Wednesday 29 June 2016

Family Time and a few Alterations to T4rdis2

23rd - 30th June 2016

First of all I'd like to record a little more about our tour of Scotland from 24th May to 22nd June - 30 nights in total!

Altogether, we did 1922 miles and T4rdis2 gave us an excellent 28.8 miles per gallon overall!
Fuel cost was therefore about £367

We spent 17 nights on campsites and 13 nights wild camping - and we both agreed, that the nights in the wild spots were our favourites, because we usually had spectacular views, we often had excellent company, and best of all - they were free.
Our total  bill for the campsites was £297, but when that is shared between all 30 nights it gives an average of only £9.91 - well below what we had budgeted. However, our aim is to do even better than that once we go over to Europe again this weekend.

Anyway, back to what we've been doing since our return to Riddings Camp Site.  http://www.riddingswoodcaravanandcampingpark.co.uk/.  We'll have been here for 8 nights in total (our departure is planned for Friday morning), and during that time we've (or should I say John) performed several modifications to T4rdis2, we've  spent time with our family, and we've also done some planning for our next jaunt.

The modifications include a new table, an alteration that was an absolute must because the old one was just to big.  It stood on a pedestal behind the passenger seat and in front of the two rear travelling seats, and although it could be moved in any direction, it still took up nearly all our living space no matter what position it was in.  I often found myself trapped in a corner, or with nowhere to sit when John sprawled out!  The new one is a much more petite affair, but it easily accommodates both of us for meals, so now we've gone from not being able to swing a cat to almost being able to hold a party!

Our other main acquisition was new mattresses for our beds.  The ones that came with the van would have been fine if just being used for holidays, but I'm a bit like 'The Princess with a Pea in Her Bed', so demanded much more comfort!  Therefore, we did a bit of research, we measured carefully, and then we ordered online - and guess what - they where to big and didn't fit, and as they are memory foam, returning them was not possible once they'd been opened!  Having said all that, quality and comfort wise, they were just what we wanted.  So, to remedy the situation out came the carving Knife!  Now you have to remember that this 'operation'  took place quite late in the evening and in a very confined space.  John hacked several inches off the side of each mattress with dust and bits of foam flying hither and thither, and then we had to repackage the ever expanding foam into little plastic bags so we could 'secret' it across to the rubbish bins.   But in the end it was all worth while because our nights sleep was bliss.

Much of the rest of our time has been devoted to being with our family, and as a special and memorable day, on Sunday, we all visited Clumber Park for a picnic.  Happily, the weather was very kind, and although it rained quite hard before and after our arrival, the sun had got it's hat on for the whole duration of our visit.

 Hopefully the video will play and shows action shots of everybody throughout the day!









Between us we had prepared a feast which was made even more special (and very funny) when little Evelyn succeeded in nicking food from Thomas's plate (much to his disgust)  - she obviously thought his chicken leg looked much more tasty than her philadelphia  sandwich.



We also had plenty of time to play with the children, (the big and the small), and favourites like chase, hide and seek,  frisbee and football  all featured in our day.  However, an event that we hadn't bargained on was hat making.  Ben and Louise had forgotten Evelyn's hat, so she ended up with one fashioned out of a tea towel, and when she got fed up of that the poor girl ended up with Jack's pants on her head!



And then, Just so he didn't miss out, Jack had to have a hat made out of Vicky's cardigan.




It was a lovely day and one that will provide many happy memories for us to take with us while we are far away.









The rest of our time has been spent scoffing home cooked meals prepared by our very own special chef and chefess, and  planning our next grand tour which will hopefully start on Friday and see us crossing over to France on Sunday - so my next post will hopefully be European!




Bye for now xx