Last of the Summer Prosecco

It was late in the season, but hardcore camping buddies Sam & JC agreed to one last weekend of New Forest fun before camping was off for the winter. They arrived slightly earlier than us and reserved a space in the nearer field. We parked up, donned our waterproofs and headed to Chequers where we’d booked a table. Before we knew it, we had devoured much food and wine! When we got back to Waky, a few late night tipples were consumed and we danced to some new Spotify tunes whilst sipping on whiskey.

The next day started with a statutory yummy breakfast and then we jumped on the bikes for a glorious ride in the sunshine. We chose a route using the new forest maps as a guide which initially took us through Sway (where I found a mushroom), then through some woods where there were some ponies, then along a track where a very friendly pony took a liking to JC’s saddle, and then out to a clearing near the road where there were even more ponies. But this last group of ponies had a very prominent head of the herd who warned us to back off on our approach, so I stood up to it and whooshed it away, protecting my own herd!

The ride was amazing and we saw deer, a hawk, found some beautiful paths including an old railway where we encouraged each other to cycle down the really steep bit. As the weather started to turn we picked up the pace and made it to The Rising Sun pub for scampi and to wait for the rain to pass.

We cycled back in the dark, stopping on route for some Prosecco. When back at camp we made baked potatoes on the fire, with beans and danced to amongst others, ‘working in a coal mine’, until bedtime.

































The next day, we decided to do another ride on the bikes, but this time we started from Burley. After initially sheltering under a tree from the rain we set out on a cycle loop taking us past great houses framed by rainbows, more gorgeous tracks, fjords, sandy paths and river ways. It was another stunning loop and we couldn’t believe how beautiful it was. We rewarded ourselves with a scrummy lunch at The Queens Head in Burley – famed for its veggie & vegan options. It was even the popular choice of a man and his parrot who are regular guests there apparently. Before heading back there was time for one last scavenge in the woods – and you wouldn’t believe what I found?!

Poole Reccy

We decided it would be a good idea to check out our wedding venue – The Partyfield. We thought it would be an even better idea to take Waky and make a weekend of it! The Partyfield site was epic – better than we ever could have imagined and to add an even more personal touch, it was where we found the first mushroom of the season!





After casing out the venue, we trundled into Poole where we had a wander around, looked at The Guildhall and then found a brewery to sample some farty larger – that luckily wasn’t that farty and has since became the chosen premises for the post wedding meal.

After this we headed towards Corfe Castle to find a campsite and explore the area. The campsite was beautiful – it was more ‘commune’ than ‘campsite’, with vegetable patches and a make-shift restaurant that cooked up really fresh tasty smelling food like mussels. We were immediately taken with the place and decided this was where we should spend a few days for our honeymoon. However, before settling down for the evening, we took a trip to the local nursery/farm shop to pick up supplies and then into Corfe Castle town for any extra bits. Although when we got back to the campsite we realised we didn’t have any foil – a BBQ essential, but I did my best to swap the newly found mushroom and a beer for some foil. I successfully returned to camp with all 3 products and had managed to make some friends along the way who had a bright orange camper with a black and white checked floor who apparently had clocked Waky and was in love with him already quoting him ‘Turquise’ – Brazilian for Turquoise.

Once we had all we needed, we cracked open the prosecco and prepped the food. The site was so peaceful with distant views across the woodland as the sun set.







In the morning we made a wedding list and chatted out a few ideas before heading off to explore. We were blessed with hot sunny weather so there was little stopping us from going to the beach; first stopping for an ice cream though of course in a perfect spot with views across Poole.

On the way home we paid a little visit to The New Forest where we searched hard for even more mushrooms. Although lucking out on this front, we found some beautiful forest paths to walk down and some really friendly ponies. However, as the day was growing late, any further New Forest fun would have to wait until next month!

All the way to... Petersfield!

After having such an amazing time at Boomtown, we couldn’t wait to all go camping together again. Plus if we kept it local we could also include V & Stefan who were around at the weekend, Hols & Mark & Dylan, and even Ben & Caroline could drop by. We found a campsite in Petersfield and recreated the bus / gazebo combo for the night. It was a bit windy which made lighting the fire a bit tricky, but we managed to cook up some beans and other bits and listen to Spotify and gibber the night away altogether.

The morning started with an organised round of super breakfast. Chipped potatoes were cooked up, courtesy of the Seeleys and beans and sloppy eggs accompanied these – standard!

Then the fun commenced as the kite was launched and the kids found The Hornet who couldn’t wait to be the centre of attention. A dreary forecast and some other commitments kept us to a single night but the fun didn’t stop there as the buses raced back to Milford amidst a whole host of slick but illegal manoeuvres. And of course, Waky won!

Boomtown 2016

Boomtown was Waky’s first taste of festival life and how he seemed to love it. He kept us warm, our beer cold and provided a feeling of comfort that neither of us had ever experienced at a festival! We convoyed from Milford, where we picked up Sunny & The Seeleys before heading down to Winchester. Our base was legendary, manoeuvring the 2 campers in such a way to create the biggest area we could legitimately get away with. Tents soon followed as the rest of the herd turned up.

The festival was amazing and most of the time the sun was out. In fact, it got so hot that some cars in the other car park caught alight, raising concerns about the safety of Pumi, but he was fine tucked up at the back of the car park far away from the danger.

Never again can we go to a festival without Waky. We love his creature comforts and he’d probably end up getting fomo himself.