I was wondering if my annual 'end of year' blog looking back over the highlights of our year is a bit like one of those 'round robin' letters that come with a Christmas card? Well, on account of the fact we don't have kids, there are no lists of their many achievements, although we are quite proud of the cats...
Looking back over the year one thing that's apparent is that although we were outside a lot we didn't take a lot of time off - something I'd definitely like to fix for 2019. We are incredibly fortunate that time outdoors in some amazing places counts as work, but sadly it's the sort of work that doesn't pay a lot - perhaps 2019 will be the year of our best seller? We have three books out next year, so watch this space...
January
When we do get out we like to explore away from the main routes. January saw us getting some final pics for Steve's amazing
Cumbria in Photos book and enjoying a wonderfully snowy drive along Thirlmere before wolfing down a divine '
Ginuary' Afternoon Tea' at Lakes Distillery.
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| Hell's Gill |
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| Fox's Pulpit |
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| Thirlmere |
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| Millom |
February
In Feb we tackled a few lovely old routes and explored Longsleddale and Swindale before The Beast From the East dumped snow across the land - we even got snow on Grange prom!
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| Longselddale |
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| Swindale |
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| Wrengill Quarry |
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| Grange Prom |
March
Lots of travelling in March, but we also learned how to pronounce Brougham Castle, visited Nottingham AND admire the first daffodils at Ullswater.
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| Brougham Castle |
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| Trent |
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| Daffodils |
April
Sun, sea and family! We enjoyed what turned out to be our only proper hols of the year, a week in North Wales, so of course I *had* to paddle! Later that month we stranded ourselves on Roa Island for a blissful picnic before spending time with Steve's Parents admiring posh houses.
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| Yes, it was freezing! |
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| Black Rock Sands |
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| Roa Island |
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| Cliveden |
May
In May I got to explore one of my favourite nerdy bits of history (I'm busy drafting the book just now, watch for it around May time!), then we had Hardknott Roman Fort all to ourselves on a glorious evening. Next up was the cover shot for
Gin, Cakes and Rucksacks before giving our lovely nephews a taste of the outdoor life.
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| Any guesses where I am? |
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| Harknott Fort |
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| Getting the cover shot! |
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| Wearing out the nephews |
June
June was mostly HOT, HOT, HOT! Work took me to Brussels and we squeezed in a couple of days sightseeing - The Atomium was, without any shadow of a doubt, my absolute favourite thing! Then there was a protest march against Northern Rail's abysmal service before exploring a couple of old ruins on Morecambe Bay and finally finding our heads in the Eden Valley.
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| The Atomium |
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| Quicker than taking the train |
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| Near Naze |
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| Sandstone Heads |
July
Still hot but thankfully cooling down! It may look like the Caribbean, but it's actually Walney Island. A quick work trip to Edinburgh then over to Chapel Island before a lovely long walk along a Lancashire canal.
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| The tropical paradise island of Walney |
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| Edinbrugh |
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| Arriving at Chapel Island |
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| Lancaster Canal |
August
We finally got around to visiting the amazing
model village in Flookburgh, then managed a couple of nights break at Barnard Castle before a very long, VERY wet hike from Penrith to Ravenglass.
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| Miniature Village |
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| Cockersands Abbey |
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| Barnard Castle |
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| Awwwww... Incredible Camping Cats! |
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| "Are we there yet?" |
September
In September I was introduced to freezing cold dips, thanks to
Suzanna Swims, then I joined my first ever major group hike, run by the amazing Helen of
Wild Rambling, and then I compared the relative merits of Barrow and Birmingham,,,
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| En route to Haystacks |
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| Beautiful Barrow! |
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| Birmingham |
October
We finally launched Gin, Cakes and Rucksacks and were incredibly lucky that so many amazing people came along to support us! We followed that up with a surprisingly hot hike over Nan Bield Pass before I met one of the heroines from my youth. Last up we discovered some wonderful walks around Keswick.
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| SO lucky to have so many fab folks support us! |
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| Hotter than it looks! |
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| Sharron Davies |
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| Beautiful autumnal Keswick |
November
Still walking, still working. This time we tootled around Wetsleddale and then tried our hand at a Christmas market - first up was gate-crashing
Shed 1's stand at HolkerHall. Then there was
Kendal Mountain Festival (they go on tour too -
check here to see when they'll be visiting a town near you.) without a shadow of a doubt the most fantastic and exhausting weekend of the year. After finally getting a little sleep we took a wander around
Argill Woods for Cumbria Wildlife Trust.
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| Wetsleddale |
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| Holker Hall shenanigans |
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| Kendal Mountain Festival |
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| Argill Woods |
December
The last of the Christmas markets - hard work and long days but fun to meet lots of fab people! Then a wonderful walk up and over Humphrey Head and making very early plans for one of next year's BIG projects - so exciting! We've seen lots of fab places again this year, but nothing can beat a stroll along Grange prom, it's the perfect place to clear my head. Lastly there was the walking nativity through the streets of the village - thankfully the sun shone! It's the first time they've done it but I hope it wont be the last.
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| Windermere Market |
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| Limbo dancing tree on Humphrey Head |
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| Grange Prom |
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| Walking nativity in Grange |
Thank you SO much for reading our blog this year - and an especially HUGE thank you to everyone who has bought one of our books - we really do appreciate it! We sincerely hope you all have a very merry Christmas full of family and fun, and a peaceful and happy new year. Here's to 2019!
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| Merry Christmas! |
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