Half Term Fun :: Easter 2026

Hi there everyone 😀

We had an ‘unexpected’, but very welcome, Bobby day last week … before they all headed off for their Easter break.

We didn’t have anything too exciting in the cards but it ended up being a lovely day out.

We started off with word association games on our drive to Melbourne in Derbyshire …

… where a Treasure Trail was on the cards. We get them from this company and they are a really good and inexpensive way to have a day out, whilst exploring the nooks and crannies of towns and villages you may not normally think of visiting.

Melbourne is a lovely little village with plenty going on. We started off in the Main Street and worked our way around the village, collecting clues along the way.

We had a bit of a breather by the lake, just watching the geese and ducks …

… before finding some games, which also kept us occupied for a while …

Having finished the trail it was time for refreshment and we found a lovely cafe with some nice outdoor seating that fit the bill perfectly …

Fully refreshed we decided to head to Staunton Harold for a bit of a wander on our way home … where den building was a big hit … for Martin and Bobby anyway. I was there in a purely supervisory capacity …

It was then time to drop Bobby off and head for home … until the next time 😀

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A Festive Break near York #1 :: Treasure Trailing around Thirsk

Hi there everyone 😀

We settled in very nicely to Anthology Cottage, just outside the visit of Husthwaite, and knew we were going to be very comfortable spending our week there. It was just an absolute delight …

It was in a beautiful spot with views across the open countryside to the Kilburn White Horse … too far away for decent photos though.

We spent our first day fairly local, with a Treasure Trail around Thirsk … somewhere Martin and I somehow hadn’t visited before.

The trail took us well off the beaten track, spotting bits and pieces that would normally be easily missed …

As well as some more well known and popular spots …

We followed a very old and wiggly wall along the river …

… ending up back in the centre of town, which was fair bustling …

We finished our visit with a welcome pitstop in one of the many welcoming cafes before heading back to Anthology Cottage for some good food and an evening of chilling out 😀

We really do love a Treasure Trail. It’s a pretty cheap activity, which shows you all the nooks and crannies of a town or village and lots of things that you probably wouldn’t normally notice. There are loads available … just search on https://www.treasuretrails.co.uk/

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I do still have lots to tell you about our pre-Christmas Historic Halls visits and our week in York but I think they will have to wait now till after Christmas … as we are now in full list-making mode 😂😂😂 

In case I don’t post again before the New Year I will take this opportunity to thank you all for following and reading this year and to wish you all the merriest of Christmases and the happiest of New Years. See you in 2026 🥳

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Exploring :: A Llyn Treasure Trail

Bore da Pawb 😀

Day two of David, Alison and Bobby’s visit was forecast for rain again but by the time we were all up, breakfasted and ready to head out it was just very grey so we decided to have a day out and about doing a Treasure Trail … which would offer regular opportunities to take cover should the need arise …

We started off in Criccieth where we parked up along the front and this is just before the little man got caught unawares … which was very funny …

Our trail took us up the hill and past the latest bit of yarn bombing … I think it’s about the fourth different post box topper we’ve seen on this post box … we always go and have a look at it every time we visit Criccieth …

Our walk then took us up past Cadwalladers and the castle to the viewpoint …

We then retraced our steps and headed for the High Street, stopping to take in more Eisteddfod decorations along the way …

After a quick mooch along the High Street our route took us back down to the sea front and we couldn’t resist a quick visit to Cadwalladers before heading off to the next stage of our trail …

Our next stop was Llanystumdwy, which is the small village where David Lloyd George, the former Prime Minister, lived until he was 16. 

We parked up in front of the church and made our way across the river where there was more bunting being strung …

Our trail took us to the grave of Lloyd George …

… and then round to the museum …

It was then back to the car and off to Pwllheli for our next stop … where we had a quick pit stop at the arcade before heading down towards the beach …

The last stop on our trail was Llanbedrog and The gallery, where we were just in time for a quick look round before picking up our final clues …

We’d had a really full day out and managed to find all of the clues we needed to solve the case … and we hadn’t got wet … so it was time to head back to base for an evening of food and an escape room 😀

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