A quick kit list for newbie Campers.

This list is specifically for a couple, who are thinking of throwing a few things in the car and heading off on a mini adventure, It is inspired by an overnight camp I did in Corgreggan Mill, near Dunfanaghy. The nicest, craziest, most ill prepared couple came along and camped nearby me and I nearly wet myself when they tried to get a double airbed into a tiny, single skinned pop up tent. They were like an upturned turtle and the pair of them were in fits of hysterical giggles. We parted friends and it is in tribute to them that I write this post. 

Tent

Editors Choice Camping Magazine Awards 2014 chose this tent for good reason. It costs a shade under £120.

The Quechua 2 Seconds XL is double skinned, so it will keep you nice and snug in an inner pod which is breathable, will wick away all the condensation from your breath and will prevent your bedding from coming into contact with the waterproof outer tent. The tent is a pop up, so is easy to put up and although there's a knack, just as easy to put away. 

It's small enough you can probably dry it out in your living room when you get home. It's big enough to let you sit up in comfort, and gives you the space to get changed. It's super strong, even a strong wind will only flatten it but it will not break it. This particular one even has a built in light. 

It's a three berth tent which makes it better for two people because tent manufacturers are always a bit on the mean size when it comes to calculating how much room a person needs, and it has a porch for your smelly shoes, your clothes bag or for storing that little backpackers stove you've picked up to make a cuppa with. 

QUECHUA 2 SECONDS XL III ILLUMIN FRESH POP UP TENT - 3 MAN, WHITE/GREEN

Link to website

Argos Ready Bed Double

This is a budget solution (about £40 but often on sale) to a double sleeping arrangement in a tent. It is not the best airbed on the market, but then even the most expensive ones are prone to leakage, as anything inflatable is. I'm a fan of Ready Beds because they are one of the few sleeping solutions that have a sleeping bag built in to the design. It is essentially a double sleeping bag with an airbed slipped in to a big pocket on the underside. That means that when you turn around, the bedding stays put, and I find this far more comfortable than struggling with individual sleeping bags that twist around you when you turn. The bed is sealed all around which makes it a better option than taking bedding from home as you will have gaps around the sides which will let warm air out, and cold air in. 

The cons of this bed are that the bedding is quite flimsy. This can be offset by taking a big throw or fleecy blanket from home. And you'll be together, so you can keep each other warm. 

The dimensions of the bed are 180cm by 132cm. Considering the above tent has a sleeping area of 210cm by 210cm there's plenty of space left over. 

Ready Bed Double from Argos currently £28

Extra Insulation

As airbeds are essentially a big bag of cold air, if you have it adjacent to cold ground then the result will be that you will possibly get quite chilly. Counteract this by using a layer of insulation underneath the airbed. This can be something like cardboard from a local shop, or a foil backed picnic blanket. A few pounds spent on foam camping mats, or even yoga mats will help enormously.

These Yellowstone mats from Amazon are foil backed which will help reflect your body heat back at you. They are about £6 each and you will need two for putting under a double airbed.

A free alternative, other than the aforementioned cardboard, is if you are installing some laminate flooring at home keep a bit of the insulating layer that you put below the laminate for under your airbed. If you really have nothing else, a couple of newspapers spread out will be better than nothing.

Seating

A very basic seating area can be achieved with a picnic blanket. I think that if you are just trying this camping lark out and you are young and reasonably fit, you can't go far wrong with a picnic blanket as your seating solution for your first camping adventure at least. Then, if you really like camping you can start to look for camping chairs. 

These picnic blankets, from Home Bargains are £4.49 each.

I haven't touched on cooking or basic tea making facilities, because in my eyes you start to get in to a whole lot of extra equipment. However I would recommend taking snacks, drinks and a picnic and store food in an airtight container to minimize attracting wild life into your tent. You will probably find you eat out in the evenings at least. Just go, enjoy and if the weather turns bad shove it all in the car and go home. There's always next weekend! 

Maddybenny Campsite, Portrush, NI

I got an early start for a weekends trip to Maddybenny, due to an understanding boss who could see I was itching to get away (and not much work on), so I was off like a shot!

I arrived at 2pm and chose a nice spot amongst these trees. I found level places to pitch my tents, yes I had more than one tent on this occasion. Actually I had three. I'll explain later. 

This weekend away was not a solo trip, it was arranged some time ago and there were a few people scheduled to attend this 'meet' with their families in various caravans and tents. Then as is often the case, life gets in the way and people bow out for legitimate reasons I'll not go into here - and so it was that there were three lots of us going, which is actually quite a nice number. The first night it was only two lots, with a third joining us for an overnighter on the Saturday. This family borrowed a tent from me, which I put up before their arrival as they were on site quite late. So one tent for me and one tent for them, that's two tents. 

This is the third tent. I brought a Decathlon Base Seconds pop up and this was our shared kitchen for the weekend. In hindsight I still brought too much. I should have just brought a stove, a kettle and a bunch of mugs because we literally lived on coffee. And takeaways. The pre-made and frozen Irish Stew I brought ended up in the bin. The most complicated thing I made was porridge for breakfast. 

For myself I brought the Lichfield Challenger 5, dates from the eighties and is a tent I used from being a teenager to now, and it's sort of on it's way out. The flysheet is getting very tired and delaminated and every time I use it I think it'll be the last time. I am very fond of this tent, lots of great memories were had in and around it and this weekend is another one to add to the list. For the borrowing tent I brought my Vango Icarus 500. No photo of it though. This was my tent....

Night one was incredibly cold. This is actually the latest in the season I've ever camped but it has been an exceptionally mild September. The stars were out on the first night and that means a big temperature drop. I'd remembered to bring my hot water bottle and plenty of blankets, but at 3.30am I woke up colder than I could ever have imagined being and struggled out of my tent into the other tent to stick the kettle on. Hot water bottle replenished I was warm but at approximately 4am the site cockerels started. Which brings me on smoothly to the amazing birdlife on Maddybenny site. There are lots of these things just wandering around, begging to be made in to a roast dinner. Only joking of course. 

But not joking was the  noise they made. This site is fantastic and the birds are an integral and lovely part of it. Earplugs are required for decent sleep though, not a big deal but the ducks go quack and the peacocks make a funny hoot, and the chickens cluck and the guineafowl make a horrible irritating noise. And worse, the cockerels go Cock - a - doodle - doooo in, it seems, two phases. Phase One is at 4am. Then Phase Two kicks in around an hour later. 

The Guinea Fowl look like clowns in full makeup, with their big football bodies and their too tiny heads. Their bodies are about the same size as a beach ball, we thought they were Turkeys but we're townies, we are useless at this sort of thing. The Peacocks are a bit full of themselves, they'd nearly pull the food right out of your hand they are so cheeky! The Ducks and Chickens are just happy around your feet as long as there's bread on the go and then Peacocks bully all the other birds. Fun Fact - a group of Peacocks is called a 'Party'. A group of female Peahens is called a 'Harem'. 

The site is well tended and the toilet and shower facilities are good, and clean. All the toilets are unisex and separate to each other, so no need for male and female facilities. Two out of the three showers are large disabled access wet rooms with a loo in the opposite corner to the shower. 

The site has an outlook over fields with horses and a sliver of sea in the distance. It's one and a half miles in to Portrush and this site is on a hill overlooking Portrush. The campsite is part of a large working Riding School with sixty horses. Thirty of those are owned by other individuals and stabled there, and the other thirty are used for the Riding School for lessons. So as a working 'Farm' you have to be flexible about there being activity, all the birds wandering about, farm cats and a couple of dogs too. 

Maddybenny also has Holiday cottages on the Farm and there is a brilliant games room with a table tennis table and a football table for the use of the Campsite and the Holiday Cottages. 

I didn't really go looking for the play area, but I believe there is one and there are also landscaped gardens to explore too. 

I met some of the other campers using the site, and Night Two of our stay was spent with them and a small campfire, I'd brought a guitar and then it emerged that one of the guys was a bit of a virtuoso guitar player! It was just really nice sitting around that little fire, a bit of chit-chat, a few giggles and somebody who could play a guitar properly to entertain us. Great memories to carry with me and hopefully for everyone else as well. 

Yes I'd recommend Maddybenny, and yes I'll be back. 

Share Centre Co Fermanagh, Northern Ireland

Weather - fair but overcast. Mood - excited to see Elan my son who was living at the Share Centre and working as a volunteer for a whole month. The Dog - also excited to see Elan but then she's excited to see anyone especially one of her own Hoomans. Tent used - Vango Icarus, 2010 model. No extension. 

The Share Centre is one of those love it but hate it places. The ethos and the atmostphere of the centre is brilliant, creative, inclusive and welcoming. Here's the thing. The Campsite isn't great. It's ok, in as far as you have a bit of grass and access to Electric Hook Ups and to a loo and shower. 

Now this next bit contains a bit of a rant about how things are at the campsite and what I think should be done about them. You are welcome to skip this bit if you want and it is all in italics so you can easily do so. 

The first big issue is that there is no access with a car. This lot (see pic) took me an hour to carry back and forth to the chosen area. I tried to go as far in to the campsite as I had the energy to do in order to get a bit of privacy as the areas around the entrance to the campsite are often densely used and if you pitch up there you could end up with someone elses guy ropes right past your front door. 

Issue two. The showers for the ladies are a row of shower heads along a wall with no dividing curtains. It's a bit like being at school only in my school at least we still had curtains. There is a wall to hide your modesty from an open door but you shower in view of other people who are also showering. There's no lock on the door which is accessed through the ladies. I suppose a lock would mean you have about 8 shower heads all to yourself which could create a queue outside. Isn't it obvious that this is appalling? There's three things you can do here, insider tips if you will. First you can take a shower and just be really quick and hope nobody comes in (this causes a certain amount of stress) or you can take a shower in the disabled shower which is a separate room.Lastly (and my preferred option but you have to pay extra) is you can go for a swim at the pool which is a five minute dander away. 

Issue three (minor I suppose) is that there's no soap in the ladies. You go to the loo. You only have plain water to wash your hands with. You could bring your own soap, but I find I nip to the loo when I'm passing the amenity block and I won't always have a bottle of Carex in my jeans pocket. Even if I intentionally go to the loo, the natural assumption is that there will be soap there, either a dispenser or a bottle of handwash. In the whole weekend I was there, I forgot about there being no soap on every single occasion I was in the bathroom. In every campsite, in every shopping centre, in every public place in the land - there is soap. It's a convention. It shouldn't be a big thing, but it could have a serious impact if someone suffers from food poisoning because they've been barbecuing and preparing food. 

Under utilized - The dishwashing area. 

Now I've seen the glory of a really well appointed kitchen area at a campsite, which is the mainstay of many a campsite in this beautiful land, I think we should be making more of these dishwashing facilities. Unfortunately in the case of the Share Centre, it's distinctly scruffy. There's missing surface on the edge of the worktop, which begs a hygiene question. The sinks were clean enough and the place does get washed down, floors and surfaces. I tend to bring my own dishwashing container anyway. There's a bin, that's good. New (to me anyway) was a fridge, sitting up unnaturally high on a worktop. This is clearly a cast off fridge from somewhere else, and someone has thought 'I know, why don't we let the campers use it' which is fine and great. The fridge is pretty grotty though. It did have an icebox which was useful to put my ice packs in, and they didn't get stolen which is even better. I noticed as the weekend wore on that someone plugged in a mini fridge and kept a few beers in the main fridge. Then someone else was charging their phone up, and I realised that opposite the dishwashing sinks (2 of)  there is a couple of double sockets and actually there's enough room to put a stove and prepare food (if you've remembered your handwash) and store food (if you risk using the fridge) and you could store your items there too if you placed a bit of blind faith in the other campers. 

What a world away from Mannix Point in Kerry, The Apple in Tipperary, even Hillfoot in Dungiven, where there's a busy inviting kitchen that people walk through, rest a while in, chat in. Things don't go walkies so much when people develop a relationship with their fellow campers. When there's a place to sit, potter and prepare food. When everyone chips in and even, dare I say it, share a bit! 

Here's a campsite with so much potential. There has been no investment. The complaints I had about this place four years ago have not changed one tiny bit. The Share Centre is a charity and I understand it's a daily struggle to keep the doors open. I sympathize with that. I would be up for supporting the place. But people do not want to struggle when they go on their well earned break. They do not want to work really hard huffing and puffing carrying heavy camping equipment to a pitch. They do not want a frankly grotty amenity block. They want to wash their hands hygienically, have a shower in privacy, basic stuff here! 

My suggestion, and I don't expect to be listened to here (as I highlighted my concerns four years ago, and nothing has changed), is that a road needs to be installed through the centre of the campsite. There is a curve of land that is already in a hollow, prone to churning up mud, hence the reason why cars are not allowed on site. It starts at the car park and heads diagonally towards the rear of the site, towards the main road and the ropes activity area. It does not need to be a tarmac surface. Many campsites have a rough rubble road, what planners call a metallised surface. 

Is Planning the issue here? I don't think so, the site already would have Planning Permission to operate as a campsite. I don't know if there's any extra permission needed to install a roadway that would also improve drainage if pipes were installed too, may as well have those too if you're going to dig a hole in the ground to fill with rubble and stones! 

Righto, if you've skipped to this bit, this is the camping bit.

Below is my trusty Vango Icarus, I have had this for four years but it is getting on a bit. Still functional and no tears or pole breaks or leaks and although I fancy the new colour of green on the current ones, plus the redesigned and much bigger 'panoramic' windows on the same, I'll use this one until it is much more done than it is at the moment. I brought what I thought was fairly basic camping gear, whilst still being enough to be comfortable. I had a tea/coffee making station, a decent camping bed to sleep in and I brought the electric hook up cable in case I got cold so therefore I had a small fan heater. It proved to be unnecessary as I wasn't one bit cold. Doggins was accommodated in a 'pet pen' which is simply an alternative to a tether arrangement but I wish I'd just stuck to the tether as this is quite a heavy object to carry. She also had her own crate for night time use inside the tent. It made a handy coffee table too. 

So how did my weekend go? Well it was great to see my son, who is 17 and who I'd never been separated from for a whole two weeks before. We went in to the shops for some supplies, we went for a swim together on his day off on Saturday, and we shared a barbecue together, sitting up late with my son and his friend Damien til' all hours around the campfire. On the Sunday the tent got wet and so I had a wet pack up, which was sorted out later at home. Good weekend all in all.

Bed and Bedding is the make or break of a good camping trip. Here I used an Argos steel framed campbed. An old sleeping bag to use as a bit of padding. 5cm Decathlon 'Sleep In' bed which is a Self Inflating Mat and sleeping bag integrated. Pillows from home. I used the 'level' function on my phone to find the more level bit of the sleeping area to put my bed. I am very fussy in this regard! 

Six Mile Water Campsite, Antrim

Six Mile Water Campsite

I have been quiet this year thus far but I've now had two camping trips, only quick weekends so far but the weather has been kind to me both times. The first was at Hillfoot, where I camped alongside two other families and my nephew joined my camp. It was the first time I used the new tent I bought earlier this year. I got a Gelert Cabana 4 on sale at a price not to be refused as a very quick to pitch tent and so far it's been pretty good. It is a bit like a Tepee tent, it has a central pole but the tent is modified in that it has an inner compartment and has two poles near the front for extending the tent a bit regarding head height at the door. It is quite a funky fabric, grey and black swirly design but it does have one drawback - no windows. I haven't been bothered by this so far but I reckon a week of rain would have me going stir crazy in there - so it is a fair weather tent and really for solo camping (even though its supposed to be a four berth).

Bed set up is a Decathlon (Quechua) all in one Self Inflating Mat and sleeping bag, pillows from home and a spare green fluffy blanket just in case. I forgot to bring my camp bed, but I was more comfortable than I would have thought as this Self Inflating Mat is only about 3cm. The picnic mat is an oversized one from Lidl with a foil reflective back. 

Looking out, no windows! But there is a mesh doorway as well as the fabric one. 

Still getting great use out of my Coleman Mini Table

This was my first trip with Coco my Springer only, as a few weeks ago my other wee dog Toby was killed by a car when he got out through a hedge on to a road. Wee Toby is much missed, the whole family have been so upset. He was only two but he was a wee tinker and life is definately a bit quieter!

Lough Neagh

The campsite is close beside Lough Neagh. The campsite itself looks out onto a river which flows into the lake, and it is a nice outlook as the river is lined with boats being a natural harbour. The lake itself is a five minute dander due West from the campsite, just follow the river. In this picture you may just about see an aeroplane, which shows how close this area is to the International Airport. 

Funny quip - two little boys whizzed past me on bikes, one said to the other 'Is this called Lough Neagh' and the other little boy said 'No no...that is in Scotland!'. I think he was thinking of Lough Ness though. 

Stendhal Festival, Limavady

The great thing about the Decathlon Base Seconds 4.2 is that it folds into a circle which can be carried like a rucksack, making it ideal for a Festival situation. It is heavy, the circle is bulky too, but carrying camping gear in to a festival site is never an easy task no matter what and having a tent you can carry on your pack at least frees up both hands to carry other things. 

At Stendhal Festival only two in my family were going. Myself and eldest son aged 16. He's a big strapping lad of 6ft now and so he gets the job of carrying the tent on his back. I carry a large rucksack with all the soft things in it (clothes, blankets, sleeping bags etc). Then we have a trolley which carried our coolbox and everything else bungeed to the top. It was heavy going, festival fields are generally quite far from the car parking area, but it was doable! 

I've learnt a few little things about festivals now, although I am sure I have much more tweaking to do. I feel this was our best effort yet. I think I generally brought the right equipment. At previous festivals I've brought a whole kitchen outfit only to spend a lot of money on food from stalls anyway. This time I only brought tea/coffee making facilities, and I gave both of us a food budget of £50 each to do food and drinks for the whole weekend. A meal is averaging out about £6 - £8 with soft drinks being £1 for a can and alcoholic drinks (for me) being nearer the £4 mark. The £50 was about right. I still brought multipacks of soft drinks and crisps and also cereal bars for breakfast. There was one breakfast at another festival, when I had no milk left so went to the kiosk for coffee and something to eat. One coffee and a bun in a plastic wrapper was £5 and I had two of us to buy for. Ouch! £10 for a breakfast and still hungry! Never again, bring cereal bars and if you are even better organised, bring large home made flapjacks which will be far nicer. 

The festival had brilliant music with the highlight for me being 'The Plaintains', a local group made up of pupils from a Special Needs school. They did Status Quo's 'Rockin all over the World' and it was the most feel good band I think I've ever been to see. 

This Festival was very good value at £35 for a family. A far cry from the Sunflower Festival who put their ticket prices up this year and it would have been £140 for us both to go! 

That bloody Satnav, going to Woodlands campsite Tralee, and the review and trip report

For reasons unfathomable now we made our journey through the night. We left home at 2.40am and drove through Dublin to Limerick, then on to Tralee. The Sat Nav helped and hindered in equal measure. The Sat Nav was bought four years ago, and in Ireland they've been road building like mad in that period of time. So when part of our route early in our journey was closed with road works and then the diversion signs we were following suddenly disappeared, we found ourselves on back roads, in fog, in Caledon in Tyrone of all places. I set the Sat Nav at that point and for daft Sat Nav reasons we ended up in Newry. I had a map in the car but checking the date it's even older than the Sat Nav. Had I known we'd be going to Newry we'd have just pootled down the motorway. Ah well. 

(In hindsight - wonderful thing hindsight - I should have headed down the west coast, as everyone on my holidays told me that there's a new road that is motorway all the way from Sligo to Killarny)

The Sat Nav display showed us driving across empty fields the most of the way to Limerick too. I turned it off after the umpteenth time it recalculated our journey. We had taken a break outside Dublin, got roadside coffee and paid our E-toll for the ring road around Dublin. Then we took another break later in Adare, just past Limerick. We got a stretch of our legs but it was 7.30 and nowhere was open for breakfast. By this time nothing less than a Full Irish Breakfast would do. 

At Rathkeale we found a hotel just off the carriageway. I made enquiries. €10 a head for the works, including fruit salad, cereal, unlimited coffee and pure orange juice as well as our Full Irish. Just the ticket. 

When we were practically there, bearing in mind I'm not familiar with Tralee, the Sat Nav redeemed itself and brought us straight to our site which was wonderful considering it was now 9.20am and we'd been driving for hours. 

I know drivers, van and lorry drivers, who could do this journey with out batting an eyelid. I know people who have driven that kind of journey and longer and it is absolutely no problem to them. I am not one of those people. I am full of admiration for people who drive for a living! 

Now, newly arrived at Woodlands I approached reception. This is where I was glad of that coffee. The thing about Woodlands is you need your wits about you. I had phoned beforehand and got a price. That was not the same price that I saw being written down on a form by 'HER'. I shall call her 'HER' because I did not find her particularly warm or charismatic. 'HIM' is much easier to deal with, and at least you don't get ripped off (obviously the resident husband and wife team). The price she wrote down was €9 more per night than I'd been quoted by 'HIM' over the phone. Michael is his name I believe, he's grand, friendly enough. Anyway I called her on the sudden price increase. There was a little bit of blustering from 'HER' and I paid the price I'd been quoted previously for the four nights and I left feeling a bit cross. 

Ok we could put this down to a genuine mistake, although the reason she gave me at the time doesn't stack up. But then the kids reported to me over coming days that things got a little more expensive in the shop when it was her serving in the campsite shop. A packet of sweets jumped 40 cents for example. Fizzy drinks also jumped in price. If Michael was serving things were a little cheaper again. Maybe it's just me, but I don't like the feeling of 'what can we do them for' rather than sticking to a genuine price. Maybe he was was undercharging! I don't know. Still it leaves a bad taste in my mouth. 

The pitch we selected was lovely though. It was the start of our amazing heatwave, and we were pitched under two Ash trees which gave a lovely bit of shelter from the full sun all day. The site has got lots of planting all around, so the flowers were in full bloom and it made the place look very pretty. 

overview of campsite from the web

Used a Lichfield Challenger 5 tent

The amenites are all in one block, a two story building with what I take to be living accommodation upstairs. The ground floor housed a reception (with aforementioned shop selling sweets, drinks, milk, and I think it sold gas cannisters and the like too), a games room with two pool tables, both male and female showers and loos, dishwashing and laundry areas, and a 'sitting' room which had all the comfort of a prison cell. The campers kitchen was functional and had some dishes and pots available for people travelling light. 

It is hard not to compare Woodlands to Mannix Point, but Woodlands just isn't in the same league as Mannix Point. The campers sitting room in Tralee is ok, 'functional' but at Mannix Point it's full of musical instruments and old photos on the walls and comfy seating. The campers kitchen in Tralee was 'functional' too. The prettiest part of Woodlands is probably the barbecue area outside the campers kitchen. The area has been created with a couple of picnic tables, and a built in barbecue which is just the right size to hold a disposable barbecue. On the other side of the barbecue is a few pots of herbs, with a sign saying help yourself to the herbs for your barbecue which I thought was a nice touch. I saw this area being well used by backpackers, cyclists and bikers, basically anyone travelling light who didn't bring a chair. 

Barbecue Area, pic taken on a misty morning

Can't comment on the guys toilet facilities, but I found the ladies to be regularly cleaned and there was a hairdryer on a hook on the wall which was useful. The room was split in two, with a row of showers along one wall and on the room divider there was a row of sinks opposite the showers. On the other side of the divider was a row of toilet cubicles. Maybe 10 or 12 in all. Towards the front door of the room was a cubby with a further two sinks, mirrors and the hairdryer. I think there was a fold down baby changing station in this area too (didn't really absorb it all as it's a long time since I had to change a nappy). The only down side to having the showers in the same space as the toilets is that everywhere (walls, doors and toilets) is dripping in condensation from the shower steam. I've been to plenty of other sites where the showers and the toilets share the same space and there's enough ventilation to wick the steam away. Not here though.

There's an enclosed play area with slides and swings beside the entrance, and a barrier with a key fob with a refundable deposit. The access is from a main road, over a bridge which crosses a river and the road is plenty wide enough for two vehicles to pass without having to pull in, even the bridge. I would still recommend, whatever the site, for caravanners to use Google Street View to have a look at the access. 

The good thing about Woodlands is it is very close to a large town (is Tralee a city?) and that brings with it a cinema (€9 a head), a swimming pool with lazy river, sauna etc (€43.20 for family ticket €12 for child ticket but there is no time restriction on this - I thought it was too dear, my kids went on their own and reported it's not as good as Lisburn Swimming Pool), all the restaurants and coffee shops you could shake a stick at. It was also closer to Killarney from this site than it was from Mannix Point and Dingle Penninsula is on the doorstep. So as base to explore other areas from Woodlands is good for that. 

The area is adjacent to a wetlands area - the sign to the Wetlands centre, slightly downstream from the river that you cross to access the site, should give that away. So watch out for beasties. Midges, mosquitoes and Clegs/Horseflies (damn they hurt) are abundant and deet didn't seem to make a pick of difference. In fairness there was midges at Mannix Point too, we were pitched close to a boundary hedge, but the sea breeze helped to blow them away. I would recommend a variety of insect repellents, a anti-histamine tablet if you re-act badly and Anthisan cream or your favourite bug bite cream. 

The 'tent' section to the north of the Amenity block is worst affected with midges, there's a tall flood bank to one side of it (I wish I'd spotted that before pitching the tent). The other parts of the site seem to be much less affected by the local wildlife according to those people I got into conversation with. It seems I picked the worst pitch regarding beasties. There are no marked out pitches, just pitch where you like. 

tent pitch area, there were hard standings elsewhere on the site. 

There is a lovely campsite dog (I believe the site welcomes dogs, we had left our dogs at the Kennels at home), he's a black labrador and he's called Finn. He is very sedate and is generally kept on a long tether outside reception, unless he is going for his walk when his custom is to go through down a little hill and through a flower bed. Unfortunately I went and pitched my tent right on his little route and so I was saying hello to Finn twice a day. The first time he stopped dead and looked at me, as if to say 'why did you put that stupid tent in my way'. 

He is also an alleged cake stealer. I had a tea cake wrapped up in tin foil which was home made and pretty substantial and would have fed us for a week as it was quite big. One day I turned my back for literally one second and when I turned back there was only tin foil, wafting across the grass. Luckily we got about half of it eaten. I was tempted to phone Miss Marple. Not once did I see the dog or the cake again that day. I think the fact he was keeping a low profile speaks volumes. 

Coleman Mini Table - Review

I have used this little table quite a lot now for over a year and feel that I could give an accurate review that reflects it's performance with actual use.

This little table won the Camping Magazine award in 2010. It is unusual because in this category there is no other brand making a table of this size and this 'folding suitcase' design. It folds up quite tiny, not much bigger than a laptop bag and so it is really handy even just to keep in the car. I have used it as a 'sitting kitchen', ie, I can relax on my camp chair and boil up the kettle and spoon in the coffee at the same time. Much better when on holiday! I also use it as a small dining table, three of us sit our camp chairs, which do tend to be quite low, and it's a better height to eat from. If you want to, you could sit on your knees on the ground. I also use it as a drinks table, plonking it right between two camp chairs it's just the perfect swing your arm from table top to mouth distance. 

Stock promotional photo

I am a big fan of this little table but it has one drawback. It is a bit wobbly on one axis. The longest dimension of the table is quite steady but along it's shortest dimension there's a bit of swing. This is fine as long as you know about it.

The pro's of this table is that it is a great height for so many functions, the adjustable legs mean it can be level on uneven ground or even gradients (although I hate pitching on a slope!) and the cargo net is utterly fantastic. Why all tables don't have this feature I don't know. Here's a scenario of why the net is so great.

Take one day, everyone sitting around and having coffee and a chat. Sometimes you reach forward to pick up a pen for that all important word finder puzzle you're working on. Sometimes you check the phone, just to see what's happening on Facebook. Once checked, you reach forward and place the phone back on the surface. Suddenly, it's lunch time. It's easy to heat up that can of Heinz Tomato Soup and it's served in big chunky bowls with a plate of roughly sliced up baguette. Oh No!!! The table is covered in pens and phones and sun cream and a pack of cards . No Problem. Just chuck it all underneath and enjoy soupy heaven and fresh french bread in a jiffy.

Coleman Mini Table 9 and a half out of 10. 

Memories of past seasons and saying goodbye to a faithful tent

Feeling a bit nostalgic about past camping trips I thought I'd look up some old camping photos, so here goes:

Following pictures feature a Royal Tarn 4, my two kids and one loopy dog (see if you can spot the dog)

An oldie, taken in France 2006. I took that particular tent to a car boot sale yesterday, and asked for £20 for it. I ended up bringing it home again :(

Same tent, taken in Benone in 2010, can't believe how much these two boys have grown since then! Both of them have overtaken my height, and it's no wonder we started to feel cramped in this tent when the only place my eldest son can stand is right in the centre.

Most recently this tent was used at the Sunflower Festival, August 2011. Not a bad pitch considering I did it single handed, in complete darkness, by feel. And that included trampling down the wheat (which was the designated camping area for the festival, I don't make a habit of trampling down farmers crops).

That trip convinced me we'd finally outgrown the tent. I thought I'd hold on to it for a 'borrowing' tent but as no one has borrowed it for one year I think it's time to get rid of it. It'll be brought to the next car boot sale, where I may or may not get a tenner for it.

The boys have outgrown our old tent, time to say goodbye to an old friend.