Garden House gig

Down to Holbeach Hurn, near Sleaford to see Cardboard Fox at Paul and Sue Thomas's house gig. Held in their house, about 50 in the audience. Fantastic house, lovely people/food/beer and a smashing band. Bliss.

Dundee

Whitby
Bamburgh
Alnwick Gardens
Chillingham Castle
Berwick
Forth Bridge
Dundee
Falkirk

Manorbier and Shrewsbury

I went to visit Lou in Bridgend, then had a lovely few days in Pembrokshire, see Wales.

Back over the border, I met Angela at Shrewsbury during a tremendously hot weekend.

The folk festival was on, so we saw quite a few dancers dotted around the town.

We spent a day at Ironbridge, really interesting and a nice lunch. I also bought a dress!

Finally, to the oven that was a roman town ruin of Wroxeter. Fascinating stuff but we were baking, so headed home later that day to find some cool.

Manobier and Tenby

 After a visit to Lou (during which we went up Pen-y-Fan) I went West via a visit to dour Camarthen, to a small site at Jameston. There was a little village with a great pub, and a bus you could take all along the coast on a day rover ticket.

I took the bus in to Tenby, and visited the museum which had a letter from Darwin, information about the instigator of the equals symbol (Robert Recorde), the pyjamas of Dylan Thomas and collections of memorabilia from Roald Dahl, and Welsh lefty actor Kenneth Griffith. The art gallery had some Gwen John and Nicky Wire (Manics).

Then I bus-hopped to Manobier beach, had an ice-cream and saw an old neolithic tomb on the cliffside, called the King's Quoit Cromlech.

Finally I checked out Skrinkle Haven, which looked like a crusty's favourite spot - for a future visit.



I broke the journey up to meet Angela with a stop off at a fabulous valley-top view at Sugarloaf Viewpoint, and to the small town of Knighton (with a well-stocked organic foodshop).

Formby - Anthony Gormley

A weekend away with Angela, to see the sculptures. Formby has a very impressive beach with promenade.

 There is a pinewood area for walks near the town too, and you could see red

squirrels (but don't hold your breath - there are so many visitors).

Finally we had a trip to Southport and did some shopping (with lunch of course).

Wild Atlantic Way

Athlone, Galway, Clifden

Anglesey with Dad

A short pilgrimage to scatter Dad's ashes.

See Wales

Angelsey with Dad

On route to Ireland I had a night at a spectacular CL on Anglesey. I'd picked it because it was near the South Stack lighthouse that Dad had famously failed to find when leading a school geology field trip.

RSPB The Range

His ashes had been under my bed for two years, and the time had finally come to say farewell in a dignified manner. So I  chucked him off a cliff.

Evening brought a beautiful sunset, and the next morning I just had time to visit Ty Mawr Hut Circles, an ancient monument. Lovely wildflowers everywhere. 

The Eden valley

As suggested by David, I found some sun in Appleby and explored the Eden valley this
weekend, instead of charging through to the Lakes as usual.

First al fresco breakfast of the year this morning (admittedly it was porridge) at a CL. 

Appleby is a lovely market town, with an impressive high street, castle and pretty set of
almshouses called the Hospital of St Anne, which was for itinerant women - apt!

Next it was a quick visit to Kirby Stephen, and a stroll down to the river and Frank's bridge.
The town is on the Coast to Coast.  Just as I was leaving the peace was shattered by
some macaws, big noisy brutes too they were.

A landmark on the route to the Lakes, just off the A61, Brough Castle is a windswept ruin with great views. It's also has an associated ice cream parlour where I had one of the worst lunches in a long time. Plastic bread and cheese, 3 crisps and slice of cucumber. Straight out of the 1970s.