Sunday Adventures

Working in this trade it is sometimes a struggle to make time to enjoy Cornwall during the summer, but this year we have been having adventures every other Sunday.  Judith (my mother-in-law) has been having adventure days with us as Richard, my husband works so the girls and I go on a magical mystery tour with her.  Without fail they involve very small roads and an element of reversing, a cake stop and somewhere to enjoy lunch.  Yesterday we had our latest day out - off we went with the car loaded with a picnic, pushchair and baby carrier, with me hoping I would not have to do too much 'skinny road driving' or even worse too much reversing.

As it happened we stuck to good roads yesterday and took the main road out of St Austell towards Lostweithel - once through the lovely village famed for it's antiques we turned off towards Bodmin - here it was revealed to the car of excited travellers that we were going on a Bodmin Moor Adevnture.  First stop was Golitha Falls.  Just follow the brown signs to a free car park and head into the woods following the river.  With a two year old in tow the first thing that sprung to mind was the Gruffalo Woods.  The stunning wooded valley is a magical mystical place with the tree canopy providing shelter from the odd spot of rain. The path is an adventure itself littered with tree roots for little people to explore - thankfully we took the four month old in the baby carrier as it was not pushchair friendly.  As the river crawls through the woods the anticipation to the falls grows.  The river falls a spectacular 90 metres in altitude and provides a peaceful setting to enjoy a Cornish valley at it's best.  I am very much looking forward to an autumn walk through the trees taking a flask of soup with us in a few weeks time as I am pretty certain it will be spectacular.

Back in the car we then drive a short distance to Siblyback Lake Country Park where we unpack the picnic and enjoy the view over the huge lake.  I forgot the picnic blanket so we are rather squashed on a series of baby blankets!  A great location for a picnic with toilets, play areas, cafe and free parking.  Not a great location to allow a two year old to play with a ball though - I am sure a few people laughed watching me run after it as we get to the top of the hill and she lets it go as it hurtles towards the water (the ball not the child!).  We got to enjoy gig racing on the lake and watch Granny teach Jessica how to roll down a hill - thankfully we all made it back to the car in one piece.

Next stop was a ride out on Bodmin Moor to the Cheese Ring in Minions.  Park in the free car park and wander over the Moor to the Cheese Ring Stones.  Jessica loved this, the soft ground with hills to climb and stones to explore proved a great natural play ground - you could spend hours up here just in one location or go for a circular walk (signposted).  Within the village there is a pub and cafe for food, or on the Moor with views across to Devon you could enjoy a picnic.

Final stop on our tour was Tregongeeves, Judith's home, for a well earned coffee and homemade biscuits.    Tregongeeves Farm Cottages are situated just a short drive from Little Winnick Touring Park and open throughout the year, so why not treat yourself, leave the tent or caravan at home and enjoy a lovely break - there are some great short break offers available at the moment.

Regatta Season

Another busy August week has whizzed by here at Little Winnick.  Saturday's are what are known as 'change over days' when we have a good number of check ins and outs - today we have had almost 40 arrivals and many departures - as a result we are yet again full tonight which is always a joy.  Our attentions are now beginning to turn to September - don't forget we will be offering 7 nights for the price of 5 again - that means you could stay for 7 nights from as little £40.00.

It is regatta season here in Cornwall at the moment.  This week sees the fantastic Fowey Regatta - the Red Arrows  will be flying over on Thursday - their display is always awesome.

Next Saturday is Portscatho Regatta - a traditional regatta with an exciting highly visible course. Followed by the Newlyn Fish Festival on the 25th August - the festival celebrates all things fishy and is a real incite into the Cornish fishing trade.

Then the icing on the cake is the Falmouth to Royal Greenwich Tall Ship Regatta.  I am really excited about this as 47 tall ships from around the world - including 12 square rigged tall ships will be in Falmouth for the week culminating in a Parade of Sail on 31st August 11am -2pm.  With a small person obsessed with pirates we will certainly be taking a tour around the boats!

Summer season in full swing

The summer season is in full swing here at Little Winnick Touring Park with the main park full and the Rally Field hosting Bedfordshire Caravan and Camping Club - and I have to say times like this make all out hard work worthwhile with a park full of lovely caravan and campers.  The mood is lifted by the utterly glorious weather we are enjoying for the whole of the 2014 summer.  Yes we have had the odd blip here and there but on the whole it is has be sun, sun and more sun.

If you are visiting at the moment there is so much on for the whole family.  The Eden Project currently is home to dinosaurs - the girls and I will be going tomorrow to check this out, but I have heard the large life like puppets are a bit scary and will keep the children entertained for hours.  A short drive away The Lost Gardens of Heligans are celebrating The Lost Summer with old fashioned activities to keep young and old amused for hours.

Slightly further afield the Maritime Museum has a jammed packed calander of events to keep children entertained - we shall be heading over there for pirates week and will be taking a tour of the Tall Ships when they return to Falmouth later in the month.

If you are looking for some culture then there is lots of theatre to choose from both indoors and out.  The Minnack Theatre is a bit of a drive but worth every minute with stunning cliff top views to admire whilst watching some great theatre.  Locally firstly the Miracle Theatre visit The Tempest and then the Asylum Theatre Company take up residence at The Lost Gardens of Heligan with A Dead Dog in a Suitcase and other Love Songs.

Food is fast becoming one of the many jewels in Cornwall's crown.  Most recently the well known local Sam's Restaurant has opened Sam's in the Bay at Carlyon Bay.  The pop up restaurant is on the stunning beach which is awaiting development so why not enjoy it in it's most natural state - we have heard the cocktails are pretty special.

As for us, we are all keeping busy.  August is always a very very busy month ensuring we have a park to be proud of and that all our guests have an enjoyable stay.  We tend to spend our day off in our garden trying to get on top of the weeds!  This week we had the treat of celebrating our eldest daughter's second birthday - all went well until she let go of her helium balloon outside!  Most Saturday's I try and go on an adventure with the girls as it is a little bit quieter and Daddy is working, tomorrow is The Eden Project, last week we enjoyed the Artisan Market in the Market House in St Austell - a truly beautiful building, a little bit like a time capsule.  The week before we headed to the Lizard and explored the delights of the Seal Sanctuary - well worth a visit and the Lizard is a magical place.