I’m not a fan of heavy rain. After running Reading Half Marathon in atrocious conditions earlier this year I’m firmly of the opinion that my enjoyment of outdoor activities is weather dependent.
When the other half decided to enter a local mountain biking event, Uptonogood, I held off making a decision until the day beforehand so I could check the weather forecast first. Despite very windy conditions there was no rain predicted so I signed up too.
On a recent sunny weekend we decided to visit the Caen Hill locks on the Kennet and Avon canal. The set of locks are an incredible feat of engineering. First opened in 1810 they were built to carry the canal 237 feet up Caen Hill. There are 29 locks in total, over 2 miles, although the picture you see most often is of the 16 locks stretching up the hill. The canal became derelict after the Second World War but was restored and officially reopened in 1990. Many of the locks are dedicated to those who helped with the restoration.
Continue reading Down and up the Caen Hill Locks, Wiltshire.
It’s not often we spend a day away from the kids. We enjoy our family time together and want to make the most of it. Last weekend was an exception. The kids got to spend a day with the grandparents, and we took part in an organised challenge walk along the Ridgeway, our local long distance footpath.
Earlier this year the Natural History Museum named the Isle of Wight as dinosaur capital of Britain. With the Bank Holiday weekend looming, and fond memories of previous trips to the island, we decided to see whether we could discover some dinosaur bones ourselves.
Last weekend we took advantage of the free entry offer to National Trust properties. After searching through the suggestions on their website we decided on a trip to the The Vyne, just north of Basingstoke.
We’d originally planned a day trip to the New Forest but whilst browsing for inspiration came across the Queen Elizabeth Country Park and decided to change our plans. The park lies at the western end of the South Downs and includes a large managed wooded area and chalk downland.
