We are back in Scotland but first our last couple of weeks in England.

While at Chirk on the Wales England border we hopped on the train to Shrewsbury to meet some friends for lunch. Was great to catch up with them again and we both said how the years are flying by. After the lunch me and Nikki caught the train back to base.

One last day out before leaving Chirk was to go to Ellesmere, a loverly small town which we both like. The mere is nice and there is a canal there and a loverly cafe/ restaurant called the Boathouse so we had to go in there for lunch after a walk down the canal path and through the woods.

On the way back from Ellesmere there’s a house where they have had a tree taken down and rarther than just leave the tree stump there they have carved some owls into it which look fantastic.

Llandegla bike park is where I had my accident on August bank holiday 2023 so as it was only just down the road I just had to go back down there. It was great to be back there. I must admit and a bit scary approaching the part where I had my accident but I survived.

We drove out of Chirk and headed for the Lake District and a place near Grange over sands. Again a campsite we used last year as a stopover on our way to Scotland. We were only there for a couple of days and the sun was shining and it was warm enough to sit outside chilling which we are good at. The following morning the sunrise was spectacular at 6.45am.

So then it was time to head further north and into Scotland. A dry day with sunny spells and four and a half hours later we arrived at Killin our home for six months.

Our site had been locked up since we left last year and it’s a very wooded site so you can imagine what a mess it was in after a Scottish winter with the storms we had in the U.K. last winter. Apart from all the leaves, twigs, branches that were all over the place there were also some big trees that had come down. The site looked like a tornado had gone through it.

We could see we had a lot of work to do to get the site ready for opening in ten days. The tree surgeons were on site for threes days also. Our main aim was to clear all the roads and pitches so when we were open peaple could get in and around the site. The grass areas can wait and be ongoing clearing up. We stayed at another site a mile down the road for a couple of days because we couldn’t get into our compound until we had cleared it.

While at the other site we thought it would be rude not to re visit the Killin hotel for a drink as we could just walk to it. So that’s what we did. Was nice to be back in there and even nicer when the lady manager remembers you with a big smile and says nice to see you again.

After a couple of days we could get the camper into the compound and admire our loverly view and the peace and quiet of the site. The deer were on the site in the mornings between 6am and 7 am, I had put my bird feeders up so the birds were returning. The red squirrel hopefully will be back when he knows there is food for him.

My frogs were pleased to see me and the daffodils were out. There is at least six different types of daffodils on site which is nice.

The weather has been great to us until yesterday when it rained so I hope that was not our summer gone. It’s been cold in the mornings with frosts but turned out loverly. We had a dusting of snow on the mountains we can see from the site which always looks nice.

We finished early on one of the days because we were so knackered after having six months off and doing so much physical work all of a sudden and because the sun was out and it seemed like a good idea to sit in the garden looking at the mountains while having a beer and wine. I was also given an old BBQ which will live outside but it needs cleaning up and a bit of work. It wasn’t ready for the that day but I have got it ready now and the weather is looking good for our day off so the plan is to have a bbq then.

So that’s us up to speed. The site is now open and we welcomed out first guests on Friday and were looking forward to a good season with lots of sunshine and getting out and about exploring the area again and of course keeping you updated if you follow this blog which I hope you enjoy.

Some facts of our winter trip.

I drove the camper 1654 miles from leaving here last year to getting back here.

I used £446 worth of fuel.

Nikki done more miles in the car because she gets lost and goes around roundabouts twice. The car also gets used a lot more but I forgot to record the miles before we left.

Nikki even washed the car once.

Take care and don’t forget to check in again soon.