stacks known as the giant and the witch we had some food then went for a lovely walk through the village where we came across a brit who had lived there for 14 years with his Faroese wife, she had wanted to retire their when they retired in Birmingham. He still had his accent, they sold pancakes to tourists. We walked all the way around and along the coast with vegetable plots that would have severe wind bashing. How did they ever grow anything I wondered? Then we left drove back down and across the bridge from Streymoy to the island of Eysturoy and all the way up roadway 62 to the town of eidi to our campsite for the night on a football field outside the town, its facilities were the changing rooms ok if you don’t mind a communal shower, haha, but keef did use the showers in the morning. We pitched just next to the goal posts, as it was a weekend it was quite busy. We went for a walk outside the site along both the lake and the coast looking for whales. An interesting place to stay, we saw the church as well. Bit breezy over night. Sunday 19th May 2019 Eysturoy Island, packed up from the football field, no water fill or chemical toilet disposal so filled all our water bottles in the changing rooms, very cold wind today whilst packing up blistering in off the sea, so grateful for my Icelandic hat and mittens. We left but not before hearing the whooper swans on the lake and having one more look, and photo opportunity, at eidi’s magnificent church, quite a population here and they had 2 campsites, wonder on reflection if the non-ASCI one would have been better, who knows. We then drove the 20 minutes initially to funningor , a little village off the main road and then onto the magnificent Gjogv (pronounced gee-oar-gee) where we camped for 2 nights. The road was very windy and steep with some very interesting inclines both up and down as it helped traverse the 882 metres high mountain called Slaettaratindur. Funningor village was off the main 662 and was clearly a tourist visit as we saw coaches, but the approach road was probably too narrow to get down to the car park, not for us, however. Parked up and had a lovely walk around the village, little bridges, livestock, river views, lot of old traditional dwellings, all very interesting, we really liked funningor. So, then we came back out of the village traversed our route back up the 662 and turned up to Gjogv up the 632. It is the highest point north in Eysturoy you can get to by road with fabulous views over to the island of Kalsoy which we visited later. Anyhow great site. You had to check in up at the huge hotel and gift shop. The motorhome park was out on the cliff edge a bit of a way away. All hard standing, reminded me of Sango Sands, Durness Scotland (see Blog 177) although not quite so windy. There was only us and our next-door neighbours who were Austrian. We found the key they had provided for us for the facilities block did not work, but as the kind Austrians were leaving they swapped keys with us. The site left the block open initially which meant 3 coach loads of tourists visiting the village trashed the place. We decided to lock it up after that just for our use once they had been cleaned, and very good they were, showers, loos, wash sinks all heated with flowers and perfumes and nice smelling soaps. Loved this site. Monday 20th May 2019 Keef cooked breakfast outside on the griddle and even sat out for a bit, blanket, hat, scarves and gloves reading, admiring Kalsoy views and watching our ferry the Symril line Noronna go past. After breakfast we went for a long walk around the village, all very green and peaty, trad houses, farming, bridges, old school houses and what remains of the old chain hauling system to get down to the very steep harbour bottom, a very nice walk and then back to the site to chill for the rest of the day, this area was probably our favourite in the Faroes although we do like the town of Torshavn, especially its old Faroese costumes shop. Tuesday 21st May 2019 Sadly, we had to leave our fab views and pitch 2 at Gjogv, we loved it here, so relaxing. Then we drove south through Eysturoy almost as far south as you could to our site for the night at Aeduvik. We travelled along the edge of the magnificent funningsfjordur inlet outside Gjogv, the road was flat surrounded by that unpronounceable mountain (Slaettaratindur) tee-hee. We stopped briefly at Skipanes for a photoshoot on the 662 especially the tulips, this was a halt we would get to know quite well in our time on the Faroes. We then joined road 10. Got some great views of skalafjordur inlet and then turned off past gotueidi onto road 70 stopping at sydrugota, gotugjogv and nordragota, all very interesting, on our way up to the larger town of fuglafjordur at the end of the road as far east as you can go on Eysturoy. At Nordrugota we had a good walk around the harbour, visited the blasatova heritage museum , but it was closed, would have been interesting , the sideways standing man artwork along a town square, this artist is famous throughout the Faroes. Can’t find his name though, Joannis something is memory serves me right. At Fuglafjordur we had lunch on the harbour area which also doubled as a campsite with electric hook up, if only we had know #camspites. Keef saw a giant jelly fish in the water. The long jetty had many pieces of rusted metal arches, done to look like whale bone arches, all very interesting. After this we returned back to highway 10 and down the skalafjordur with views across to Skala, which we would visit later, and onto Aeduvik. We had to ring for the guy to come and check us in, it was deserted. We did see the start of construction of a tunnel over to Streymoy we had seen the other end just outside Torshavn, what a difference this will make in travelling times when complete as it goes under the sea to link the 2 islands. The site had nice views was quiet and a great heated room, comfy chairs and big screen TV, after dinner we went to relax in their and watched Faroese TV a first, English subtitles helped ha-ha. Wednesday 22nd May 2019 Left Aeduvik on the 687 going past the current Faroes football stadium, lots of tributes to when they beat Austria in a world cup qualifier, and just outside town up in the hills and the mist was the remains of the old Viking parliament and settlement, very interesting to us descendants , then we retraced our route back to Gotueidi alongside the inlet, such fab views, and then through nororagota where we turned on to road 70 and parked up by the church at Leirvik. We walked backed to the best-preserved Viking settlement in the Faroes for a good look around. We then drove through the Nordoyatunnelin which connect the islands of Eysturoy and Bordoy. As the lady warden at Torshavn had told us that many of the tunnels on Bordoy and Kunoy were old and therefore very low ceilings we decided not to explore any further in these islands but stayed on Bordoy and went straight to the port town of Klaksvik, the largest town in all the northern islands. We had to wait in line for quite a while to get our ferry to the islands of Kalsoy, the one we could see across the water for our pitch in Gjogv. It was £44 for the ferry return, not bad for quite a lengthy journey on a small car ferry. So glad we went. We had pre booked our campsite on the island of Kalsoy in the tourist information office in Klaksvik and had to call in to see Olivia Dogg Friofinnsdottir, the lady I’d sorted all this out by email before our trip, what a helpful lady, we paid the 150 Danish Krona fee . So, we had instructions of where to go to. We arrived at Sydtadalur off the ferry and it started to rain, the mist making it a little tricky to see that well along the coast, Kalsoy being a very long thin island with only one road way really down its east coast. Stopped at Husar to let most of the locals ferry traffic past, us being tourists who want to travel at our own pace. We loved the remoteness of Kalsoy. We drove all the way north on Kalsoy , the road up to about Mikladalur was fine but then we entered 2 very lengthy badly lit lowish tunnels to get up to the top at Tollanes (subtitled the end of the world) ha-ha. Parked up with quite a few tourists and went for a nice and interesting walk around the village and across its huge village green populated by many sheep, and goats roaming free. We learnt that before the tunnel out to Trollanes was built in 2010 only 2 families lived out in this remote area as it was a 3 and half hour up over the mountain to get back to relative civilisation at Mikladalur, our views was the village was not civilisation either. After Trollanes we returned through the tunnel avoiding the school party with torches who were walking back through it with the teacher barking safety instructions, not great as so dimly lit inside the tunnel. At Mikladalur we pulled up near the statue of Kopakonan, the famed statue of a mermaid, the seal woman of Mikladalur. 007 Kalsoy is now famous for the place James Bond (Daniel Craig) dies in no time to die. We then went to the campsite which was actually in the car park for Kalsoy united , it had electric hook up, and the amenities building was wonderful. We filled up with water, the wind was strong and chilly however and our electric cable flapped against the edge of the van for most of the night. Glad we had stayed on the island however, a very interesting place but I suspect because of the James Bond connection will be so much busier after 2022. #spolieralert #notimetodie Return to Menu Thursday 23rd May 2019 Up early, had a shower, wonderful facilities, then drove back along the coast road early back to the ferry terminal, which was just a road queue, as we were catching the first ferry across there were not many people waiting. Got on and showed our ticket and then enjoyed the fabulous view of Kunoy on the Bordoy outcrop, on the ferry on the way back , it had a light dusting of snow even towards the end of May. The ferry journey only takes about 30 minutes. The next few days we were going to stay at the Fuglafjordur harbour campsite and continually return under the tunnel to see all of the outer northern islands but as the tunnel heights were dangerously close to the top of our van we sadly took the decision to return to the Torshavn campsite for 4 days , we were booked in for the last of those but I rang the lady warden who said it would be no problem as not very busy yet. So back in Klaksvik we had a good look around, quite an impressive town it is the Faroes 2nd city after Torshavn, then it was back across the tunnel from Bordoy to Eysturoy at Viking Leirvik, also a nice place. Once back at Skalafjordur near Skippanes we decided to drive the length of Skala fjord on the other side through Skala to the end at Strendur and then back, at the time the tunnels back to near Hosvik were not built but I’m sure they are now which would certainly cut down the journey. It was then back across the bridge to Streymoy, and we stopped for quite a while again at Hosvik harbour, a place we are very fond of. It’s on the buttercup route and is probably the place we have seen the most buttercups. Pulled up the van on the harbour and used the benches provided for lunch and reading in the sunshine, we watched folk repairing their boats and walked around eth old harbour boardwalk again. Just so relaxing. After hosvik we returned to the Torshavn campsite with our sea view for the remaining days on the Faroes. Friday 24th May 2019 Took the van into Torshavn centre and parked in the small car park where the ferry to Nolsoy goes, we watched it fill up and go before walking through town past the hotels and restaurants, we visited the oldest street, costume shop and community buildings, all very pleasant then it was back to the site for the afternoon to relax. Saturday 25th May 2019 Up early we set off again to the south west of the main island back to Kirkjubour, this time there was no fog so easy driving, where we joined the queue to get on the ferry to Sandoy island, without realising as it was a weekend and Sandoy was a favourite spot for the locals to go and they get travel priority , we realised there was a risk we could get there and not get back and our ferry onto Iceland was tomorrow, this was a risk we could not take, so decided to quit and get out of the queue. We then drove back to the Magnus Cathedral and pulled up for a relaxing time looking at the speed boats in Hesturfjordur and looking over to Hestur island. All very nice before we returned to the Torshavn site , a little disappointed that we did not get to sandoy but also relieved there was no chance of missing the Symril line. We went to bed early Sunday 26th May 2019 We just stayed in the site today and relaxed, lots of eats, chocolate and generally relaxing, thing we went for a little walk along the coast wall and saw the castle but nothing strenuous, we were moving on tomorrow. Monday 27th May 2019 We had to be at the ferry terminal 3 hours before it leaves for Iceland which was 2 p.m. We heard the ship coming in from Hirtshal to Torshavn in the early morning, so it was already in dock. No great rush had showers and breakfast, read for a bit, filled the van with water and did dump station duties. Then finally broke camp and joined down to the check in and had our papers and tickets checked then joined the boarding queue. Not that many vehicles were joining so the public queue was short but the cargo lorries one was very long. This is the main mode of product movement between Denmark, The Faroes and Iceland. We were both allowed to stay in the van to board this time, parked behind what seemed to be a fish container well the smell would indicate that, ensured all windows and doors locked, we took our overnight stuff and valuables up in the lift to the cabin. This time I think we were on floor 15 , one off the top. Settled in had a nice evening meal and then just one night’s sleep and we would be in Iceland, so looking forward to it, we loved the Faroes but maybe a week and a half would have been enough, however ferry crossing times would not have allowed that anyhow. So, onto the next stage of our fantastic journey. Tuesday 28th May 2019 We both slept we even if it was a little rocky. Up early packed and then went down for breakfast and very nice it was to. We were then called over the tannoy as the boat docked at 9 a.m. in Seydisfeyordur, Austerland, Iceland which borders both the Norwegian and Greenland seas. It is the most easterly town in Iceland. Get ready, your next adventure begins. #tick Here is a list of top towns by population in Iceland, we visited quite a few of them on our journey but tried to stay as remote in general as we could, it is what we like. We got off the boat amid flurries of snow. It was cold and I mean cold. We drove through the town to the campsite near the old church, we checked in and hooked up to electrics and immediately put the fire on, so grateful for Icelandic hat and gloves whilst setting up. We then went for a long walk around Seydisfjordur, around the lake, through the old streets, into the church, back to take pictures of the Norrona in port, and inside the ferry terminal for a warmup and pick up tourist brochures. We then visited a craft shop on the lake edge, all very interesting, back past the school, town hall and into the supermarket to buy a few things especially Skir youghort why wouldn’t you, note food prices are extremely high in Iceland, expect to pay for a basket of goods what you pay for a whole trolley back in the uK, but that is the nature of the beast. Wednesday 29th May 2019 It had snowed quite a bit overnight. Because of the snow and the more mountainous area in the north we decided to go around Iceland clockwise. This meant heading south first. Anyhow we bit the bullet and left to go up over the mountain, my most scary drive ever in the van, driving snow meant we could hardly see anything even with the wipers on their fastest, the road was so covered in snow you could not see it and on either side of the road, wherever that was, with no barriers or markers was frozen lakes #scary #frightening, I drove very slowly, we seemed to climb and climb on the highway 93 on what is known as the Seydisfjordur mountain pass , all 17 miles of it, past Heidarvatn at the top and onto Egilsstadir, the relief as we started to descend was palpable. We had made it. I’m sure the views were spectacular as we can attest to as we returned at the end of the holiday when the weather was so much better but on this day, we only stopped at one huge waterfall for a photo opportunity but otherwise it was just a case of get out and be thankful otherwise we could have spent quite a while hemmed in in Seydisfjordur. We visited the museum in Egilsstadir, very interesting, lots of cultural stuff and especially liked learing about moose and winter survival techniques. After a good look around this town and discovering its supermarkets and petrol station, we replenished the diesel just in case, we headed out on highway 1 (the main circular route around Iceland) through the fabulously scenerific mountain pass and valley to our favourite campsite in Iceland at Reydarfjordur (note I got the spelling wrong on my images) tee-hee, hardly surprising the difference between sound and spelling with some of the Icelandic names. We set up on the site on the only hard standing we could find in case of heavy snow, near the amenities block which was very good. Couldn’t work out how to pay until a lady came along in her car and knocked on the window. We now know as stayed here again at the end of the holiday. Its lake, river, waterfall, mountain views, ducks and clean air made it a pleasure to stay here. Thursday 30th May 2019 We left Reydarfjordur having had a good drive around the town and harbour area and headed east out around the fjord the 12-mile drive to Eskifjordur, on highway 92, stopping initially at the point at stromholmi at the tourist viewing point. Along the fjord edge there were masses of wild lupins growing making it just so colourful. We had to cross the bridge on the 950 to get into Eskifjordur past the swimming pool and onto have a look at the campsite there, not good, far too hilly and in fairness to close to last night’s site. Across the bridge is the Helgustadir Spar Mine. Having had a good look along the harbour front we returned and travelled under the tunnel on the Nordfjardarangong coming out in beautiful, lush green farming deep valley countryside full of livestock near Holar. We then drove all the way to the tip at Neskaupstadur on the 92. This only took a further 15 minutes. The tunnels in Iceland are a whole lot better than those on the Faroes. We then returned to Eskifjordur and back through Reydarfjordur heading south and turning back onto main highway 1 all the way down to where the river dalsa met the fjord. We briefly stopped in Faskruosfjordur at a craft shop where we talked to the very nice lady there who told us currently because of overfishing her husband’s boat was holed up in port so times were hard. However, she then told us in the next breath she was driving to Reykjavik and back the next day to do some clothes shopping. A 16-hour trip, what, she must be nuts, it would mean travelling at night which I guess she would be used to, but in the dark, moose elks and all, no way! After Faskrousfjordur where we also had lunch, and tried to visit the Aurora exhibition we had found out about at in the amenities block at Reydarfjordur, which was sadly closed, we went onto see the gardens of the rock lady at stoovarfjordur, the volcano (benign hopefully) , craft brewery and post office (shut) at breidodalsvik, had hoped to get fish and chips here we eventually pulled into Djupivogur a nice harbour, and the campsite behind the café on the harbours edge, it was quite a touristy area, but the site was ok for one night. The facilities weren’t great but we set up, had a tea and then went to the café for a lovely meal of fish and chips, and looked at the kiddies books, ha-ha. The curry batter on the fish was a very enjoyable novelty. It took 1 hour 30 minutes of driving from lunch to tea with a bit added on for photo opportunities obviously, ha-ha. Friday 31st May 2019 Packed up the van and had a quick look around the harbour area before driving our around the Djupivogur headland to see the eggin I gledvik egg sculpture display not far away, at gledivik or merry bay in English, truly amazing, we parked up and walked from one end to the other. So pleased to have seen this, found it on one of our many tourist brochures. Just classy when we consider they were hand ground by the artist and his crew. We then stopped at the waterfall between hnaukar and hvalnes for a view of the magnificent waterfall there, it also had a statue claiming to be the site of the birth of Christianity in Iceland. We then travelled across the longsvik grit bowl a weird gravel shelf that in fairness folk had lived on back in the day, but such poor farming land. The wind wiped up across it and to this day we still believe there are bits of grit buried in the window frames. We had been warned but had no choice, we stopped at an information board at one point where a young couple were trying to start their outdoor stove to cook on but really with no hope, the winds were far to strong and even if the flame did ignite it would sadly be pebble-dashed with grit. It took about a further hour and a half from here to the town of Hofn where we were staying for the night. We had lunch in one of the less windy areas along the way. As we approached Hofn we could see the Vatnajokull glacier in the distance, the largest glacier as far as I know in the world, and certainly in Iceland, its huge, going from south coast to almost the north one, sadly receding nowadays because of global warming. We went in the Hofn museum , very interesting, and had a nice walk along the harbour and saw all the ice-breaker ships. We even had a look at Hofn beach. The lady at the check-in office wouldn’t let us in before 3pm so we read in the van and then set up on our pitch, hard standing and grass with fab views, there were 2 Dutch couples in front of us who set up awnings attached to their small VW vans, not clever in those high winds, took them forever. We liked this site, it had nice surrounds and Keef went to explore and almost got blown off the cliff, tee-hee whilst taking pictures, still even if cold it was sunny, we liked Hofn a lot. Saturday 1st June 2019 At Hofn I looked at the speedo in the van and realised we had now driven 2000 miles and loved every moment of it. Just found out Vatnajokull is Europe’s largest glacier, that settles that then. We filled up with water at Hofn Camping before setting off along the south coast with fantastic views of both the sea and the Vatnajokull glacier. A truly wonderful drive of just over an hour and 50 miles to the Jokulsarlon area. We parked up in the free car park, wrapped up warm and set off for some fabulous views of blue icebergs, highlighted by the clear light. Initially it was teaming with tourists from the many coaches that stopped there. You could also do a boat trip around the sea water fjord to see the ice bergs close. We didn’t do that. After a while all the coaches left and apart from a few motorhomers we had all the views to ourselves. We took lots and lots of pictures not having seen this since St Andrews in Newfoundland Canada in 2010 at iceberg alley, just a wonderful site, we even saw bits break off and float out to sea. Duck tours had finished for the morning session, tee-hee. We stopped at the memorial at hjallanes on route to Jokulsarlon. We then drove a further 2 hours 20 minutes along the south coast moving into the south region from what was officially the eastern area of Iceland arriving at Campsite Vik at about 3.30 p.m. We saw Skatafell on route and some great scenery, lakes mountains and rocks carved by glacier movement. A big campsite with limited electrical hook up but we found one. It had reasonable facilities in a long block at the end of the site. The strange, shaped office and cooking area was full of back packers so we decided to cook in the van. It had been a long journey today so we read, relaxed and went to bed early. We will have a look around Vik tomorrow. Have a look at the slideshow of images of this fascinating section of our journey. Sunday 2nd June 2019 Up early, had to do one thing at a time, electricity wise this morning as very low amps on the electricity. So, it was kettle, then hot water, then heating, as more than one outley and the trip switch flipped and Keef was forever outside resetting the electrics, not great, indeed the worst we had come across on our travels so far, reminded us of our French trip in the van in 2014 ( Blog 71 ). We noticed at the site that people were arriving and using the showers and then driving off, all for free as Camping Vik had no barriers or look out plus we saw one family obviously driving go Reykjavik who had the son laying down in the back of their low level van, totally illegal, who all popped in for a shower then popped off, as it was so busy us paying customers didn’t bother, grrr. We then drove out of the campsite at Camping Vik up to the church and had a walk around taking in the magnificent views of the nearby Katla geopark. We also visited the village and the weird Britannia type sculpture outside the main Vik hotel on Austervagur. We then drove the short 15-minute trip off the main Highway 1 down to Reynisfjara beach which was part of the Katla (active volcano) geopark. This beach is noted as the most dangerous in Iceland because of the freak sneaker waves. We parked in the rough carpark and walked down past the café onto the mostly black sand beach, with views of the rock stacks just off the coast called the Trolls fingers (Reynisdranger) we also saw the cave and basalt fingers collectively known as Dyrholaos and what looked much like London bridge that we saw on the Great Ocean road in Victoria Australia in both 2008 and 2017 or Durdle door in Dorset in the UK, on Iceland their equivalent is called Dyrholeay. A very interesting beach, as always there were a whole bunch of young tourists right on the beach edge foolishly tempting the freak waves despite the explicit warnings #fools The board showed the most recent deaths, a Chinese man and an American woman who had already visited 5 times. From Reynisfjara we returned to the main highway and continued on clockwise past the incredible volcanic terrain of Katla’s geopark, with its larva rock covered over by a thin green clear air growth that remined us of oakmoss, just not sure what it really was. From here it was a 35-minute drive to the town of Skogar in Sudhurland (or south land) and the magnificent waterfall called Skogarfoss, just breath-taking, see the images. From here we drove onto hvolsvollur where we had lunch in the larva centre carpark before paying to visit a very interesting museum where we learnt about Iceland's volcanic background, indeed its heritage was to rise out of the sea as the result of an undersea eruption. It still has many active volcanos, witness the one that bought much of the worlds air flights in 2010 to a halt called Eyjafjallajokull . The museum had sights, sounds, shaky replicas to make you feel you were there and facts galore, we learnt a lot. Heads full and buzzing we travelled onto our campsite for the night at Stokkseyri, limited but perfectly adequate facilities and a real bonus Icelandic ponies just behind our pitch, the area was quite flat after what we have travelled through on the south coast. The sunset was fab. Monday 3rd June 2019 We left our campsite at Stokkseyri initially visiting the nearby coast and walking around the small village and harbour wall area. Then today was a true tourist day, we drove the 2 hours plus initially along highway 1 turning just past Heidarbaer onto highway 30 to do the 190-ish miles of the Golden circle , views of ingolfsfjall initially, then stopping at haukadalur in the huge tourist car park there and walking across with the other millions to see the geothermal hot water area with its bubble and trouble. We watched the main water explosions of Strokkur and Geysir and we then drove onto Gulfoss and walked up to see the amazing waterfall there, quite spectacular. We then turned back down through the Golden circle via miodalur near the apavatn lake via the very weird but huge pingvallavatn down to selfoss , and the along the hugely geothermal rocky volcanic south coast where many of the active volcanos still exude their fire every now and then, hopefully not when we were around, through porklakshofn stopping at the stamper crater which was amazing as was the road surface, just so bumpy, this is where we believe we lost our front mud guard / wheel cover. Anyhow it was then on to the fabulous Grindavik area which we truly rated #recommended and finally onto our campsite for the night up on the coast at Sandgerdi. It was a very long drive today but hugely satisfying in terms of all we had seen, loved it all, amazing waterfalls, lakes, and volcanic scenery, just spectacular. Thank you, southwest Iceland. We have to say that in a way the Golden Circle even though hugely touristy is the least interesting part of our trip so far, is that sacrilege? We went past the famous Blue Lagoon which wasn’t open. Have a look at the slideshow of images of this fascinating section of our journey. The campsite at Sandgerdi caused us no end of electrics fun, we just could not get the ones we were on to work, so we moved and couldn’t get that to work either, spoke to a very nice lady married to an Englishman who said in general the electrics on this site were dodgy but she told us one point shared with her’s that did work, she had tried it, so we plugged in there , yippee success, we had wasted ages on this. When the attendant came for his money we complained, he said he knew about it and were in the process of fixing, sometime never, as long as he had his dosh he didn’t seem overly concerned #notgood Tuesday 4th June 2019 Packed up and left Sandgerdi early and visited Keflavik airport where we had landed in transit on our Canada trip back in 2010, parked up and had a bit of a look around, didn’t stay long as thought we may get charged for parking, skinflints that we are, tee-hee. It took 1 hour about 38 miles into Reykjavik from the campsite. The trucknav helped us navigate our way around Iceland’s capital to the campsite, a large, gravel site laid out in long rows to accommodate a very large number of caravans / motorhomes. We chose one right at the back with grass at the back facing the National Sports Stadium and pool complex at Sundlaugavegur 32. We checked in at 1 p.m. had a look around the facilities, filled up with water then went outside the gate where the Hop On Hop Off Bus (HOHO) stopped. We bought a 2-day ticket and proceeded to do our usual complete rooue around back to the site to get our barings. Second time around on this 1st day in Reykjavik we got off at the opera house whilst it was waiting to do its circuit and took photos of the lovely harbour area, the opera house and Videy island in the bay on which Yoko Ono had built a memorial to John Lennon, called the Imagine Peace Tower . Indeed, there are so many tributes now to JL on our travels i.e. Durness, Scotland ( Blog 177 ) we may have to adopt him as well as James Cook (JC) as out travel hero. We rejoined the bus and returned to the campsite, knowing the sort of places we wished to get off and explore tomorrow with our HOHO bus pass. Here is a write up about the Durness stuff , indeed In My Life off rubber soul which he wrote was inspired by childhood stays at the croft in Durness. We thought the campsite was very expensive for what you get but I suppose it was the capital of a very expensive country so probably to be expected. Wednesday 5th June 2019 Got on the bus again outside campsite and got off at stop 2 to walk around the old harbour area including see there was a brewery tour, which sadly we did not do, but we did see the maritime museum and the various boats in the harbour, including the very old dry dock Gullborg and ice breakers a plenty. We loved walking around this area including the old warehouses converted to craft shops, amazing murals, chain bikes, so clever, plus old trad buildings in bright colours looking out onto Kollafjordur, there was even a Greenpeace boat in harbour, we had last seen one in Auckland harbour back in 2007. We then walked back towards the Art Gallery and Craft market, sadly both were closed but we peered through the glass to get a feel of what we were missing. Opposite the Kollaport market was a permanent heritage display with boards about Reykjavik’s maritime history, all very interesting especially the Viking and Scottish links, we then walked into the centre of the city restaurant area, some very disturbingly strange menus i.e., puffin & whale, not to our taste but respect their culture. The area even had an old steam railway engine on display. We then re-joined the bus and got off at the Tjornin stop walked around the lake, called in at the council building to find a doctor’s for Keef’s incessant cough which we would do later, we went to the Hard Rock Café nearby for a chocolate milkshake and then walked back to the doctor’s surgery, had to wait a while and pay about £30 for an appointment but got anti-biotics prescribed which eventually cleared it up, Annie would get it later, read on (Isafjordur hospital). After the surgery we caught the bus back around to the Opera house from the nearest HOHO bus stop, this bus was the last of the day, so we had to catch an ordinary bus back to the stadium which we managed without much trouble. Like Reykjavik, it has a nice feel. Thursday 6th June 2019 Left the campsite and had to visit the dump station down near the cruise ship terminal, ha-ha what a welcome for the tourist to watch Keef emptying our waste, class eh? Then after refueling we left Reykjavik and headed north, stopping at the far end of Hvalfjordur in the sunshine for lunch overlooking a mass of lupins in flower. After this we carried on to our campsite at Varmaland now in West Iceland. We called in at Leira where there was a campsite which we didn’t rate and was busy with folk in the thermal swimming pool next door. The total journey was about 60 miles on highway 1 over the long hvalfjardagong bridge across open water, very interesting, great engineering. We called in at Borganes on route for a few provisions and to look at a craft shop, just too expensive. The Varmaland campsite was basically an open field and quite lumpy at that , we found the best bit we could , and laid the cable across the muddy track to one of the few electric hook up. No way to pay we eventually were able to when a young lad (presumably) the farmer’s son arrived in a car and knocked on our door, luckily we had cash as they don’t generally accept card in these remote places. Friday 7th June 2019 We left the Varmaland camping site, Vesterlund 311 and headed back to Borganes turning as we got towards the town onto the exquisite highway 54 with just such fab views eventually along the Denmark straits. We stopped at the viewing point just past Hjardaharfell after it had turned into highway 56, where we got out and had a walk over some of the open volcanic landscape with Hraunsfjardarvatn views in the background, what a spot, just magical, took loads of pictures. Many people had stopped here to walk right down to the lake, we didn’t. We then carried on the 56 turning back onto the 54 then the 58 into the historic fishing port at Stykkishholmur at the end of the Borgerland peninsular. Loved the village , walked around the harbour, talked to the fishermen landing huge catches of lumpfish, famed for its red caviar. The views of Landey island in the background were fab, we listened to music from folk performing in front of the fancy sheep van. We walked around the heritage area and museums then we left the harbour car park and drove up to the church high on the hill, a very modern building, great photo opportunity. We then left to travel into the snaefellsnes national park area, such scenery. We went anti clockwise around the highway 54, some of the best scenery so far, with the snow covered Snaefall mountain in the centre of our road loop which hugged the coast. The north coast views were the Denmark Straits.We visited Grundarfjordur then headed around to our campsite at Tradir camping near budir . We visited olafsvik harbour and the lighthouse at rif and the tourist info office at rif, which was busy. The site had a nice café area. I got us coins for the shower, sadly some parents had allowed their child to totally flood the shower and when I put my coins in there was no hot water. I lost it Keef with terets, I stormed into the office wet and cold and let them have both barrels, they accepted there was something wrong with the boiler, and let me use the lovely shower for free in the hotel area, wonderful, I also negotiated the same for Annie, the views at the site were great but there was a lot of distance to walk. If you want to see more images click here , thanks Saturday 8th June 2019 Left Tradir campsite after taking a look around again at the sea and the beach. Such a nice area, not the best site as the amenities (before the Terets) were poor and nowhere near enough if the site was full. The café looked nice though as an added facility. Here is a little summary of Budir which sums up the area well. Búðir is a small hamlet in Búðahraun lava fields in Staðarsveit, which is in the western region of Iceland, on the westernmost tip of the Snaefellsnes peninsula where Hraunhafnará falls to the sea, the original old name of Búðir having been Hraunhöfn. I filled up with water before leaving then we set off back across on Highway 54 to Borganes, stopped here again and got some provisions before using the main A1 route north stopping again at Bifrost for a rest almost 2 hours into the journey and had a look at what seem to be the deserted lava hotal there. We then turned off the A1 near Klettsia onto the magnificent high 60 up across the mountains heading north, spectacular views on this road all the way up to alfheimer where it merged with the 54. Despite the signs luckily at this time of year you didn’t need snow chains, can’t imagine taking the van up over this road in winter, it would be so scary. We stopped at Laugar a very small village off highway 60 which had both a hotel and a geo thermal pool, the campsite was very bumpy and lumpy and the facilities were not yet open, we found the best compromise site we could to be level and put the ramps on. As time passed a few more motorhomes pulled up but it was very sparse. Eventually the girls arrived to open and clean the facilities, presumably from the hotel. They collected our fees. We can safely say this is the worst campsite in Iceland that we stayed at. If memory serve me right it was off highway 60 to the right, may even have been a little way up the 61, can’t remember. Sunday 9th June 2019 Called in at Reykholar on route today and discovered a campsite we will use later. Today I convinced Annie to go off road, we headed west on 17 miles of gravel road to Flokalundur around the fabulous twists and turns, mountain climbs and bridges , it took and age and shook just about everything in the van, we only did about 20 mph, once we reached the campsite we decided that we could go no further on this road, had hoped to use the gravel road to go all the way around the peninsular but chickened out. The fire had come off the wall and needed refixing. The campsite was nice with lovely views of the coast, we parked up, hooked up, went for a little walk then relaxed after what had been quite a harrowing drive, realising we had to go back over it tomorrow, reflecting on Chris’s flat tyre in NZ back in 2017 we were going to be mega careful, just cannot afford a flat tyre this far out in remote Iceland. Indeed, we didn’t see that many other vehicles on the whole journey and the ones we did we stopped for in essence in passing places on a single-track gravel road. Monday 10th June 2019 We then left the campsite at Flokalundar and travelled very slowly back along the gravel road with the Denmark straits on our right, yet again majestic scenery and all bathed in glorious sunshine. Once off the gravel track and back on tarmac on highway 60 we turned south past Bjardarvatn lake on the 607 down to the town of Reykholar, this road took us along superb coastal scenery again, with so many inlets on the Denmark Straits with lots of salmon farms our in the clear waters, when the tide was out there were lots of rock pools. We filled up at the fuel station at the entry to the town of Reykholar, diesel is expensive this far out, but you just must do it. We then drove through the town across the many coastal rock bridges to the harbour where there was a herring canning factory, some yummy smells NOT! The local green dredger ship was in the harbour used to pick up the mass of strangling green weed but also the lovely nutrient used for gardening, seaweed which was plentiful. After that we returned through the village to the campsite alongside the road opposite the church. It was on a lovely farmers field. We hooked up along the fence edge in the flattest bit we could find although in general it was mostly flat. The sun was out, the facilities were good. The lady in the office who had seen us arrive provided a hose through the wall so we could get water in the tank. She filled the hot tubs for us as well with sea water. We got changed in the massive changing room / shower block and had a lovely time in the hot tub using the facilities to shower and change on the way out. Just so relaxing sitting in it looking out on the mountain ledge surrounding the valley, all green and sparkly in the sun. This campsite is one of our favourites and the lady farmer was so helpful, so much so that we returned to it again later in the holiday. We had a bit of a walk afterwards down to the old houses and playpark with an old heritage wood. We had our meal outside tonight on the table and chairs as so mild and sunny, just blissful. Tuesday 11th June 2019 A long drive today so we set off early leaving the lovely site at Reykholar , we will be back, and travelling on the highway 61 past the turning for Husavik, which we will return to later and along the Greenland Sea on our right. I was a magnificent 3-and-a-half-hour journey which we loved every moment of, seeing fosses (rivers) a plenty, snow melts and frozen lakes on the mountain tops. This area is called the western fjords and in our humble opinion is the best scenery in the whole of Iceland and let me tell you there is a lot to choose from. We stopped at Reykjanes just off the highway as needed diesel. It was a very odd pump system which took a credit card, eventually ha-ha, but not funny at the time, quite frustrating. Whilst here we had a quick look around , there were tourist coaches parked up outside what seemed to be a somewhat run-down hotel whose real attribute was a geothermal full sized Olympic swimming pool outside. We circled mojifjordur and skotufjordur and then stopped at the heritage house in Litibaer, from here we walked down the country path to the waters edge, the town folk had kindly left a pair of binoculars, very powerful ones, to allow visitors to see the seal colony on the outer rock crop. Another family in front of us had borrowed them but passed them onto us and we saw the seals, just lovely, so like seeing wildlife in their natural habitat. We then went on around the fjords stopping to look at some spectacular waterfalls, emboldened by the melting snows from above, and next stopped at Sudavik where there was an arctic fox centre, not really the right season for us. The mountains here are breathtakingly high and sadly they had an avalanche in the village not that long ago #scary Sudavik has an active volcano as well. After Sudavik we carried on into the city of Isafjordur and as we approached, we saw a cruise liner just coming into port. We had a quick drive around the city to get our barings, quite a big place, lots of supermarkets and fuel stations. The campsite was just off the main road up by the waterfall surrounded by lovely lupins in flower. The site had a river running through it off the waterfall and was landscaped on various levels. We chose an upper one with close views of the waterfall. The facilities were at the other end f the site in the valley but very good. We were staying in Isafjordur for 3 nights which was a very good choice. See the images Wednesday 12th June 2019 Annie had the same bronchitis I had so we visited the cities hospital and waited until she was seen by a doctor who prescribed anti-biotics , they were all very pleasant and helpful, the consultation cost about £25 and the pills themselves a further £30 so at Iceland prices a bargain. After this we went back into the harbourside area parked up and had a good look around. A very interesting city. We then drove out to Boulungavik and Flateyri through a myriad of tunnels the first we have seen and been under with a traffic intersection in to cope with conjoined tunnels, all seemed to work very well. Both these places were interesting but especially Flateyri with its fish drying racks on the outskirts and the book museum in the high street which we walked around as well as the harbour. The guy in braces in the bookstore museum was a 3rd generation family member and showed us around the home, just so interesting. We bought some cards and took lots of pictures. A very nice day, back to the site to eat and relax, walked around the site down to the amenities block to fill up our water bottles, sat outside for quite a while catching the sun’s rays. Thursday 13th June 2019 A campsite day today, washing, reading and eating outside and getting sunburnt in Iceland, now just how good is that it was a surprisingly hot and sunny day. Not much else to report today. Friday 14th June 2019 Packed up and drove up to the entrance on the upper road for the campsite, where the motorhome service station was, after 3 days the water tank was empty, and we needed do dunny man. The site is called the Tunguladur. So refilled with water and a clean blue loo we went to the supermarket on the way out of town, wow those chiller tents where they keep the meats etc are cold, tee-hee. We also filled up with diesel before setting off again. We drove back along the 61 through Sudavik and all the other twists and turns up and back down fjord after fjord off the Greenland Sea overlooking the island of Vigur which still had a dusting of snow on it. There are 4 long fjords on this journey, but we loved all of them, such scenery, the best. Stopped at Amernes point for a while to take in the views. We then drove across the Greenland Sea over the 2 islands of Hrutey via the road bridge, a stunning construction. Stopped again seals and binoculars. Finally arrived at our campsite in Drangsnes overlooking the island of Grimsey late afternoon, big grass field site, we were the first on it, small amenities block but perfectly adequate. Set up and had a cuppa. A few others arroved later in the day. All tourists from other countries. The total journey from Isafjordur to Drangsnes was about 150 miles but took well over 4 hours with some of the roads around the fjords, but I am not complaining, spectacular stuff, it’s what Iceland is all about, I don’t really get this feel anywhere else in the world apart from maybe New Zealand. Saturday 15th June 2019 Left the site at Drangsnes and had a good look at the town along the foreshaw, lots of holiday cottages, but a lovely old school house and church, there were 3 hot spring pools along the front for general use, as we had come into the town yesterday we had seen those along with endless plumes of steam emitting from the waters edge, this was quite a lively active volcanic area hence the public baths for all to use. Keef went over for a closer look, sadly one of them had so much gunge in it you would never want to use it. As it was blowing a hooley decided not to try even the perfectly OK ones. We then left Drangsnes and headed back out around the fjord to join the 61 through Holmavik and stopping in Husavik, which is the whale tour capital , we went down to the harbour and around the church and old town areas, a very interesting place , we will be back. We carried on to Hvammstangi our campsite for the night parking up on the flattest bit of grass land not too far away from the limited number electric points, so our long cable stretched. The field backed onto the heritage church with its picket fence, after setting up and having our usual cuppa we went for a walk to have a look at the church, all very interesting. Quite liked the area and the sunsets were just wonderful, had tea, relaxed and went to bed. Sunday 16th June 2019 Left the site at Hvammstangi after breakfast and disconnecting. Drove the short distance to the town and its harbour where we parked up and had a good look around. A very interesting place with both the seal centre and palmason house, a traditional style trader dwelling and fish house with dried fish hanging out on the wooden construction we had seen often as we did on the road to Flateyri, but this time close so we could examine the drying process, all fascinating. After a good look around, we drove onto Blonduos about an hour further north with views of hunavatn on our left, until that is the fog set in off the sea and we could hardly see anything. We refuelled here and then parked up in the old town and did a walk around what is the heritage walk with information cards in front of the old houses and church, a very interesting place. We then drove a further 30 minutes up the skaginn peninsular to the seaside town of skagastrond and from there across the peninsular on the 744 to Saudarkrokur with its giant horse statue, not impressed with this place if we are honest, saw the campsite there which looked to be on the back of some industrial works. Anyhow we moved onto Hofsos around the next bay and up the next peninsular as the 744 turned into highway 75. This took a further 40 minutes. At Hofsos we stopped for a good look around the old harbour area with its sea bridge and fishing houses in old dark weatherboard, a fascinating place and then drove back out to a layby just outside the main town with fab sea views where we parked up for lunch, the area was quite touristy with lots of coaches. We had seen quite a lot today already, loved every moment of it. After lunch we drove onto the fabulous Siglufjordur which would be our home for the next to days. Surrounded by mountains still with snow and lupins on them to create colour. The site was in the harbour and very busy but small with good facilities which sadly were also shared with tourists. It took an hour on the scenerific highway 76 to get to Siglufjordur from Hofsos. Parked up and set up we walked to the local supermarket and had a walk around the town gardens and shops. Asked a guy at a fish store about fish and chips but he said they only supplied wet fish to shops, not cooked it, shame, still we returned to the van to eat and take in the truly tremendous views, we absolutely loved Siglufjordur. A huge tick. Monday 17th June 2019 The day started off sunny we had a lovely walk around the harbour area after breakfast and a nice shower in the amenities. Today was Iceland’s public holiday and the pub at the front of the pier thronged with Icelanders making merry. So like Siglufjordur, the views, the harbour, the long trad wood building that doubled as a restaurant and the carved wood characters on benches outside. We even got to look close at many of the fishing boats in harbour. Opposite the site across the bay was a posh hotel and holiday lets, this is a popular place with both home grown and foreign tourists, so glad we had a pitch in what is a small but compact nice central site, great for walking anywhere #recommended Saw lots of hire vans where you raise the roof and sleep up top, a little chilly we would have thought in this mountainous area. The day sadly turned to mist and murk later in the day with endless drizzle which was such a shame. Tuesday 18th June 2019 It rained most of the night. Had finally stopped after breakfast so we packed up quick and said our fond farewells to Siglufjordur one of our fave places in Iceland along with Isafjordur but there were many. We headed out around the lake on the 76 to Olafsfjordur about 20 minutes away a quaint touristy town then onto dalvik on the 82 with views out across to the island of Hrisey. All the area around here and the river (or fosse) frindland svarfadardalur was green and lush mostly with a sea of blue lupins. From here it was onto the second city of Iceland and the 1st of the north Akureyri another 45 minutes away at the head of the sea fjord. We parked up on gravel in the harbour area, took some photos of cruise ships and then used the boardwalk to come back into what was the old town hall or Hof and now a shopping area with theatre , cinema, and museum, all very interesting. It was blisteringly cold with winds whipping in off the sea. We then came out and attempted to walk along the preserved heritage fishing industry high street with its information boards and old buildings, quite a history lesson we both remember well. We then drove the short distance to the oddeyri district of Akureyri, where we parked up and walked around the old heritage buildings and cultural museum and church, the nonnahus is famous, nonna being a celebrated Icelander. We then drove up the mountains to see akureyri from above, great views back down to the harbour, we decided we much preferred akureyri to Reykjavik. We now left and out through the tunnel 30 minutes’ drive to the spectacular waterfalls at Godafoss, almost as good as Niagara in our humble opinion. We then headed north on the 845 to our campsite for the night at Heidarbaer, it is also subtitled the Husavik Highway no 85. A very thermal area, crops grown in greenhouses heated by the steam of hot springs, we had a little drive around. The campsite was grass and muddy at that with only a few electric hookups but we got one. The pool at the site was thermal waters and basically too hot to swim in. Wednesday 19th June 2019 - Arctic Circle Packed up from the site , it was raining so not much fun, and headed off back up the Husavik Highway no 85 to initially Husavik then onto the Vatnajokull National Park at Asbyrgi. It is fascinating to think that the national park stretched from the south to almost the north coast of Iceland, just amazing. We stopped in Husavik for a good long look around, parking initially in the supermarket car park on the coastal road then driving around the town centre, many hotels for tourists doing whale watching, plus a fab old church we had come across before. It took an hour driving to get to the national park. At Asbyrgi we parked up and had a educational visit at the visitors centre learning once again about volcanoes (Krafla in particular) but more importantly about Vatnajokull, Europe’s largest glacier by far. So much of Iceland is covered by it, but sadly because of global warming it to is beginning to shrink. After the visitor’s centre, we drove through the park a bit to see what Krafla had done to the landscape after it last exploded, amazing lava crater and valley edges, such weird rock formations now very verdant with grass and wildflowers, especially lupins a true feature of our Icelandic travels. We then carried on for another hour on the 85 initially north along the Greenland Sea but turning sharply right just past the Prestholalon lake and across the most northerly peninsular in Iceland to Ruafarhofn the most northerly town in Iceland. We were determined to get into the arctic circle which wasn’t that much further north so we travelled out on its gravel road past the lava works park or arctic henge with its copy of Wiltshire’s finest (Stonehenge), a tourist attraction under construction, but one had to wonder how many people would travel this far north to it. Anyhow we did make it officially to the arctic circle, pulled up and took lots of photos as memorabilia #arcticcircle #fame #achievment #tick After this we returned down the gravel roads into Ruafarhofn again. This whole place including its hotels and harbour were very run down. It had a feel of a utilitarian Russian hovel. Sorry, that was rude wasn’t it but accurate. The old church plus the campsite were potentially the only redeeming factors. The rest could do with a big dose of TLC (tender loving care) #fact We were initially the only people at the campsite and could not work out where to pay. Someone as is normal in Iceland came to collect our fees, we showed our Iceland Camping card which if you haven’t got one, I would suggest is essential. Our campsite had a lake just over the hill surrounding the site, presumably protection against flooding. I climbed up for a walk and a look at pistilfjordur. After tea we bedded down for the night, amenities block was fine and one other lot of campers joined us, they asked for help with their van the next morning, can’t remember what it was about but we helped get it sorted, something to do with their water I think. #proof #arcticcircle Thursday 20th June 2019 - Wild Arctic Way We left the Arctic circle this morning returning on the 874 out of Ruafarhofn and turning east onto the 85, also known as the wild arctic way (similar to the wild Atlantic way we saw on our trip to Eire Blog 129 in 2018) taking that road over the hofaskard stopping at the viewing point at the top, just spectacular views from here looking down and around, still unmelted snow everywhere and almost the end of June shows how this this is. The Greenland Sea was easily visible from here. It took about an hour into the port town of Porshofn where we saw school parties doing roadside clearance and gardening for all, very good stuff, community spirited. Porshofn is a big fishing community, the church was lovely and the harbour activity, views and information boards. #fabroutes #4000miles We then travelled back all the way along the wild arctic way back to the west coast of this most northerly peninsular and then as we hit the coast turned right to travel north up to Kopasker, here we could look out amongst the lupins at Viknafjoll’s snow covered tops. From Kopasker it was an hour’s trip back to Husavik where we parked up on the outskirts high up and watched the whale watching boats leave harbour, we had lunch here as the sun shone on the opposing peninsulars mountains, just blissful, do like Husavik and surrounds. From here after lunch it was back once again to the site at Heidarbaer, this time we patked in the front field and ran our cable through the woods to the few electric points that they have, we made sure we arrived before the masses came to get one and had learnt our lesson from last time about the muddy field behind. We met a nice german guy also camped around the front with the most massive motorhome, pop outs and a small car parked up a ramp at the back in its hind garage. The next morning, we watched and filmed him using the pulley system to get the car up the ramps back into the garage, what a palaver. I looked at the speedo, today we had done 4000 miles on the clock on this trip. Friday 21st June 2019 Some Icelandic for you, husbilar = motorhome, tjaldstaedi = tents, hjolhysi = caravan, fluent, eh? NOT! We left Haeidarbaer and travelled onto the Myvatn lakes area and travelled all the way around them. Once around the lake we pulled into the car park in front of the visitor’s centre and had a good look around it and learnt loads. A volcanic crater lake, views fab, the downside was the number of pesky black fly. After Myvatn we carried onto the truly wonderful Krafla volcanic lava fields area off highway 863. This is a hugely touristy area as it is an active volcanic area, boardwalks provided , steam, colour in lakes , it so reminded as of the artist palette thermal area near Rotorua in North Island New Zealand, click here to see. On route from Myvatn lakes as we climbed the mountains we stopped at Reykjahlid to see the sulpurous lake, bubbling and smelling just like stink bombs of your youth. We climbed that mountain above it and stopped at the viewing spot, amazing views all around. Then it was onto Nammafjall. After a good look around the lava fields we said goodbye to Nammafjall got back on the road and turned off back up to the edge of the Vatnajokull National park on the 862 and stopped in the car park for Dettifloss. We walked a bit across lava fields probably about a mile and a half to the waterfall, spectacular views. We then returned to highway 1 and turned off down a long gravel road taking it slowly to the farm campsite we were to stay at that night, called modrudalur farm , the highest campsite in Iceland. What a lovely yet quirky place, clearly a tourist mecca, we were greeted with goats at the site office chewing their way through campers back packs, hilarious. Checked in, it was both a restaurant, shop and café as well as the campsite office, all very helpful. Found ourselves a level pitch , parked up , had a cuppa and then went off for a bit of a walk. This road is closed in winter, snowed in obviously as so high up. Saturday 22nd – Tuesday 25th June 2019 Left the farm campsite, nice weather, travelled slowly up the gravel track avoiding the coaches travelling too fast and spraying grit and stones onto my window screen, don’t need it broken. Rejoined highway 1 and travelled back to Egilsstadir in just over the hour stopping on route to have a look at the river from a picnic viewing spot, sadly graffiti has even made it to Iceland. In Egilsstadir we filled up with diesel , went shopping in the supermarket buying some gifties for family and friends, and went again to have a look at the campsite we had looked at on day 2 of our Icelandic adventures, we decided it was not for us, and took the decision to return to the lovely campsite at Reydisfjordur so we travelled back through the magnificent valley cut by glaciers , eyvindardalur, to get there, river , huts and viewing points for photo opportunities, we stayed for 4 nights relaxing and going for walks into town and along the harbour, just so pleasant there and hugely relaxing. Parked up in the same spot as we had before and paid the lady for 4 nights when she came around in the evening. We walked around the lake, saw lupins, waterfalls, newly born chicks, info boards, bought some stuff at the local garage and just generally lapped up the good weather, suntans all round. Wednesday 26th June 2019 Did dunny man, filled up with water. Left our lovely home for the last 4 days at Reydisfjordur and travelled back through the spectacular valley to Egilsstadir and then back to the Seydisfjordur campsite we had started at as we arrived on the ferry in Iceland, what a whole different day and a month’s advance of weather makes, the views up over the mountain tops on the fabulous highway 93, the Seydisfjordur mountain pass, were breath taking, we stopped at Heidervatn, which we couldn’t even see last time for a photo shoot. There was still snow on the mountains and iced lakes on either side of the road but you could see them all, we stopped at the Gufufoss waterfall for a good look around and took some pictures. Wonderful and warmish. We went through the village of bjolfsvirkjun as we descended once more into Seydisfjordur. Went to the campsite which was already hugely busy, the ferry was in, and everyone was obviously either there to catch it tomorrow or had just arrived on it, we got one of the last electric hook-ups cramped in between two vans close on either side, if fire regulations were an issue this would have been forbidden. Anyhow once set up we went for a lovely long walk around Seydisfjordur in the sunshine, what a nice place it is. Even saw the gardens. There was also a cruise ship in the harbour, so the place was full of American tourists. After a fab walk, a visit to the shop for more Skyr and chocolate we came back to the van for a meal. Early to bed as an early start joining the ferry queue 3 hours before departure. The van next to us had diesel heating so quite noisy all night, I did ask him what it was the next day as not come across this before, I know now, the disadvantage is its shared with your driving fuel obviously so if you are travelling long distances in remote areas it is an issue. Thursday 27th June 2019 Up early packed and joined the MS Norrona boarding queue at 7.30 a.m. Boy it was busy, way more so than when we came across from the Faroes. When they collected our ticket we told them that Annie’s legs were not great, which is true, so they let her stay in the van with me this time. Eventually we drove on about 20 past 10, reversed into position in the hold and slid across to the passenger side to climb out with our overnight bags and headed up in the lift to our room. Had a nice lunch and evening meal, walked around the deck for exercise and views. Slept reasonably well. Friday 28th June 2019 At sea all day, knew we stopped in the dark at about 3 a.m. at Torshavn but that was quite a quick stop of about 30 minutes just to onboard and offboard a few vehicles. Saturday 29th June 2019 Had a nice breakfast on board and then went up top to watch as we went past Sumner head off the Shetlands and later started to see the Danish mainland past some of the outlying rocky islands. We eventually docked at Hirtshal and after a while we were able to go back to the van and disembark. Now we had a long journey driving all the way through Denmark on the motorway, to near Flensburg and turned off back to the nice campsite we had been at in Medleby on the way up. Pitch 2 this time, it was 1 last time, I think. Sadly, Annie was not well overnight and was sick a couple of times, we cleared up the damage on the duvet and she drank a lot of water which helped. It was not great as we had a lot of driving tomorrow. Sunday 30th June 2019 A long tedious drive back through Germany past the massive usual hold ups around Hamburg but the good news was Annie was slowly recovering, not feeling so bad she was able to take on a little food. We arrived at our campsite Osnabruck on Bullerby lake, which doubled as an outdoor swimming pool for locals, quite a nice site, good pitch with views and very hot weather so we were able to set up outside and have dinner out there. Keef strolled down to the lake to see what was going on and although it was hot decided against a dip, it didn’t look that clean. Monday 1st July 2019 Left the Bullerby lake site and travelled the 170 miles onto Leiden in Holland, the early home of Rembrandt a hero of mine. We got to the town about 2pm and drove around looking for somewhere to park, even though there was a festival on, there was nowhere, very frustrating would like to return one day and go in by bus for a long look around. Checked in at the Acsi campsite at Leiden, a huge site with full restaurant, café, shop and a free mega swimming pool. After setting up we walked back out of the gate and into the village of Rijnsburg, named after Rembrandt. A lovely village, many flowers nice posh houses and lots of waterway channels and all seen in lovely sunshine. After returning to the site, we sat out in the café and had an ice cream. Tuesday 2nd July 2019 The ferry back to the UK wasn’t due to leave until 2.35 p.m. so it was a leisurely breakfast , did all the usual motorhome chores, packed up and left in good time for the hour journey from Leiden to the Hook of Holland i.e., Hoek Van Holland port at Rotterdam via the Hague, a very interesting area of mostly large embassies. Joined the queue for check in reasonably early. Got on the ferry and then heard the announcement that sailing was delayed. Finally got back into Harwich at 7.45 p.m. The A14 was a nightmare and closed in many places, so we finally got back home about 3 a.m. Knackered but happy, a lovely time, can well recommend the Faroes and Iceland. Back to the Menu Calendar The calendar here shows our day by day activities and whereabouts… enjoy x Back to the Menu Campsites Back to the Menu Faroes Slideshows Back to the Menu Iceland Slideshows Back to the Menu The Talkies Features our discussions, observations etc in our own words... covers both the Faroes & Iceland Covers both Faroes & Iceland, not talkies but all the images from our old windows phone and the antequated iPad at the time Back to the Menu Full Image Slideshows with Audiobook intro Part 1 is 53 minutes long and covers from home to all our time on the Faroe Islands i.e the period 5th to the 26th May 2019 and includes that audiobook Part 2 is 42 minutes long and covers from arriving in Iceland at Seydisfjordur in the snow to arriving outside the heritage church at Hvammstangi in the north of Iceland, i.e. its Iceland part 1 with audiobook for the period 27th May to the 15th June 2019 Part 3 is 29 minutes long and covers from visiting the harbour area in Hvammstangi Iceland to mostly the northern and eastern areas of Iceland to returning home i.e. its Iceland Part2 17th June to 2nd July 2019 Audio Diary That's all folks! #motorhome #motorhometravels #travelsin2019 #campsites #majortrip

By keef and annie hellinger, Jul 8 2018 05:06PM Motorhome trip No34 : Saturday June 16th- Friday July 6th 2018, 21 days A KeefH Web Designs Travel Blog NOTTS->Ireland (Eire) ->NOTTS 1995 miles MENU Intro Diary Slideshows 2018 History 2000 Audiobook Travel Routes The End OVERVIEW We had a fab time in Ireland especially the Wild Atlantic Way (WAW) – Sli an Atlantaigh Fhiain (in Gallic) on the west coast from Kilrush, co Clare right up as far as Fanad Head Lighthouse on the Fanad peninsular co Donegal. It was especially great as the weather was amazing for the whole time. We used the ferry from South Wales – Fishguard to Rosslare co Wexford. We stayed on a Apple tree farm in the heart of co Tipperary which was 1st fab cider smells everywhere (did you know Bulmers is from Cahir?) and we experienced our 1st ever campsite eviction at Bennettsbridge. Haha the pitchfork battle with the farmer lined up with his tractor and golf buggy. In terms of cities/ towns/ sights we loved Galway (esp Shop street music & food & atmosphere) , Cahir, Bansha, Carrigaholt, Clifden, Renvyle, Athelone, Spanish Point, Mullaghmore, Ballyshannon, Lough Eske, Muckross Heads, Slieve League Cliffs, Magheraroarty, Aran Islands, Inishbofin island , Tory Isles, Lough Gill, Parkes Castle,Rosses Point, Ramelton, Carrick on Shannon & Adare… we liked less Tipperary, Limmerick, Sligo, Donegal, Bundoran (kiss me quick hats), Portlaois (prisons and speed humps) & Letterkenny. The Irish are so friendly and chatty. Achill island co Mayo & parts of Donegal are breath taking scenery. Had a fab time in the Dog & Duck Athelone on Lough Ree where I watched England Vs Columbia with some lovely friendly folk and 3 pints of fab Guinness. We actually left 3 days earlier than planned after a combo of too much kids holiday noise and missing the Wicklows. No worries we had seen lots and loved it. We will go back again in 2 years time to complete the lower section of the WAW by ferry Holyhead – Dublin (the trip back from Fishguard home thru Wales is a little too arduous at 6.5 hours) then thru Wicklow Mountains (which we missed due to SatNav malfunction… or was it user error ;) this time) then Cork to Kerry and up the WAW as far as Kilrush (Kil means rock!) then the fastest route up to Malin Head in Donegal then thru Causeway Coastal route in NI back to Dublin. Read our DIARY or if you would prefer to hear it as an audiobook click HERE See the WAW in stages , there are 14 of them , 5 of which we are left to do which we are doing in our trip in 2023. The total length is 1600 miles approx and we have approx 400 left to do, 100 in the north from Kilcrum to Malin Head and 300 in the south from Tarbert to Kinsale through counties Kerry and Cork. Can't wait to complete it, what fabulous scenery.a Note we returned in 2023 to complete the Wild Atlantic Way. See Blog 194 . Return to Menu DIARY At 2500 kilometres the Wild Atlantic Way is the longest single coastal route in the world, certainly surpassing the Great Ocean Road in Victoria Oz which we have also done. If you want to read more about the WAW CLICK HERE If you want to see a slideshow of our previous visit to Eire in 2000 please look under the FAMILY page on this site under the by year category, or by clicking HERE , if you wish to go straight to the slideshows, click HERE , thanks for looking See our video of the complete Wild Atlantic Way in both 2018 and 2023 and this is represented here by the WAW posts / signs we captured on film #legend Notes (hopefully useful to other motorhomers) 1. Last week and a half of our hols was school hols in Eire , from the weds they get 3 months off in Eire but less half terms. 2. Many towns have heights barriers on car parks and charge parking fees , not exactly motorhome friendly 3. Many campsites charge extra for electrics and showers (ranging from 50c to Euro $1.50) 4. N roads (equivalent to our A roads) & M roads – great, R roads (our B) variable and very bumpy esp in Donegal, L roads (our C) very very variable… avoid if poss ;) 5. Most signage doesn’t say “how far” but brown tourist signs great and WAW history and signs wonderful 6. Get both green books for campsites and always carry small change (i.e euros) for showers 7. Electric splitter useful for outside cooking (we used both tappenyaki and double ring as so hot indoors) 8. Diesel fuel cheaper or about the same as UK, petrol more expensive 9. Best campsites – Doonbeg Strand Camping co Clare, Clifden Eco Beach campsite co Clare 10. Get the Office of Works help sheet if you are interested in cultural history.loads of very interesting places to visit on your travels Actual route (see maps) Leinster Day1 … Counties Wexford Leinster Day19-20 … Counties Offaly, Laois, Kildare, Wicklow, Wexford Munster Day2-7… Counties Waterford, Tipperary, Limerick, Kerry, Kilkenny & Clare Connaught Day 8-12 … Counties Galway, Mayo, Sligo Connaught Day 18 … Counties Leitrim, Rosscommon Ulster Day 13-16… County Donegal, Fermanagh (NI) Key to Irish counties All mileages are approximate – as planned before travel. The reality is we did 1,995 miles from home and back with 2 3.5 hr ferry crossings DAY1: Sat 16/6 :Visited wonderful friends Neil and Marice in Southerdown, Vale of Glamorgan for a lovely lunch and catch up. Stayed Caravan Club site St Davids south wales… SA626PR… 270 miles 4hrs 30 mins Booked Update: 2hrs 30 mins 174 miles to Neil’s CF32 0RW then to St Davids 2hrs 98 miles Total 4hrs 30 mins 272 miles,1/2hr drive to Ferry Fishguard – Rosslare DAY2: Sun 17/6 Ferry leaves @ 13.10 (have to be there 1hr early) Stena 75464818 Booked Arrives Eire 16.25 mins Journey ferry 3hrs 15mins Then 24 mins 11 miles drive to 1st campsite Stay at Ferrybank caravan park Private site over the bridge and owned by Local swimming pool $31 52°20'41"N 6°27'10"W acsi inspected Wexford Great views DAY3: Mon 18/6 Wexford co Wexford – Cahir co Tipperary 75 miles Looked at Wexford & Waterford 2hrs 15mins… side turning to Wellington bridge R733 which didn’t really work (a square loop back onto main road) outta Wexford into New Ross, a very interesting place on River Barrow ancestral home of JFK and old ship. Campsite is the ACSI Cahir one The Apple Farm N52 ACSI 1255. Lovely people lovely shop lovely smell lovely strawberries, apple juice and cider… try Con’s craft cider! DAY4: Tues 19/6 Cahir co Tipperary – Rathkeale co Limmerick 50 miles 1hrs 30 mins… visited Swiss Cottage at Cahir, fab visit and Cahir is a great heritage town, really liked it. Tipperary & Limmerick town en route. Adare is rated as the best visit in Ireland and have to say it was fab if a little busy! Stayed at Adare Camping And Caravan Park, Drehedtarsna Adare Limerick LK (Rathkeale area) DAY5: Wed 20/6 Adare campsite, Rathkeale co Tipperary -Tarbert Island co Kerry - Kilkee Co Clare 32 miles 50 mins… goes along Shannon river edge, caught Shannon Ferry to Killimer, Killrush… i.e Kerry to Clare approx $25 takes 20 mins then stayed at Strand Camping Killard Road, Doonbeg Doonbeg CE one of our fave campsites ever, very small owned by English couple, great showers pitches, facilities. Saw Ballycrinan shingle beach, Moyne , Carrigaholt (lunch by the waves), Kilkee (Victorian seaside town), Spanish Point (and the man who could gab for Ireland ;) ), went go to Loophead lighthouse R487, then returned up west coast of clare etc etc Gained extra day from original plan by missing out Green Acres campsite (yuck!) White strands beach nearby is deserted and possible one of the best blue flag beaches in Eire! BASICALLY FROM NOW ON WE FOLLOWED THE WILD ATLANTIC WAY – Killrush to Fanad peninsular DAY6: Thurs 21/6 Doonbeg Co Clare -Lahinch Beach-Doolin Total: 30 miles 50 mins… 1st bit of journey to Lahinch beach is 20miles 38 mins then coastal route R478 thru Luogh-Roadford-Doolin / Doolin Pier Met Mr & Mrs Welwyn Garden City and Pete & Jane from Cambridge whom we also remet at Clifden beach Eco site later , basically cos annies leg was playing up we abandoned walk into famous Paddy O’Connors bar in Doolin from Doolin Pier Stayed at Nagles Doolin Camping, NAGLES DOOLIN CAMPING GPS 53.0176827, -9.3945482. Visited Cliffs of Moher site on route, wonderful but hugely touristy DAY7: Fri 22/6 2nd day at Doolin Pier campsite (very noisy in eve as weekend and we pitched next to kids playpark, note to self DON’T DO IT AGAIN ;) )but Boat cruise Bill O’Briens boats to Aran Island, Inis Mor (biggest but called in at Meain & Oirr isles as well) $30 pp Fab day out in the sun and did tourist bus around island… glad we got out of mr wee’s first bus ;) Great jumpers tops bought Stay at Nagles … DAY8: Sat 23/6 Doolin - Galway Total: 48 miles 1hr 50 mins… 1st bit of journey to Burren was via Murrogh and Ballyvaughan… Stayed at Galway City Caravan & Camping Park, Ballyloughane Rd, Renmore, Ireland…visit lough (lake) atilia and river corrib Not the best campsite in fact the worst E$34 and most expensive, lunch at site by Galway bay in sun, fab then caught the 402 bus into Eyre square from opposite campsite and had a great time in Galway city, esp music pubs food etc in Shop street Our fave Eire City…. Had dinner with my Galway girl in a flash restaurant Swiss campers we met at Doolin also here and went in and back on our same bus, although verbal comms tricky we did a lot of hand shaking and back slapping ;) DAY9: Sun 24/6 Galway-Cleggan beach Galway - Clifden Total: 59 miles 2hr 7 mins… via various lakes and the 12 pins mountains, Stayed at Clifden Eco Camping & Caravan park, Claddaghduff Road, Wild Atlantic Way, Clifden,Co. Galway,H71W024… Loved all of Connemara, River Owenglin. Chris at Eco site had it for 8 years, knew couple at Doonbeg Strand Camping. He kindly gave us slot 1 overlooking the beach, Keef swam in the Atlantic, v cold. Outside cooking on tappenyaki (fun) plus caught up with Pete & Jane from Doolin again DAY10: Mon 25/6 went to see Omey island (didn’t drive across as tidal sand bar but you can park up at the start and walk) and then saw Cleggan ferry to Inishbofin Island (30 mins) £17.50 return pp 11.30 return 1… missed out as didn’t have time – it is the island of the white cow. Connamara National Park, v busy, not much space for motorhomes. Lonch by lough in Connamara mountains (such fab views). Letterfrack, Louisburgh, Renvyle (busy but lovely harbour) plus Cleggan to Westport Co. Mayo Total: 43 miles 1hr 27 mins Where we filled up on fuel. Then Westport –Keel West R319 over Achill isand (via bridges) Saw Killary fjord and one of the circular coastal routes on Achill , aasleagh falls, Mallaranny, Keel bay Croaghaun Total: 38 miles 1hr 13 mins then stayed at Keel Sandybank caravan and camping park, Achill island, co Mayo DAY11: Tues 26/6 Keel West – Ballina, co Mayo . Went to see the fabulous Keem Bay, wild scenery, amazingly steep road but so so worth it. Also did the 2nd coastal loop road on Achill which was wonderful. Don Allum the 1st man to row the Atlantic both ways landed in Achill island. Johnny Kilbane boxer. Doohoma, Ciede Total: 65 miles 1hr 56 mins then stay at Belleek Caravan and camping park, Faranoo, Ballina Co Mayo. Great map of the Wild Atlantic Way here DAY12: Weds 27/6 Official start of 3 months school hols…. Much more busy at sites from now on Ballina – Sligo, Co Sligo. Total: 37 miles 57 mins Continued on on the Wild Atlantic Way, saw Ballina Quay. Pronounced Bal-ina not like the ozzie Baleena ;) Many Kiwi and Oz names came from Eire, the Famine exodus presumably. Visted amongst others Innishcrone, Split rock, Aughris head, (great pub and bunnies) ,Killglass, Easkey R297… Lovely Mr Wippy in Strandhill town shop plus fresh fish from stall from man from Devon… nice on griddle with salad …. Yummy All near Sligo City, Stayed at Strandhill camping and caravan site.Strandhill rd Sligo, beautiful views of the sea but a very dangerous cliff edge and rips so sign said no swimming or paddling… did anyone take any notice ? rules seem to be made to break in Eire possibly along with driving road rules…. Debate??? DAY13: Thurs 28/6 Strandhill - Sligo, Co Sligo- Ballyshannon, co Donegal …. Bally means on a river in Gallic , taught in schools compulsory from juniors (xclent) Ulster Nr NI (UK) Ulster then back to Ballyshannon campsite, co Donegal Then to Ross Point (home of W B Yeats – William Butler, Bro John Butler (rich Irish family name) a painter (see his pic under Keel Bay pix) ) , Deadmans point, Drumcliffe Friary, Yeats graveside & St Columba, Spanish Armada view , Classiebawn castle at Mullaghmore (where lord louis mountbatten was killed) Total: 40 miles 1 hr 4 mins Road goes along the coast. Stayed at Lakeside caravan and camping, Beleek rd, ballyshannon, Co Donegal. Manged by Mungo who had a huge US pop outs van and offered to buy ours off us – No way Jose! Note very busy at weekends OK otherwise, nice Liverpool/Welsh couple next to us and our pal from Austria with doggie. It is an ACSI site No 1253 and as we had gained 2 days from original plan got 2 days at E$19 Acsi price. DAY14: Fri 29/6 2nd day at Lakeside campsite Ballyshannon – supposedly Irelands oldest town (but we saw a few of those) but definitely the birth place of Rory Gallagher. Nice cooked brekkie on griddle outdoors in the sun, plus Irish white pudding – yummy. Supposedly live Irish music on site & restaurant – just Sat for music but I did watch a rather boring Belgium vs England 2nd 11 world cup match with no atmosphere but 1 pint of Orchard thieves. We are Sunday dinner when we came back there later for a second stay and very good it was too DAY15: Sat 30/6 Ballyshannon, co Donegal along the WAW in co Donegal to Dungloe co Donegal, Rossnowlagh and beach, Donegal town itself, Castle and music festival in town square, not a great city / town, the fab Lough Eske at Arnold point, Fish town Killibeg allegedly Irelands major fishing port and like Grimsby you could smell it coming, but harbour very nice. Shopped here in Supa Value. Muckross Head, lunch at Creenveen, Slieve league cliffs, Glencomcille (folk museum not great tho’ too new)Stayed at family park in the green book at Dungloe after yet another Mr Whippy 99 Nice family who ran it, very friendly and chatty DAY16: Sun 1/7 Dungloe - Ballyshannon, co Donegal our only bad day weather wise… low cloud sea mist and very very windy. We went via Kingcasslach, Cnoc Fola (the red sea), Gweedore, Magheraroarty & beach, Queen of aran fishing ferry (passengers only) to the Tory isles, Doe Castle view for lunch, an Irish Romeo & Juliet, Island Roy view (just) and the bridge across , Fanad head and lighthouse. Realising the weather was bad and we still had a 100 mile round trip on very minor roads to Malin Head (star wars fame) and end of WAW we turned back thru Ramelton (Lifford) on the river Lennon, Letterkenny (big town) N13 , N15 , Ramelton had lovely flowers, old castle, and fishing (pity it was drizzling), back thru Donegal & castle, Ballyshannon town and Rory Gallagher (its famous son) then to campsite again for nice Sunday dinner. I had Irish beef, Annie had turkey and gammon… Yummy DAY17: Mon 2/7 Ballyshannon co Donegal, Ulster via Cartronbog & Drumshanbo to Battlebridge, co Leitrim on the edge of Lough Allen (this road slipped over the border briefly into NI unbeknown to us at Beleek co Fermanagh and we stopped to see Lough Melvin on the road to Garrison before going back into Eire. Back in Eire we saw the lovely Parkes castle on Lough Gill co Sligo (again - want to read about the spanish armada captain cuellar) and W B Yeats trail and had lunch on Gill Total: 42 miles 1 hr 16 mins Road goes along the edge of the lake. Tried staying at the Allen centre , Curraghill, Drumshanbo, co Leitrim but it is now a Luxury leisure park on the lake with chalets to buy, the campsite has long since gone so we found a new one in the green book at Battlebridge called Beirnes (not bad facilities, not great position tho) DAY18: Tues 3/7 Battlebridge co Leitrim - Athlone, co Roscommon via Strokestown House(owned by the Mahons), Gardens and Irish National Famine Museum & Roscommon on the edge of Lough Ree . Had lunch of quiche and salad in the café plus the best lemon meringue pie we have ever had (apart from Annies he says quickly )Total: 53 miles 1 hr 46 mins Stayed at Athelone, Ballykeeran ACSI site No 1252 $19 in season. Visited Dog & Duck pub to watch football ENG vs Columbia with lovely Irish people. They shook my hand as I left and wished the team well ;) wonderful DAY19: Wed 4/7 Athlone, co Roscommon-thru co Offaly - Portlaoise , co Laois (known as Queen’s county) to Bennettsbridge co Kilkenny via quick look at lough Ree, Athelone town, Tullamore, Killbeggan Distillery, Lilliput (don’t bother – its not Jonathan Swifts ancestral home, that’s Dublin)Total: 50 miles 1 hr 18 mins Tried Staying at Laois (pronounced Leash) camping and caravan, r445 portlaoise, clondouglas,mountrath rd 53°0'29"N 7°22'19"W Portlaosie co Laois, even tho we called in at a tourist office in Heritage town Abbeyleix (lady very helpful) where thye thought it was open then decided it wasn’t, we spent a long time trying to find driving almost as far as Montreath – Our satnav (or me) cocked up and took us towards Kilkenny city rather than the Wicklow mountains which is disappointing but as it would be a 200 mile round trip we decided to can it and do it on our next visit to Eire. So we stayed at Nore Valley Park, Bennettsbridge, a kid friendly site in the Green book, bad choice! This was the scene of our first ever campsite eviction… the battle of the Pitchforks… appalling campers DAY20: Thurs 5/7 Bennettbridge, woke up decided as we would probably do 3 days of kids screaming at Enniscworthy site we would reorg our Ferry and come back today, giving us a little more time to prepare for grand daughter minding – Visted Nicholas Mosse pottery in Bennettsbridge which was fab, Annie got a nice blue jug (handpainted) We watched them working and there was some great history around the grain mill and waterwheel. We then stopped for lunch at Johnstown Castle Gardens outside Rosslare for lunch and a lovely stroll around the gardens and lake, very tranquil, peacocks and our last 99 Flake of the hols (at E$2 I can highly recommend) Alas the castle was under redevelopment so sadly closed. Then it was ferry from Rosslare 6.20pm, arrived Fishguard Sth Wales 9.40 pm… then 6.5 hours of fairly gruelling driving back thru South and North wales coming out at Welshpool – Shrewsbury borders before any “fast” roads DAY21: Fri 6/7 Arrived back home as the sun was rising about 4.30 am after comfort break, coffee and pasty M54, 3 hours sleep but caught up the next day….. all in all a fab hol in the Wendy house and the best summer since 1976, can’t be bad Return to Menu SLIDESHOW VIDEOS We stayed at one of the best little campsites ever on this trip, the Strand campsite, read all about it on the associated Blog 130, thanks my hero rory gallagher, born here, member of taste before going solo, sadly died young Return to Menu HISTORY Our family holiday to Eire back in 2000 #motorhome #motorhometravels #travelsin2018 #campsites #majortrip Return to Menu AUDIOBOOK Return to Menu TRAVEL ROUTE VIDEOS Return to Menu THE END

Created by KeefH Web Designs , June 9th, 2023, 8.49 AM A Travel Blog by KeefH Web Designs Motorhome trip No54: May 10th - 31st 2023 NOTTS-> Beeston Castle, Holyhead, Dublin, Then traverse the whole of the outside of Ireland, both Northern Ireland and Eire, finishing back in Dublin port, ferry to Holyhead (again) then Home, A Mixture of Camping Europe sites, Caravan and Motorhome Club Sites (M&CC site), Brit stops and ACSI affiliated -> NOTTS 2158 miles Prefer to listen than read a blog, click HERE for the audiobook. MENU Introduction Calendar The Full Wild Atlantic Way Maps and Travel Route Panoramas Highlights / Lowlights Campsites Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 The Giant's Causeway, Northern Ireland Dingle Peninsular Ring of Kerry Béara Peninsular Accident High / Low Oil pressure issue Audiobook Tom Crean Hero, a History The End INTRODUCTION A Travel Blog of our trip to Ireland between 10th and 31st of May 2023. 3 lovely weeks, 22 Days in the Wendy House motorhome, travelling right the way around the Irish "continent". So many fabulous views, almost too many to chose from but our highlight I guess overall was achieving finishing the Wild Atlantic Way. Our detailed diary of exploits is included under each of the 3 weeks travels and each day is accompanied by a slideshow with U2 music, well how could I not. It was interesting that in Dungarven town there was a picture of U2 on a visit to their favourite barber who looked more like Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top. #smile We travelled in all just over 2000 miles and loved every moment of it. However having traversed the whole of the Wild Atlantic Way and been all the way around it is unlikely we will sadly ever return, too many other places in the world to "discover" but you can never say never! On reflection once again it surprised us that there is no evidence or checks for border crossing between Eire and Northern Ireland and vice versa. Only an indicator on the Sat nav we have crossed over on the way up (DAY3) showing miles instead of kilometers and nothing as we crossed Lough Foyle by ferry , extremely weird when one considers Stormont parliament won't sit until Brexit issues are sorted, but what do I know? #justsayin Must say May is a great month to chose for all the lovely flowering gorse, azaleas and rhododendrons. Return to MENU CALENDAR The day by day calendar to help give an overview of the detailed given under weeks 1 to 3. One thing I can say is pre trip i estimated the travel distance just under 1000 miles, the reality was more like double, mostly because of the 3 peninsulas, Dingle, Ring of Kerry and béara but also because the Wild Atlantic Way really is the longest coastal route in the world (allegedly) although I dont know how that compares to Australia's coastal route which in fairness in many places you can't get to the edge of so maybe the boast is true! #tobeproved Created using AI by KeefH Web Designs, see what fun Annie and I had! And now a reel / short created using AI #geek Return to MENU THE WILD ATLANTIC WAY Stretching from Malin Head in county Donegal, (our favourite county for many reasons, namely lack of people and so much more wild scenery and fab sandy empty beaches) all the way to old Kinsale Head in County Cork (one of the largest counties in Eire). It is 2500 kilometers in total and therefore the longest coastal route in the world. It has been lovely to travel its full length. Its taken us two trips to do it basically either side of the COVID pandemic , you can see the first bit back in 2018 under Blog 129. The rest i.e. Malin head to Fanad lighthouse in the North and Tarbert on the Shannon River , county Kerry, to Kinsale Head, county Cork in the south. Just so so pleased to have been given the chance to do it, what scenery, what geography , what people, what food, what Guinness. This video shows all the Wild Atlantic Way (WWW) signs we stopped at, they are constructed at what they consider to be the key viewing points. Here is the complete route we travelled in a graphic, what a joy! If you feel like learning a lot more about the wonderful Wild Atlantic Way feel free to click HERE Return to MENU MAPS AND TRAVEL ROUTE This shows a map of Ireland (northern Ireland and Eire combined) which you can use to locate the places I am talking about along with a full scale map of the Wild Atlantic Way (WAW) and mini WAW maps I took photos of along the way alongside a humorous small video of our route created by KeefH Web Designs using a clever app I found. #enjoy #humour If you feel like learning a lot more about the wonderful Wild Atlantic Way feel free to click HERE Taken on our travels in Downing's village Donegal by the beach and Bantry Bay town centre co Kerry but covers our route through both Kerry and Cork to the end of the Wild Atlantic Way at Old Kinsale head. Return to MENU PANORAMA Here are some of the highlights of our trip recorded as panoramas or from within the van to show off some of the spectacular scenery that is available, especially along the Wild Atlantic Way, maybe give it a visit sometime, if we have wet your appetite #hintsandtips Click on each to expand the panorama, the Powerscourt estate one will take you to their website as will the Glenveagh National Park. #enjoy Return to MENU HIGHLIGHTS / LOWLIGHTS I'll list them here, probably can't include every highlight there were just so many of them, for lowlights really the stand outs were all to do with the van , an accident (now sorted) and a system malfunction (fix scheduled in). So... Highlights: browns bay, gyles quay walk, glenvagh, powerscourt, finishing the WAW, mickey finns pub redcross, malin head, ballymastocker strand, ice cream at old kinsale head, huge ice cream at redcross, ring of kerry, valentia island, inch strand, connor pass on dingle, mount (slieve) brandon, seaborne ovation cruise ship, bantry bay views and bantry town , lunch at south pole inn, chat with master brewer married to tom crean's grand daughter, the Giant's Causeway, clever audio app for Powerscourt, bushmills whiskeys, causeway coastal route, magheracross viewpoint, Tom Crean history via south pole pub and brewery in Kenmare, stone circle Kenmare, roy island view and the Harry Blaney bridge, revisiting the apple farm, cahir Lowlights: accident, oil noise, spiddal midges, caseys rip off attempts at downings, many of the very narrow roads, parking at inch strand , endless stories about Finn McColl joining Ireland and Scotland (grr!) , headphones failing for Giant's causeway audio, Cork - what a nightmare to drive thru, barrier at the river bann marina campsite, rude german at spiddal campsite, 6amp electrics at Eagle point site, really caught us out as no one said, thought our electrics issue was to do with our accident, cold showers at the apple farm. Return to MENU CAMPSITES Here is a video showing all the wonderful, and not so wonderful campsites we stayed at. Fridge, cooker and all #haha Return to MENU WEEK 1 10th-16th June 2023 Here are the slideshows of pictures we took using 2 phones and a camera. DAY 1 - Home to English Heritage's Beeston Castle in Cheshire, then via Conway Castle in North Wales to Holyhead, a brief windy look out on the harbour front and then to our Brit stop in the carpark of the Holland Hotel. Very convenient for early morning ferry plus nice food and ale. DAY 2 - Up early at the Holland Hotel car park, short drive to Holyhead port, ferry to Dublin, it left early, quite empty, then thru the toll Dublin tunnel (3 euros) and on up the M1 by Balbriggan, difficult to get to the beach, Bettystown and onto the wonderful Gyles Quay near Dundalk which apart from a lovely American couple from the mid west who were tenting, she used to work for United Airlines so they got cheap flights and it was hugely cold in their home state, good move. Really interesting chatting to them. Her favourite band was YES so that got us off on a great footing. We had views on the bay and went for a walk down to it and its beach. Saw lads swimming off the boat launch after work. What a great place, our second fave view / site / pitch of the whole trip after Bantry Bay. DAY 3 - showered and packed up the van and rejoined the M1 pulling off again to visit the Slieve (mountain) Gullion area, before joining a coastal road to take us around the outskirts of Belfast, where we took a rest at the very nice Jordanstown Loughshore park overlooking Belfast lough. Here we went for a lovely sunny walk with great views. Even the historic Belfast shipyards , the scene of the construction of its most famous yet most unreliable Titanic. Saw the Stena ferry Belfast - Liverpool. Wonder how busy that was? We then visited the wonderful Brown's Bay on the Larne peninsular, so unspoilt, had a lovely walk on the strand (beach) even watching the young horse being trained. She had drawn up with a horse box and parked just behind us in the car park. Brown's bay was once a smugglers paradise and you could see why #haha Fab weather again, truly loving going away in May. After Browns bay we re-traversed our steps to get off the peninsular as no other way off, and headed north to the the campsite at Drumhegalis near Ballymoney, the home of the famous motorcyclist Joey Dunlop OBE. We had wondered why so many motorcyclist were on our ferry and we were to find out over the next few days. The Causeway coastal motorcycle race was on starting in Portrush. Loads camping at our campsite as well. Nice campsite on the River Bann. DAY 4 - as we had 2 days at the campsite we set off for our prebooked visit to the Giant's Causeway, tip get your tickets online in advance , it gives you free parking in the car park and boy was it busy. More tourists (us included) than you could shake a stick at #hintsandtips You get an audio, exhibition and a chance to walk down (bit steep for us oldies) and back up (easier) to the basalt outcrop that is a world heritage site for obvious reasons. Amazing views, amazingly sunny, there are 3 walking routes or if you really don't want to there is a bus at a reasonable price, but wouldn't advice it as the queue for the way back reminded me of Oxford street in the crush at Xmas #teehee After a lovely time we had lunch in the van in the car park, visited Bushmills distillery, one of the oldest in the world , got its royal charter in 1608 to buy expensive whiskey for our son Doug who is bit of a collector. Then visited the viewing point at Magheracross which gives fabulous sea views as well as views of Duncluce castle, a destroyed relic of the MacDonnell clan. I discovered that (and we are into Genealogy) my Great Grandmother who was from Galway had the surname O'Donnell which in gaelic means of Doneghal which I am extremely proud of because it is our fave county, so wild, remote, and quiet with birdlife and flowers to die for. A great day out before returning to the site for one last walk along the river Bann, even more bikers today. PS loved the Led Zep 4 inspired inner sleeve of the nymphs crawling over the causeway, what a great album that is (reminded by memorabilia in their exhibition. DAY 5 - left the campsite at Drumaheglis, under the usual barrier which required a key code for motorhomes, bit annoying and drove up to port rush and port stewart, very crowded with both motorhomes parked everywhere and bikers, it was the Joey Dunlop memorial North West 200 bike race. Lovely beaches however. Then it was off to Magillan point on the Northern Irish side of Lough Foyle (a huge prison here as well) to catch the Lough Foyle ferry across to Greencastle on the M V Stratford ferry into Eire and what seemed to be the start of the Wild Atlantic Way (WAW). Weather not great at this point but it did get better as we headed up to Malin head, the most northerly point in Ireland. We had lunch here with great views. Pretty windy makes you wonder what it would be like here in the heights of winter. The van was rocking whilst we ate. We then headed back down the Malin peninsular and around the next peninsular down to our campsite at Downing's village, a true golfing village, 3 courses, various golfing hotels and an induced upmarket feel and cost which meant when I paid old man Casey for the campsite he had inflated the price by 10 euros a night, bless him NOT!!! On the way there we passed Doe castle a WAW sign we had seen before back in 2018. It is the tragic Romeo and Juliet story where Aileen Mac Sweeney's father murdered her lover as he was from the rival clan , so she threw herself out of the castles tower in despair, not quite the Rapunzel story we know and love. DAY 6 - decided we would have a day out in the Glenveagh national park. Not too far away from Downing's village. Packed up at caseys, no need to leave our "in residence" sign as site completely empty bar us. Arrived in national park car park, visited exhibition / visitors centre and watched the film of the history of the house and gardens and owners throughout time. Quite some juicy stories here, to read the gossip click HERE . If you would like to know more about the Glenveagh national park click HERE , thanks. We loved the house and its stories, murder, homosexuality, rich Americans, and a host of visiting celebrities that had slept there especially the media shy Greta Garbo, our pal Kev's book " Greta and the Labrador " is well worth a read. Other celebs included Errol Flynn, Charlie Chaplin, Marilyn Monroe. We also loved walking around the garden, just so wonderfully laid out and a world variety of plants. The blue Himalayan poppies a big plus, have tried growing myself and germinating in the bottom drawer of a fridge, all to no avail. We had a snack and wonderful coffee in the cafe before catching the bus down to the house and gardens, a 4km walk we decided to pass on as quite undulating terrain. Bus fare return was cheap and they ran often. #hintsandtips Drove back again passed Doe Castle. In the evening went out for our booked meal at the Downing's Bay Hotel, golf clubs and golfers everywhere #teehee It was also my first pint of Guinness in Ireland, what a joy! DAY 7 - Packed up after having what was in fact a luxury shower. Old man Casey had tried to rip us off saying 2 euros for a token for a shower (£1.71) , we whinged and he gave us both one for free. We then took the van down next to the Downing's Bay hotel and went for a walk on the beach, amazing sands. We then drove around the rather narrow but spectacular Rosguill peninsular stopping to get great views down onto both the campsite and the amazingly deserted yet long curved sandy strand. It was a lovely route all the way around this peninsular ending up back in downing's village. We then headed off across the Harry Blaney bridge, which we had done back in 2018. This time we actually got a view of Roy Island across the mulroy bay. We then headed up to Fanad lighthouse, we stopped short of it in 2018 because the weather was so so bad, but this time we could read the history bards and even went down to the WWW sign by the lighthouse. Great views over the cliffs from there. We then came back down through the other side of the Fanad peninsular, through Letterkenny and on down to Rossnowlagh beach and our campsite, near Ballyshannon home of Rory Gallagher (a hero of mine) stopping briefly to take in views of potentially the best beach (strand) in the whole of Ireland in our humble opinion, Ballymastocker strand. Even better than Inch on the dingle peninsular. It was an extremely hard life , back breaking work, at the turn of the century on the bleak and remote Fanad peninsular. Here is the talkies video we took. That is it for week 1. Return to MENU WEEK 2 17th-23rd June 2023 Here are the slideshows of pictures we took using 2 phones and a camera. DAY 8 - A relaxing day at the Boortree campsite here in Rossnowlagh. It should be noted that when we tried to find the site yesterday there is only one signpost to it and that is obscured by the warning sign that says road is liable to flooding at high tide, anyhow we eventually found it. No reception, you have to ring the lady who gave us the entry code for the amenities block and assigned us a pitch. The first night there were French, German and Yorkshire folks staying, the second day, i.e. today we basically had it to ourselves. A lovely walk on the mostly deserted beach. Nearly all holiday cottages empty, lovely butterflies, saw surf school and the empty life saver station. We then returned to the site to chill in the sun, sadly because of the wind that was literally true, so we ate inside. A very relaxing day. The lady hd told us , beyond her control, that the electricity was off 9-4. I pestered her at the end of the day since it was not back eventually it returned about 5p/m so not too bad. DAY 9 - Left our relaxing site reasonably early as had quite a distance to travel today from Donegal to Galway. On route kit started raining quite heavily and lasted for a good bit of the day, our only really bad day weather-wise. We tried to have lunch in Ballyhaunis. Much of Eire's towns stary with Bally meaning "place of" in Gaelic. I actually learnt 2 words of gaelic at our campsite in Spiddal tonight, every road sign in Spiddal is only in Gaelic. So my proud words are Mna and Fir (ladies and Gentlemen) #teehee Just outside Ballyhaunis we did stop at a picnic area that doubled as a memorial to Michael Coen. A bit of history for you. Michael Coen was an IRA volunteer from Lecarrow, Ballyhaunis and was captured, tortured, murdered and his body mutilated in retaliation for the killing of William Stephens, kings forces, in Ballyhaunis on 29 March. No wonder things can sometimes get tense, a little scary actually! Spiddal campsite was probably the worst we stayed at, muddy, midges to drive youw insane, and a rather rude german guy (note i like germans having lived there in my yoof) who pulled up much to close to our pitch and chucked our electrics cable out of the way without so much as a by your leave, not friendly! Showers very very average, but site as closish to anne's cousins house. Ps driving through Galway was a nightmare, almost as bad as Cork. Tuam seemed quite nice. DAY 10 - We left the Spiddal site at a reasonable time, couldn't wait to go, got bitten to death by midges whilst packing up, not great! Had to drive back through Galway so called in at a Lidl on the outskirts to get some gifts for Ralph and family. Annie hadn't seen Ralph for about 55 years. We arrived in Oranmore a little early for our meet up at 10.30 am so killed a little time doing our own food shopping in Tesco's Oranmore. If only we had known Ballynacloghy was a little further from Oranmore than we suspected, anyhow we still arrived at Ralph and Emma' lovely house in good time. It was a lovely few hours, great to catch up, what a lovely setting , we walked to Ralph's huge garden and saw views of Galway bay. His polytunnel was the largest I've ever seen with great produce growing, well jealous. We had lunch and then sadly had to depart for the long drive to Tralee , the county town of Kerry. Wonderful hospitality and such a nice man. Now what can I say about the Rose of Tralee #teehee you sing it, i'll hum it! The Woodlands campsite was really nice , especially our neighbours the rabbits. DAY 11 - Put our "in residence" sign up on the pitch and headed off to a great day exploring the Dingle peninsula, slea head drive. We started in Blennerville where we filled up with diesel, stopped at the nature reserve and took some pictures especially of Blennerville windmill. Then it was onto the Dingle peninsula. Ballycurrane was fun but we got slightly blocked in by fishermen and their vehicle / boats. No worry got out of it with a 90 point turn ;) We then climbed to Mount Brandon viewpoint, great views, chatted to a aging cyclist who told us if we thought this was steep try Connor's pass so we did after a quick walk around the very quiet village of Brandon. Interesting public houses there! What can we say about Connor's pass it was truly spectacular, a real highlight. we even had a 99 icecream at the top. It was then onto the Tom Crean inspired South pole inn at Anascaul for lunch and a bit of history. We coincided with zillions of walkers finishing their charity walk and coachloads of American tourists catching up on the local hero. But we still got fed and very nice it was too, washed down with a half of the black stuff! Not easy parking there so we parked over the little bridge and stream and walked in. Same was true parking wise at Inch strand, we had hoped to walk on the beach but boy was it busy being a weekend. Anyhow after that we went back to our Woodlands campsite at Tralee via Castlemaine. A truly great day, about 130 miles driven and lots to see in a day. DAY 12 - Packed up early and set off back into the town of Tralee to have another look around, what a very nice town Tralee is, then we set off to explore the most wonderful Ring of Kerry. We started at Rosbeigh Strand which looks over to the Dingle Peninsula and Inch strand, and you could see how in the past the two were joined by sands. Amazing views. We then visited ballycarbery castle and the old barracks, a slice of france in ireland. Then onto views of scariff island and over the far bridge to valentia island. Eventually we stopped in the wonderful Sneem for a walk through the town and across the Sneem river, oh and the statuatory ice cream, it was a very hot day. Then it was back round to Killarney to finish the truly spectacular ring of Kerry. The Muckross national park is nice, went their and to the house with my parents back in 2000 . We camped at the White bridge site, the lady in charge was hugely helpful. We had a great night. DAY 13 - Up early, filled up with water, replaced their reserve sign (a nice touch for arrivers) and went into Killarney to have a look around. Parked in main street and did some gifts shopping. Then headed past house and gardens out to Killarney castle, past the many jaunting cars (horse and trap). The castle and lakes were magnificent , you can take a boat trip into the national forest. Alas we didn't have time, Set off from here to Kenmare, not the town we remember as much more commercialised, however we spent time at the Tom Crean brewery (see here for more detail) and i bought 8 unique beers. The stone circle (oldest in Eire) here and its lanteen tree surrounds were great. The Trump Loy on some of the houses was very interesting as well, no idea how they see out of those windows but maybe with the tourists that is the aim #whoknows After Kenmare we started the beara peninsula ring. Tried looking for our old cottage in Tuosist but so much changed, foolishly went off on a very narrow coastal road where our accident happened, the less said about that the better. Eventually after driving through the WAW coastal roads we reached Eagle point campsite on Bantry Bay, the best (apart from electrics) we stayed at. What views! DAY 14 - Day spent at Eagle point campsite in Ballylickey on the waters edge of Bantry Bay which is where our pitch was, very nice belgian guy next door to talk to, watched the kayakers, ate, drank, read and generally relaxed, both the long journeys of the last 3 days and the minor accident had taken their toll but it was good to just recharge the batteries. Amazing sunset over the waters edge. Went for an extended walk around the site as well. Here is the talkies video we took. Return to MENU WEEK 3 24th-31st June 2023 Here are the slideshows of pictures we took using 2 phones and a camera. DAY 15 - After packing up the van to leave we left Eagle point campsite (sigh!) and started with a stop and good walk around the heritage town of Bantry, a lovely harbour area with lots of historic buildings and boards to aid your understanding of where the town had come from. Even bought some screws in an old fashioned hardware store to try and improve the stability of the external gas flue which had been a bit mangled in the accident. The fabulous Sheep head drive is very recommended, bit scary in parts, but the views, oh the views. The Seefin www signpost view points are a must. After coming back along the easier western coast of this incredible drive we went thru the town of Clonakilty home of Michael Collins, yes that Michael Collins . Clonakilty was a very busy town. From here it was out towards Timoleague and our campsite at Sexton's. We will always remember with some fondness the old owner for (in a broad Irish accent) "flying low" whilst talking to us #smile The site didn't accept card, cash only, so they let us delay until the next morning. DAY 16 - Left campsite and found the ATM in the coop on the outskirts of Timoleague , got euro cash out at an extraordinary high exchange rate, went back and paid the campsite for our stay. Then explored both the town and the friary of Timoleague, which sadly was mostly a locals graveyard but a nice imposing building built on the edge of the estuary of the Argideen River which we then drove along across the old bridge and nature reserve to Courtmacsherry to learn all about the sinking of the Lusitania. It was then back to Old Kinsale head to complete the full Wild Atlantic way, only taken us 5 years, but I think you can blame the pandemic for that! At the head we had a lovely icecream and pie with coffee and enjoyed the sunshine. Kinsale itself was a very busy but interesting town, we strolled around many of the back streets as well as the harbour area . Clearly a tourist weekend visit for people from Cork. After that we had the mis-pleasure of having to drive right through the centre of Cork and the old dock areas, a town we have visited in the past but because of the volume of traffic a town I would be happy never to see again. Sorry folk from Cork! Once through cork we headed out to our campsite at Blarney. We had considered the Brit stop at Cobh but having met other travellers realised the 5 pitches would all be taken. Blarney is a lovely site, nice flowers, nice warden and pitch and putt course should you want attached for a fee. DAY 17 - Broke camp , is that the right expression, did the unsavory dunny man job, a little more tricky these days with the broken cassette door needing to be gaffer taped up (sorted when we return home and I have my tools). Sadly no sight of the castle these days as screened off not like back in 2000 when i queued to kiss the blarney stone, not something I can imagine was open during the pandemic. Then headed off into county Waterford and Dungarven, made sure we didn't need to traverse our steps back through Cork which was what the sat nav was trying and forced it through Mallow (where the much advertised national garden show was on at the Cork racecourse) sadly we didn't have time although I would have loved to visit, then Fermoy a nice town where we stopped for lunch and a spot of food shopping, and Lismore and Dungarven. Parked up by the sea front , still the Atlantic on this corner of Ireland. Walked along past the castle and around the town looking for ice cream, it was hot. Lovely harbour side with eateries out in the open. After Dungarven town, a real must if you are visiting, it was on up very narrow roads to our Getaway eco campsite, a very interesting site. More tomorrow. DAY 18 - A very relaxing day at the Getaway eco campsite in Kilnafrehan East just outside Dungarven. Interesting shower block, you had to be quick to the tin shed as 12 pitches and completely full. A tenting area as well. Went for a nice walk around the site, wetlands which are big for sewage etc. out in the countryside, a great idea and good for wild life, the goat island and a long chat with the lovely lady owner in what doubled as a camp kitchen and snug for tenters. She showed us some of the images of the work that had gone on to create the site. Her house was an old thatched croft that had much history as indeed was the Nook camp kitchen. We then cooked outside at lunch time and had a few tipples, well why not, after all it was a relaxing day. DAY 19 - Stayed here back in 2018 and so wanted to go back, just a lovely site and lovely people. See Blog 129 if interested in that visit. Anyhow we set off from the Eco site back to the main road and it was quite a short journey to Cahir, went into the town first but remembered it all well so didn't park up and walk around. We traversed our steps back to the Apple farm on the outskirts of Cahir. Bought apple juice (by the bucket load) , con's cider (the farm was first started in Tipparary by Cornelius Traas, of dutch / irish heritage) , strawberries, plums, and apples. So glad we got there early able to pick a prime slot and 16 amp leccie, good news. Set up the table and chairs. It became very busy and almost full by the end of the day. Had a good wander around to look at the workings of the farm, including the cider press, polytunnels and outside orchards. What a great campsite cant recommend it enough #recommended Only downside the next morning was the cold showers, tip use the one in the loos not those at the end of the barn. We also went through the wonderful tourist town of Adare, as always amazing busy but worth a visit. This shows our time there in 2018. DAY 20 - left the Apple farm amd took the very long drive up through Eire to the Wicklow's via the outskirts of Dublin and main motorways, they are quick and empty but have a few tolls on them which in fairness are not that expensive and cut your journey time. Visited the wonderful Powerscroft house and gardens near Bray with great views of the Wicklow mountains. The house burnt down a while ago but the gardens are spectacular, especially the variety of world trees, some labelled by those celebs that planted them. Princess Grace of Monaco, PM Bob Hawke of Australia to name but a few. For a keen gardener it was a delight, some pretty tall sequoias and redwoods as well as the formal bits, had a great chat with the lady gardener. Before starting our walk we watched the exhibition movie to get some background and had coffee and cake outside in the sun, just fab! after our tour with audio commentary on your phone (clever) we did some shopping in the gift shop. Then it was onto our campsite at Redcross for 2 nights. Also not very busy. Having set up we went up to the Mickey Finn pub attached to the site for an evening meal. Nice craft ales as well. DAY 21 - Spent the day relaxing at the Redcross site, a nice site and very quiet. We were in the silent garden, the adults only section. It is a very well laid out site. We went for a walk around the whole perimeter which takes you through fields of animals, we spotted, donkeys, llamas, pig, goats, deer and alpacas, maybe there were more. On return from our walk we went (again, what spoilt near septuagenarians we are!) to the Mickey Finn craft pub for lunch and chatted to a lovely family from Newry on the next table. The publican even allowed me to pose behind the bar. After that we went over the road for the largest 99 flake ice cream we have ever had and sat outside eating them in the sun, bliss! The afternoon was spent relaxing before the long drive home tomorrow. DAY 22 - the long journey home. Up at 5, quick shower, no brekkie as prepped the day before. Left before 6, it was a longer journey back to Dublin port which is north of the city than I had anticipated and the high /low oil warning light and alarm had started going off again when you accelerate or decelerate, very annoying , getting fixed back home. Lots of toll charges and tunnels to get to the port one of which you had to pay online within 24 hours. I did it whilst we queued for the ferry. A very smooth crossing, not busy, a bit of duty free shopping and then the long drive home from Holyhead. Stopped for lunch on the way back and arrived home about 5 pm so about 12 hours travelling. Sadly when we got home we found we had been burgled, not a great welcome home and the stress of police and forensics and insurance for days, we loved the holiday, just not the return, oh well S**T happens Here is the talkies video we took. Return to MENU GIANTS CAUSEWAY 13th June 2023 Want to know more about the Giant's causeway click HERE . We had a fab day there, day 4 of our holiday, there is a bit of a write up HERE . Return to MENU DINGLE PENINSULAR, COUNTY KERRY 20th June 2023 Feel free to read the write up on DAY 11 . I've included a detailed map of the peninsula so you can relate to the text. It was a lovely day 130 miles all around, so worth a visit. Return to MENU THE SPECTACULAR RING OF KERRY, COUNTY KERRY 21st June 2023 To read the words of this lovely day trip click on DAY 12 The drive and exploration around the ring of Kerry is truly spectacular. It was about 112 miles from Tralee to Killarney all the way around, what sights, what memories. Return to MENU BEARA PENINSULAR, COUNTY KERRY 22nd June 2023 Read about our trip around the Beara peninsula HERE . This video will give you an insight, its good but preferred the ring of Kerry. Sheep head drive however is a remote must, get to the end. We gave way to all manner of tractors, true hillside farm land. Return to MENU ACCIDENT ON THE BEARA PENINSULAR, 22nd June 2023 Sadly between Tuosist and Lauragh on the R573, a very narrow road which on reflection we should not have taken, 2 cars in tandem on the other side, old guy and his wife in the first car and his son in the second. So wish he hadn't just stopped with his rear at an angle outwards. He expected me to get around him but we had a deep water channel at the edge of the road on the passenger side so there was no way I was going to ditch the van, hence it was very tricky for me to get around him. Sadly my gas outlet flue caught his car. I jumped out and asked him if he could move. He said no, so I had to carry on which scraped teh side of our van and completely crushed the gas flue and ripped off the loo cassette cover door. We exchanged insurance details. Since returning home I have fixed it all up myself so no real hardship, just rather annoying when you are touring, note to self don't go down narrow roads and I mean very narrow road when octogenarians are travelling on them #smile #hintsandtips Return to MENU HIGH / LOW OIL PRESSURE ERROR 30th & 31st 2023 Started after our long journey from Cahir to Powerscroft Estate, thought it was lack of oil so put and extra litre in. No sign of oil leaks though. likely to be the sensors at the top and bottom of the engine that monitor the high and low oil pressure . Maybe because of how bumpy the roads have been something has been shaken loose. Anyhow it is going into the garage for fixing, way beyond my vehicle skills. Just a tip for others, the noise is totally and utterly distracting when travelling, why would any designer worth their salt invent something like this. Return to MENU AUDIOBOOK This is an audio book of our 22 days away. Its also on Sound Cloud. Return to MENU TOM CREAN - HERO, ANTARTIC EXPLORER We visited both the South Pole inn on the Dingle Peninsular at Annascaul, county Kerry and the Tom Crean brewery at Kenmare, county Kerry. What a lovely chap Bill is , an ex London fireman who is married to the hero Tom Crean's grand daughter. We (well I) had a lovely chat with him about craft beers and he told me how the big players in Ireland like Guinness were trying hard to force the smaller players out of the market place. Now that really is unacceptable. We had a lovely meal in Annascaul. If you want to see and read more visit the Dingle peninsula DAY 11 Read more about this undoubted hero Return to MENU THAT'S ALL FOLKS Return to MENU

Created by KeefH Web Designs , January 14th, 2023, 9.12 AM A Travel Blog by KeefH Web Designs Not The Motorhome trip No 19 : December 21st 2022 – January 13th 2023 INTRODUCTION Go straight to MENU if you would prefer. Total distance travelled throughout the trip was 16562 miles, quite a way eh? and for us almost septuagenarians a bit of a bigger challenge with the jet lag but hey how nice was that trip and how lovely to spend so much time with our Singaporean family x #missingUalready The last family travel blog I wrote was for our trip to Florida and Disney with Craig & Leanne and family. Read BLOG 183 . Coincidentally when we visited the Jewel, the world's largest indoor waterfall at Changi airport for the day they had a celebration of 100 years of Disney, i.e. from Steamboat Willie, our visit last year was for 50 years of the Theme parks. For us this was our first ever trip to Thailand and a great experience it was on every level. you can read in more depth about it here on the travel blog under Thailand. On reflection I think Chiang Mai, the second city was great choice in terms of culture, history, scenery and cuisine. We loved every moment of our fun time with family here. MENU Highlights Calendar Travel Blog Route Singapore Part 1 Chiang Mai, Thailand Singapore Part 2 Audiobook That's all Folks HIGHLIGHTS This video is almost 2 minutes long but gives you a flavour of what KeefH Web Designs can do with the very powerful Clipchamp and a great introductory overview of what leads onto the full highlights in the next video #enjoy This slideshow contains all the "highlight" images for the trip with a textual heading at the bottom of each slide and covers both Singapore, Thailand, Christmas, New Year and Annie's birthday in "heading" terms, a huge highlight of Annie's birthday apart from time at the art market in the morning was the B Sam Cook restaurant Phoenix had cleverly arranged beforehand from Singapore which in our humble opinion should have been Michelin starred. The owner was wonderful, the musician who played lots of Coldplay songs and the food and endless aussie wines were a wonderful experience. I chatted to the owner , "Chef Boy" as he likes to be called, he was not interested in Michelin and stardom, just wanted to carry on doing what he was doing and making people happy. His 91 year old granny's duck recipe was a true highlight, cant fault it. I attach the menu here for all to see. I think Annie had a pretty good birthday so thanks family and friends who sent her cards, pressies and messages of good will #christmas #food #newyear #welcome2023 This video is 7 minutes 50 seconds long but is well worth a watch to get an overview B Sam Cook's restaurant birthday menu. Note the restaurant had feedback left from most countries around the world pinned to the wall, they now have some extra's from Singapore, England and China #tick #michelinstarredorshouldbe If you would like to know more , it is a boutique hotel as well please click HERE , thanks If you want to see much more of our experience there and maybe hear some of the musician's music click HERE . Go to MENU CALENDAR, TIMELINE & MAPS I have created this video using Clipchamp , some of my pictures from the trip and some of my videos, and screen captures from every day of the lovely family holiday in Singapore and Thailand via Google Maps timeline which has clearly captured (as it does) my movements via GPS on my phone, which creates quite a nice visual memory via the maps plus a highlights from Google themselves of the trip on my phone. So here is that video! Its 5 minutes long. Return to MENU ROUTE MAP This video was created using the phone app Travel Boast where I drew out the major places we stopped at on route. It then draws out the route with a car driving to Heathrow then planes to Singapore, Changi and Chiang Mai, Thailand and a van we travelled in in Thailand out to the elephant poo poo park and the Elefin hillside farm to see, feed and ride elephants. I then hooked in its 3 formats I had created into one You Tube video. Landscape, Portrait and night maps. I joined them together with some relevant images and music using Microsoft's Clipchamp. See what you think, i think it brings the journey to life and adds to any travel blog #newfeature The thing I do find out of kilter though is its estimated distance which at 16775 213 miles more than the 16562 miles we recorded on the trip. Close but not close enough in my humble opinion, but way better than blog 71 . I am also surprised that altering the dimension from landscape to portrait with the same data alters the mileage by 3 miles, now that is truly weird. PS love the animated transportation, cool. Return to Menu SINGAPORE PART 1 21st-27th DECEMBER 2022 From our travels, this is the full slideshow of images, created by KeefH web Designs in Jan 2023 and features amongst others Christmas wonderland by the bay , light and sound show with knobs on. Visiting Santa. Christmas dinner at Muddy's murphy's in Orchard Road. Shopping. Eating. Paddling at East Coast Park. Friends. Jet lag. Heathrow Terminal 5 meet and greet or rather not meet nor greet #disappointing Let the adventures begin. Our first visit in 4 years to family. Presents, Grandkids, and fun fun fun #tick. Eating premium Durian, being kindly given freeze dried durian from China to transport un-smelly like back to the uk. I hadn't worked out how to use AVS Video editor to rotate incorrectly inversed or 90 degree rotated images by this stage but got it right for all other slideshows of holiday images, sorry about that. So here we go, its 7 minutes 40 seconds long and features some fab music by Be Bop Deluxe, now who remembers them? The talkies video associated with the first half of our stay in Singapore, great to finally meet up again in their homeland, after 4 years mostly because of Covid restrictions and Keef's operation. Anyhow the video is 11 and a half minutes long and covers amongst others a fab Xmas meal cooked by Jona, Christmas wonderland by the bay, carols, a visit to Santa, these fake Santa's (as Charlie tells me) kept having to change due to wearing an outfit in that heat, and their height, accent, hair, glasses etc. also changed, but who cares, its all part of the magic of Xmas time #haha Christmas lunch at Muddy Murphy's in Orchard road, now a bit of a tradition, great food and atmosphere and they now brew their own beer, what more can a fella want, family, friends , food, wine and beer, great times, take a look. Created by KeefH Web Designs. Note this video is not available in Russia because of the Andy Williams song accompanying the light and sound show at Christmas by the bay but as this is the only country You tube excludes, frankly my dear I don't give a damn! #haha Go to MENU THAILAND 28th DECEMBER 2022 to 2nd JANUARY 2023, CHIANG MAI There were some 800+ images of our fab time in Thailand so I have split that into 3 slideshows running respectively for 12, 15 and 12 minutes. Note batches 2 and 3 have no soundtrack done deliberately. The first has Beth Hart covers of Led Zep stuff which I decided just wasn't peaceful enough for this blog but I can thoroughly recommend her album. She is a great guitarist. So to our travel blog image slideshows created by KeefH Web Designs, January 2023, which cover such visits as the night market, with a performance (well weird song and dance routine by the Lady Boys) , 2 riverside restaurants, warm comfortable temperatures, fab mountainside views from both within the town of chiang mai and outside it in countryside to a distance of some 50 kilometers. The Elefin hillside café and Elephant farm for feeding and riding said animals, tropical flowers, Tuk Tuks, modern day fire engine red Tuk Tuks, haggling, street food, fab thai cuisine, spicy thai sausage, garden worms, Yuk! Buddhist temples, art markets, not being able to get a taxi on new years eve back from Nic's restaurant of the city outskirts, having to pay over the odd via the Shangri La hotel to get back, but a very pleasant driver to the rescue plus grab drivers who didn't know their way. Tiger Kingdom, Elephant poo poo paper process and creative work done by the Hellingers #result Oh and listening to Charlie about how cold the hotel pool was and she had a wet suit on, the redeeming factor was the splendid jacuzzi pool side. You cant fault the hotel, it was luxurious and the help your self buffet breakfast a true plus, where they attempted to cater for every nationality which meant ones choice was great. Curry for brekkie was right up my street but don't mention chicken sausage, please. I had now worked out how to use AVS Video editor to rotate incorrectly inversed or 90 degree rotated images by this stage so I sorted that so hardly any transposition happens unless I missed them by accident #fingerscrossed not too many, if there are I most humbly apologise, but in general every photo taken by myself, annie, D&P and Charlie are here. Thai greetings สวัสดี ครับ (sawatdee khrap) Hello (male) สวัสดี ค่ะ (sawatdee kha) Hello (female) or as I pronounced it in Singlish "SAY-WHAT-TEA-CAR" (badly #teehee) Listen here to the greeting plus a bit more on Soundcloud, thanks The talkies, this is a collection of all the video recordings taken during our fun times in Chiang Mai, Thailand. It is about 29 minutes long. #christmas #newyear It contains some slow motion footage. It covers visits to Chiang Mai's night market, its food hall, jacket potatoes with cheese for us, still full from Shangri La hotel lunch, a variety of Thai food for D&P, haggling over prices, travel in Tuk Tuks, eating by the riverside some great Thai food, yummy spicy, bundling into modern day Tuk Tuks those red fire engine types, they have no bus services, and watching in awe as Phoenix argued every driver down to 100 Baht #genius I wouldn't argue with her. Visiting art markets times two. Many street markets, The Elephant Poo Poo paper place outside Chiang Mai , using a lovely large van driver who spoke little English but conversed happily with Phoenix (mandarin or Cantonese I'm not sure which?), he took us to local food markets, temples, the Elefin hillside café an hour and a half outside Chiang Mai to both feed and ride the elephants, and when we were stuck took us back to the airport and our Scoot plane back to Changi. #greatbloke The time in Chiang Mai went very quickly but it was a lovely time, New Years eve fireworks and food out at Nic's with kids playground, sparklers, lit up balloons, and caps. Keef did the classic of asking the Grab taxi lady if she was a student supplementing her studies, oops she said I'm in my 40s #haha then the wonderful birthday meal for Annie (21 again!) at B Sam Cooks over the bridge. The old town walls and views of the mountain ranges are lovely in Chiang Mai and the temperature is nice at this time of year, warm but without the Singapore humidity. Anyhow don't take my word for it, see the video created by KeefH Web Designs below. Go to MENU SINGAPORE PART 2 2nd-13th JANUARY 2023 From our holiday travels Singapore Part 2 Full Image Slideshow, created by KeefH Web Designs, Jan 2023. Includes amongst others Family , friends, fun. The Jewel waterfall at Changi airport. What amazed us about this fabulous piece of engineering as Doug had pointed out was how on earth they got such a large upside down bell of glass (no seams in one piece of heavy glass) into position, it acts as the bottom chamber of the waterfalls recycling systems and we visited it on basement 2 level as well as seeing the waterfall at every level up to the top at level 5, a true experience. It looks different at each level, and the monorail running right next to it as well as the glass walk way must be fab although we didn't do either of those. Avatar 2, great, we had a whole day out here the newest touristy thing we have done in Singapore, we have sadly done many of the others in the past and this trip was about spending time with our family and playing with the grand children which Covid has prevented for quite a while and so glad we were able to spend what's that annoying phrase "quality time" with them all. we used MRT, buses. suffered humidity. amusingly Charlie always tells me she is cold when they visit us, I tell her in response we are always to hot and sweaty, what's the line, Singapore is ideal for 3 showers a day #haha grandkids back to school. BBQs on the beach. ice creams . I12 katong and ice creams, ballet aborted, busted shoes and flip flops. Alfie's 1st day at first steps. Geylang library visit. Great music accompaniment by Al Stewart, sadly Soho needless to say is blocked by You Tube in St Pierre and Mustique but I don't believe I am that worried by that, not sure how many motorhomers are on that island #smile so to the slideshow of images for Singapore part 1 The talkies, this is a collection of all the video recordings taken during our fun times back in Marine Drive 61 near East Coast Park in the Marine Parade area of Singapore and includes family fun with the grandchildren, Thomas brio is a specialty for little Alfie, eating at both restaurants, hawker centres (non air conditions) happy don don kopi food court (non air con) for paratha and BBQs on the beach with Doug & Phoenix's friends. Charlie now back at Ngee Ann Primary school (cycling thru ECP) and we had the pleasure of taking and collecting Alfie at his new nursery First Steps. We had a day out at the Jewel at Changi airport which is new since our last visit to family. An amazing world largest indoor waterfall, impressive and they ad a 100 years of Disney display up and running. We also saw the new Avatar movie, boy Singaporean cinema's are badly over air conditioned #freezing Shopping was mostly Daiso, Fair Price Xtra and Finest, plus the book shop. We used buses and MRT easily now with our own UK credit cards and fairly cheap it is too in comparison to the UK travel. D&P got us taxis and grab as need be #hintsandtips It is about 23 minutes long. Got to try out lots of slow motion stuff in this one which Charlie and I loved, we started it in Thailand, she auditioned for the remake of Chariots of fire for me , ha ha, plus sk8tr gurl. It was so sad to say goodbye to them but we will be back hopefully for Charlie's 9th birthday Go to MENU AUDIOBOOK OR THE TRAVEL BLOG Note if you are using Microsoft Edge browser you can use Ctrl+Shift+U to read aloud, there may be alternatives on other browsers, i must confess I've not found it that great so SoundCloud is the way forward for me as a published audiobook. And now with an image sideshow as well, just for good measure. Go to MENU THE END Thanks for reading folks, that's it for this travel blog featuring fun with the family and our first trip to Thailand, we especially loved that new discovery so huge thanks to Doug, Phoenix and family for a whole new experience, change is the spice of life. Go to MENU

By keef and annie hellinger, Sep 29 2014 06:12PM Motorhome trip No19 : September 23rd – September 28th 2014 A KeefH Web Designs Travel Blog NOTTS->EAST & WEST SUSSEX->NOTTS 552 miles George 3rd may have said “Bugger Bognor” but we say we LOVE the place! Took the “Wendy house” away for 6 days down on the south coast visiting family, friends, our old haunts and some nice restaurants and pubs en-route. The weather was really good even got a bit of a tan. We stayed at Chichester Lakeside view holiday park in the tourer area via our ACSI membership . Amazing value at €12 per day. It has nice lakes, an outside pool , bar with free Wi-Fi, shop and café and perfectly adequate facilities. They are not the newest but you get what you pay for. The only downside is the A27 noise and the fact that they put the height barrier to the field on at 5pm every day even though you have paid £10 deposit for the key fob to get in the front entrance. Still no real complaints the weather was mostly good! Whilst here we visited Chichester (Chi), East & West Whittering, Bracklesham Bay,Bognor Regis where we met 39 years ago, Felpham, Middleton on Sea, Elmer, Climping, Littlehampton (main & west beach), our dear friends Mike and Alison in Selsey, Pagham, Birdham, Chi Marina & Bosham. See the pix! We then drove onto Brighton via Worthing and stayed at the Brighton Caravan club site at Whitehawk in the east of the city. We took the bus into town to the Old Steine and did the usual touristy things. Pavilion, Lanes, Pier, Dome, Beach, Promenade as well as a lovely meal at our Niece Laura’s restaurant – Cocktails & Burgers (Giraffe) in North rd. Mixed weather but hot and humid! Saturday we drove to Lewes and stayed there all day, a really interesting historic town, architecture, quirky markets, steep streets, lovely gardens, vistas, Anne of Cleeves house, fish & chip dinner in high street pub, fab Harveys ales and 6 free Vinyl LPs from local record shop…. Result! Sunday we visited Laura, Ben and Obi (lovely dog) and had breakfast at Jamie Olivers before driving back home, all in all a fab week away, brought back many wonderful memories and created a few more! Anyone else have any Motorhome / RV experiences in Sussex UK they want to share? If so leave a comment on this blog and we will get back to you, regards Keef & Annie 218 Photos available in the SLIDESHOW Bosham Harbour 🌟 Bosham is a charming village located on a small peninsula in Chichester Harbour, West Sussex, England. Here are some interesting facts about Bosham: Historical Significance: Bosham has a rich history dating back to Roman times. The Romans used Chichester Harbour as a port, and Vespasian (before becoming emperor) is said to have had a villa in Bosham. The first parish church was built around 850 AD and allegedly over a Roman basilica. An enormous sculpted marble head, known as ‘the Bosham Head,’ was found in 1800. It might have been part of a statue of Emperor Trajan that stood at the harbor entrance1. Christian Heritage: Bosham is reputed to be the oldest established Christian site in Sussex. St. Wilfred brought Christianity to the South Saxons around 680 AD. King Canute (also known as Cnut or Cnut the Great) is associated with Bosham. He famously commanded the waves to retreat from here2. King Canute Connection: According to legend, King Canute’s daughter drowned in Bosham Mill stream, and her final resting place is believed to be below the foot of the chancel steps in Bosham’s Holy Trinity Church. King Harold (of the Bayeux Tapestry fame) set sail for France from Bosham3. Natural Beauty: Bosham is picturesque and a thriving center for sailing. Chichester Harbour, where Bosham is situated, is a sanctuary for migrating wildfowl and offers great walks along the sea shore4. Next time you’re in the area, consider visiting Bosham and exploring its fascinating history! 😊🏰🌊

By keef and annie hellinger, Aug 30 2015 10:41AM Not The Motorhome trip No5 : August 22nd – 29th 2015 A KeefH Web Designs Travel Blog NOTTS->ROSE FARM, FROSTENDEN, SUFFOLK & About->NOTTS 485 miles approx Didn’t take the motor home as this was our 4th annual family holiday with Craig, Leanne, Bill & Lady dog and had the most wonderful time, weather mixed but some very sunny hot days , lots of beach time plus a 7.8 mile walk between Walberswick and Southwold which surprised us and made us proud and knackered in equal measures! Visited Southwold, Walberswick,Dunwich,Aldeburgh, Snape Maltings, Caister beach by the wind turbines, Fox @ Shadingfield, Anchor Inn Walberswick, Icecream parlour in a very wet Aldeburgh for salted caramel/ Belgian choc and dime bar mix (tee hee), Fish & chip lunch Southwold and the saltings way. #craister Loved the cottage, beautiful views, fruit bushes, cockerel and chickens to feed (naan bread a particular favourite), great company, jigsaws, ale and spirits, world champ athletics and Indian railways on TV and Lady entertaining us ;) Will definitely bring the campervan back to this area, spied a good one near Bampton and if we could stand it the site outside the Shadingfield Fox although it looked mega – naff! Anyone else have any Motorhome / RV experiences of this wonderful area of Suffolk they would like to share? If so leave a comment on this blog and we will get back to you, regards Keef & Annie Note: 1) If you want to see our previous family holidays in Glenholm cottage KESWICK Cumbria look at blog 46 for the 1st and, Seaview cottage in Llangrannog CERIDIGION Wales Blog 64 for the 2nd and Hesleyside Hall BELLINGHAM Northumberland Blog 73 for the 3rd 2) The Index shows ALL blogs already published or you can find Blogs about a specific subject by hitting the search button and typing the word. 115 Photos available in the slideshow

By keef and annie hellinger, Mar 14 2018 08:26AM Not the Motorhome Trip No.9 5th Feb - 12 Mar 2018 continued A KeefH Web Designs Travel Blog As the 1st part of this blog which is almost like a whole website is too long I have split it in 2, it is 77 minutes worth of reading which when this continuation is added to it will probably make the write up of the cruise more like a book one would read on it in a sun lounger 😉 Schedule continued. 27 February Day 23 Port Everglades Dining:Freedom Arrive early morning Depart early evening Snapshot of Miami Excursion 09:45 To see Miami's slideshows, click HERE 28 February Day 24 Port Canaveral Dining:Freedom Arrive early morning Depart afternoon Free shuttle bus to Cocoa beach To see Cocao beach slideshows, click HERE 01 March Day 25 Charleston Dining:Freedom Arrive morning Charming Charleston Panoramic Excursion 09:30 Overnight In Port 02 March Day 26 Charleston Dining:Freedom Depart early afternoon To see Cocao beach slideshows, click HERE 03 March Day 27 Sea Day Dining:Freedom 04 March Day 28 Sea Day Dining:Freedom 05 March Day 29 Sea Day Dining:Freedom 06 March Day 30 Sea Day Dining:Freedom 07 March Day 31 Sea Day Dining:Freedom 08 March Day 32 Sea Day (see below) Praia DA Vitoria Dining:Freedom Arrive morning Depart afternoon South Island Sights and Angra Excursion 09:45 Sadly NOT Possible due to Storm Riley so day at Sea 09 March Day 33 Sea Day Dining:Freedom 10 March Day 34 Sea Day Dining:Freedom 11 March Day 35 Sea Day Dining:Freedom 12 March Day 36 Southampton Disembark Catch Up - Reunion of the Super Sleuths 8th June 2024, 6 years later Such fun.... Miami Florida USA via Port Everglades DAY23 - 27th Feb 2018 Landed Port Everglades, Florida, USA for Miami trip Travel blog fun: It was our 40th Wedding Anniversary treat, what you might call our Ruby cruise! We have been to Florida before in August 1997 but never Miami. We did visit Fort Lauderdale but considered Miami at the time to be just too hectic. To see more visit the FAMILY Page or click HERE . So we did the Snapshot of Miami tour which passed by Fort Lauderdale having left from Port Everglades using the "fast" lane into downtown Miami. We firstly went to Ocean drive with its Art Deco architecture and went inside our first ever Walgreens Pharmacy. After a quick walk on Miami beach we visited Star Island , Coconut Grove, Coral Gables , Little Havana and ended up having lunch at the waterside alongside the Miami HRC, guess what Keef bought? Our trip was supposed to last 5.5 hours but only lasted about 4.5 hours with 1.5 hours in the shopping area, bit of a swizz and we didn't even see Millionaires Row - Esterfan, Beckhams etc etc.... probably Ed Sheeran by now *smile* This is the synopsis of our tour. "Your scenic drive will head south across the Biscayne Bay and onto Miami Beach, home of the Art Deco District and fashionable Miami Beach. Passing by the famous Versace Mansion, you’ll continue on to Millionaire’s Row, renowned for its opulent homes and high-end boutiques, as well as some of the world’s most highly rated beaches. You’ll then cross over the impressive MacArthur Causeway and pass nearby Star Island, home to many famous celebrities. Returning to the mainland, your drive continues through downtown Miami towards Little Havana, with its vibrant Cuban culture. The contrast is striking as you continue on to the charming Coconut Grove, one of the most beautiful residential areas of the city. Finally, you’ll pass by Coral Gables, an area rich in diverse architectural styles and lavish landscaping. Catch a glimpse of the impressive yachts and mansions, and view the towering skyscrapers of Miami's financial district as you drive along Brickell Avenue. To round off your tour a short stop will be made at Bayside Marketplace. Here, you can enjoy some free time for shopping or perhaps purchase a refreshment before the return drive to Port Everglades." Miami was interesting, could have done with a more committed guide however! Your Guide to Port Everglades Lying in the south eastern part of Florida, Port Everglades is just a short journey from downtown Fort Lauderdale and its maze of waterways, bars, restaurants and trendy boutiques. The port is also your gateway to Everglades National Park and its unique eco-system and array of wildlife. The city of Fort Lauderdale is situated in Broward County on southern Florida’s Atlantic coast, an area known as the Cold Coast. The city did not even exist one hundred years ago but today it is one of the most popular resorts in the state. Now known as the ‘Venice of the USA’ because of the great number of waterways, Fort Lauderdale has much more to offer than just miles of sandy beaches. Passengers will land at nearby Port Everglades, the second busiest cruise ship port in the world after Miami. Seminole Indians moved into the area - under protest - around the New River and what is now Fort Lauderdale in the early 19th century. A few settlers were also living here when the Second Seminole War broke out in 1835 as a result of the massacre of a large army detail. A year later an Indian war party murdered a woman and her three children near the New River. As a direct result of these massacres, Major William Lauderdale, with a force of Tennessee Volunteers and army regulars, was sent to build a stockade on the river in March 1838. The fort (and the eventual town) was named after the major. In 1891, there were sufficient settlers to justify the opening of a post office and two years later Frank Stranahan arrived to run the New River ferry. Stranahan is regarded as the first permanent white settler in Fort Lauderdale and his house is now open to the public. A further boost to the region came in 1895 when the Florida East Coast Railway reached the small settlement. Workers began to drain the Everglades from 1905 onwards, and in 1911 Fort Lauderdale was incorporated, even though the town had only 175 residents. A building boom after World War I led to the influx of many newcomers along the Gold Coast. However, the bad publicity created by a severe hurricane in 1926, with the loss of 15 lives in Fort Lauderdale and many more in the neighboring cities, meant that the Depression arrived early in southern Florida. By the 1950s, Fort Lauderdale was a yachting centre and the beach was a magnet for college students enjoying a short spring holiday before their examinations. The 1960 film Where the Boys Are, starring Connie Francis and George Hamilton, described the pleasures of a break at Fort Lauderdale and led to student numbers increasing dramatically to well over 300,000. Eventually the local authorities could no longer tolerate the mass invasion, with its associated high spirits, drunkenness, drugs and petty crime, and introduced measures - successfully - to encourage the students to go elsewhere. Fort Lauderdale today is a dynamic and developing city. Vast amounts of money have been spent to improve the beachfront and make the downtown area more attractive. Tourists still flock to the city, especially in the winter season when temperatures and humidity are more bearable. The beach remains the major attraction for many, but the Everglades are nearby and the city itself has many places of interest and is one of the most important shopping centres in the state. EXPLORING Fort Lauderdale may be mainly a very young city but there is much to see on the coast and beach, along the many waterways and canals, and in downtown Fort Lauderdale. Please be aware that the state of Florida has a 6% sales tax, which is added to the cost of many purchases and restaurant bills. The Hugh Taylor Birch State Park The coast and beach area has a number of places worth visiting. The Hugh Taylor Birch State Park is between the Intracoastal Waterway and the Atlantic Ocean, with direct access to the beach. Nature lovers can follow two short trails to see perhaps raccoons, squirrels, egrets and herons, to name but a few. For more active exercise, canoes can be rented for a paddle along the freshwater lagoon. Bonnet House Further south is the outstanding Bonnet House, a 1920-built property in a 35-acre setting, which originally had direct access to the beach but is now surrounded by modern Fort Lauderdale. The sub-tropical gardens have lush vegetation, swans on the ponds, an orchid house and even resident monkeys. The house contains paintings by the former owners Frederick and Evelyn Bartlett. You will not be disappointed by a visit and opening hours for house tours are 9.00am-4.00pm Tuesday to Sunday; the last house tour takes place at 3.30pm. Closed Mondays. The gift shop - artwork, reproduction paintings, collectibles, antiques, jewellery and so on - is open during tour hours. International Swimming Hall of Fame Also in the same area is the International Swimming Hall of Fame, a museum containing memorabilia from 100 nations and information on over 600 world- famous stars. See, for example, the gold medals won in the 1924 and 1928 Olympic Games by the swimmer Johnny Weissmuller, who later played the role of Tarzan in films in the 1930s and 1940s. Who can forget those immortal words, “Me Tarzan, you Jane”? Also on display is the starting block used by Mark Spitz in winning five of his seven Olympic gold medals in 1972. This museum is just south of Las Olas Boulevard on A1 A, the coastal road. Opening hours are 9.00am-5.00pm Monday to Friday, and Saturday and Sunday 9.00am-2.00pm. Stranahan House On SE 6th Avenue at Las Olas Boulevard this house dates from 1901 when it was used as a trading post for the early settlers and the Seminole Indians. Five years later it became the Stranahan family’s personal residence and remained so until 1971. Frank Stranahan ran the ferry across New River and unfortunately drowned in the same river. The house now looks as it would have done in about 1913 and guided tours are given at 1,00pm, 2.00pm and 3.00pm daily. The house can only be visited via a guided tours. The tours are approximately 45 minutes to an hour long. Museum of Art Fort Lauderdale has an outstanding Museum of Art at the corner of E Las Olas Boulevard and Andrews Avenue in the heart of the city. The museum concentrates mainly on modem art and has a large collection of works by the American impressionist William Glackens (1870-1938). Another section is devoted to the avant-garde CoBrA movement - the name is derived from the members’ home cities of Copenhagen, Brussels and Amsterdam. This movement lasted just three years in the late 1940s, and their semi-abstract paintings are characterised by brilliant colours, violent brushwork and distorted human figures. The museum is open from 11.00am- 6.00pm Tuesday to Saturday, with extended hours on Thursdays until 8.00pm. Sundays open from Noon- 5.00pm. Closed on Mondays. Riverwalk If in this part of the city, do have a look at the Riverwalk, an area of waterfront parks, restaurants, bars, shops, cinemas and Las Olas Riverfront. River cruises start here and several Water Bus stops are along the river, including Stop 14 Carrie B and Stop 18 in front of Cafe Metro for Las Olas Riverfront. Another reminder of the city’s past is the Old Fort Lauderdale Village and Museum on the site of the original settlement at 219 SW 2nd Avenue in the downtown area. Three historic buildings date from the early 20th century; New River Inn (1905), which now houses a museum of history and a gift shop, Philemon Bryan House (1905) and King-Cromartie House (1907), now a museum of pioneer lifestyles. There is also a replica of Broward County’s first schoolhouse of 1899. This historic district can be reached from Las Olas Riverfront by walking across the railway line near Cascades Restaurant. Opening hours are 10.00am-5.00pm Tuesday to Saturday and Noon-5.00pm on Sunday. Museum of Discovery and Science Directly west from the historic district Is the Museum of Discovery and Science on SW 2nd Street. Permanent exhibitions include Living in the Everglades and Florida Ecoscapes, as well as several hands-on activities to unravel the mysteries of space and much more. The five-storey IMAX 3D Theatre gives a virtual- reality experience when viewing films. The store has clothes, games, jewellery, posters, toys, science kits and gifts. Opening hours are 10.00am-5.00pm Monday to Saturday and Noon-6.00pm Sunday. Fort Lauderdale Antique Car Museum This museum on SW 1 st Avenue (Packard Avenue) south of the river is a ‘must visit’ for enthusiasts of American vintage cars, as 22 pre-war Packard automobiles are on display. There are roadsters with compartments for golf clubs - the Packard was the Rolls-Royce of the 1940s - a doctor’s coupe and even a 1930 fire engine. Memorabilia includes everything from road signs to parking meters and prewar chauffeur badges. Guided tours are held from 10.00am-3.00pm Monday to Friday. BEYOND THE EVERGLADES Time Out in Miami Florida’s second largest city (population 365,000), after Jacksonville, is situated on Biscayne Bay at the mouth of the Miami River and just a short distance from the Everglades. Sometimes called the ‘capital of Latin America’, as two-thirds of the population are of Hispanic origin, Miami is widely regarded as one of the country’s most exhilarating cities. The city became famous in the 1980s television series Miami Vice but is now more renowned for its beaches, world-class shopping, restaurants and legendary nightlife than as the former crime capital of the United States. Miami can be reached from Fort Lauderdale by Tri-Rail, an hourly commuter service on weekdays and less frequently at weekends. The journey lasts a mere 42 minutes to the Metrorail Transfer. Metrorail, an elevated rail system serves downtown Miami and extends west to Hialeah and south to Kendall. The Metromover, an elevated monorail, also serves downtown Miami. Metrobus has an extensive network of routes and full details of these, Metrorail and Metromover can be found at the Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau, Suite 2700, 701 Brickell Avenue (Tel. 539 3000). There are also visitor centres at 1920 Meridian Avenue on Miami Beach, Aventura Mail and Bayside Marketplace. The city’s leading attractions are widely scattered, although few visitors are likely to be disappointed by spending time on Miami Beach and in particular in the South Beach area. The visitor centre at the northern end of South Beach is a useful first stop, and, if interested, do ask about hiring bicycles. Across from this centre is the moving Holocaust Memorial. Nearby is the Bass Museum, with a permanent collection of European art, as well as temporary exhibitions. Perhaps the most unexpected ‘must-see’ is the Art Deco Historic District, with over 800 restored buildings in a similar architectural style and painted in pastel colours. Watersports and sunbathing are popular pastimes on South Beach and a gentle stroll along the famous Ocean Drive is almost compulsory, as this is the ultimate see-and-be-seen place. Away from Miami Beach, here are a few details of just three very contrasting attractions, each of which is well worth a visit. Miami Seaguarium, an important marine park on Virginia Key, is deservedly one of the most acclaimed in the world. Shows featuring dolphins, killer whales and sea lions have thrilled visitors for 50 years. It would be easily possible to spend many enjoyable hours here. Coconut Grove is the location for one of the city’s most visited gardens and house: Vizcaya Museum and Gardens. The 70-room villa, completed in 1916 in neoclassical style, is filled with rich treasures, including paintings, sculptures and antique furniture. Not much more than a stone’s throw from Villa Vizcaya is the Museum of Science and Space Transit Planetarium. The admission price includes entrance to all museum galleries (plenty of hands-on activities), regular planetarium shows and the wildlife centre at the rear, where injured and recuperating birds feature. GETTING AROUND Taxis Taxis are available on the quayside and the journey from Port Everglades to downtown Fort Lauderdale should take about 15 minutes. They can often be found outside hotels, but it is not the norm to hail one in the street. Telephone 505-2800 or 565-5400 for a Yellow Cab. Buses Broward County Transit (BCT) runs services throughout the county. Timetables and details of routes are available from the bus terminal and government center in downtown Fort Lauderdale, and also from many stores. The No. 11 route from the bus terminal along Las Olas Boulevard to the beach is likely to be of particular interest to visitors. City Cruiser, a free community bus service, operates a service from Las Olas Riverfront to Beach Place. Water Bus A scheduled service operates between Oakland Park Boulevard and SE 17th Street along the Intracoastal Waterway, and westwards along New River into downtown Fort Lauderdale as far as River House. Tickets can be purchased on board and stops of particular interest to visitors are: 7 Bahia Mar (International Swimming Hall of Fame), 14 Carrie B (Stranahan House), 18 Café Metro (Las Olas Riverfront) and 20 River House (Museum of Discovery and Science). This is a most enjoyable way to see the city. FAST FACTS • Florida, admitted to the Union as the 27th state in 1845, is slightly larger than Nepal and Bangladesh. • Florida’s state capital is Tallahassee and Port Everglades is 23 miles north of Miami and only 60 miles northwest of the Bahamas. • An unofficial wind gust of 92 mph was recorded at Port Everglades when Hurricane Katrina passed over on 25 August 2005. • As many as 15 cruise ships have departed from Port Everglades on a single day. • Fort Lauderdale had a population of 151,939 in 2000 (US Census), of whom 15% were aged 65 years and over. • Chris Evert, winner of the Wimbledon Ladies’ Singles Championship in 1974,1976 and 1981, was born in December 1954 at Fort Lauderdale. • The Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show claims to be the world’s largest. SHOPPING Florida is famed for the opportunity to shop, shop and shop, and Fort Lauderdale is no exception. Visitors are spoilt for choice. Shops are generally open 9.00am-5.00pm Monday to Saturday and Noon-5.00pm Sunday, although department stores and malls keep longer hours. Beach Place, just north of the International Swimming Hall of Fame and between the beach and the Intracoastal Waterway, has the usual mixture of shops and eating places. Galleria Mall, to the south, has over 120 shops, including Saks Fifth Avenue. In downtown Fort Lauderdale, Las Olas Boulevard and the Riverfront are certainly worth a visit. Swap Shop, on W Sunrise Boulevard, is anything but a normal flea market and food court complex, as free one- hour circus shows are held daily. Florida’s second-biggest tourist attraction after Disney World is Sawgrass Mills Mall on the western outskirts of Greater Fort Lauderdale. Some 25 million visits are made annually to the more than 300 retailers, cinemas and the many eateries, which include the Hard Rock Café and the excellent Wolfgang Puck Café. The mall also has an indoor role-playing theme park (Wanadoo City) to amuse children. Best Buys T-shirts, Beachwear,Clothing, Cosmetics,Local history books, Sports equipment ACTIVITIES Beaches Greater Fort Lauderdale is renowned for its 23 miles of golden sand beaches and Fort Lauderdale Beach, part of Florida’s first designated Blue Wave Beach, stretches for 3+ miles. Entrance is free and this beach can be reached by a 15-minute taxi ride from the cruise ship terminal at Port Everglades. Most facilities - showers, toilets, shops, restaurants and bars - are in the southern part from Las Olas Boulevard to Holiday Drive. Beach chairs and umbrellas can be hired. The northern section is quieter, although kayaks and catamarans can be hired. Lifeguards are normally on duty but do ensure this is so if intending to swim or snorkel. Snorkeling and Scuba Diving This is a very popular area for scuba diving as there are literally dozens of coral encrusted shipwrecks and artificial reefs. For details of reputable dive shops, please ask at the Visitors Bureau. Golf Rolling Hills Golf, 3501 West Rolling Hills Circle, Davie, Greater Fort Lauderdale (Tel. 475-3010). Clubs can be hired at this 18-hole, par 72 course (6,905 yds from the back tees and 5,630 yds from the front tees); cart hire is included in the green fee. Advance booking is required. EATING OUT Miami is rightly famed for its cosmopolitan dining and some of America’s best restaurants are in the city. Ethnic cuisines are almost too many to mention, although several emphasize the culinary delights of the Caribbean (especially Cuba), and Latin America. South Beach has a wide choice of restaurants to suit most tastes and all pockets. Miami is also the city where ‘shop ‘til you drop’ could become a reality. There is everything from large shopping malls, such as the Ventura Mall on Biscayne Boulevard, to the exclusive designer shops of Bal Harbour on Miami Beach. Fort Lauderdale has innumerable cafes, restaurants, coffee shops and fast-food outlets. Intimate waterside bistros, gourmet restaurants, steakhouses, expensive seafood restaurants, and a choice of ethnic restaurants are just some of the options. It is possible to eat quite cheaply or the skies the limit if dining at a top class restaurant. Many ethnic cuisines, such as Cuban and Mexican, are often good value for money, whereas European restaurants (Italian and French) are usually more expensive than, for example, a typical Chinese restaurant. However, some of the most expensive restaurants may have a fixed-price menu. This is also junk food paradise. A walk along Las Olas Boulevard, Fort Lauderdale Beach, the Riverwalk and around the downtown area will soon reveal all kinds of eateries. The malls have food courts, with a choice of cafes and often good- class restaurants. American food is still well represented in the diners by steaks, fried chicken and burgers, although many now also offer a wider menu than previously. Helpings can be mountainous. The city has plenty of excellent seafood and fish restaurants - shellfish, Florida lobster and oysters are particularly sought- after by the locals. American beers and Mexican brands, such as Corona, can be found throughout Florida. Most restaurants will have a selection of wines from Florida, California, Chile and the Argentine. Sitting in the sun watching the world go by with a cocktail is always a popular pastime. Soft drinks, including the ubiquitous Coca-Cola, are everywhere. GENERAL INFORMATION Post Office The nearest post office is on SE 17th Street. Other post offices are at Alridge, 400 NW 7th Avenue and Colee, 1404 E Las Olas Boulevard in Fort Lauderdale. Post offices are normally open 9.00am-4.00pm Monday to Friday and 9.00am- Noon Saturday. Money Matters Most banks are open 9.00am-4.00pm Monday to Friday, although times may vary slightly from bank to bank; some will open on Saturday morning. Banks are located on SE 17th Street and in downtown Fort Lauderdale, including the Washington Mutual at 200 E Las Olas Boulevard and the Wachovia Bank on E Broward Boulevard. ATMs can be found in banks, convenience stores and shopping malls. Denominations The unit of currency is the US dollar ($), divided into 100 cents. Notes: $1,5,10, 20, 50 and 100. Coins: 1c (penny), 5c (nickel), 10c (dime) and 25c (quarter). Notes can be confusing, as all are mostly green in colour and the same size. Major credit cards are widely accepted in Florida. Travellers cheques in US dollars are often easier to change at banks than foreign currency. Emergency Contacts All-purpose emergency telephone number: 911 Cocao Beach via Port Canaveral, Florida, USA DAY 24 - 28th Feb 2018, Landed Port Canaveral, Florida, USA for Cocoa Beach It was our 40th Wedding Anniversary treat, what you might call our Ruby cruise! We have been to Cocoa Beach & the Kennedy space centre with the boys in August 1997 so we decided to take the ships free shuttle bus to Cocoa Beach to have a paddle and a bit of a look around. The weather was good To see more of our previous trip click HERE or look at the FAMILY page. We walked on the beach and the board walk and had a nice relaxing view of the sea and beach from the boardwalk seats. Met a few nice people off the ship and a few Americans. We had a long look around the famous Ron Jon's surf shop and saw the Fawlty Towers Motel before catching the shuttle back to the ship. Sadly as a port there is not much on offer at Port Canaveral. Revisited Cocoa beach and Ron Jon's Surf Shop that we had last been to in 1997 Your guide to Port Canaveral Located along North America’s ‘Space Coast’, Port Canaveral is surrounded by long golden beaches and areas with names such as ‘Satellite Beach’ and ‘Apollo Beach’. Many visitors flock here to see the spectacle of a shuttle launch and also to visit the famed Kennedy Space Centre. Situated midway on the east coast of Florida, 60 miles south of Daytona, Port Canaveral is sandwiched between the Atlantic Ocean and the Banana River on a spit of land comprising Cape Canaveral and Cocoa Beach. Cape Canaveral, in what is now Brevard County, was quite a small community, the earliest record being in 1856 when 30 to 40 families formed the community of “Canaveral” near the present city. In 1890 the area north of the city was known as “Artesia” but all the area was incorporated as “Cape Canaveral” on 4 June 1962, at a meeting of 200 freeholders. Cape Canaveral is, of course, now known world wide for its Space Centre, just north of Port Canaveral. ACTIVITIES Beaches Jetty Park Beach (one mile) offering restrooms, showers, picnic pavilions, a fishing pier with rod rentals and a snack bar serving food, soft drinks and draft beer. Cocoa Beach Pier (four miles), and Cocoa Beach (six miles), have refreshment stalls, showers and changing facilities. There are 57 miles of public beach stretching south of Port Canaveral to Sebastain Inlet. Golf An 27 hole municipal golf course is situated in Cocoa Beach Country Club, ten miles away at the end of IV linuteman Causeway, where is it is possible to hire clubs and carts Tel. 321 868 3351. The Savannah’s Country Club is thirteen miles away Tel. 321-455-1375 where clubs are also available for hire. There are 929 other golf courses in Florida. Other Sports Jet-ski and powerboat rentals are available at Cocoa Beach. Fishing is available on the inshore rivers, Banana and Indian Rivers, with Charter Guides who provide everything needed to fish for trout, redfish, snook and tarpon. Also deep-sea fishing is available out of the Port. GETTING AROUND Taxis are widely available everywhere. Some shuttle services operate between the port and the airport. EXPLORING Kennedy Space Centre Occupying some 140,000 acres of land on North Merritt Island this ‘spaceport’ saw the launch in July 1969 of the vehicle Apollo/Saturn V which achieved Man’s dreams landing on the moon, a considerable achievement when one realises that the first rocket was fired on the range on July 24 1950. The displays in the Visitors’ Centre change frequently, and among the many interesting exhibits in the Hall of History are: the Apollo space ship used in the US/USSR rendezvous in space, a Mercury and Gemini space craft, a Lunar Rover, the Skylab multiple docking adaptor and a small piece of moon rock. The value of the rock is considered to be higher than that of any mineral or precious metal found on earth owing to its scarcity value. Attractions at the centre include the Complex 39 Observatory Gantry where visitors can get a bird’s eye view of the shuttle launch pads; the International Space Station Centre, a triumph of technology where visitors can experience how to sleep, exercise and function as an astronaut; A new 3-D IMAX movie theatre; a ‘Heroes and Legends’ attraction encompassing the US Astronaut Hall of Fame; and an extensive tribute to the now retired shuttle programme, including the legendary Atlantis, now proudly on display. The Visitors’ Centre opens at 8.00am every day. The Kennedy Space Centre Visitor Complex offers a variety of ticket options, available for purchase online and at the visitor complex when you arrive. Advance purchase for add-on enhancements, including special interest tours, is recommended. Purchasing tickets online and printing them out before arrival allows visitors to enter the visitor complex directly, www. kennedyspacecenter.com/info/tickets Brevard Zoo, Melbourne This zoo features native Florida animals, Latin American species and Australian species. It also features a “Paws-On Interactive Zone” where children (and adults) can race against an alligator, climb through a giant honeycomb, arm wrestle a gorilla, and venture inside a blue whale. Tel. 321 254 9453. Cocoa Beach Situated south of Port Canaveral and Cape Canaveral, Coca Beach became self governing in 1925, a month after it was sold for $1,300,000 by Gus Edwards to a New York syndicate. The population was then 250. Today the population is about 12,000 and now boasts a 218 acre recreation complex which includes ten floodlit tennis courts, handball courts, an Olympic swimming pool and an 27 hole Golf Course. Many of the houses are situated on the winding streams and creeks that lead into the Banana River, and many residents are able to fish direct from their front lawns. The Banana and Indian Rivers are noted for their salt water trout, and the waterways in this area boast native wildlife ranging from wading birds to dolphins. Merritt Island Lying between the quaintly named Banana River and Indian River, Merritt Island is approximately 40 miles long, and at the northern end seven miles wide, tapering to a point in the south. In 1828 a Colonel Thomas Dummitt came to the area known as North Merritt Island, to be followed eleven years later by a General Merritt, who received the Island under a grant from Spain. Permanent settlements were made after the Armed Occupation Act of 1842, many descendants of the original settlers are still residing in the area. By 1843 hostilities with the Indians had lessened, but due to a resurgence six years later, the Merritt Island settlers were evacuated to the St Augustine - Jacksonville area. The primary economy of the island was based on cattle, pineapples, sugar cane and, at a later date, citrus fruits. The settlers traded with Indians who visited the island by boat and with other settlements up and down the river, such as City Point, Sharpes and Williams Point, only accessible by riverboats. Before the establishment of Cocoa, the nearest market centre was Titusville, then known as Sand Point, and from here products from the island were sent by rail to northern cities or by ship to Savannah and Charleston. The island is now a National Wildlife Refuge. Rockledge South of Cocoa, on the mainland, Rockledge is the oldest winter resort on the east coast of Florida. First established in 1837, the area was named after the ledge of coquna rock outcropping along the Indian River. The first post office was established in a log cabin in 1876 and owing to the rapidly expanding tourist business two hotels were built, the Indian River Hotel with rooms for 400 guests, and the Plaza Hotel accommodating 300 guests. In 1886 Rockledge had three stores, two hotels, two sawmills and one church. Cocoa To the west of Merritt Island, on the mainland on the other bank of the Indian River lies the town of Cocoa. The first settlers arrived in the area around 1860, and according to records the first commercial building, a general store, was erected around 1881 by BC Willard. Portions of this building originally faced the Indian River. The settlement was originally called Indian River City but this was considered unacceptable by the US Postal Authorities who claimed that it was too long for use on a postmark. The decision by the US Postal Authority was first heard in the Willard Store and naturally caused much discussion in an endeavour to find a new name. Eventually, it is said the name “Cocoa” was selected from a box of Baker’s Cocoa that had only recently been delivered to the store. In downtown Cocoa is a restoration of the old village with cobblestone streets, antique street lamps and many interesting shops. Cocoa is approximately half an hours drive from Port Canaveral. x Walt Disney World Some twenty miles south west of Orlando and approximately 60 miles west of Port Canaveral, this 27,400 acre development area is visited by millions of people a year and is regarded as the world’s single most popular tourist attraction. Many visitors come to see the heart of Walt Disney World the Magic Kingdom, but there are many other attractions like the Epcot Centre and the Disney - MCM Studios Theme Park. Many visitors come to see the heart of Walt Disney World - The Magic Kingdom, dominated by Cinderella’s story-book castle, but there are three more theme parks within Disney World: Epcot, Disney’s Animal Kingdom Park and Disney’s Hollywood Studios, as well as two water parks; Disney’s Blizzard Beach and Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon. Main Street, USA An authentic replica of a “Main Street”, railway station and turn of the century buildings, gabled and turreted, lining both sides of Main Street and surrounding the Town Square. Adventureland Exotic tropical flora and fauna fill the cool glades and sun baked trails of Adventureland. Here you may see the Swiss Family Robinson tree-house, waterfalls and trailing vines on a Jungle Cruise, or you may take a voyage with the Pirates of the Caribbean to their secret treasure trove. Frontierland Here you will see scenes from America’s frontier history. Big Thunder Mountain is an unmissable roller­coaster. Liberty Square Liberty Square depicts the colonial atmosphere in the New England Style. The Haunted Mansion has fearfully realistic ghosts and goblins, calculated to give nightmares to the fainthearted. Grown-ups will be fascinated by the auto-animatronics in the Hall of Presidents, bringing the past to life. Fantasyland This is the most fantastic fantasy in all the Magic Kingdom, from a trip in a gigantic spinning teacup at the Mad Hatter’s Tea Party to the Fairytale Garden, or a ride on Cinderella’s Golden Carousel. Also to be seen are such memorable Disney characters as Peter Pan, Dumbo the flying elephant and of course, Mickey Mouse and his girlfriend Minnie. Tomorrowland This is dominated by the Space Mountain, with displays of space age technology inside and a fantastic coaster ride simulating race through space, not for those of a nervous or delicate disposition. However, this land is a glance at things to come, with a chance to see what it would be like to take place in a mission to Mars or pilot a Star Jet into space. The Epcot Centre The Epcot Centre - conceived by Walt Disney as the Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow - has two main attractions. Future World and World Showcase. Future World Here you come face to face with the wonders of tomorrow. You can discover the Wonders of Life, and be miniaturized by Disney’s high tech theatre technology or propelled through the human body during Body Wars, a high space race against bacterial invasion. World Showcase Eleven nations around World Showcase Lagoon offer you cultural cavalcades of food, music merchandise and interesting people. The myths and legends of the Vikings come to life at Maelstrom in the Norway Section. You’ll get an incredible view of the French countryside. Discover the magic of the casbah in Morocco, enter the Temple of Heaven in China and see the Forbidden City and the Great Wall then await to be surprised with lots more to see in the many other highlighted countries. The centerpiece of The American Adventure is an inspirational multimedia, multi-dimensional tribute to the American dream. Disney - MGM Studio Theme Park As an alternative main attraction at Walt Disney World Vacation Resort, the Disney - MGM Studios Theme Park will take you back to the world of Hollywood in the 1940’s and bring you right up to date with the latest film and TV productions. Meet the talent scouts, budding starlets and gossip columnists, cop and cabbies of Hollywood Tinsel Town in its heyday. Travel down Hollywood Boulevard to the famous Chinese Theatre where the great stars of the past are immortalised with footprints and handprints in cement. EATING OUT The best shopping centre is the Merritt Square Shopping Mall, approximately 20 minutes drive from Port Canaveral and located on Merritt Island. There are over on hundred shops catering, 13 restaurants in a food court and a movie theatre in an area of about 600,000 square feet. Opening times are 10.00am- 9.00pm Monday to Saturday, Noon-6.00pm Sunday. GENERAL INFORMATION Post Office The nearest is Cape Canaveral Post Office, 8700 Astronaut Blvd about half a mile south of the port entrance, Tel .7833163. Hours are Monday to Friday 9.00am to 5.00pm and Saturday 9.00am to 12.00pm. Money Matters The unit of currency is the US dollar ($), divided into 100 cents. Notes: $1,5,10,20, 50 and 100. Coins: 1c (penny), 5c (nickel), 10c (dime) and 25c (quarter). Calling the UK Most pay phones can be used for international calls using coins, credit cards or phonecards (available from post offices and kiosks). To telephone the UK, dial 011 then 44, followed by the area code (omitting the first 0) and the subscriber’s number. Emergency Contacts All-purpose emergency telephone number: 911 With the Boys in 1997 Charleston, South Carolina, USA DAY 25 & 26 - 1st - 2nd March 2018 , Landed Charleston, South Carolina, USA It was our 40th Wedding Anniversary treat, what you might call our Ruby cruise! We absolutely loved Charleston, mostly for its lovely architecture and Spanish moss and abundance of churches. We took the supposedly Charleston panoramic tour organised by the ship first, although since out guide was a 'Nam Vet, Bigot, Sexist, racist and denialist this didn't prove to be a great "Panoramic" view, we saw mostly weapons and Army training grounds. In the end Annie & I stopped listening to him. We did the horse drawn carriage trip after that which was whole lot better on the sight seeing front and Jacob and his driver took us through some lovely areas. After that we did lunch and called Alan & Lorraine into Henrys as they past after their horse trip. Nice local ale and fish & chips . We went through the market and the next day we visited the Old Slave Mart (Market) museum, which was Ryan's Mart. Over 9m slaves passed through Charleston. It was the capital of trade in the southern states. Sad reading but I guess part of the towns legacy. The Exchange in East Bay Street was also a slave mart. These words are from the Heritage plaque outside " SLAVE AUCTIONS - Charleston was one of the largest slave trading cities in the U.S. In the 1800s, the area around the Old Exchange Building was one at the most common sites of downtown slave auctions. Along with real estate and other personal property, thousands of enslaved people were sold here as early as the 1770s. Most auctions occurred just north of the Exchange, though some also took place inside. Merchants also sold slaves at nearby stores on Broad, Chalmers, State, and East Bay street. Enslaved Africans were usually sold at wharves along the city harbor. Some Africans were sold at the Exchange , but most people sold here were born in the US, making this a key site in the domestic slave trade. In 1856 the city banned auctions of slaves and other goods from the Exchange. Indoor sales grew elsewhere, and Ryan’s mart, a complex of buildings between Queens and Chalmers Streets became the main downtown auction site." At the end of our day and a half we saw bottleneck dolphins in the harbour and met Clive & Lauren , our cetacean experts for the 1st time. Fort Sumter is an island fortification located in Charleston Harbor that we saw from various vantage points. Originally constructed in 1829 as a coastal garrison, Fort Sumter is most famous for being the site of the first shots of the Civil War (1861-65). Apart from our denialist, bigoted, sexist, racist guide Charleston was an absolute gem, we loved it Your Guide to Charleston To many, the city of Charleston conjures up images of the Civil War and Scarlet O’Hara, but this city is also rich in history dating back to 1670 when the first settlers landed. Along with its intriguing past, Charleston has much to offer visitors, with beautiful tree-lined streets, immaculately preserved plantations and gardens and an abundance of shops and restaurants. The historic city of Charleston is situated on the Atlantic coast in southeastern South Carolina. The city (population approximately 124,000) is on a peninsula between the estuaries of the Ashley and Cooper Rivers, and has a fine, almost landlocked harbour. It is unquestionably one of the most attractive and fascinating cities in the southern United States. In April 1670 the first English settlers landed on the west bank of the Ashley River and founded Charles Town, named in honour of Charles II. Ten years later the small settlement moved to its present site and, despite the attempts of the unfriendly Spanish, Charles Town soon became an important commercial and shipping centre. This prosperity was partly based on the rice and cotton plantations but the port had the less meritous ‘distinction’ of being a centre of the slave trade. The rise in the city’s fortunes somehow survived a disastrous 1699. Charles Town was hit by outbreaks of yellow fever and smallpox, then a major fire destroyed a large area, and finally an earthquake and a hurricane wreaked more havoc. However, not even the threatening presence of the infamous pirate Blackbeard in 1718 could stem the city’s growing reputation as a centre of culture and the good life. The British captured Charles Town in 1780 - three years later its name was shortened to Charleston - and held it for the next four years. These were difficult times and in 1790 the city ceased to be the state capital, an honour now held by Columbia. On 12 April 1861 a Confederate force fired on the Union-held Fort Sumter at the entrance to Charleston Harbor. This event started the Civil War, during which South Carolina suffered very heavily. Charleston endured a blockade by Union land and sea forces from July 1863 to February 865, during which the city was shelled almost every day. Finally, on 18 February 1865, General Sherman’s army entered what was left of the once proud Charleston. The abolition of slavery then had a devastating effect on the plantation system and on the port of Charleston. The city is now a very different place from that which would have greeted a visitor in early 1865. Universities have been established, the container port is one of the largest in the United States, and tourists are attracted in great numbers by the stunning architecture, the superb shopping, dining and recreational opportunities, and the city’s renewed reputation as a place of culture. A visit here is most unlikely to be a disappointment. EXPLORING The Charleston Visitor Center at 375 Meeting Street has leaflets on places of interest, tickets for many of the main attractions, a useful map and schedule of the Downtown Area Shuttle (DASH) and many publications, including a Visitor Guide Map, the Charleston Walking Tour, and the Civil War. The best way to really appreciate Charleston’s Historic District, if possible, is on foot. This lovely area at the foot of the Peninsula is full of beautifully preserved and majestic houses, many churches and museums, and there are outstanding views across the harbour. And all of this is in a comparatively small area. Further afield, although still within no more than 15 miles of downtown Charleston, many former plantations can be visited. Here is a selection of some of the city’s outstanding places to visit. It is, of course, not a comprehensive list, and personal choice will decide which particular attractions are of the greatest interest. Unless otherwise stated, all attractions in summer are open from 9.00/10.00am - 4.00/5.00pm Monday to Saturday and on Sunday afternoon. These times, however, may change and should be taken as general guidelines only. Please be aware that a sales tax of 7.5% will be added to the cost of any purchases. Around the Visitor Center The Charleston Museum Across the road from the Visitor Center in Meeting Street is America’s first museum, founded in 1773. There is much to see and enjoy in the collections of cultural and natural history, of particular note are the 18th century Charleston silver. Aiken-Rhett House In the same part of the city is this palatial residence in Elizabeth Street. The house, now preserved as it was in about 1850, was built by a wealthy merchant in 1818 and then turned into an even more splendid place by William Aiken Jr 15 years later. The Aikens brought many of the chandeliers, classical sculptures and paintings from Europe. The original outbuildings include the slaves’ quarters. Joseph Manigault Museum Just a short distance from the Visitor Center and in the same street is a graceful Adam-style house built in 1803. This distinguished house is renowned for its cunning central staircase, the Gate Temple in the garden and especially for its collection of American, French and English furniture. South Carolina Aquarium Charleston’s most visited attraction overlooks the harbour and children, especially, will enjoy a visit here. River otters, sharks, alligators, jellyfish can all be seen as well insects and snakes. Historic Southern Charleston The Battery and White Point Gardens Here is a pleasant place for a relaxing stroll. Apart from the views over the harbour, many impressive houses are nearby, including Calhoun Mansion and Edmonston-Alston House. Calhoun Mansion The largest single residence in the city was built in the late 19th century by a wealthy merchant and banker. The highlights are the ornate ceilings, splendid chandeliers, detailed woodwork and the ballroom, which rises 45 feet to a glass skylight. Not surprisingly, the house has featured in several films. Guided tours of this Victorian mansion in Meeting Street last for about 45 minutes. Edmonston-Alston House Facing the harbour at the tip of the peninsula is this lovely stylish early 19th century dwelling. It contains a veritable treasure trove of family furniture, documents, silver, china, porcelain, books and paintings. The house was built by a Scottish cotton trader and then sold to Charles Alston, a Charleston rice planter, in 1838, who redecorated it in Creek Revival style. Nathaniel Russell House Here is yet another splendid dwelling on Meeting Street and was the townhouse of a wealthy merchant in the early 19th century. Considered to be one of America’s most important neo-classical buildings, the outstanding feature is a freestanding spiral staircase leading from the hall to the third floor. The house has antiques, works of art, and ornamental garden. Heyward-Washington House Dating from 1772, this brick-built double house in Church Street was the home of the lawyer and patriot Thomas Heyward, one of the many signatories of the Declaration of Independence. George Washington actually did sleep here, as he was so taken by the house on a visit in 1791 that he rented it for his stay. The house has a remarkable collection of furniture by Charleston craftsmen, most notably a valuable Holmes bookcase. The exquisite garden is full of plants that were available locally in the late 18th century. St Michael’s Episcopal Church Near Heyward-Washington House is the oldest church (1751) in the city. George Washington worshipped here in 1791. The impressive steeple rises to 186 feet above street level. St Philip’s Episcopal Church Charleston has a number of lovely churches and St Philip’s is certainly one of them. The present church dates from 1838 and was known as the lighthouse church as a light was put in the steeple to guide ships into port. Dubose Heyward, the author of Porgy and Bess, is buried in the churchyard. Old Exchange and Provost Dungeon Historically one of the most important buildings in Charleston, the British-built (1771) Exchange and Customs House later served as a prison for American patriots in the Revolutionary War. The Powder Magazine Now restored to its mid-19th century appearance, the former munition store was built in 1703 and is the oldest public building in Charleston. It subsequently served as a printing house, general store and even as a livery stable. Gibbes Museum of Art This museum in Meeting Street has one of the finest collections of American art in the South, with particularly notable views of Charleston, portraits of leading South Carolinians. The gift shop has excellent art prints, posters, cards, jewellery and books. The museum is closed on Mondays. Citadel Museum The Citadel is one of the last two military state colleges in the United States. The museum in Moultrie Street details the history of the college from 1842 to the present day. The Citadel achieved wide publicity - and some notoriety - when it finally admitted a female cadet in 1995, albeit under protest and a court order. This particular cadet only lasted a week, but other female cadets have passed out with considerable success at the previously all-male establishment. ACTIVITIES Beaches The nearest (and the best) beach is at Kiawah Island, some 21 miles from Charleston. Kiawah is widely regarded as one of the top 10 beaches in the United States. A small fee is charged to enter the white- sand beach, which has showers and refreshments. Local Walks Some of the most interesting walks are in the grounds of the plantations along Ashley River Road. The Battery and White Point Gardens at the tip of Charleston Peninsula are also a pleasant spot for a leisurely stroll. The gardens are a peaceful place now but 18th century pirates were hanged at this spot. SHOPPING Charleston is a very popular shopping destination for South Carolinians, and deservedly so. The main shopping streets are Market, Meeting and King Streets. The city has long been renowned for its antiques and the ‘Antiques District’ is between Beaufain and Queen Streets. Also worth a visit is the King Street Antique Mall, where 75 dealers offer a wide selection of fine antiques and collectibles. Art galleries can be found throughout the city and more especially along Queen and Broad Streets. Charleston Place (and the Riviera across the street) is located on the ground floor of the Charleston Place Hotel in Market Street between King and Meeting Streets. Here are 30 good quality shops, including boutiques and jewellers, and the Palmetto Café. Best Buys: T-shirts and other clothing, Antiques, Handmade jewellery, Sweetgrass baskets, Lowcountry cookbook BEYOND CHARLESTON Fort Sumter The first shots of the Civil war were fired at Fort Sumter on 12 April 1861 by Confederate forces. After a 34- hour bombardment the Union forces surrendered and the Confederacy held this fort on a man-made island at the entrance to Charleston Harbor for the next four years. A call at the Fort Sumter Interpretive Center on Concord Street is a useful introduction before setting off to the actual fort. The fort can be reached by boat trips from Charleston (Aquarium Wharf) and Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum. Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum Three miles north of Charleston, at Mount Pleasant on the other side of the harbour, is a chance to visit the USS Yorktown (aircraft carrier), USS Laffey (destroyer) and USS Clamagore (submarine), all of which saw service in World War II. Other attractions include vintage military aircraft, a United States coastguard cutter, a reconstruction of a Vietnam Advance Tactical Support Base, the Congressional Medal of Honor Museum, and many other exhibits and displays. On 16 February the H.L. Hunley, a Confederate submarine, achieved fame in Charleston Harbor as the first submarine to sink a warship. Unfortunately, the exploding torpedo also sank the Hunley. Raised from the seabed in August 2000, the Hunley is now on display at 1250 Supply ST Warren Lasch Conservation Center, North Charleston, SC 29405. Charles Town Landing Here over 300 years ago, colonists established the first permanent European settlement in the Carolinas. Today, the park -10 miles west of Charleston - has a re-creation of a small village, a replica of a 17th century trading ship, tram tours and plenty of opportunities for walking. Four Magnificent Plantations Drayton Hall The large brick-built house was completed in 1742 and, unlike many other houses in the region, survived both the Revolutionary and Civil Wars. It is a fine example of early Georgian architecture and is one of the oldest plantation houses in America open to the public. The unfurnished house can be visited on a guided tour, and self guided walks will introduce visitors to the marsh and garden. The museum shop has a wide choice of gifts. Drayton Hall is the first of three great plantations on Ashley River Road and is nine miles northwest of Charleston on Highway 61. Magnolia Plantation and Gardens Next to Drayton Hall is a world-famous 300-year-old plantation, with the country’s oldest garden. There is much to see and enjoy here: nature train and boat tours, petting zoo, wildlife observation tower, maze, restored slave cabins, herb garden, art gallery, gift shop, rental bikes and canoes and the Audubon Swamp Garden. The main attractions, however, are undoubtedly the colourful gardens, with their splendid collection of azaleas and camellias, and the guided tour of the house. Middleton Place A few miles up Ashley River Road is a carefully preserved 18th century rice plantation, with colourful gardens, terraced lawns and ornamental lakes. Against a wider background of forests and the Ashley River, it is quite understandable that scenes from The Patriot (2000), starring Mel Gibson as a South Carolina planter, were shot here. The restored south wing - much of the original mansion was destroyed in the Civil War - can be visited on a guided tour. Visitors are free to wander at leisure around the formal 18th century gardens and can watch demonstrations by weavers, carpenters and blacksmiths in the stableyard. Other attractions include kayaking on the Ashley River, guided tours on horseback, and exploring on a rented bicycle. The museum shop sells plantation-made craft items and lunch is served in the Middleton Place Restaurant. This plantation has something for everyone and can be visited on an excursion organised by P&O Cruises. Boone Hall Plantation Nine miles north of Charleston on Long Point Road is a plantation that still produces commercial crops and has served as the backdrop for several major films. The famous avenue of majestic oak trees leading up to the house was planted in 1743. The house, with classic columns, was only built in 1935, and the nine original slave cabins form the only slave street still intact in the south eastern United States. The splendid grounds were the inspiration for Scarlett O’Hara’s beloved Tara in Gone with the Wind. An original cotton gin now serves as a gift shop and snack bar. GENERAL INFORMATION Post Office The city’s main office is at 83 Broad Street, at the corner of Meeting and Broad Streets. Opening times are 8.00am - 5.00pm. Money Matters Several banks can be found in Meeting Street (BB&T at No. 151 and the Bank of America at No. 200) and on Broad Street (First Federal Bank at No. 34). ATMs are scattered around the city. Denominations The unit of currency is the US dollar ($), divided into 100 cents. Notes: $1, 5,10, 20, 50 and 100. Coins: c (penny), 5c (nickel), 10c (dime) and 25c (quarter). Major credit cards are accepted in most shops and restaurants. Calling the UK and Locally International calls can be made from most pay phones, using coins, credit cards or phonecards (available from post offices and kiosks). To telephone the UK, dial 011 then 44, followed by the area code (omitting the first 0) and the subscriber’s number. South Carolina time is 5 hours behind that of the UK. Emergency Contacts All-purpose emergency telephone number: 911 Tourist-Information----- *---- — The Charleston Visitor Center, 375 Meeting Street (Tel. 853-8000), is open daily from 8.30pm to 5.30pm. GETTING AROUND Taxis Metered taxis are available at the pier. Drivers expect a 15% tip. Local Buses Downtown Area Shuttle (DASH) operates several routes around downtown Charleston. The trolleys are free. DASH buses carry a small charge. DASH - or a taxi - is the easiest way to get around the Historic District. The visitor centers have details of current fares, services and a route map. EATING OUT Charleston has a great choice of eating places, from fast-food pizzerias to some of the best restaurants in South Carolina. Many different cuisines - Chinese, Japanese, Indian, Italian, Mexican, Greek, Vietnamese and, of course, the specialties of the local Lowcountry cuisine - are represented in the downtown area. Unquestionably, Charleston deserves its reputation as one of the great restaurant cities in the South. Seafood is one of the state’s specialties, in particular such delights as roasted oysters, she-crab soup, shrimp and grits, and grilled grouper. Rice and seafood, often accompanied by tasty sauces, are the staples of Lowcountry food, a cuisine which reflects British, Caribbean, African and European influences. Great use is made of fresh, locally grown vegetables. Two popular dishes are gumbo (a spicy chicken or seafood soup thickened with okra or rice) and jambalaya (a spicy dish of rice with shrimps, chicken and vegetables). The huge portions in many of the steak houses will satisfy the hungriest visitor. Local Dishes and Drinks She-crab soup Grilled chicken with Carolina rice and vegetables Oyster sausages Caesar salad with spicy fried oysters Fried green tomatoes Pecan pie Peach praline cobbler (fruit pie) Two quite different but popular drinks are the local Palmetto beer and tea from the Charleston tea plantation. Bars and restaurants usually have a good selection of wines and fruit juices. The minimum age for buying and drinking alcohol in South Carolina is 21. Inevitably, Coca-Cola is found everywhere. Storm Riley, Atlantic Crossing, 10 days at sea, rough and sometimes scary DAYS 26-36 March 2nd - 12th 2018 Across the Atlantic under the eye of Storm Riley It was our 40th Wedding Anniversary treat, what you might call our Ruby cruise! The captain got us back on board 3 hours early in Charleston and set our expectations that we would have to try and skirt around the bottom of storm riley be going 200+ miles south of Bermuda (and the triangle *smile*) , and as we would have to do many more miles it was unlikely we would land in the Azores, so 10 days at sea. The reality was that the Azores were out of the question, if we had gone thru the eye of the storm there would have been 11 meter high waves and we would not survive, so well done Capt. Howard a good call. As it was the banging and cracking of the ship in 8m high waves was enough, many many passengers were sea sick, we even had to medivac an ill patient by helicopter in 60+ mile winds. The video will enable you to hear what felt like a sledgehammer cracking against metal nearly every 10 minutes 24*7. We had various different answers for this 1) twisting deck metal 2) Issue with the bulkhead 3) Damaged stabaliser 4) The captain told us one of the stabalisers was sticking and making the noise. Whatever the cause, and we have written to P&O, there is currently no answer but it did put a dampener on the end of the cruise. Ventura was going into dry dock in Brest to "be sorted". Anyhow we were just happy to get back to Southampton, but it didn't curtain our fun and with caste iron stomachs we kept all the luxury food down *smile* If you would like to read the detailed BLOG of the trip just go to the associated BLOG 125 part1. #cruise #weddinganniversary

Created by KeefH Web Designs November 4th, 2023, 7.24 AM A Bonfire of a Travel Blog by KeefH Web Designs Not The Motorhome trip No 20 : October 16th 2023 – November 2nd 2023 18 wonderful day in total spent with family MENU Overview Panorama's Diary Snapshot of a few Highlights Charlie's Birthday Slideshows Flowers and Fruit Movies - The Talkies Travel Route and Maps Audiobook Singapore, land expansion The End, until we meet again OVERVIEW This is a KHWD travel blog, Travel Blog 199 by KeefH Web Designs showing family visit to Singapore for granddaughter's 9th birthday fun and featuring Cable cars to Sentosa and Foodie fun including finally Hawker Chan's 1 star Michelin Singapore Chicken and Rice, Awfully Chocolate, Quentin's Eurasian restaurant in Joo Chatt area (our 3rd visit but no stinky bean this time but whilst we are on stinky definitely some lovely gooey Durian, yummy) and a new experience in Indonesian BBQ chicken which relegates Colonel Saunders to the bin! #smile This was our 10th visit to Singapore (so far!) Doug and Phoenix kindly took me to the wonderful Old Colonial Coastal Settlement restaurant for my 69th birthday celebrations. Another yummy! We even managed the wonderful movie "Killers of the Flower Moon" at the Shaw theatre in the Jewel centre on a revisit to see the largest indoor waterfall in the world, i 'm still wondering how they got that glass bowl into what was originally Changi Terminal 1's car park #yourspuzzled WARNING (Privacy) In the interest of protecting our grandchildren's identity on You Tube I have made any slideshow or movie "PRIVATE" that contain images of them. Clearly should you as friends or family wish to see an unprotected version feel free to contact me via the Let's Chat button here on the site providing your name and email address and I will gladly change the security authority for you to an unprotected version so that you will be able to view, OK?. I appreciate your support in this to help in what has now become sadly a rather treacherous world online in some specific cases. Much appreciated Keef x Return to Menu PANORAMAS KHWD travel blog style panoramas are fun to take sometimes however movement creates quite a weird effect, see what you think Return to Menu DIARY Here is the calendar overview of our wonderful 18 days spent with family in Singapore, maybe use the map to identify where each referenced place is, just a thought. Return to Menu A FEW HIGHLIGHTS Here is a gallery of some of the many highlights of our 2 week visit for the 10th time to Singapore. Here are some of the souvenirs we collected on our travels, especially the Mount Faber and Sentosa Island fans as the cable cars are not air conditioned, an essential item for travelling up their above the dense jungle below, a snapshot of what Singapore first looked like pre development with monkeys, snakes and monitor lizards a standard. It still fascinates me that the world famous Raffles hotel of Singapore Sling fame is on Beach Road which believe kit or not looking now was once on the beach, land reclamation is an ever changing feast in Singapore. Return to Menu CHARLIE'S BIRTHDAY Our lovely grand daughter was 9 and we celebrated with a variety of meals and the big day itself with traditional presents which were a fun challenge Lego wise. We went to awfully chocolate chosen by the birthday girl herself on the Sunday prior to her birthday, then we had presents and ice cream cake on her birthday at home. Poor Charlie she had a series of 4 school exams on and during her birthday week, but she did super well. On the Saturday it was the big birthday BBQ at ECP (East Coast Park) with all her friends, lots of lighting decorations and a HAPPY BIRTHDAY banner that took G&G and with Phoenix's help to quell our frustrations at the entanglement a few hours but oh so worth it. Lots of glow sticks in the dark on the beach. They all looked wonderful. We had a long chat with the South African grand parents of one of Charlie's friends. A lovely evening only marred slightly by poor Doug and Alfie's fall on the rocks. But all's well that end's well!. We also went to Quentin's Eurasian restaurant, one we have been to twice before as a denouement of her birthday. No stinky bean this time though. A great time and a privilege to be there for her birthday. This movie which is PRIVATE & PROTECTED is 8 minutes long Return to Menu SLIDESHOWS Monday 16th to Friday 20th October 2023. Packed up the car with our 2 suitcases and headed off down the UK's M1 motorway in what for the current period where storms Babet and Ciaran have been all the news was a very calm and mostly sunny day. With of course the obligatory motorway snarl up of travelling many miles at a snail's pace. We arrived on Floor 4 area B as directed by our meet & greet company and had the parking ticket for entry which naively I assumed the company would get when they left to take our car off site but no they took me over to the pay terminal to pay for it. Last time that was included, oh well thats progress #smile We then did all the usual checking in at Heathrow , dropped off the suitcases and had a bite to eat. WH Smith's meal deal seemed to be the best deal on offer , just a hint. The Singapore airlines flight left more or less on time and seeing there were not any movies , really that we fancied, we both mostly listened to music. The Last Domino tour album by Genesis for me, a true delight! Between broken sleep although I did manage about 4 hours this time, an all time record for me, I watched Titanic, so sad! Phoenix and Charlie met us at the terminal in Changi Airport, Singapore which was lovely. Taxi back to Marine drive, our new super wheelie Samsonite suitcases made the journey so much easier. After a meal and catch up it was earlyish to bed. Next few days were great fun catching up with the kids, playing, helping Charlie with her revision (allegedly!) Alfie's new seeds pre school and Charlie's ballet in East Coast Road. Here is a slideshow memory. Saturday 21st October 2023 We went of by taxi to the coastal settlement restaurant over in the Changi Point area, what used to be the old british military barracks that my Uncle Wally (bless his soul!) probably served at. Doug & Phoenix had taken aunty Linda there on her and Ian's cruise trip into Singapore so now it was Grandpa's turn to celebrate his birthday. Lovely setting so tropical but with masses of 50s etc. memorabilia. Nice meal for all I had possibly the best Nasi Lemak I have ever had. Post meal we went for a wander outside just as the heavens opened, so we sheltered viewing lovely tropical plants, a banana tree in full fruit and some quirky other stuff especially the rotting caravan. Inside both motorbikes and scooters were very interesting. Many thanks Singapore Hellingers for a lovely 69th birthday experience. Want to see more of this colonial experience?. Sunday 22nd October 2023 We all breakfasted at the "big tree" hawker centre, a tradition, dining on egg filled paratha, kopi (coffee) and OJ. Just lovely and Michael came over to tell us all about his grand kids studying at posh UK & US universities. How kind of him #smile we were yet unknown to us get a repeat of this the following Sunday. A very nice man however who clearly spends a lot of time at that particular Hawker centre and is just so friendly as indeed nearly every one we met is in Singapore. I loved being called an old uncle NOT! Folks would stop and as us if we need help often, now where would you get that in London I ask myself. In the evening for Charlie's 1st birthday meal celebration we went to Awfully Chocolate in East Coast Road. Now guess whose choice of venue that was? A nice meal and venue, especially liked my Beef Brisket infused with chocolate, well it tasted that way. The puds understandably were to die for. The Air Con how ever was a little on the chilly side, I wondered if that was "chocolate related". Monday 23rd October 2023 Took the bus to Dhoby Gault, a trip we have done before on previous trips to visit the Singapore Museum, a must if you are in the country. We went with Phoenix and visited Spotlight (the Australian fabrics chain) in Plaza Singapura, so Annie could get crochet hooks for Charlie and wool for Granny's lessons, lets keep these skills going between generations. We also got some Christmas fabrics for Granny to make then outfits for the up and coming Xmas time. We then went to the food court to finally sample Hawker Chan's Singapore chicken rice, a personal mission stretching back over the years. Approx. £4 for a Michelin starred meal, beat that #hintsandtips Tuesday 24th (Charlie's 9th Birthday) to Thursday 26th October 2023 The main images which are kept private of Charlie's birthday are available under the appropriate heading. On Thursday we headed out to do a tourist trip for the first time which in our 10 trips to Singapore we have not done before. We have been to Sentosa back in the day but never used the cable cars. So it was 16 bus to Dakota MRT, then east west line to Harbourside where rather than buy your cable car tickets online #hintaandtips it is better on the ground floor to negotiate your tickets by telling them you are seniors (if indeed you are). We saved a lot, the combined ticket for both cable cars was SG$50, clearly if you are Singaporean or local resident it is much cheaper still. Finding the appropriate building for the Mount Faber cable car is easy from the Harbourside MRT , come out at exit B and follow the signage. #doddle So we went up Mount Faber , some fab views ate the top and then down using the cable car across the Pandan Straits to Sentosa Island. A few minutes walk and you are on the second cable car which like the Mount Faber cable car has three stops. Going from the Merlion stop near the Madame Tussauds to Siloso beach, what a beach, wonderful view, we had a walk around here, shame we hadn't bought our swims with us. Didn't go to the Sentosa cove gated area though , just didn't have enough company directorships to get in sadly #smile Really enjoyed our day being tourists. See the slideshow. Friday 27th to Sunday 29th October 2023 Saturday was Charlie's big birthday BBQ with pals down at the BBQ pit in East Coast Park, such a lovely setting. The main images which are kept private of Charlie's birthday BBQ are available under the appropriate heading. Sunday we went to the Hawker centre for the trad Paratha breakfast and in the afternoon by bus to the Geylang area to dine at Quentin's Eurasian restaurant. As Charlie said to me Grandpa I'm Eurasian, sadly she didn't get to eat free there though! We counted this as the last of Charlie's birthday treats. The fish curry there is to die for, lovely Barramundi in a fab sauce. Highly recommended #yummy Monday 30th October until 2nd November, the long trip Home We revisited the wonderful Jewel at Changi Terminal 1 as we were so impressed by the world's largest indoor waterfall last time that we just needed another visit. Bus 36 outside the Roxy Mercure all the way to T2 where we walked through to Jewel. You can of course stay on the bus and get off at T1 which is where we got on on the return journey, security checks and all. We got in early as were going to see "Killers of the Flower Moon" at the Shaw theatre inside Jewel. Tip take long trousers and a jumper, Singaporean cinema's are set on air con setting "Antarctic". After looking around the fab Jewel post movie which we can't recommend enough we had lunch in one of the many eateries before returning to Marine Drive. A great last day doing touristy things! Here is a bit of a write up about Jewel. A wonder of the modern world. The Jewel in Singapore is home to the world’s largest indoor waterfall, the HSBC Rain Vortex. It stands at 40 meters tall and cascades down from the dome-shaped roof of Jewel Changi Airport. The waterfall is surrounded by a five-story greenhouse and can channel 10,000 gallons of water per minute. To create that even circular flow of water down the Rain Vortex, there are structural features built into the exterior of the building. The “fins” outside the dome structure make up a network of pipes that channel water to the ring in the middle of the oculus. The oculus then distributes the water down the Rain Vortex and gives it an even complete circular effect. The water stretches all the way from the roof, down to Basement 3 (B3), where the catchment area is. The water stored in B3 is then pumped back up around the perimeter of the building to the oculus, where the cycle repeats itself. Return to Menu FLOWERS AND FRUIT This video shows many of the wonderful tropical flowers and fruits we experienced once again in Singapore. I have set the video to have a background of Clarke Quay at night and used the final Beatles single, Now and then. Although we ate Durian this time, a frozen version of the King Fruit just yummy, I only have a limited shot of the fruit at the local Parkway Parade market. On the video are frangipani, blue pea (a fascinating orchid like plant with the scent of pea shoots that Charlie introduced me to), hibiscus, angel plant, bougainvillea and many others. The fruits include dragon fruit, longan like lychee, rambutan, fresh dates and more. Take a look. King Gold Durian on sale at the local market, we had the frozen version as at this time of year (not Durian season) those on sale are both expensive and of poorer quality, so says a durian aficionado #maybe #teehee Return to Menu THE TALKIES This movie is 4 minutes long and provided a flavour of some of our 2 weeks+ fun This move which is PRIVATE & PROTECTED is 22 minutes long Thanks for viewing KHWD Return to Menu TRAVEL ROUTE & MAPS Zoom in and out using this map to locate the places referred to in the Blog, our family live in this region. East Coast park is just a fabulous area to live in. We took buses and MRTs (Mass Rapid Transport system or tube to us old Londoners) which are all very cheap and A/C-ed. An example £2.55 28 stops from Dakota MRT to Harbourside MRT for our day out on the cable cars and across to Sentosa Island. Return to Menu AUDIOBOOK Listen to the blog if it is easier for you. There is also a slideshow with audio book overview but be warned this is 17 minutes long and the individual slideshow content can be found in shorter versions elsewhere on this blog and / or just listen to the audio version here, its much quicker, thanks for looking, KeefH Web Designs. Return to Menu SINGAPORE, DEVELOPMENT & EXPANSION VIA RECLAIMED LAND Only for the very nerdy, but created by KHWD using AI (copilot - ChatGPT) from the latest MS OS version H223 to answer a question that has fascinated me ever since our first trip to Raffles on beach road. Here's what I got, it makes interesting reading. Feel free to click on the embedded link within the write up to read even more about this fascinating subject. Over and Out Kx Singapore is a small island nation that has limited natural land area. To overcome this challenge, Singapore has used land reclamation to expand its territory and create more space for development and urbanization. Land reclamation is the process of creating new land from the sea or other water bodies by adding materials such as sand, soil, rocks, or cement. Land reclamation in Singapore began in the early 19th century, when Sir Stamford Raffles arrived and established a British colony. He planned to develop a commercial district along the south bank of the Singapore River, but the area was low-lying and marshy. Therefore, he ordered the leveling of a nearby hill to fill up the wetlands and build an embankment along the river. This was the first land reclamation project in Singapore, which gave rise to Boat Quay and Commercial Square (now Raffles Place). Since then, Singapore has continued to reclaim land from the sea, especially after its independence in 1965. Singapore has increased its land area by 22% since then, from 578 sq km to 719 sq km . Some of the major areas that were created by land reclamation include Changi Airport, Jurong Island, Marina Bay, and Tuas Port. Land reclamation has enabled Singapore to accommodate its growing population, economy, and industrialisation, as well as to preserve its historical and cultural heritage. Land reclamation has also helped Singapore to enhance its coastal protection from climate change and sea level rise Singapore plans to expand its land area by another 7-8% by 2030, using different methods of land reclamation . One of the challenges that Singapore faces is the shortage and restriction of sand, which is the main material used for land reclamation. Sand is sourced from neighboring countries, but some of them have banned or limited the export of sand to Singapore due to environmental and political reasons . Therefore, Singapore has switched to alternative methods such as impoldering, which is a technique from the Netherlands that involves building a dyke around an area of water and pumping it dry to create new land. This method requires less fill materials and reduces the upfront construction costs . Singapore has also explored other innovative solutions such as floating structures, underground spaces, and vertical cities to optimize its land use and create more space for its future needs. Return to Menu THAT'S ALL FOLKS Return to Menu

Created by KeefH Web Designs  September 27th, 2023, 7.53 AM A Travel Blog by KeefH Web Designs Motorhome trip No57: 19th-25th September 2023 NOTTS-> Shrewsbury, Shropshire, Chester, Cheshire and Castleton, Peak District, Derbyshire -> NOTTS 289 miles MENU Introduction Calendar Love2stay campsite, Shrewsbury Shrewsbury with friends, Shropshire Moreton Corbet Castle & Church Chester, Cheshire David the Town Crier Castleton, Derbyshire Travel Route and Map Audiobook Summary INTRODUCTION This is a 6 day travel blog. We left home about 11-ish and used the truck nav to navigate to our campsite at Emstrey just outside Shrewsbury. The route was torturous and should have been about 1 hour 30 minutes in duration and 77 miles in distance but for 2 reason that was not to be. Firstly trying to avoid the M6 toll and secondly a truck fire on the M54 outside Telford that created a nose to bumper diversion. Note to self next time we go to Shrewsbury use a different route #stress Anyhow we got to the beautiful Love2Stay campsite around about 2-ish and checked in. The rest of our absolutely fun time can be found under each successive chronologically order travel blog write ups below i.e. fun with pals in Shrewsbury, day out in the marvellous city of Chester and finishing in the spectacular High Peaks in Derbyshire. Only real downside was the weather, wet and windy nearly all the time. Sadly dry and sunny on the journey home from the Peaks. #typical but it didn't spoil our trip and fun. Return to Menu CALENDAR Here is a calendar entry I used to plan the trip, what is they always say prior to travel, make sure you plan properly otherwise it is the old adages "fail to plan, plan to fail" and "the 3 P's... p**s poor planning" #advice Return to Menu THE FAB LOVE2STAY CAMPSITE AT EMSTREY Arrived about 2-ish,checked in and set up camp on pitch FS1 near the amenities block, very convenient. Beautiful hill top views from this pitch, 360 degrees when the sky was clear enough to see. Checked up on buses from the site which are only every 2 hours and stopped pretty early in the evening for the way back. Our lovely friends ferried us back both nights for which we are eternally grateful. On the way in each day we used Shrewsbury's GoCarz app, very efficient and quick and they pick you up by the site reception, roughly £9 into town (dated sept23). Here is the marketing blurb! Love2Stay really has it all. The fully serviced resort is set in 22 acres of stunning landscape, with the Shropshire hills within easy reach and the Welsh border in striking distance. Love2Stay was created to make it easier to do something special with your down time, so we’ve made sure that there’s as much to do in the surrounding area as there is onsite. If you’re looking for a day off from driving, the medieval market town of Shrewsbury, Shropshire, is a short bus ride or taxi away. Shrewsbury is home to timber-framed black and white buildings with steep narrow streets and alleyways to discover. The Castle and Shrewsbury Abbey are both worth a visit and the River Severn flows past effortlessly. Try the River trip on the Sabrina. We would definitely recommend the site if you want to find out more click here Love2Stay info by KHWD Here are some images from the programme, very professional I must say, that we were given when we arrived, so much so that we intend going back next year with our extended family to stay in one of the Woodland lodges. You may find it of interest. Return to Menu SHREWSBURY TOWN WITH FRIENDS, DARWIN's BIRTHPLACE After arriving and setting up the van we phoned for a taxi and had him deliver us to the Riverbank restaurant at Victoria Quay. Had a bit of a look around and the Sabrina was just coming in from its current trip. Lovely area. We arrived about 5 pm and settled down at what was to be our table for the night post cruise with a lovely (and I mean lovely, better than my prize bean to cup machine at home). Mandy and Colin arrived at about 5.30 p.m. and Neil and Marice soon after. So lovely to catch up. After some drinkies, nibbles and a chin wag we crossed the road to wait for boarding. Guess what it was starting to rain. The river trip lasted about 45 minutes and was just lovely leaving from the Welsh Bridge we headed up to the English bridge past the posh boys school , lovely riverside dwellings and the funfair. The rain intensified and apart from the endless great tunes blasting out from the speaker system and humour from the captain it was time for the Icelandic hat to ward off the elements. I think everyone had a great time and it was then back to the Riverbank for a lovely meal. Frankly I have no idea how the combined cruise and 2-course meal was so cheap. Well done colin, £25.50 per head #amazing After a lovely evening Neil kindly drove us back to the site past the abbey and the odd red light #smile The security guard , a Maori looking guy who you definitely wouldn't mess with let us in. Tip you need your barrier key to get into site after 10 p.m. #justsayin Bit of history for you about the origins of both bridges. During the 12th century this stretch of the Severn served as the frontier between England and Wales, so both the English and Welsh Bridges were fortified as they served as part of the town’s defences. DAY 1 highlights - Friends, Cruise and Meal oh and cold blue steel soundtrack by her majesty Joni! Here's the Riverbank menu , far to much food but very very nice, I would especially recommend the mushroom risotto and never fear sticky toffee pudding shared with a loved one, 2 spoons essential. Up reasonably early, breakfasted and caught the taxi from site reception to the Premier Inn where our friends were staying, we drooled from the tradesman's entrance whilst they gorged on what can only be described as a Edwardian feast of a breakfast, no scraps available for the onlookers #smile we had a coffee. The weather wasn't great so Neil, Marice and Mandy took the car to visit the Abbey and beyond on their Cadfael tour. Annie, Colin and I decided to brave the elements and started the Town quiz. It did bucket down so we often took shelter. It was a fun way to discover parts of the town and a bit of it's history that I guess we would otherwise never have uncovered. The 3 of us aren't what you may call fast on our feet so it was a fun way to travel around. Some of the cryptic stuff got harder and harder the further we were into the quiz. Colin was wonderful outside St Mary's church with the most confusing of questions. Some lateral thinking is required. We made a good team. i think it was after question 14 that we stopped for lunch and met up with the others at the Alb, a nice real ale pint and some good food. Weather very variable (ok mostly rain) we headed off in 2 groups again, us to complete the quiz, what heroes eh? The others sight seeing, we all met up at one point, in St Almond's place just up from the 3 fishes in Fish lane, grope lane and the home of John Wesley, Shrewsbury has got it all! A really fun day, back to The Premier in to rest and bask in the glory of solving the quiz. Indeed we were able to sit in perfect sunshine looking down Pike hill at the end of the quiz, self satisfied, and being curtsied to by both tourists and the police. Ok maybe that bit is fiction but the sunshine wasn't. Some famous folks of Shrewsbury beyond Darwin were Clive of India, Sir Philip Sydney, Jane Webb, John Wesley, Neil, Marice, Mandy, Colin, Keef & Annie x DAY 2 highlights - Friends, Cadfael discovery, Town Quiz, Premier Inn, Rain , The Alb for lunch and the Loopy Shrew (Screw) for supper #funtimes Here is both the cover sheet and final answers page for the Shrewsbury town quiz, answers missing of course, know smugly by Colin, Annie and Keef, you will have to torture us, me hearties to get the answer either that or it is in Davy Jones locker! The following are some memories from our Shrewsbury time Return to Menu MORETON CORBET CASTLE (ENGLISH HERITAGE) & CHURCH We drove just a little way outside Shrewsbury to Shawbury and Moreton Corbet castle and Church, a free English Heritage site. It used to be called Moreton Toret initially but changed names when the Toret's married into the Corbet family, the most famous of which was the 5th mistress of Henry 1st who bore him 2 children, one of whom the daughter Sybilla went on to marry Alexander 1st King of Scotland. You can see the family tree related to that as seen in the church. Very interesting to visit , shame such a regal manor was like many others destroyed by Cromwell's thirst for power. Corbet's Claim to Fame This extract from the Corbet family history is held in the church for all to see, as genealogists we found it all very fascinating, so worth a visit, castle and church combined, spent well over an hour there. Moreton Corbet Castle is a Grade I listed building located near the village of Moreton Corbet, Shropshire, England 1. It was built in the 13th century and has been remodeled several times since then. The castle is open to visitors from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM every day of the week. The ruins of the castle are impressive and are the result of over 500 years of building works. The earliest surviving remains are those of a stone castle begun in about 1200, included the fine gatehouse. The Corbet family remodelled the castle in the 16th century, and the Elizabethan south wing is a rare survival from this period of a bold Italian-inspired design, which was devastated during the Civil War. Fine Corbet monuments fill the adjacent church. Especially the very well preserved crypts of both Robert and Richard Corbet and their spouses. If you’re planning to visit, please note that there is limited free car parking available in the layby next to the castle. Wheelchair access is possible to most of the site, but there are some short flights of stairs within the ruins. There are no toilet facilities at the castle. Dogs on leads are welcome. #hintsandtips. See our travel bog slideshow with special effects created by KHWD If you want to read more click here to enhance the KHWD travel blog I have created a second version of the castle slideshow here minus the Don McLean "Castles in the Air" soundtrack for the benefit of friends! Prepare to be scared Return to Menu THE CITY OF CHESTER, CHESHIRE Stayed at the Chester Fairoaks site for 2 nights, a caravan and motorhome club site, listed by us as M&CCsite tag because motorhomes are now more prolific than caravans in our humble opinion, and take far less time to set up, I would accept the use of the car by caravanners is a plus however but our little Wendy house autosleeper we can park almost anywhere. It is only 5.4 meters long. We arrived at the site about 1.30 p.m. which was a good entry time, normally at Caravan and Motorhome club sites folk are queued out onto the main roads before 1 hoping to get in early or straight away, these are probably the folk we remember arriving on site at 9 a.m. in the old days blocking the site for leavers, I could say inconsiderate but who am I to criticise? Here are some details of the site, we stayed on pitch x, it was in the wardens words probably there worst year for rain and as a clay undersoil the site was pretty boggy in places, indeed the continual rain we had whilst there didn't help either, our pitch was slightly under water at one point, nothing extreme but great for ducks. On the second day at the site we walked up the lane, not great traffic wise because of the lack of pavements and across the bit junction down to the Cheshire Oaks Designer Outlet mall, wrestling the winds and driving rain, hey we are on holidays. Note on the right hand side there are also no pavements to get to the bus stops mid outlet mall. The site info suggest a 10 minute walk to get the bus and I know we are slow but I would allow 40 minutes as the buses don't run that frequently and you don't want to miss one. Stand B for Chester, stops at the zoo as well, Stand A on the way back and into Liverpool. Our trip took about 35 minutes and stopped at the new Chester bus station, where you can pick up the hop on hop off bus just outside. A bargain at £10 concession, we used it to go around once before lunch and once after. Had a great dinner at Chester's near the clock in I think main street, can't recommend it enough. Here is a slideshow of our Chester stay fun. Note its about 7 minutes long but will give you a great overview of what there is to see there esp. the 2nd most photographed clock in the UK, Chester's fab fish and chip shop, great architecture, roman amphitheatre, town walls and a whole lot to do. View on. This is the talkies movie recorded mostly on the Hop On Hop Off bus, guess what it was raining a lot, no surprise there then Return to Menu THE WONDERFULLY FRIENDLY CHESTER TOWN CRIER, DAVID Tee hee maybe David should be called a city crier rather than a town crier. What a lovely man, a retired junior school teacher whom we met on the X1 bus into Chester from our campsite, who then proceeded to show us around a bit, and ring us literally off the bus "Keef and Anne are leaving the bus" #smile He is quite a tourist fixture in Chester, he helped us onto the Hop On Hop Off bus which he also went around on, just a lovely chap with a great sense of humour, hugely comfortable with the public. He even "rang" me in and out of the Bus station loos, an essential for us ageing population #teehee It is also a well known fact , by David mostly, that he is "ye moste handsome town crier in all the land" #fact Here is his calling card, maybe give him a ring if you need a guest speaker, at the very least use the Chester Hop on Hop off (HOHO) bus and you may well get the opportunity to meet up with him, you won't be disappointed, one of lives great gentlemen. PS Victoria Coren-Mitchell was nowhere to be seen (in joke!) Return to Menu CASTLETON IN THE PEAK DISTRICT NATIONAL PARK, DERBYSHIRE & WINNAT's PASS We left the Chester site reasonably late after packing up, all the water off the pitch had now gone. Not the best journey as around the Manchester airport area trying to get onto the A6 to travel through the Peaks there was an accident so we used a different route through some very nice Cheshire areas eventually going past the canal areas, the Torrs riverside park at Low Leighton and Bugsworth basin through to areas of the Peaks National Park we know well, going down Winnat's pass and eventually into our Caravan and Motorhome campsite at Castleton, not a place we have ever stayed at but one I have been to to pick up our pals Lawrence and Yvonne wo are site wardens at the Bolton abbey site so I knew where it was. A very nice site, weather not great, so we mostly spent time in and around the site and van, reading, watching stuff and generally relaxing. I like this site. Here is a slideshow of the time we spent at Castleton, with special thanks to her ladyship Kate Bush for "running up that hill" to remind us of Winnat's pass. Here are some details as well of the Castleton campsite, a lovely site I think, what do you think if you have been there? Leave comments at the bottom of the blog, thanks Return to Menu TRAVEL ROUTE AND MAP This was our route through Shropshire, Cheshire and Derbyshire, a fun 6 days Here is a PDF google created for me of where we had been grabbed from my phones GPS settings #bigbrotheriswatching #smile Return to Menu AUDIOBOOK Return to Menu SUMMARY That's all folks, a fab few days away in the van initially with pals but then discovering the delights of Chester which we haven't been to for an age, city walls with the kids when they were young, was our memories and so nice to be back in the Peaks, so close to home, note to self spent more time there! Winnat's pass is a must if you don't know it #hintsandtips Return to Menu

Created by KeefH Web Designs  September 2nd, 2023, 8.12 AM A Travel Blog extra by KeefH Web Designs , Hints & Tips Top 10 Campgrounds for Motorhome Enthusiasts Across the Globe Motorhome enthusiasts know that the freedom and flexibility of traveling in a motorhome is second to none. With the ability to hit the open road and explore at your own pace, it's no wonder that motorhome travel has become increasingly popular. If you're looking to embark on a motorhome adventure, we've compiled a list of the top 10 campgrounds across the globe that should be on your travel bucket list. Here is our Travel Blog best advice. 1. Yellowstone National Park, USA: Experience the stunning beauty of one of America's most iconic national parks while enjoying the convenience of full-hookup campsites. Explore the geysers, waterfalls, and wildlife that make this destination truly breathtaking. 2. Banff National Park, Canada: Nestled in the heart of the Canadian Rockies, Banff National Park offers motorhome enthusiasts the chance to camp amidst stunning alpine scenery. From hiking trails to scenic drives, this destination has it all. 3. Lake District, England: Discover the serenity of the Lake District in England, where picturesque lakes and rolling hills await. Motorhome-travel.net offers a variety of campsites in the area, allowing you to fully immerse yourself in nature. 4. Milford Sound, New Zealand: Known for its awe-inspiring beauty, Milford Sound is a must-visit for any motorhome enthusiast traveling to New Zealand. Stay at a campground near the sound and wake up to breathtaking views every morning. 5. Kruger National Park, South Africa: Experience the thrill of an African safari while camping in the wilderness at Kruger National Park. Encounter elephants, lions, and rhinos up close and personal, making memories that will last a lifetime. 6. Great Ocean Road, Australia: Drive along the iconic Great Ocean Road in Australia and witness the stunning coastline and famous landmarks like the Twelve Apostles. With numerous motorhome-friendly campsites along the way, you can take your time exploring this beautiful stretch of road. 7. Lofoten Islands, Norway: Immerse yourself in the jaw-dropping landscapes of the Lofoten Islands in Norway. Motorhome-travel.net offers campsites with panoramic views of rugged mountains, crystal clear fjords, and picturesque fishing villages. 8. Lake Tekapo, New Zealand: Known for its turquoise-colored waters, Lake Tekapo is a visual treat for motorhome enthusiasts. Park your motorhome near the lake and take in the stunning views of the Southern Alps. 9. Plitvice Lakes National Park, Croatia: Explore the cascading waterfalls and turquoise lakes of Plitvice Lakes National Park. Motorhome-travel.net offers campsites nearby, allowing you to easily explore this natural wonder. 10. Lake Como, Italy: Experience the charm and beauty of Lake Como while staying at a motorhome-friendly campground. Explore the luxurious villas, quaint villages, and take in the breathtaking mountain views. Whether you're looking for adventure, scenic beauty, or cultural immersion, these top 10 campgrounds for motorhome enthusiasts across the globe offer it all. So, pack your bags, hit the road, and create memories that will last a lifetime. For more information and resources on motorhome travel, visit https://www.motorhome-travels.net/. Happy camping! For more information on creating a similar (or not similar website #smile) contact us anytime via the KeefH Web Design website, thanks. PS If you have different ideas on the Top 10 leave your suggestions / comments here , we would love to hear them, many thanks #hintsandtips

Created by KeefH Web Designs August 5th, 2023, 17.33 PM A Travel Blog by KeefH Web Designs Motorhome trip No56: 30th July - 4th August 2023 NOTTS-> Witley Court and Gardens, Worcestershire, Plough Lane Campsite, Kington Langley -> NOTTS 385 miles This Travel Blog slideshow of our week away in the lovely county of Wiltshire, one we didn't know that well before hand, gives some highlights of the week away. Prefer to listen to the Travel Blog than read a blog, click HERE for the audiobook. MENU Introduction Panoramas Witley Court and Gardens Plough Lane Tranquil Site A bus trip to Bath A day out with friends Seeing lots of Wiltshire in the Rain Chillin Travel Route & Map Audiobook That's all folks INTRODUCTION As our grandchild minding duties were off this week, extended family on holiday, we took the opportunity even though the weather was predicted to be "not great" to get away, the reality is apart from the Tuesday when we were with friends the weather was awful, leading up to the UK's first named storm of the year, Storm Anthoni. Anyhow we drove the 165 miles down to Wiltshire stopping about half way at the English Heritage site outside Droitwich called Witley Court. It was then onto our Tranquil Site at Plough Lane, Kington Langley near Chippenham. Whilst there we visited Bath, what a lovely city both for architecture and history. We had a day with friends visiting the lovely quaint, but touristy village of Castle Combe, can't imagine being a resident, with all those tourists (us included) peering it at us, must be like living in a goldfish bowl #help The next day although raining we visited Kington Langley village, Morrison's (the nearest supermarket to the campsite) , Kington St Michael village, Marlborough and its exclusive college (Royalists that we are, NOT apart from our fabulous old queen), Avebury and its standing stones, Silbury Hill (what is under there I wonder?) , Devizes (home of Wadsworths) and Caen Hill locks just outside, amazing, puts our local Foxton locks ( in Leicestershire) to shame. If you want to read more focus on each individual section here on teh blog, I hope that works for you? Listen to some of the Talkies videos we made whilst spending a week in Wiltshire, a fun accompaniment to this travel blog. We caught Miranda singing Nessun Dorma in from of Bath Cathedral / Abbey, what a treat, what a voice, give her a listen why don't you. Return to MENU PANORAMAS Here are a couple of panoramas we took of English Heritage's Witley Court and Gardens, which we visited on the way down to Wiltshire, you can see some more history on this place which is now just a shell after a fire in 1937 HERE Return to MENU ENGLISH HERITAGE SITE, WITLEY COURT AND GARDENS Here is a slideshow of our time at Witley Court and gardens, quite interesting to visit and obviously with a lot of history , shame it is now just a burnt out and stripped shell of a building but lovely grounds, boathouse, lake and swans with still the ornate plaster work on the walls and intricate stone masonry (if thats a word?) #smile on the outer walls and palisades. Well worth a visit even in the rain. Loved the lavender gardens, water feature and formal gardens and information boards. Shame they didn't say like other English Heritage properties that the audio apps on your phone don't work and you need the old Skool audio kit to go around with, indeed they never even offered it , you have been warned #recommendation #takecare It made a nice driving break on the way to Wiltshire, in fairness for the subject of this blog about half way. Here is a slideshow of the history of the place and a very brief summary however click on the links below for "full scale fact overload" . Witley Court, Great Witley, Worcestershire, England is a ruined Italianate mansion. Built for the Foleys in the seventeenth century (c 1630) on the site of a former manor house, it was enormously expanded in the early nineteenth century by the architect John Nash for Thomas Foley, 3rd Baron Foley. The estate was later sold to the Earls of Dudley, who undertook a second massive reconstruction in the mid-19th century, employing the architect Samuel Daukes to create one of the great palaces of Victorian and Edwardian England. The declining fortune of the Dudley's saw the sale of the court after the First World War to a Kidderminster carpet manufacturer. In 1937 a major fire caused great damage to the court, the estate was broken up and sold and the house was subsequently stripped of its fittings and furnishings. We noted that English Heritage had their own ice cream van, now that is enterprising. Here are some links if you wish to read more. Witley 1. Witley 2. Return to MENU PLOUGH LANE TRANQUIL SITE Here is a slideshow of our overview of the campsite at Plough lane, an allegedly Tranquil site which I'm afraid it wasn't the A350 outside could be heard all day and night even with the windows and blackout blinds down, so in our humble opinion that is a no no #justsayin Here are the site details and details of the Tranquil sites book we found it in. A walk down the road to the right from the main entrance will take you to the lovely village of Kington Langley, there is also a very limited bus service the 91 that will take you there but it is only about 20 minutes walk. On the other side of the A350 (tricky to cross) there is a 30 minute walk to Kington St Michaels , not in our humble opinion as nice as Kington Langley but it has a village shop and pub. Here are some campsite details, we were on pitch 7, it now has 52 pitches (2023) and I'm afraid no where near enough facilities, no matter what time of day you go the 2 showers and 1 privacy cubicles are ALWAYS full , the site when we were there wasn't even full, who knows what it would be like if it was. This is another great no-no so overall despite the price being less at £33 / night than C&MC sites at average £45-£50 nowadays we would NOT recommend. Sorry Plough lane. However getting out from it it is a great location for surrounding areas of Wiltshire. Read on McDuff! Return to MENU BUS TRIP TO BATH, VIA CHIPPENHAM PLUS QUIZ Don't forget to listen to Miranda, just amazing Here is the bus timetable for the X31 to Bath which we caught from Chippenham bus garage after a false start drop off in town, none of the buses from outside the Plough Lane campsite actually stop at the main bus station so be warned, it's all very confusing, we also found that despite the very limited time table the buses actually run longer than it tells you, however as they aren't that reliable I would not base your journey on that level of trust #hintsandtips PS Corsham and Box are lovely, the bus does however take a while to get into Bath as it travels many backstreets and housing estates. Indeed the 44 we caught in from Plough Lane (there are 3 to choose from 91,99 and 44) went through the whole estate that is currently under construction, very weird! Still, we oldies are racking up the miles on our free bus pass #jobdone Here is a slideshow of our fun times in Bath, what a lovely city. We used the town Quiz to basically guide us around. We did about 4.5 miles and by the end of pounding the streets for a couple of near septuagenarians, knackered! Here is the cover of our quiz that led us around, we have done quite a few whilst away in the motorhome, both fun and a great way to be led around all the major sites, gets you closer that the traditional hop on hop off buses you see everywhere however you could if you wish do that around Bath as well. We loved Bath! Return to MENU DAY OUT WITH FRIENDS, CHIPPENHAM, CASTLE COMBE & BIDDESTONE A lovely day with friends Julie and Martin, here is a video of our day out in Castle Combe and Biddestone. Julie very kindly picked us up from the campsite and took us back to their house where we had a lovely meal and chat and a look around their lovely garden, I am well jell at the amount of space and wild flower meadow (maybe thats a little exaggeration, but its lovely with all those fab insects as well) and especially their veg plot. After lunch Martin kindly drove us to Castle Combe, a place we have wanted to visit for ages. We had a great walk around, watched the brown trout enjoying the crystal clear stream, had fab ice creams and even a drink in the pub, my first pint of Wadsworths 6X in almost 20 years. How good was that. We even fought off the wasps whilst chatting in the pub garden. All in all a fab day and a great chance to catch up. Fun with friends #friends Return to MENU WILTSHIRE IN THE RAIN Here is a slideshow of our fun day out in the van touring admittedly mostly in the rain, but hey we saw a lot We visited in order Kington Langley, a lovely village with Manor houses just along Plough Lane, then Morrison's for provisions (oh OK lets confess - some cake as well #naughtybutnice, Kington St Michael's, then we drove along the M4 to the very busy (and I mean busy) Marlborough, there was an open day at the exclusive mixed public school there. Want to read more about the college and the Royals and alumni click HERE. Was nice to slowly go thru the town in the driving rain however because we got to see all we would have done if we had parked up (fat chance) and walked through the town. After Marlborough we went and visited the standing stones at Avebury, a Neolithic henge monument and UNESCO world heritage. Interesting in comparison to Stonehenge which is also in Wiltshire. A real area of history. Fascinating! Want to read more. After that we went to see the Silbury Hill, which is English Heritage and also UNESCO which with the City of Bath makes 3 UNESCO sites visited in one trip. #classy Want to know more ? Then it was onto the wonderful Caen Hill locks before returning to the campsite for a dry out and a well deserved cup of tea. On Route we stopped off by a weird old campervan site possibly illegally used on a by way, some of the van conversion reminded us of those we had seen often in New Zealand. Wooden horse box conversions with engines. I love quirky vans like that. Return to MENU DAY OFF CHILLING IN THE VAN & SITE After all the travelling yesterday and with a long drive back to Nottingham the next day we decided upon a day of rest, the morning weather was great, and we even managed a late trip to the ever busy showers post brekkie but the afternoon p**ssed down. Soggy bottoms oh yes! So reading, family research / genealogy and watching the Lincoln Lawyer on Netflix (we love it ) were the order of the day. Cheese and bikkies for lunch, salad for tea and a few odd drinkies during the day. We have both acquired a liking for Port and Lemon, old crusties that we are #smile No pix, it was a day off even from my well worn motto, if it moves snap it, if it doesn't move snap it! Return to MENU MAPS ETC. Here are maps of both Chippenham and Bath we collected on our travels from various tourist handouts, some from the campsite, some from elsewhere. Feel free to use this scalable map to delve deeper, hope it helps This is our travel route Return to MENU AUDIOBOOK Here is my Audiobook of the Blog number 196, all created by KeefH Web Designs for this travel blog. The first is published on Soundcloud. The second on my You Tube channel as a slideshow video with the audiobook overlay. The third is the soundtrack from the amazing Miranda performing Nessun Dorma in such a lovely setting, I have remastered it with Dolby and published on Soundcloud! Return to MENU THE END Return to MENU

By keef & annie, Jan 20, 2013, 11:36AM So glad we invested in the breathable cover. See Blog 51 for more details UPDATE Nov 2022 by KeefH Web Designs The breathable cover is still going strong and is now 9 years old, although local cats have chosen to use the corners when it is on the van as some form of scratching post sadly, which means some of the material is a bit roughed up and has become holed, I have used a strong plastic tape to cover that up #hintsandtips UPDATE Dec 2023 Sadly our 10 year old breathable cover became home to Roland and his family and they were none too careful so we deceided to replace the cover, very pleased, lighter , easier for us pensioners to put on as has 2 zips down the middle on the sides. Anyhow onto winterisation. Again, this year I ensured all water was drained from the water tank and hot water tank, took off the taps and with pump on ensured I blew out all the last vestiges of water, from kitchen sink, shower and washroom sink. I then ensured all water was removed from the loo fill up both from its tank drain hole and by removing the feed pipe. I even replaced the somewhat worn plastic gasket on the top of the Thetford loo cartridge, these are only about £5 on eBay, and this will ensure no soak through next year. We often leave a residue of water in the closed loo bowl to stop any indecent smells rising up into the van when it is hot in summer, this will ensure that the water stay in the bowl and doesn't slowly slip through. We always now leave the fridge door fully ajar to allow air circulation and drop the storage door that is overhead, again to allow air circulation for all those months whilst the van is covered up. We always remove the TV aerial spike, so it doesn't perforate the breathable membrane in high winds. We bring in everything that can be affected by a long shut up such as the bedding infills, any other bedding, washing powder etc. etc. The power is left on trickle feed 3 times a week for an hour which will be more than enough to keep the engine charged and through the relay to the habitation battery that as well. This year we got the wonderful Gary to sort out our loud panel ticking noise in the van, a real mystery to us, but it was the habitation battery charger that had a sticking fan, and this was replaced. We had to get this done before putting the van to bed for winter. See Blog 186 for more details. So, as we get older, we are beginning to struggle with the weight of dragging the breathable cover up and over the length of the van whilst balanced precariously on the top rung of ladders, especially if the wind is up. My advice is now as I head to being a septuagenarian (i.e., 70) get a younger son for example to help #haha See some pictures of our Wendy house now nicely covered up for winter. Click HERE. Do hope some of my updated advice here is of use to you? If so maybe leave us some feedback on other tips and advice to share with other motorhomers, thanks. ADVICE 2013 One extra tip. If it's going to be a long harsh winter, which alas it probably is with snow, is to ensure that there is charge to your engine battery. We have the van plugged into the garage with a timer, set for a few hours each week just to give a trickle charge to the engine battery, with the internal switch set to engine rather than habitation as one would when in normal mode at a camp site. Hope the tip helps. Have a safe and secure winter.... best wishes from motorhome-travels blog! Additional thoughts...remove any curtains they can mold, bring them indoors and ensure all security systems are fitted. We left the power to the engine on via the garage at 6hours once a week, enough to keep the engine ticking over, oh and rolled the van back and forth monthly to stop the tyres from getting excessive weight in one place. Hope it helps. For the 1st part of suggested help on winterisation for your motorhome, you may also wish to look at Blog 51, it is associated Picture of Wendy House covered up for winter 2022 You may also wish to have a look at the fabrics we updated in the van That's all folks, Winnie says welcome to Winter, roll on spring so we can upfurl the covers and get back on the road again with Wendy house in full swing #adventurebeforedemetia