at the seaside carnival
Category Archives: Old World Travel
Coastal Hike – pt 2
Our hike led us to the Irish Sea one windy evening. The children combed through the sand for shells and spotted beached jelly fish. You can have the Caribbean. I will take the salty air and rocky coast any day.
Coastal Hike – pt 1
Images from a cool evening hike to the Irish Sea. The rest of the hike to follow tomorrow. : )
High Country Adventure, Considered
One of the very best days last month was spent hiking in the Lake District, even if it didn't go quite as planned. Maybe, because it didn't go quite as planned. Our best trips usually deviate pretty widely from the intended course. We walk our way through the different parts of the world to which we travel. Usually, when we read the guides, we choose the longer more challenging more scenic routes listed. This day was no exception. The first portion of the hike was very easy and well marked, a typical sight-seeing pedestrian path. We found the extension trail connecting to this one and began our climb. Up. And upandupandup.
We've done this before and fortunately our kids are part mountain goat and never complain. At some point the well marked trail became less well marked. The guide mentioned that might happen so we pressed on. And up. The view from the top was incredible which was good because there were moments I thought it might be the last thing I saw before I died. ; )
We ate lunch at the top. At that point we just gave up the trail and followed the creek back down. We saw a meadow of cotton grass though we didn't realize what it was until we could check the internet. We met a lone sheep. We watched a helicopter rise from the valley below and eventually fly right past us.
We were so proud of those littles for their gusto and good humor we stopped at a cafe and got ice cream after.
It was a phenomenal day. I was thinking about that after we got back home. It was simply a PHENOMENAL day. But, I realize some people wouldn't have seen it that way. I guess another way of looking at it was we got lost, we had a killer climb, the creekbed turned out to be a bog – which we also didn't figure out til we got to the internet ; D We tied the little dogs to the outdoor tables while we sat and had ice cream. Littlest dog's lead loosened up and he happily jogged through the restaurant with my husband chasing after. We are still laughing over that one, but I realize not everyone would be laughing.
So, you can decide if this is a charmed life. Maybe the point is that you can decide if your life is charmed or not. My dear friend's signature box says it this way:
"An inconvenience is only an adventure wrongly considered; an adventure is
an inconvenience rightly considered."
– G.K. Chesterton
The choice is yours. It is a happy woman who takes that counsel to heart and discovers that, instead of one trial after another, her life is never boring. No two days are quite the same. No, instead of the monotony of complete control and predictability she is blessed with a life full of adventure.
If you want to see the world from that vantage point, you have to push through the climb.
Sunset on a Coastal Farm
The holiday hire
Our holiday hire in the Lake District was an old converted brewery. What it lacked in interior design – it was a mish mash of 70's era patterned carpeting, ultra plush velour upholstery, and lots and lots of wallpaper which happened a good decade later – it more than made up for in location. There was us and the owners who lived in the tower side of the building. And the sheep. Perfect. : )
We had full days of sightseeing and hiking but evenings were spent on the farm, eating the food we brought from town out on the lawn while the littles put on impromptu shows on the low garden wall. When it got too dark to play outside and the cool ocean breezes blew in, we started a fire inside. The children fell asleep there and were carried up to bed. Early mornings I scoured the shelf of old Reader's Digest Condensed books, reading in the kitchen til they stumbled down one by one.
The guest book yielded some really funny entries. I copied down this one:
"5 hrs from the City of Smoke
is a wonderful place full of very nice folk
As we weaved down the lanes, surrounded by sheep,
The hills on both sides were snow capped and steep.
We stopped off in Tesco to stock up on wine,
And what joy! The chablis was £5.99!
To the brewery we headed, our holiday hire,
With horses and donkey, and a nice roaring fire.
We climbed hills and waterfalls, we were living the dream
'till the kids slipped while jumping and fell in the stream.
3 loads of washing was just the thing.
So we headed to Piel Island to meet the King.
The wind was too strong. There were no ferries at the pier.
So we tried plan B and went to Lake Windemere.
We were hoping to get there in time for lunch.
But the car hit a pothole and the wheel went crunch.
4 hrs were spent at the side of the lake
with the car jacked up oh for goodness sake!
The man at the garage said the bill would be whopping.
There was only one thing to do, go souvenir shopping.
We stocked up on mint cake 'til the hire car was ready
then to Millom we drove, but taking it steady.
Our last night was quiet compared to the rest.
But as holidays go, this was one of the best."
Our stay was mercifully free of mishaps, but I totally concur with the last sentiment. As holidays go, this was one of the best.
Hilltop Farm – a visit to Miss Potter
Hilltop Farm, Beatrix Potter's Cumbrian stomping grounds, has been on my bucket list since at least 1988 when Victoria Magazine ran a feature article about the area. I still have that magazine, as you can see. Little did I dream then of actually walking through her gardens myself, nor running my hand along her railings as I climbed the steps of the old farmhouse.
Miss Potter fascinates me for many reasons. There are of course the little books. There was a quiet determination to be true to her own heart which grew slowly to maturation, as she attempted to reconcile that with the approval of her family. That approval was not to come. There was her love for all things domestic and rural, a passion for farming and preservation. And art. And tea. It was quite a thrill to retrace her steps this way.
Hilltop is a composed of a number of snug rooms with low slung ceilings. It is dark inside but cozy with paneled walls. Patterned drapery hung from bamboo poles. Her secretary sits with the desk top open and facsimiles of her correspondence – farm orders as well as notes from her publisher – lie strewn as they might have so many years before.
If there was a little book open in the room it meant that the illustration contained something you could still see. The children scanned the rooms to match the pictures to the furnishings. They found mouseholes and fireplace hobs. I was particularly fascinated to see the coronation teapot from the Patty-Pan book because that piece would have been a brand new souvenir for her when she wrote the story, although it seems very old to us.
The gardens were likewise very tight and of small scale, yet lush. Walkways of local slate led through rows of flowers and vegetables, exactly as they were pictured. Sheep grazed nearby and up along the hillsides. It was serene and intimate, a world I pray my children carry with them wherever they go from here.
The children – big and small – have rekindled their love for hedgehogs and naughty bunnies and and silly ducks. They are drinking out of new Peter Rabbit cups and rereading little books with great gusto right now. One grown girl purchased a few Potter souvenirs herself, for 'someday'. A peaceful, inspiring trip for all.
The Charlecote Deer
They surprised us to say the least, those deer. Moira finished her dance competition early in the day and since we were already a couple hours from home we hoped to see something of the area before we left it. We chose the Charlecote estate, home to the Lucy family since the 12th century the brochure said.
It was late in the day by then so the manor house was closing to the public but the grounds were open. We read there were deer on the property but it can be hit and miss with brochures and sightings we have learned. Yet, there they were. Down, down the trail, across the pasture, through the gate, up the hill and there.they.were.
I was in a skirt and full of scratches from trudging through brush to get right up close. It was very cool to walk amongst the herd instead of peering through fences. That made it well worth the battle scars on my part. They were not tagged and, though cautious, did not startle easily. This was great for me since I didn't have a zoom lens along. What you see is how close we were.
The world is a beautiful place. : )
Starry Sky Journal 