Les aventures d’une famille franco-anglaise

 As the summer is well and truly here (!) with most UK schools off for summer, there is one activity that costs nothing but appeals to children almost any age: blackberry picking. That can get them off the iPad for at least an hour, so good to have in your bucket list for the long summer break! Blackberries are not normally ripe until August, but this year being particularly hot, I have already started to see people picking them where I live. It is welcome news after a tragedy that has recently hit a family of swans.   It’s possible on our doorstep, does not require fitting bikes on the roof of a car. We thought, why not have a go ourselves? I am glad we did this Sunday as we have even managed to pick enough for a blackberry crumble! The only extra ingredients needed are flour, demarara sugar and butter. Loads of recipes available online. One Little tip would be to add a sprinkle of lemon juice and cinnamon. Stick in the oven for 30 to 40 minutes. Enjoy!

 I cannot believe I have done it: we have cycled all around the Rutland Water Reservoir including the Hambleton Peninsula!  Unfortunately the beach was closed this weekend because of algae. However, after we failed to reach the peninsula last year , the first Saturday without French school, I was determined to try again this year!    We parked at Whitwell this time to be a bit nearer the peninsula, but thankfully not as near as Barnsdale, which is very, very hilly, to the point that cyclists may be encouraged to dismount.  After a rather dull part alongside the road, we hit the hilly part but it was so worth it as the view was great. We spotted a heron, or we believe we did, as well as swans a Canada geese. We even saw quite a few sheep from very near and even some horses, which can only please my little one. The peninsula track is not an easy ride as there are a few rather steep slopes especially in the North part. Therefore I am quite glad we did not persevere...

 Bamford Edge was recommended to us by some work colleagues of my husband’s. Only we managed to go in the wrong direction. It doesn’t matter, we could not see the Ladybower Reservoir but we made it to Robin Hood’s Cave. The place was rather busy, with a lot of rock climbers, which gave my teenager another idea on top of skiing, scuba diving etc. There were also a lot of sheep much to my nine year old’s delight. Nearby was Hathersage and its graveyard where we did see Little John’s grave! The weather was unexpectedly sunny, despite the forecast. I thought a swim would appeal to some but there was nowhere around there. We headed off the Bakewell to grab some fudge and Bakewell tarts. As we headed back to the car park crossing the bridge I saw some people wild swimming from afar. There is indeed a park called Rutland Recreation Ground where there are fewer geese and ducks. The current is a bit fast but this time as we weren’t cycling, we had the “right” footwear for a dip in a stony r...

Yes to another bike ride, this time not even in Derbyshire, but just at the border with Staffordshire! The name Manifold is that of the river that is known to disappear underground at some point as you can see here. At first, I thought the ride would be a tad bit disappointing, but I quickly changed my mind when I saw the water reappearing near Wetton where there is a tea room   I also realised that there were some caves! We decided against leaving our bikes to visit Tor Cave, but we stopped at Nan Tor and were not disappointed!  As the sun came out, we even saw the opportunity for a paddle. We stopped for our lunch at Hulme End, where the track stops. All for a total of 27 km (about 19 miles) return. My husband said it was his favourite ride so far. My nine-year-old said it was nice but a bit too long for her...

 Yes I've done it. Camping! Can you believe it? For a bit of background, I have very little experience in camping as a kid as my mum has always been very sensitive to cold, and my dad vowed never to sleep under the canvas again after his national service, unless WW3 was to erupt in his lifetime. 😏 I (unintentionally) got out of a family camping trip in Whitby 2 years ago due to a fracture, but last bank holiday week end, beautiful weather was forecast, so we HAD to go to the sea side and why not make it two days?  You may know that Skegness is one of our favourites as it is the nearest resort, and I do not agree with popular opinion, that it is mediocre or overly tacky. The idea came to me at the 11th hour so I knew that it would be hard to find a place to stay overnight but as it was hot, I thought camping would be nice and I had to try it.  At last the sea!  Skegness Pier I love that idea, even though I no longer have a dog Oh I love those rock pools when the ti...