Delamere Forest, West Cheshire

From the moment we arrived at the Delamere Forest Camping and Caravanning Club Site, we knew we were going to have a very enjoyable stay.

http://www.campingandcaravanningclub.co.uk/campsites/uk/cheshire/northwich/delamereforest

The site staff couldn’t have been friendlier on arrival, full of good wishes when they learnt we were newlyweds, and a good sense of humour. Just one teeny weeny niggle, we were shown to an area of pitches but given a choice of only 3 apparently larger ones which looked the same size as several other empty pitches. We were then told it would be preferable to them if we used a certain pitch as some people visited with other families and often preferred to be pitched next to each other. We don’t think pitches should really be suggested in this manner. Whether you travel alone or with friends, everyone has preferences. Anyway, it was no problem when we instead selected a quieter corner pitch with good sunshine.

We sat out for a few hours after pitching up, enjoying the sunshine and a celebratory bottle of bubbly!

Celebratory bubbles in the sunshine

Late afternoon/early evening we unloaded the bikes and cycled a short distance (approx. mile) into Oakmere to the Vale Royal Abbey Arms. A quite traditional pub, the building 200 years old and listed.

https://www.oldenglishinns.co.uk/our-locations/the-vale-royal-abbey-arms-oakmere

We had already looked up and planned to eat at The Fishpool Inn, and so later we cycled a little further on to get there. We had definitely made the right decision! The interior is beautiful, cosy, and oozes class! Even though we were in cycling gear, however, we felt totally at ease and welcome here. According to the website the place underwent a multi-million pound renovation in 2012/13, and is now one of Cheshire’s most popular gastro inns and has been awarded the much sought after accolade of ‘Best New Pub’ in the UK at The Publican Awards. We had to try a famous hearty, home-made, hand-crafted pie it sounded just too delicious to resist!

Cosy charm of The Fishpool Inn

Starters

Delicious hearty, homemade, hand-crafted pies. The pastry melted in your mouth – yum.

Suzie was beaten at this point, but Bri managed a cheeky Knickerbocker Glory

Suzie was beaten by this point, but Bri managed a cheeky Knickerbocker Glory

There is also a very good selection of Real Ales, as they serve permanent local ales and a variety of guest cask ales. Even the toilets, wow! they do say a lot about a place though! The Fishpool Inn is a must to visit if you stay at Delamere. It is clearly popular so maybe book to be on the safe side although we were seated no problem.

http://thefishpoolinn.co.uk/view-pictures/

The following day we spent cycling in and around Delamere Forest. The campsite is surrounded by the forest and the visitor centre is just out of the gates, over the railway bridge and to the right. You can travel to other places from here, including Chester and if we had been staying longer we might have used this service to explore further afield. However, for our 2-night stay there was more than enough to keep us occupied.

Delamere Station

The station cafe

All sorts of activities here for different abilities/interests:-

http://www.forestry.gov.uk/delamere

We opted for a 7 mile bike ride through the forest, making it more 8.5 miles as we took a slight detour from the forest route to call in at The Carriers Inn on the banks of Hatchmere lake for a spot of lunch. The 17th-century original smithy building is believed to be haunted …

http://www.thecarriersinn.com/

Bri meets Gruffalo

The 7-mile White Moor Trail through Delamere

Trail scenery

Suzie at one of many forest dens

Always time for a selfie …

The Carriers Inn, Hatchmere

Lakeside beer garden at The Carriers Inn

Refreshment (Hobgoblin real ale & a thirst quenching cider)

Early evening we cycled back to site. There is a fish n chip van that visits the site at 5pm on Saturdays, but we didn’t make use of this service as we had already eaten. We sat out until sun down with cheese, biscuits and wine and playing cards until it became chilly. Then we decided to cabin up in Jolly after another thoroughly enjoyable break.

Oh, and on our return Suzie had a quick lesson driving and maneuvering Jolly ready to start driving him a little more in preparation for longer journeys. Exciting!!

Suzie let loose at the controls

Our next trip is back to an old favourite of ours, Ravenglass. That’s just a few weeks off.

ONWARD!>>>>

Suzie & Bri

Troutbeck Head Caravan Club Site, Penrith, North Lake District

Posted by jollymajestic1

Just back from a lovely break in Troutbeck. We’re having a sort of year-long extended honeymoon to various UK locations throughout the year in Jolly, because motorhoming is the thing we enjoy most & we’ve lots of wedding gift tokens for our adventures. This was the first outing of our Jolly T-shirts too, even persuaded Bri to don his …

This trip involved quite a bit of cycling. The weather was mostly fair, except for our last night, but more about that later. The pitches at the Troutbeck Head Caravan Club site are very spacious and we also upgraded to fully serviced for extra convenience. Our pitch (No.44) was beside a babbling brook, with a grassy, walled area to the side giving a little extra privacy. Drive forward or reverse on, they are not bothered which at this site. It was a perfect spot for all day round sunshine, although there wasn’t too much of this during our visit. Reviews have rated the facilities as adequate, however, we used our on-board shower and toilet facilities so had no need for the site facilities.

http://www.caravanclub.co.uk/caravanclubapps/applications/uk-caravan-sites-and-parks/SiteDetails.aspx?csid=22006

Pitched up on site with a rare glimpse of sunshine

Pitch 44, spacious and sheltered

View of Blencathra and the sharp edge from the top of the site & near entrance to Rookin House Farm Centre which offers lots of activities

View of Blencathra and the sharp edge from the top of the site & near the entrance to Rookin House Farm Centre which offers lots of activities

It’s just a mile from the site to the Troutbeck Inn, which serves fabulous food.

http://www.thetroutbeckinn.co.uk/

The Troutbeck Inn

Top: Resisting dessert. Bottom: Giving in to dessert

That’s where we spent our first evening after an hour or so on site after arrival. It wasn’t just the typical pub grub we had been expecting. Lovely selection. We chose and would heartily recommend:-

Bri’s starter: Pot of smooth duck pate with cognac, cumberland sauce & toasted baguette

Suzie’s starter: Grilled white asparagus with onion & lemon veloute & parmesan crisp

Unfortunately the mains looked so appetising we devoured them before taking a photograph! Bri opted for: Chicken fillet & Mediterranean king prawns with Indonesian curry, lime, coriander & turmeric rice. Suzie opted for: Grilled cod loin steak with char grilled king prawn, fennel, crayfish butter, mushroom risotto & Parmesan shavings. Both dishes absolutely delicious. Managed to capture the desserts:-

Bri's desert: Meringue with raspberries, cream & vanilla ice cream

Bri’s dessert: Meringue with raspberries, cream & vanilla ice cream

Suzie’s dessert: Sticky toffee pudding and cream

Bri outside the Troutbeck Inn

The next day we set off on our bikes from the site heading back down towards Troutbeck and cycled tracks and side roads away from the very busy A66. We cycled in quite windy weather and light showers, firstly over to Scale, Threlkeld. We took a little detour (unintentional) and a very kind farmer allowed us through his field over to the top track taking us down to the White Horse Inn for a well earned Real Ale refreshment stop (Haystack) We probably cycled 5.5 miles by our route, which involved a little stream crossing and uphill field walk. Really pleasant detour though.

Field on the way up to the top track (C2C 71 cycle route)

Nervy little black lambs under camouflage and shelter

Bri on the C2C cycle path

Suzie on the C2C cycle path

The White Horse Inn is situated at the foot of Blencathra and the sharp edge (Bri has previously climbed this). It’s obviously very popular with walkers and cyclists. From here we picked up the Coast to Coast (C2C) 71 cycle route and meandered over to Mungrisdale, approx. 4 miles away, along the foot of Blencathra. Beautiful views. We stopped at the Mill Inn at Mungrisdale

http://www.the-millinn.co.uk/

The weather had improved slightly, allowing us to sit out, cool down and put our feet up for a while with a Real Ale (Sharp Edge & Cumbria Way). We later ate tea here, enjoying a traditional steak and ale pie before cycling the calories off on our way home.

Tea time stop at The Mill Inn, Mungrisdale

Feet up and refreshment

Oops, somebody’s already forgotten to wear their wedding ring

Cosy fire at the Mill Inn, Mungrisdale

Mirror, mirror on the roadside …

Happy cyclists!

We headed back the 4.5 miles to site via Troutbeck and a stop for a quick drink at the Inn there. As we headed the last mile to site, the winds had risen and being slightly uphill and a headwind the ride back was the most challenging part of the day! We arrived back from our 14 mile round trip in good time to cabin up and prepare for the stronger winds and heavy rain forecast for that night. It arrived at about 11 pm and continued through to about 7 am, rocking Jolly at times but we were snug and slept well. By breakfast time the weather had lifted and the sun broke through, allowing us to sit out and cook our fried egg muffins before packing up to head home.

Finishing breakfast on site before heading home

Another lovely break.

Next stop is at the Camping & Caravanning Club Site Delamere Forest.

ONWARD!>>>>

Suzie & Bri

Thank you Elddis & SoLiD!

Posted by jollymajestic1

Delighted to say that our blog has featured on the Elddis website, hopefully being of interest to other tourers and/or newbie motorhomers.

http://www.elddis.co.uk/hub/article/85/onward-check-out-suzie-and-bris-motorhome-adventures-in-their-jolly-majestic-blog

ONWARD!>>>>

Suzie & Bri

Our bespoke Jolly Majestic t-shirts 😉

Posted by jollymajestic1

It’s called style, you wouldn’t understand 😜

Oh, and we’ve decided on a jaunt to Troutbeck in the Lake District next.

ONWARD!>>>>

Suzie & Bri

Brontë Country, Haworth, West Yorkshire

Posted by jollymajestic1

“Home of the famous Brontë sisters, Haworth is an undisputed literary mecca, attracting visitors from all around the world. With its historic cobbled Main Street, iconic parsonage and rolling moors, the picturesque proportions of this Airedale village exude a vintage charm that makes you feel you’ve stepped into another era”

http://www.yorkshire.com/places/bradford/haworth

We stayed at the private Upwood Holiday Park in Haworth

http://www.upwoodpark.co.uk/HOME.aspx

Arriving onto Upwood Holiday Park. Our pitch was allocated to us.

Enjoying the last of the afternoon sunshine on site

Site bar

Situated high up on the moor overlooking Haworth and Oxenhope, it afforded impressive views over the villages and across the moors. We had sunshine our entire stay and good temperatures so our first afternoon after pitching up was spent on site sitting in the sunshine and enjoying the atmosphere. There were lots of friendly folk, many of them on seasonal pitches who gave good advice on the area. The first evening we ate at the pub on site which had plenty of customers in and a pleasant ambiance.

Next day we wanted to spend in the village of Haworth and explore the literary connection to the famous Brontë family.It was a pleasant mile or so walk down hill into Haworth and we were advised to just book a taxi back up at the end of the day from the taxi rank near the railway station, but me being organised I put the number in my phone prior to our day trip out and we were picked up at the Old Hall Inn. We both really felt the pull in the back of our calf muscles for a day or so afterwards following the downhill trek!

You’re spoilt for choice with a variety of shops, among others we visited:-

http://www.andchocolate.co.uk/

http://www.rose-apothecary.co.uk/

We ate lunch at a cafe opposite the church steps, next door to the apothecary, forgotten the name of this, prior to our tour of the St Michael’s & All Angels Church and the Brontë Parsonage.

http://www.bronte.org.uk/

All of the Brontë family, except Ann, are interred in a tomb beneath the present Church floor. The parsonage is set out much as it would have been in their time and you really get a feel for what life was like in the parsonage when they lived. In our opinion, it is well worth a visit and the £7.50 adult admission fee. Unfortunately, photography is not permitted inside, otherwise I’d have had heaps more photos on this blog entry! Also, between the church and parsonage you pass the old school room where Charlotte Brontë taught.

We sampled a variety of real ales in each public house as we wandered the village (think we covered most!) and most of them were apparently also frequented on a VERY regular basis by poor Branwell Brontë, the only brother of the successful Brontë sisters. We had a delicious tea in the gardens of the Old Hall Inn, until the sun started to go down and it became chilly, so we returned to camp for the remainder of the evening. At the end of the driveway to the site we sat on a bench and watched a beautiful sunset before returning to Jolly.

http://www.hawortholdhall.co.uk/

We’ll definitely visit again and probably stay at Upwood as it had everything we needed and a perfect location. We plan to do more walking next time.

http://haworth-village.org.uk/walks/walks.asp

This was a great break in a picturesque location. We haven’t decided yet on our next trip, but it will be soon after our Wedding which is on 3rd May, and then we will be out and about on a regular basis. Good times!

ONWARD!>>>>

Suzie & Bri