Brean Down {Country Kids}

We had a fantastic camping trip this week at Greenacres Camping and on a warm sunny day, as we live in land locked Wiltshire, we were desperate to go to the beach. We craved the sea, the beach, ice cream and space so we perused the map and decided to head out to Brean Down.

The approach road runs through caravan park alley with scatterings of shops, amusement arcades and pubs. Not what we were craving but I knew that there was a light at the end of this particular tunnel. Once we had driven as far as is physically possible we parked up in the National Trust car park - free for members otherwise £3 for the day - and unloaded the boot of the usual beach paraphernalia and necessities; beach tent, towels, picnic, drinks, swimming gear...crucial things missing!? Bucket and spades! Luckily there is a well stocked National Trust shop where we picked up two spades and a bucket and we were good to go.

We took the steps over the sea wall and before us found a surprisingly quiet beach which loads of space as the tide was, what looked like, miles out.

But this was fine as had our bucket and spades and we had tonnes of sand. Word of warning here - the beach is sandy but as you go out towards the sea at low tide there are dangerous mud flats and quicksand exposed, reassuringly the lifeguard was on his tannoy warning people if they ventured too far out. So, we stayed at the top of the beach and got digging. Led by the children we all dug out a moat, built castle walls, created turrets - with varying degrees of skills, mine being the worst, and blinged the exterior with tiny clam shells found on the beach by the girl.

And then we wanted people. "We should have brought our Lego men", said the boy. Then he had a genius idea, "Pebble people!" The two of them found pebbles and with a pen scavenged from my bag they set to work creating their own set of knights to protect the castle.

A couple of hours later and picnic consumed we started to hear the gentle swoosh of the waves as the tide began to come in. As the afternoon progressed the sun got brighter and brighter too; perfect timing for a dip in the channel.

The water was warm and with warnings not to go too far out the two of them were in and having an absolute ball.

With the bribe of ice cream before the shop shut we packed up our beach tent and went and chose our favourite Marshfield Ice Cream flavours - the best ice cream FYI! With sandy hands clutching waffle cones we headed up the 218 steps - as counted by the girl - to the top of the down; a natural pier a mile and half out to sea separating Brean from its neighbour, Weston-Super-Mare. We headed out to the end taking in the breath taking views all around us.

We finished the day picking up Fish and Chips from a chippy in Wells on our way back to our campsite - a perfect end to a perfect day.

If you're looking for a fantastic campsite in Somerset take a look here!

x x x



Norfolk Beach Life

Last week I set off with the kiddies to Norfolk. The only adult. I braved the 5+ hour jaunt along the M4, round the M25 and up the long arduous A11 back to my home county.

It's a trip we don't make often enough - probably due to the 5+ hour plus jaunt along the..... You get the point.

It's always a worthwhile one though. Especially with the weather we had this last week. It was perfect for doing what I like to do best of all when returning to Norfolk...hitting the beaches!

We had sand in our sandwiches, sand in our hair - and ears - for days, flew our kite, met up with family who we don't see enough, ate fish and chips, dug holes, built sandcastles, made dams, created beach art, went swimming  - in the dunes*, went paddling in the sea, caught the sun and turned a lovely shade of brown - the children, caught the sun and went freckly - me, sat in giant deckchairs, walked the sea wall from Wells beach to the harbour, rode the train from Wells harbour back to the beach, ate rock, ate huge ice creams, discovered a 'new' beach at Winterton-on-sea, read most of a book whilst the children built a wall around the beach tent, watched a fishing boat chug back and forth, watched the tide fill the harbour scarily fast, let the wind blow away our worries and slept the best I had in a long time.

Beach life

So, we had our first family break minus a tent last week. Which had its plus points - it is kind of nice to not have to put up or take down your holiday accommodation. Saying that I am still a camping girl and the tent will be coming out soon.

We decided to leave our base for a day and, with the picnic packed, headed out to explore the North Devon coastline of Exmoor and beyond. The winding roads, that went on far longer than the route app had predicted, coupled with the threat of car sickness from the backseat, tried to spoil the day but it was all worth it when we found a quiet coastal town, and further along the coast, vast sandy beaches.

All in all a perfect day which ignited my desires to own a campervan and dream the dream of living the beach life.
One day maybe.

Just me and my girl - the beach

There are no beaches in Wiltshire. Which pains me. A lot. And now that the in laws have decided in their *ahem* wisdom to move to France we no longer have Cornwall as a weekend getaway destination. So, we have to make the most of our trips to Norfolk.

It is a bit of a trek to get here and this time it has just been myself and Edith. A girls only road trip if you like. She has been a star and has been desperate to get to the beach - like mother like daughter - so today we went to get our coastal fix. We dodged the showers, flouted the rules of the beach, overdosed on sea air, had a look at the quirky coastal dwellings and picnicked in the car.

It was one of those making memories days - just me and my girl.

x x x

Beach therapy

Sea Palling, Norfolk. My dad's birthplace.

There's something about the beach that's good for the soul.

There are simple rules to follow:

You have to run to it.

You must enjoy yourself - no matter what.

You have to play in the sand.

You must leave a message.

This what we found Edith doing quietly.

She asked us all to leave a handprint for Grandad.

x x x

I'm linking up with Country Kids