Where's Erica? She's back on her pitch at Coniston Park Coppice.
**Weather: slightly damp start then dry but almost entirely overcast. Cool.
At Caravan Club sites you don't get allocated a pitch, but get to look around and choose your own. You then return to reception to nominate your pitch, whereupon (at most club sites) you get given some keys and/or key cards with a fob matching your pitch number. For the system to work, there's a requirement for campervans/motorhomes who go off-site during their stay to mark their pitch to show that it is in use. The sites sell plastic signs for the purpose, but at £20 I've never felt inclined to buy one. Instead, many years ago in the time of Colin, I made a sign saying 'TAKEN' from a cereal box, some clear, waterproof duct tape, and some cable ties. That sign got transfered from Colin to Bertie and over the last ten years we must have used it all of two or three times, because its rare for us to leave a site once we're pitched, other than on foot.
Last weekend, thinking about our plans for this week, I had the fleeting thought that we needed the sign in Erica. Yesterday I realised we'd forgotten to transfer it to her, and that we were going to be leaving our pitch empty this morning. Often people simply leave some chairs or some levelling ramps, but we didn't have those options, so thought went into what resources we did have.
This was the only answer I could come up with:
A little inconvenient as that collapsible crate is a valuable resource when one of us is driving support for the other, being used to hold all of the things that may be required at a support point so that time isn't spent rummaging in cupboards (there's a lot of rummaging going on; Erica hasn't quite worked out where things go yet). Today it was me driving for Mick.
Having dropped him off, in light rain, in Ambleside, I made my way to Tilberthwaite where, after second breakfast and a bit of faffing, I laced up my trainers, shouldered my pack and set out in the direction of Ambleside, taking the Lakeland 50 route in reverse. Surprisingly, given yesterday's efforts, my legs were happy with this activity.
Having received a text from Mick when he reached Skelwith Bridge, I worked out where I was likely to meet him, and was a bit disconcerted when he wasn't there. If I carried on any further it was with the knowledge that, if I'd missed him, then we would be getting further and further apart (although thanks to the incident on the Welsh Coast a few years ago, the lesson was learnt to carry a vehicle key each, so at least Mick could access Erica to eat, restock and leave me a note). I decided to just go a couple of minutes further, to the point where I could look down into the valley, and there he was, almost at the top.
It was 6.5km back to Erica, during which we enjoyed dry, but still overcast weather. Walkers we met were dressed variously in full waterproofs or winter hats and gloves, and I'm sure I can't be the only person daily whinging that 'It's nearly June, for goodness sake!'
Tilberthwaite car park was busy by the time we got back there, but once Mick had been fed and watered, I freed up a space and pootled back to the campsite.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, we've been a bit lazy this afternoon.
**Weather: slightly damp start then dry but almost entirely overcast. Cool.
At Caravan Club sites you don't get allocated a pitch, but get to look around and choose your own. You then return to reception to nominate your pitch, whereupon (at most club sites) you get given some keys and/or key cards with a fob matching your pitch number. For the system to work, there's a requirement for campervans/motorhomes who go off-site during their stay to mark their pitch to show that it is in use. The sites sell plastic signs for the purpose, but at £20 I've never felt inclined to buy one. Instead, many years ago in the time of Colin, I made a sign saying 'TAKEN' from a cereal box, some clear, waterproof duct tape, and some cable ties. That sign got transfered from Colin to Bertie and over the last ten years we must have used it all of two or three times, because its rare for us to leave a site once we're pitched, other than on foot.
Last weekend, thinking about our plans for this week, I had the fleeting thought that we needed the sign in Erica. Yesterday I realised we'd forgotten to transfer it to her, and that we were going to be leaving our pitch empty this morning. Often people simply leave some chairs or some levelling ramps, but we didn't have those options, so thought went into what resources we did have.
This was the only answer I could come up with:
A little inconvenient as that collapsible crate is a valuable resource when one of us is driving support for the other, being used to hold all of the things that may be required at a support point so that time isn't spent rummaging in cupboards (there's a lot of rummaging going on; Erica hasn't quite worked out where things go yet). Today it was me driving for Mick.
Having dropped him off, in light rain, in Ambleside, I made my way to Tilberthwaite where, after second breakfast and a bit of faffing, I laced up my trainers, shouldered my pack and set out in the direction of Ambleside, taking the Lakeland 50 route in reverse. Surprisingly, given yesterday's efforts, my legs were happy with this activity.
Having received a text from Mick when he reached Skelwith Bridge, I worked out where I was likely to meet him, and was a bit disconcerted when he wasn't there. If I carried on any further it was with the knowledge that, if I'd missed him, then we would be getting further and further apart (although thanks to the incident on the Welsh Coast a few years ago, the lesson was learnt to carry a vehicle key each, so at least Mick could access Erica to eat, restock and leave me a note). I decided to just go a couple of minutes further, to the point where I could look down into the valley, and there he was, almost at the top.
It was 6.5km back to Erica, during which we enjoyed dry, but still overcast weather. Walkers we met were dressed variously in full waterproofs or winter hats and gloves, and I'm sure I can't be the only person daily whinging that 'It's nearly June, for goodness sake!'
Tilberthwaite car park was busy by the time we got back there, but once Mick had been fed and watered, I freed up a space and pootled back to the campsite.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, we've been a bit lazy this afternoon.
No comments:
Post a Comment