PODcast

The Devil’s Punch Bowl

We’re lucky we have so many National Trust sites so close to us. Recently we’ve checked out Abinger Roughs, Clandon Park and Witley & Milford Commons.

Hindhead Commons and the Devil’s Punch Bowl is designated as an area of outstanding natural beauty.

Even after a heavy downpour you could admire the dramatic skyline and panoramic views across the Punch Bowl. The sandstone viewing platform provided the perfect place to stand, breathe in the country air and enjoy the colourful landscape.

We chose to have a sandwich there so we could take it all in. This was the moment POD noticed the sandwiches contained a little mild mustard – she’d already eaten one before she realised!

We’d not been to the Devil’s Punch Bowl before so after the energy boost, we set about exploring the nearby pathways. POD took full advantage of the muddy puddles by wading through all those she came across. There was so much to discover made all the more wonderful by the sun which emerged as the black clouds dispersed.

Having discovered the woodland we headed across an open heathland, the sun providing us with a glimpse of how magical the Commons and Devil’s Punch Bowl must be in the Summer months. It’s a site of special scientific interest and you can really appreciate why as you enjoy the surroundings.

Having stopped for POD to ask a statue a few questions, we headed along another beautiful heathland. POD wanted to take the boggy route rather than the concrete path so she could wade through the puddles and long grass. She kept her balance perfectly throughout!

Round the corner we spotted several wild ponies in a field. POD was almost beside herself with excitement at such an unexpected sight.

We stood on a grass bank for a time watching them graze on nearby foliage and then pass by when the rain drops returned.

A huge black cloud had appeared overhead so we knew it was time to leave, another storm was definitely brewing. It was wonderful we got to experience the Devil’s Punch Bowl though, it’s a fantastic location.

As well as the beautiful slopes, there’s still so much more to discover including a natural amphitheatre and fantastic views across the weald at the top of Gibbet Hill. Not to mention finding out about the granite cross that helped dispel local fears that the hill was haunted by highwayman ghosts!

Country Kids from Coombe Mill Family Farm Holidays Cornwall

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Timanfaya, El Golfo & Los Hervideros

In December 2008 the search was on for some Winter sun. It came in the form of Club La Santa which offered a good deal if we flew back Christmas Day. Located on the NW coast of Lanzarote, the Club La Santa resort is a playground for active people.

The tennis facilities had appealed as we played several times a week at that point. We were excited the surface of the 9 courts was the same as Flushing Meadows. And the fact that it was warm pleased us greatly.

Although there were over 30 sports facilities to enjoy at La Santa, on this occasion we just wanted to play tennis and relax. We did partake in our first yoga class but giggled and fell over throughout. Looking back that might have had something to do with the two beers we had beforehand!

As well as enjoying the resort, we were keen to explore what Lanzarote had to offer. First stop was the Fire Mountains in the Timanfaya National Park. Volcanic activity continues in the region and temperatures just a few metres below the surface still reached a staggering 400-600°C.

Demonstrations of how hot the area was were plentiful. Dry brushes were thrown into bore holes with the ground beneath catching fire immediately. Water was poured in which then erupted like a geyser.

El Golfo was a semi-circular volcanic crater filled with sea water which had filtered through the black sand that separated the lagoon from the sea. The Green Lagoon (caused by algae living in the water) was situated on a black sand beach with dramatic rock formations.

Nearby Los Hervideros, known as the ‘boiling waters’ were a series of caves and blow holes which had been eroded into a former lava flow. As the waves crashed into the caves, mountains of white surf were produced giving the appearance of ‘boiling waters’.

It was great to discover Lanzarote, Club La Santa was superb and the plane home almost empty. The holiday will always be remembered for one thing though. The catchy Club La Santa song which was played on repeat every single night!

We’re linking this post up with photography based Linky #whatsthestory here on PODcast. You will find the Linky for w/c 10th February 2014 here.

Living Arrows

POD’s second gymnastics class saw her love the trapeze so much she went on it twice. She even managed her own variation of the tuck and straddle positions mid air!

After lunch we managed to dodge the rain clouds at the Devil’s Punch Bowl – an area of outstanding natural beauty in Surrey.

We even spotted a few horses having a snack.

At the weekend, POD attended a party for a nursery chum. Already tired, she peaked too early and spent the remainder of the party looking after the birthday girl’s Mickey Mouse balloon. Here they are arm in arm!

I love how she gets so excited about the little things. Like enjoying rice pudding with a splodge of jam after a roast,

deciding her middle name is turtle or just pulling silly faces!

Linking up with Living Arrows at I Heart Snapping.

What’s The Story? | 10th February 2014

Hello everyone! Welcome to What’s The Story? for w/c 10th February 2014.

Thank you for joining in last week, so many brilliant reads! Faves included Building confidence in kids, Being a big brother, Story time, Location, location, location, our holiday in Portugal, My icy photos, Indoor picnic fun, Two little boys, Summer snooze and East or West.

If you’re new here, What’s The Story? is a photography based Linky which enables you to share the stories behind your photographs. It’s open from 6.30am every Monday through to Sunday.

To join in with What’s The Story?, all you have to do is share a photograph and the story behind it. You can write as little or much as you like and your photo/s can be from any time – old or new. You can link up a old post too if it’s relevant.

Feel free to use the What’s The Story? badge or link back here – I’m happy to share your post in return. Please do take the time to comment on some of your fellow bloggers posts when you can. Always worthwhile checking back later in the week too.

Have a fabulous week everyone #whatsthestory

Silent Sunday

Project 365: Week #6

It’s been an eventful week that’s for sure. In addition to the usual routine there’s been fun in the water, gymnastics, a blue elephant and an awesome relay for Sport Relief.

Welcome to Project 365: Week #6.

Day 33

POD was back in the swimming pool having loved it last week – great to see her confidence returning. At home later a bout of sunshine meant she was able to enjoy her playhouse. Curiosity led to her peeping through the hole in our leaning fence too.

Day 34

Today was exciting as POD attended her first gymnastics class. She’s always been a climber and has great strength so we thought we’d give it a try. It was a trial session that saw POD take on the trapeze and balance beam! We also painted an elephant blue – with a bit of purple.

Day 35

Wind and rain made photography with a 60mm tricky but this Hydrangea bud so needed to be captured.

Day 36

With my leg of the Team Honk Blogger Relay kicking off on day 37, it was an evening of preparation. A Sport Relief onesie, giant red afro, deeley boppers, Elvis sunglasses and donation signage completed the outfit.

Day 37

Having met up with @mummybarrow, @bruceb_uk, @lady_briggs, @navininika in Fleet, we traveled by train to Farnborough Main. We then walked and scooted in our fancy dress outfits to Farnborough North where we caught a train to Crowthorne. There we met birthday boy @andywebbdj and his wife @missuswebb, who was in a wheelchair for the day due to a recent diagnosis of Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia. Their daughter @Katiielou_xo also came along.

We then walked a wet four miles from Crowthorne to @3childrenandit’s house in Wokingham. Also meeting us there was @gourmetmum, @BelindaAlbasini and @Owen2306 – all of whom formed the group cycling to Reading.

After gorging the delicious bacon rolls Suzanne had made us, we walked the last ¼ mile to Luckley House school where we received the most amazing welcome. This is a photograph of that poignant moment. It was an incredible day spent with an inspirational bunch of people.

Day 38

This was a speedy capture at the end of the working day before seeing a chiropractor.

Day 39

One of POD’s nursery chums had her third birthday party today. POD absolutely adored her Mickey Mouse balloon which was the same size as her. She looked after it for the duration of the party. Here they are arm in arm.

Abinger Roughs

Our quest to explore sites protected by the National Trust continued last weekend with a visit to Abinger Roughs. Charles Darwin, the famous naturalist and geologist, walked on the Roughs while staying at Abinger Hall in the 1870s.

Located in Surrey, Abinger Roughs is a hidden area of woodland with ancient trees and grasslands. We’d not visited before so it was wonderful to spot a rabbit and a pheasant before we’d even entered the car park!

The woodland is full of ancient trees with some gnarled Oaks up to three hundred years old. It was the perfect place to blow away those cobwebs after a week indoors!

We saw an ancient Oak which at first glance looked like it had uprooted itself but it hadn’t. Part of its trunk was hollow but it remained strong – the shape of it’s branches made it a great tree for climbing. It was too big for POD but we saw another family having the best time there.

It had been incredibly wet for a few days so we stuck to the pathways, admired the views and took in those fabulous woodland smells. POD took the opportunity to jump in and out of many muddy puddles.

Our three year old adventurer also enjoyed running along ahead. The photograph below encapsulates everything we love about the countryside!

The strange look on POD’s face was the result of asking her if she’d seen an elephant. She had her back to me and asking that question was an attempt to get her to turn round. It worked but she was then on the lookout for the elephant!

Abinger Roughs provides a great habitat for birds including great and lesser spotted woodpeckers, nuthatch, tree creeper and the wood warbler. We heard many a bird but saw very few – no doubt staying away from our rather excitable toddler!

We were so busy enjoying our walk, we completely missed the granite memorial for Samuel Wilberforce, the Bishop of Winchester. Known as ‘Soapy Sam’, Wilberforce was thrown from his horse in 1873 and the memorial marks the spot where he fell.

We did see one of the WW2 pill boxes. These formed a stop line during the war to protect London from invasion. We must have a look at these and nearby Netley Park.

There’s also a natural play area at Abinger Roughs which will be a great place for POD to play once it’s dry. It’s a lovely area to have a picnic too – Daddy was delighted at the thought. Or perhaps he was thinking about our roast lunch!

Linking up with #HDYGG at Mammasaurus and #CountryKids at Coombe Mill.

Country Kids from Coombe Mill Family Farm Holidays Cornwall

First gymnastics class

POD learnt to climb at an early age so much so we nicknamed her ‘Danger Dove’ for a time. Although she no longer attempts to stand on the kitchen table, she still loves to climb, has a great sense of adventure and boundless energy.

We’ve been toying with taking her to gymnastics recently and decided to give it go when we discovered somewhere near us was offering a trial session.

The room was hugely appealing, awash with bright colours and lots of apparatus. POD was almost beside herself with excitement watching it being set up.

Sitting on a fun bouncy floor, the warm-up saw the children form different shapes with their bodies and learn basic positions such as the pike and the straddle. POD didn’t pay too much attention as she was itching to try out the apparatus!

As it was our first time, we were taken round the course by a coach who explained what she was doing at each stage and supported POD throughout.

First up was the trampoline where POD enjoyed bouncing up and down with two red pom poms. Next came the trapeze which she was desperate to have a go on! She took to it with great gusto and let go when she was told to landing in a pit of foam shapes.

There she let out the most enormous giggle – it would have made a brilliant photograph! As it was a trial session, and other children were there, we were sadly camera free. Imagine a smile like the above photo but much much bigger!

After sliding down a tube, POD did a downhill forward roll in tuck position before jumping over a mini vault and pulling herself along a low beam to ring a bell. She then hung from a bar while attempting to ring bells with her feet before walking across apparatus similar to a wobbly bridge you’d find in a playground.

We didn’t think POD would be on a balance beam in her first session. But she was. She walked the entire length of it, with support from the coach, carefully stepping over a hoop in the process. She showed incredible strength and balance, didn’t lose her footing once. After that POD tried out the rings before finishing up by climbing a horizontal ladder.

The gymnastics session ended with all the children under a giant parachute. An utterly brilliant 45 minutes – POD absolutely loved it.

Living Arrows

Being in the countryside makes it so easy to blow away those cobwebs. An ancient woodland and too many muddy puddles to count provided the perfect setting for our three year old adventurer. She summed it up perfectly when she said “Mummy I love this wood” and she really did.

Yesterday POD got to enjoy her outdoor playhouse for the first time this year. After a spot of pretend cooking, which mainly saw her serve courgette, egg and banana, she took to her slide with gusto. She must have been up the steps and down the slide seven or more times. This is POD mid-way down checking I’m watching her.

She then made a bid for freedom with Daddy’s rugby ball – opting not to kick it but carry it like a watermelon!

Having spotted a hole in our leaning fence, curiosity got the better of her when she insisted on having a peek.

Linking up with Living Arrows at I Heart Snapping.

Fun at Bocketts Farm

Bocketts Farm is a working farm located in the Surrey countryside. It’s a wonderful place to visit as there’s a mix of large and small animals – not to mention a range of play areas. Peppa Pig came too albeit in hairslide form!

After filling our bellies, we headed over the to the Big Animal Barn. There we saw Zebedee the zebu, sheep, lambs, cows, a large pig, a donkey and several excitable goats. POD wanted to feed the animals but decided it was far more entertaining to watch Mummy being slobbered on.

After much hilarity in the Big Animal Barn, POD befriended nearby ducks and geese. These two even formed a heart shape for us!

Next were the racing pigs and a few bearded goats before meeting horses, ponies and donkeys. POD wanted to know all their names!

She then enjoyed climbing, sliding and making tea in one of the outdoor play areas before testing her tractor skills. She would have been on a digger too if someone hadn’t beaten her to it!

POD missed two giant astroslides in the new heated playbarn as she sped past but found more tractors to drive, trampolines to bounce across and cows to milk. Not to mention a whole host of ride-ons!

Inside Little Hoppington, POD saw a variety of small fluffy animals before handling a guinea pig, a rabbit and a chicken! Definitely the highlight of our visit – just look at that happy face!

We’re linking this post up with #whatsthestory here on PODcast – this week’s Linky is here if you’d like to join in.

Older Posts

Newer Posts

Visiting Mayfield Lavender Field, Banstead

A wander at Frensham Little Pond, Surrey

Summer activities at Barracudas

The Devil’s Punch Bowl

Timanfaya, El Golfo & Los Hervideros

Living Arrows

What’s The Story? | 10th February 2014

Silent Sunday

Project 365: Week #6

Abinger Roughs

First gymnastics class

Living Arrows

Fun at Bocketts Farm

Adventures

Visiting Mayfield Lavender Field, Banstead

A wander at Frensham Little Pond, Surrey

7 reasons to love Barracudas camps