Christmas with Herman in the New Forest

This Christmas we are spending it in Herman on a little campsite in Bartley, New Forest. My parents are staying at the Bartley Lodge Hotel which is a 45 minute walk away. One narrow section of the walk goes through the national park and is very muddy and dark at night. Wild horses roam these path and it's very normal for a group of them to be mingled together blocking the way. And sometimes they seem to loom out of the darkness to scare you witless.

Watch what happened on Christmas day when Zoe opens her presents

This is where we spent Christmas
View Christmas in a larger map

Otters, again

Today we decided to go back to Studland Beach to see if we could see the otters again but this time with our cameras. We weren't disappointed. Check this out.

We also went to see Old Harry's Rock which is in the same area.

Corfe Castle and Studland Bay

Corfe Castle is a bit drafty

The last couple of days have been great and the weather has been kind. Even though it has been forecast for torrential rain and 60 mph gusts.

Yesterday we went to Corfe Castle which is now a ruin. It was built in stone in the 11th century by William the Conqueror and was a royal fortress for 600 years.

Santa's Express

From the castle you look down upon the village of Corfe and the old railway line. At the moment they are running a steam train called the Santa Express. Well it is December after all.

Middle Beach

Today started out as a bright sunny day and we decided to risk it and go for a walk at Studland Beach. When we arrived the SBS (Special Boat Service, like the SAS but on water) were training by jumping out of a Hercules and parachuting into the ice cold sea.

Old Harry Rocks

We walked along the beach and headed to one of the bird hides on a lake called Little Sea which is a nature reserve. From the hide we saw a couple of otters, a kingfisher and a marsh harrier. At one point the otters were about 4 metres from us.

We had a brilliant time.

Pre Christmas Holiday in Herman

Wareham,we have ventured out in Herman for a week.

We will be staying at a Caravan Club site called Hunter's Moon in Wareham near Swanage which is on the south coast.

We've been told that it's very beautiful around here and we intend to find out for ourselves although the weather is forecasting rain. Never mind, there are plenty of other things to do such as Corfe Castle.

This is the first time out in Herman since we replaced the internal lights with LEDs. It's now a lot brighter. Before, it was like reading by candle light but now I'm a little worried about getting sun burn. Totally recommend doing this and it uses a lot less electricity too.

How to Hide Your Details in Facebook

It has recently came to my attention that my mobile number and other contact details are viewable by everyone on Facebook. As we all know Facebook keeps changing its security from time to time which exposes data that you may have hidden a while back so it's a good idea to check it once in a while.

With the new interface changing your profile security settings is easy but somewhat hidden. Here is how you find and change your security levels.

At the top right of the Facebook web page is your name, "Find Friend", "Home" and a down arrow. Clicking the down arrow displays a menu. Select the menu option 'Privacy Settings".

At the very top of Privacy Settings web page you'll see "Control Privacy When you Post" followed by the text "You can manage the privacy of your status updates, photos and information using the inline audience selector — when you share or afterwards. Remember: the people you share with can always share your information with others, including apps. Try editing your profile to see how it works or learn more."

To edit your privacy settings click the text that says "editing your profile" which takes you to the "Edit Profile" page.

On the left of the Edit Profile page you'll see a list of categories, the first one being "Basic Information' which is currently selected. The main part of the page displays your information depending on the category on the left. Clicking on a category changes the content on the page.

All you need to do now is change the privacy option by clicking the down arrow next to each piece of information. "Public" will allow everyone to see your info; "Friends" means only your friends can see your info; and "Only me" means nobody but you can see your info.

The privacy information for your contact details such as email and mobile number can be changed by clicking on the "Contact Information" category.

End of Movember and the Tache

For the past few weeks every time I look in the mirror someone else stares back at me.

It the end of Movember and the tache has to come off.

That's better. Back to normal.

Getting Bushy

My Village People look is really coming along. It's getting really bushy now and check out all those white hairs. I seem to have more white hairs on one side than on the other and so I have an unsymmetrical face.

Cyclists, Be Seen or Die.

This time of year the evenings are dark when driving home from work. One stretch of road called zzz from Windsor to Ascot is very dark. On one side is a forest and on the other is a farmers field. There are no street lights and the cats eyes are missing.

One day last week while driving down this road oncoming cars were steering on to my side of the road obviously trying to avoid something. It was only when I passed that I noticed a cyclist, dressed in black with no lights on. They were almost invisible.

A few days later and the same thing, oncoming cars were steering on to my side of the road but this time they were driving around a car with its lights on.

It was only when I drew level with the car that I noticed, in the beam of the lights, a dark shape on the floor. The shape of a body.

Now, I'm not saying that they deserved getting knocked down but they must have been mentally ill or have a death wish. Not only that but there's a footpath on that side of the road so why not use it if you haven't got any lights?

I feel sorry for the poor bugger who hit them.

What do you think?

Proper Tache Now

Two weeks in and it's starting to look like a proper moustache.

I've been getting some strange looks recently. It could be the tache or the Harley-Davidson, or maybe the huge truck I now drive or it could be the large, bloody axe and my murderous look I now carry around with me.

You be the judge.

CDs and Music Downloads Need an Overhaul

I've just brought the new Coldplay CD from Play.com and I think it's pretty good. It's very Coldplayish but there are no stunners like "Fix You". But this post isn't about the music it's about the media it's played on.

The problem with Mylo Xyloto is that Coldplay have ruined my enjoyment of it by having a number of short intro tracks. These tracks, which are about a minute long, have their own title and the end of them leads directly to a main four minute song. This is all well and good while listening to the CD from start to finish but on an MP3 player it sounds somewhat rubbish, unfinished. This is because a lot of music players can't cope with the jumping from one track to another very well and have a tiny gap in-between tracks. And let's not forget that most players can play tracks randomly. This means that all these tracks either suddenly stop when the music has just built up or they start abruptly with no intro. It's simply annoying. Of course, we don't want to put limits on music artists telling them not to have tracks that lead into other tracks, that would be ridiculous. Many classical and movie sound tracks are like this and other artists such as Queen and Snow Patrol have tracks leading into others.

Then there is the extended track at the end of the CD. These are either monotonous drivel or simply nothing, no music, just empty tracks taking up CD space. Sony do this a lot and I think the reason why they do this is because some years back when CD burners first came out they could only successful record on to short play recordable CDs (60 minutes). Long albums couldn't be recorded. Therefore, I think studios continue this annoying habit to try and prevent CD copying which isn't a problem these days because CD burners can record to almost anything. Then, when you rip the CD to your MP3 library you have to contend with this enormous track with 6 minutes of nothing at the end or in the middle of two songs. Kasabian have done this and I think Robbie Williams has also (both Sony).

Another thing is cost. How come a CD is cheaper to buy than the downloaded version? I mean there is the cost of all that plastic and the sleeve and then the cost of transporting it to the shop and some bod unpacking and stacking it on the shelf and the rent of shops and warehouses. All these costs are redundant with a music download. So, what do you get with your download? Nothing or maybe the album art, which is free anyway yet you may have to pay an extra pound or two.

I think it's about time the humble CD and download got an update. For a start they should contain much more information such as lyrics, photos and bios. The CD sleeve has this information so why not add it to the media itself? Then there is the ability to link tracks together; a way to say to the player that track A should be followed by track B and don't play track D without playing track C first. Of course, player will need to be updated but that is the easy part. 

One last thing and I know this is a weak argument but it does make some sense. When you buy a CD what are you buying? You are not buying the songs because you don't own them, you only own the right to listen to them. If you loose or damage a CD you have to buy another one. This is surely wrong. If you buy the media but don't own the rights to the music then shouldn't you be able to get another copy if you can't play it any more? Buying music (and video) is somewhere between renting and buying. It wouldn't be a problem if you could backup the CD to a cheap writeable CD-ROM which you use without the worry of getting it lost or stolen. Although, if you could get replacements from the studio then where would it stop? You could argue that your old vinyl or cassettes could all be replaced with CDs and that simply isn't going to happen. Downloads are fine though because you can always download the music again if you can remember were you brought it from.

The Tashe has Begun

The first steps of the new moustache.
I've not gone for the side burns just the handle bars.

You can donate by going here

6 days Growth

The tache

Letting it Grow in Movember

It's Movember. Yes, that's not a spelling mistake. It's Movember, not November. This month is the month for ALL men to turn the 5 o'clock shadow into some proper facial fur for charity.

I've joined the cause and I'm planning on growing the side burns longer going along the chin and up over the upper lip. A bit like Lemmy from Motorhead

Check out my mobro page and donate some cash for prostate and testicular cancer.

I'll be posting photo updates of the progress.

Meat and Veg Hot Pot

European made motorhomes (e.g. Rimor, Hymer, Pilot etc) tend to have only a hob with 2 or 3 rings. Only the British made motorhomes have a fitted oven. This can leave you limited in what you can cook but Zoe and I do cook a lot in Herman and we simply love it.

This has got to be my favourite meal to have while camping. It's delicious, it's good for you, easy to make, wholesome and doesn't have much washing up.

The basic idea is to put cuts of meat and vegetables into a saucepan with the lid on and cook it all on a low heat. The veg maintain their flavour and the meat is tender.

We normally use lamb chops but any cut or meat will do so long as it is small pieces. We like using carrots, potatoes, broccoli, mushrooms, anything really and olives are great too.

Trim any fat off the meat and chop up the veg and put it all in the saucepan with the meat at the bottom so it can cook in the liquid. We then add about half a pint of stock, wine or water and cook on a very low heat with the lid on for 45-60 minutes.

Serve when the meat is cooked and the potatoes/carrots are soft with some crusty bread and red wine.

The Last Day

I'm feeling very tired now and so this is going to be a short and to the point post. In fact we've both been feeling tired all day. It must yesterdays walk catching up with us. It's our last day of holiday today. Tomorrow we travel back home.

Today we met up with our friends Alan, Melissa and little Oliver. We had a lovely lunch at the Gower Wild Flowers Cafe where we saw a cow get itself stuck across a fence. Later we ended up at The Mumbles for long chats and coffee. It was great to see them again but it rained all day.

Sun, Sea and Coastal Walks

What a beautiful day. We managed to get up early to a bright blue sky with the sun a blaze and hot. It's time for a coastal walk.

Worm Head, Rhossili

We went back to Port Eynon, made some sandwiches and set off west to Rhossili. I figured it would take about three hours. How wrong I was. It took 5 hours and it was tiring but boy it was strikingly beautiful and didn't disappoint.

We walked all along the top of there

There was much wildlife to see, mainly crows but we also saw a Greater Spotted Woodpecker catching bugs on the wing. Never seen them do that before before and certainly not on the coast. The sun also brought out many peacock butterflies.

We are now on bus back to Port Eynon and Herman. Feeling very tired and I have a beer and a BBQ calling me.

Who is Herman?

I guess I should have introduced Herman at the start of my blog.
Herman is a 1998 Hymer B564. He is 6.5 metres long, sleeps 4 and has a kitchen and a bathroom with large shower. We brought him in July 2010 when he had already travelled 50,000 miles.

Here is an early video I made of our first trip in him.

Such a Strange Day I Can't Think of a Title for this Post!

Working water wheel

Will the "Mill"

A bit of a strange day today. First of all, it was raining. Now, there's nothing wrong or different about that other than it seems to keep us inside too long. That pitta-patta on the roof is soothing and tells you that you are in a safe, dry and cosy place while it's bloody horrible outside especially when you are still in bed wrapped up all snug like. So, by the time we set off it was 11:30 but where were we going? That's the second thing, we decided on going to the Gower Heritage Centre. I don't know what we were expecting at the Centre, maybe help and advice about visiting the Gower Peninsula or a map of walks but instead we were met by a patch work quilt of history, shops and activities. I'd describe it as an old exhibition attraction which has evolved around an old working water mill (which was interesting) with huts, shops and passages added on over time with the odd mannequin dressed in old clothes. You could watch/try your hand at throwing clay (I think that's the correct term) or watch a puppet show. The Centre then turned into a zoo with chickens, ducks, rabbits, goats and guinea-pigs. Oh, and a museum of tractors and old farm appliances, a blacksmith and a small section about air-raid shelters of WW2. It was very, shall I say, well used and dusty and definitely aimed at young kids.

From Port Eynon Point

So, instead of a beautiful place that I've been told and read about my first impression of Gower was a grubby, 3rd rate, expensive attraction which left us feeling a bit fed up.

Looking towards Rhossili

We left and headed to Port Eynon which is on the coast. This was more like it. Port Eynon is a quiet village with a church, a chip shop and a long sandy beach. It also has a beautiful coastal area with rock pools and many different types of birds including oyster-catchers and plovers. From the top of Port Eynon Point great views with jagged rocks and shear cliffs can be seen. It gave us the idea of taking a walk along the coast tomorrow to Rhossili if the weather is nice hopefully we'll be awake.

"We Got Ourselves a Convoy"

We spent most of today travelling south to the Gower peninsula near Swansea. We took many A roads but they all felt like B roads; narrow, twisty and up and down. There were many times where followed by a convoy of cars and for many miles there were six motorhomes in the convoy.

Oh, at one point on a deserted road we spotted four buzzards just sitting in a field.

We are now at Gowerton Caravan Club site. Apparently, when the tide comes in it blocks the roads into the site.

Ceod y Brenin

Today we went to Ceod y Brenin which is a activity centre ran by the Forestry Commission. They have many mountain bike tracks and walking routes for different abilities. We chose to do the "strenuous" red route. All routes are very well sign posted. It was a 2 hour walk over different terrain with waterfalls and great scenery.

Along our walk at Ceod y Brenin

 At one point we criss-crossed over a bike route called "The Beast" which is an extremely difficult trail which requires high levels of skill and stamina. I had to laugh though when one of the signs for "The Beast" also had a skull and crossed-bones on it indicating a warning of death! We didn't see anyone on "The Beast" trail.

WARNING: Death Ahead

Today had been such a nice day we thought we'd end it with a BBQ with sausages and peppered steak.

The Bridge is Out

Barmouth Bridge

Back to normal this morning as we get up late again. Today we wanted to cycle along the Mawddach Trail and over the bridge that stretches across the mouth of the river into Barmouth. We thought we could get some more beer and wine and maybe some bread. But instead the bridge is closed for the week for some maintenance. Barmouth Bridge is a grade 2 listed structure and consists of a footpath and a railway line. The footpath has a toll and costs 90p for an adult or £1.50 for an adult on a bike.

River Maddach from the bridge

The bridge to Barmouth is out

Anyway, so instead of crossing the bridge we cycled all the way back to the George III pub, which is actually a hotel, and ordered some lunch. We both had the steak and ale pie with chips and it must have been the best steak and ale pie we'd had for a while; lots of nice big chunky pieces of steak in a suet base with a puff pastry top which oozed gravy when you cut into it, and the chips very also very good as well. All chased down by two pints of the Snowdonian ale made by the Purple Moose brewery.

It is now the evening and we are preparing dinner (more steak and potatoes) while the wind has picked up and is rocking Herman, the rain has started again, our next door neighbours are having a BBQ and a tawny owl hoots nearby.

Cycling on the Mawddach Trail

Mawddach

Today, back to normal. We woke up at 8:10 but that could be because we were kept up all night to the sound of the rain drumming on the roof. We think it's louder here because we are camped right under some trees.

Harlech Castle

We move on today to Craig Wen on the south coast of the River Mawddach near Dolgellau. The journey was going to be a short one and so we decided to visit another ruined castle this time Harlech Castle. We managed to get in for half price again thanks to the English Heritage membership. The castle is another one of King Edward I's when he was trying to gain control over the Welsh in 1280ish. Small tip: There is a pay and display just opposite the castle entrance, don't bother with that. Instead, at the base of the castle (on the A496) where the railway crosses the road there are signs for the castle and there is a car park right next to the rail-crossing at the castle base. This is good because the B4573 which the castle is on is not suitable for campers/caravans (steep, narrow and twisty).

Overlooking Afon Mawddach

We arrive at Craig Wen and head off on a short cycle ride along the Lower Mawddach path which is a disused train line. We arrive at the George pub who sell a bloody gorgeous pint of Snowdonia. At this point it was getting late so we only had the one pint and headed back to Herman. Hopefully, we'll be back soon ;-)

Mount Snowdon

Dolbadarn Castle

What is it with us? We woke up late again. It must be this mountain air or the evening wine. Anyway, today's weather looked a lot brighter and drier so we decided to go to the top of Mount Snowdon in the cog-wheel train.
We got our return tickets, which weren't cheap and since we had a few hours before our allotted time we checked out Dolbadarn Castle (pronounced car-sil ;-)  ) which is small ruined castle.

Fabulous Views

We got on our train and trundled to the summit. The views were stunning and you could see for miles. Good job we never went yesterday because I think we would have got fed up of looking through mist.

Us, 1084 metres up

When we got there we where given 30 minutes to have a look round and take photos. There is a warm restaurant and a few stalls but we went straight to the place which marks the summit. It was a bit crowded, windy and bitterly cold but you really couldn't complain about the views.

Caernarfon Castle

Snowdon is around here somewhere

Bloody hell did it rain last night. It sounded like golf balls bouncing on the roof and not like the usual soothing rain sound.
We woke up late again, about 10am. There was light rain and low cloud so we decided to go to Caernarfon Castle travelling via Llanberis where the train to Mount Snowdon is located to just check it out. The scenery to Llanberis was amazing with dry stone wall bordered narrow roads, streams and mountains.
We arrived at Caernarfon Castle and had lunch in the car park (£4) at the foot of the castle and then we went in. With our English Heritage membership we got in for half price (£5.24 for the both of us). The castle is partially a ruin with a theatre in one tower, a museum for the Royal Welch Fusiliers and an exhibition to the Prince of Wales in another tower.

Caernarfon Castle

 

Where's Wally?

In Wales there were many Princes and Llewlyn made himself leader of them all. In the 1200's when the King of England Edward I beat Prince Llewlyn and his armies Edward I built a ring of castles around the Snowdonian mountain range but  Caernarfon was going to be special. This was the castle he was going to live in. Edward was born a son (later crowned King Edward II) who became the first Prince of Wales as we of them today. The latest is, of course, Prince Charles.

The Story of Beddgelert

Statue of Gelert the faithful dog

Today we went for a short bike ride into Beddgelert (pronounced Beth-gelert  'g' as in girl) . The journey was about a mile long all down hill. We followed a route from the village sign posted with "Gelerts Grave". Not knowing who Gelert was we decided to follow it. It turns out that Gelert was a large and very faithful dog of Prince Llewlyn who lived here when people lived in castles and used swords (in the 1200s). One day the Prince went hunting but Gelert wasn't to be found so he went on his own. Arriving back Gelert sprung from nowhere startling the Prince. He ran to the room where his baby son and heir slept and found lots of blood but no son. Thinking that Gelert killed his son the Prince drew his sword and slay Gelert. As Gelert howled in pain the son cried out in response. The Prince found his son next to a large wolf that Gelert had killed while protecting him. Afterwards he named his dog Beddgelert and it was said that the Prince never smiled again.

The Welsh Highland Heritage Railway runs through the campsite and we watched a couple of trains (that makes it sound like it's really busy, it's not at all) and then had a short cycle around the forest.

So far, no otters seen yet.

Snowdonia: All I can say is, wow!

One of the many mountains

Of all the days to have a lie-in. The day we were travelling to Snowdonia. We woke up at 10ish. I've not done that in ages. Herman does that to you you know? The bed is so comfortable and it's so dark and cosy that you just keep sleeping. Anyway, the journey from the Peak District to Snowdonia was going to be 2.5 hours but instead we took a slight detour for a more scenic route down the A5 to Betws-Y-Coed. We are glad we did because the scenery is just amazing. Like the Peak District, Snowdonia is beautiful and lush green (that'll be the rain I guess) but with mountains instead of hills and lakes, rivers, streams and waterfalls are everywhere.

Herman in Beddgelert

We arrived at the campsite and pitched under the trees right beside the river with the hope of spotting an otter. The lady in reception was talking about them as if they are a permanent feature like the squirrels and rabbits around the site. So, fingers crossed that we spot one and get it on video.

There is no phone signal at the site let alone WIFI or 3G so no blog updates for a few days and I won't be doing any fishing either. The fish in the river is trout and it's their migration period so fishing is out of season at the moment.

I've brought my telescope and it's very dark outside at the moment but the trees may be a problem so I may venture out in a bit.

Wet and Windy at Lyme Park

The unpleasant weather continues. The strong cold wind brings with it rain and sunny intervals. It's definitely not a day for long walks on top of Mam Tor and along the Edale Valley.  Instead, we decide to visit Lyme Park which is a country house surrounded by a 17 acre garden with roaming deer.

Lyme Park was used as the backdrop in the BBC's Pride and Prejudice. You can go inside but you can't take photos so we've only got external shots. There are many rooms each with its own history, portraits and antiques from 1600's to 1800's. There was an interesting exhibition on about Mary, Queen of Scots who was supposed to have been imprisoned there for a few months.  Lyme Park was also supposed to be the place where plans where made to get rid of the monarchy.

Tomorrow we are heading for Snowdonia in Wales and there is a chance of snow!

Our next campsite, Beddgelert, has no WIFI so I will update when I can.

Apparently, there is a river running through the campsite and there is a possibility in seeing trout and otters. So, the fishing rod and binoculars are coming out for sure.

The Devil's Arse

On the map there are quite a few attractions around Castleton. We visited there a few years ago one Christmas. At the time we went for a walk following our guide book. This time though we decided to check out the caves and if we had time, walk up Mam Tor which is an impressive large hill.

We started by visiting Peveril Castle which was built just after the Battle of Hastings in 1066. It is now a ruin but you can enter the keep.

By the time we left it was lunch and we decided to grab a sandwich at a nearby deli/cafe. They had a cabinet full of cakes and starring at me was a huge custard slice with icing. The custard was over an inch thick! I had to have it and it was delicious.  And Zoe thought so too.

We ventured over to Speedwell Cavern and went inside. We had to put on hard hats and descend 106 steps down to a small boat. Eight of us got in the boat and the guide led the boat down a very narrow and low 400 metre man-made tunnel. The tunnel was mined 200 years ago as lead mine.

Next we went on to the Devil's Arse or rather Peaks Cavern which is a natural cavern and caves where rope makers lived there their entire lives making, erm, rope. I volunteered to help make some rope, which seemed very simple and I got to take the rope home.
The Devil's Arse got it's name because the Victorian's believed that caves lead down to Hell and there's a small area which when it gets flooded as the water drains away air gets trapped and for about 10 minutes you can hear the devil farting! It got renamed to the Peaks Cavern because Queen Victoria paid it a visit once and there was no way the Queen would be seen in the Devil's Arse.
We liked this tour. The cavern and caves didn't have the best structures and there weren't any stalactites but the guide was brilliant and very informative and some of her stories were amazing.

On the way back we went through Winnats Pass which is a very beautiful rocky gully. The road was a bit steep and I had to rev the nuts out of Herman in 1st gear to make it up.

By the time we got back to the campsite the wind and rain had picked up and our neighbour's awning had been completely destroyed. There were poles bent and scattered everywhere and the canvas was torn and flapping wildly in the wind.

Poole's Cavern and Buxton

Some stalagmites

Completely different day today with regards to weather; misty, cloudy and some rain. The previous night we found it got really cold while sleeping so we decided to have the heating on last night but at some point in the early morning I had to turned it off because it got too warm to sleep. Outside, Herman must of been glowing white hot.

Because of the pending wet weather we decided to take a short walk to the Poole's Cavern. It had it's fair share of stalactites and a stalagmites and whole load of history which involved the Victorians being their usual brutish selves by blowing up natural columns and generally damaging the place.

Zoe enjoying an ale or three

Afterwards we decided to walk in to Buxton and get a bite to eat at a pub but along the way we saw signs for the Peak District Annual Festive with included a beer festival. We arrived there and also discovered a tent selling hog roast baps. Result. After a few real ales and a pig buttie we headed back to the campsite and Herman in glorious sunshine. The weather folks had got it wrong again. We chose to walk back a different way since the signs posts were heading our way but they took us a very long way round and the small map of the area was pretty useless too.

Arrival in the Peak District in Herman

Misty Morning in Bicester

Having arrived Friday night at Brook Farm campsite (see long grassy field) near Bicester in the dark with a bright full moon and starry sky we awoke early to beautiful misty morning with clear blue sky and nobody around.

What's that noise?!

To get to the farm we had to cross a railway line and in the morning we decided to stop for a photograph!




Saturday morning the drive to the Peak District was uneventful and we arrived at the Grin Low Campsite near Buxton in time for lunch. Being October lunch was a fry up on the BBQ including sausage and fried egg.

Zoe at Soloman's Temple

A BBQ fry up with Herman in Grin Low

Grin Low is beautiful campsite set against a rocky cliff surrounded by rolling countryside. Nearby is Solomans Temple which is a small viewpoint tower built in 1896. It was on this walk where I had realised that I had forgotten all of our maps and walking guides for the Peak District and Wales. Which, of course, is what we've planned to do. Never mind the AA road atlas will have to do.