Saturday 17 August
Jeanette, Linda, Sue, Trisha, Wendy
Jeanette, Linda, Sue, Trisha, Wendy
We had decided on this camp site in Whitemill, Camarthen as it was run by Linda's friend - also called Linda - who lived there with husband Robert and their two children.
Jeanette, Linda and Pat all arrived to set up camp - Linda brought her lovely dogs Dora and Oscar with her.
With lots of space around the pitches they set up their tents in a shady little glade at the bottom of the camp site.
Sunday 18 August
Sue and I made our way to the campsite whilst Linda, Jeanette and Pat took the dogs for
a walk on the beach. Looked like a bright and breezy day!
The two sites were soon given names with Sue and I on upper bottom row and their tents on lower bottom. The connecting grass path was known as the back passage so we spent all weekend traipsing between upper and lower bottom via the back passage!!
Once the tent was pitched we settled down to strawberry cream scones and prosecco - very civilised!
Then it was time for a barbie whilst Linda's friend Linda came over for a chat.
Such a lovely camp site with absolutely stunning scenery around us.
When it was properly dark we sat round the fire, gin in hand, admiring the flames and basking in the cosy glow.
We were on the area of the site which had no electric hook ups but we had plenty of lights with us. The loos, washrooms and showers were very near and even nearer was a chemical loo for night time emergencies! The chemical loo and nearby sink were festooned with solar fairy lights which twinkled at night so there was no chance of not finding it!
Linda emerged to take the dogs for a quick wee and then went back to bed whilst Sue and I took the dogs for a walk to see what was further along the lane from the camp site.
More fabulous views and an austere little Welsh church.
Then it was back to lower bottom - where the sun was streaming through the tents - for bacon and egg cooked by Linda. There's nothing quite like a butty out in the fresh air!
The National Botanic Gardens were nearby so we decided to have a trip there as Monday was dog day. We were not disappointed - loads of beautiful sculptures, flowers, ponds, fields and walks.
The weather was quite kind to us - mostly bright sunshine but interspersed with fierce, sudden showers which had us scrambling for coats and brollies - which we then had to take off again more or less as soon as we had put them on as the squall had passed and the sun was out again!
One of the sculptures was called pi - it looked like the pi sign from a certain angle but was totally different as we walked around it - and it framed the fabulous views across the valley.
The tropical greenhouse was like a mini Eden project and was the perfect place to sit with a coffee and have a catch up with the world whilst the latest squall passed overhead.
A wander round the wild flower meadows and a walk through the butterfly house...
... then it was time for a quick game of croquet. RCHS style of course!
Then a further wander round the gardens before making our way back to the cars.
A breezy walk along the sand was the perfect antidote to all that eating - and the dogs loved it.
A bit of YMCA on the beach (as you do!) and some wild hair pictures. And an upside down photo of my hand where I turned the phone the wrong way but couldn't see in the bright sunlight. 😀
Dora and Oscar were tired out from all their running around.
Tuesday 20 August
Once again Sue and I were up early. Another beautiful day but the rain and clear skies the previous night had meant a cold night so whilst waiting for the others to surface we went off to find the Tesco 5 miles away to get Sue a quilt to put inside her sleeping bag.
Nothing. Nicht. Nada.
So we had to eat our butties without ketchup!! A complete mystery - it had been spirited away just like Trisha's broccoli!!
Once we had recovered from the curious case of the lost condiment in the night we decided to visit a place not far away that CS Linda had told us was very beautiful. It was a lake filled hill top crater which was said to be haunted by a local lady. Legend stated that a man had asked this lady to marry him and eventually she had agreed but had said that if he laid his hands on her three times then she would go, never to be seen again. He inadvertently did this so she disappeared and only came back to give guidance to her sons.
Ooh yes, let's go here we said. Trouble was - where was 'here'? CS Linda had told us the location two days previously and we had confidently said that we'd remember. But not one of us did! That's the trouble with Welsh names - they're too Welsh!!
So they searched for it on the map.
Then they googled it.
And they searched on line.
They looked at more maps (and Linda looked for divine intervention!)..
.. and through all of this Oscar and Dora sat quietly and patiently in the back of the car waiting for their promised trip out.
Eventually they had to text CS Linda to ask her again.
We packed a picnic (apart from the crackers which were still sitting on the table in the tent in upper bottom! - probably having a party with the ketchup whilst we were away!!) and set off. After a beautiful drive through stunning scenery along some tiny, narrow and hardly used roads we arrived and decided that it was once again time to eat.
We set up our chairs and table (we were very prepared!) and sat back to enjoy the glorious views around us.
Then it was time to get serious and set off on our hike to look for the lake.
We followed the gravel path at the side of the stream which led upwards into the hills. A lot of UP - mucho, mucho UP - and actually I think that they were mountains that we were climbing - yes, they definitely were mountains I remember now!!!
It was a hot and humid climb with very few people around but the views around us were spectacular.
We arrived at the lake - which was a tad disappointing as it looked a bit like the end of a reservoir - and there was no lady weeping and wailing in the middle of it!
Having obviously not done enough UP Jeanette, Sue and I decided to climb up the side of the hill and make our way back round from there. Once we got towards the top we could see the shape of the lake better but after a couple of false summits we gave up and started to contour round in order to get back down again.
But we took photos to prove that we had been up so high!!
The weather forecast had said rain at 4pm and that was exactly what we got - just as we were mid way through our descent.
The meal was lovely and we all tucked in as though we hadn't eaten anything all day!
And most of us managed all three courses too.
Then the four of us went back to the camp site leaving the two Lindas to chat some more.
(Little aside here: when I put this pic up on fb Janice got in touch with me in a mild state of panic to say 'who is that woman - I don't recognise her'. Once I had explained to her that she wasn't a schoolie that she didn't remember - she was able to relax again..) 😄
Time for another gin from the bar which had been unceremoniously dumped outside by the car after it was discovered that the Welsh wasps also have a taste for gin bottles!
Wednesday 21 August
The weather wasn't as nice on our final day but we were going home so it didn't matter. The cloudscapes were impressive and the mist was hanging in the valley below us - very atmospheric!
We had our final breakfast then it was time to strike camp.
When everything was packed into the cars we said our goodbyes and set off on our respective homeward journeys - tired, slightly grubby but very happy.
We'd had a lovely few days on this quirky camp site.
Thank you to the Lindas - our Linda for suggesting it and CS Linda for running it!! And thank you to all our happy campers - and that includes Dora and Oscar - for making it such a fun trip!
But the Famous Five (and Dora and Oscar masquerading as Timmy) never did solve the mystery of the disappearing ketchup...
Jeanette, Linda and Pat all arrived to set up camp - Linda brought her lovely dogs Dora and Oscar with her.
With lots of space around the pitches they set up their tents in a shady little glade at the bottom of the camp site.
Sunday 18 August
Sue and I made our way to the campsite whilst Linda, Jeanette and Pat took the dogs for
a walk on the beach. Looked like a bright and breezy day!
Our pitch was at the top of their little glade with a grass path at the side leading down to their tents.
The two sites were soon given names with Sue and I on upper bottom row and their tents on lower bottom. The connecting grass path was known as the back passage so we spent all weekend traipsing between upper and lower bottom via the back passage!!
Once the tent was pitched we settled down to strawberry cream scones and prosecco - very civilised!
Camp site (CS) Linda had brought over a quirky fire pit for us - fashioned from the inner drum of a washing machine. As darkness started to fall our Linda soon had it alight.
Such a lovely camp site with absolutely stunning scenery around us.
When it was properly dark we sat round the fire, gin in hand, admiring the flames and basking in the cosy glow.
It was definitely a loo with a view if you decided to leave the door open!
Monday 19 August
Sue and I woke up early to the most amazing light and views.
Linda emerged to take the dogs for a quick wee and then went back to bed whilst Sue and I took the dogs for a walk to see what was further along the lane from the camp site.
Then it was back to lower bottom - where the sun was streaming through the tents - for bacon and egg cooked by Linda. There's nothing quite like a butty out in the fresh air!
The National Botanic Gardens were nearby so we decided to have a trip there as Monday was dog day. We were not disappointed - loads of beautiful sculptures, flowers, ponds, fields and walks.
The weather was quite kind to us - mostly bright sunshine but interspersed with fierce, sudden showers which had us scrambling for coats and brollies - which we then had to take off again more or less as soon as we had put them on as the squall had passed and the sun was out again!
The tropical greenhouse was like a mini Eden project and was the perfect place to sit with a coffee and have a catch up with the world whilst the latest squall passed overhead.
There was a small stone circle of sculptures made from the same material as Stonehenge and people were encouraged to feel their warmth and tactility - as if we needed encouraging lol..
We decided to try panoramas with people running from stone to stone as the person taking the picture panned round - much as we had done whilst taking a picture on our barge holiday.
There were lots of bemused passersby!
A wander round the wild flower meadows and a walk through the butterfly house...
... then it was time for a quick game of croquet. RCHS style of course!
Then a further wander round the gardens before making our way back to the cars.
We went to look for some food in the village and neither pub was serving but they recommended the fish and chip cafe in the car park! So this was how we ended up on Llanstefan beach eating the most delicious fresh fish and chips in the glorious sunshine. We then had to have an ice cream of course!
Perfect seaside food!!
A breezy walk along the sand was the perfect antidote to all that eating - and the dogs loved it.
A bit of YMCA on the beach (as you do!) and some wild hair pictures. And an upside down photo of my hand where I turned the phone the wrong way but couldn't see in the bright sunlight. 😀
We eventually got it right.
Dora and Oscar loved it.
Then it was back to the tents to open the gins and the snacks and nibbles - that we'd said we couldn't possibly eat after the huge portions of fish and chips! All that sea air!..
We played a game of BananaDrama - a silly game which involved balancing cards and performing forfeits.
Then Jeanette started the fire and we settled down for a quiet evening after all our exertions of the day.
Dora and Oscar were tired out from all their running around.
Tuesday 20 August
Once again Sue and I were up early. Another beautiful day but the rain and clear skies the previous night had meant a cold night so whilst waiting for the others to surface we went off to find the Tesco 5 miles away to get Sue a quilt to put inside her sleeping bag.
We arrived back for breakfast - and a HUGE mystery!
What had happened to the ketchup?? Where had it gone?
The lower bottom camp site was searched from end to end as we mulled over our movements from the day before. Had it been taken via the back passage to upper bottom?? The camp fire was there and we had eaten a hearty hors d'oeuvres type meal (the one that no one wanted as we were all full of fish and chips but which we managed anyway!) up there but there had been no need for ketchup.
Just in case we searched the upper bottom site anyway. Still no sign.
More musings as to where it could be then the lower bottom camp was thoroughly searched once again.
So we had to eat our butties without ketchup!! A complete mystery - it had been spirited away just like Trisha's broccoli!!
Once we had recovered from the curious case of the lost condiment in the night we decided to visit a place not far away that CS Linda had told us was very beautiful. It was a lake filled hill top crater which was said to be haunted by a local lady. Legend stated that a man had asked this lady to marry him and eventually she had agreed but had said that if he laid his hands on her three times then she would go, never to be seen again. He inadvertently did this so she disappeared and only came back to give guidance to her sons.
Ooh yes, let's go here we said. Trouble was - where was 'here'? CS Linda had told us the location two days previously and we had confidently said that we'd remember. But not one of us did! That's the trouble with Welsh names - they're too Welsh!!
So they searched for it on the map.
Then they googled it.
And they searched on line.
They looked at more maps (and Linda looked for divine intervention!)..
.. and through all of this Oscar and Dora sat quietly and patiently in the back of the car waiting for their promised trip out.
Eventually they had to text CS Linda to ask her again.
We packed a picnic (apart from the crackers which were still sitting on the table in the tent in upper bottom! - probably having a party with the ketchup whilst we were away!!) and set off. After a beautiful drive through stunning scenery along some tiny, narrow and hardly used roads we arrived and decided that it was once again time to eat.
We set up our chairs and table (we were very prepared!) and sat back to enjoy the glorious views around us.
Then it was time to get serious and set off on our hike to look for the lake.
We arrived at the lake - which was a tad disappointing as it looked a bit like the end of a reservoir - and there was no lady weeping and wailing in the middle of it!
But we took photos to prove that we had been up so high!!
The weather forecast had said rain at 4pm and that was exactly what we got - just as we were mid way through our descent.
We drove back to camp and had a cup of tea (and some of us had forty winks!) before getting ready to go down to the pub for an evening meal.
CS Linda came with us so it was a chance for both the Lindas to have a catch up - and an opportunity for us to see sailing pics from their younger days.
The meal was lovely and we all tucked in as though we hadn't eaten anything all day!
And most of us managed all three courses too.
Then the four of us went back to the camp site leaving the two Lindas to chat some more.
(Little aside here: when I put this pic up on fb Janice got in touch with me in a mild state of panic to say 'who is that woman - I don't recognise her'. Once I had explained to her that she wasn't a schoolie that she didn't remember - she was able to relax again..) 😄
Wednesday 21 August
The weather wasn't as nice on our final day but we were going home so it didn't matter. The cloudscapes were impressive and the mist was hanging in the valley below us - very atmospheric!
We had our final breakfast then it was time to strike camp.
We managed to get two tents and the gazebo down in between the showers and then had to shelter in the final tent until the rain stopped.
When everything was packed into the cars we said our goodbyes and set off on our respective homeward journeys - tired, slightly grubby but very happy.
We'd had a lovely few days on this quirky camp site.
Thank you to the Lindas - our Linda for suggesting it and CS Linda for running it!! And thank you to all our happy campers - and that includes Dora and Oscar - for making it such a fun trip!
But the Famous Five (and Dora and Oscar masquerading as Timmy) never did solve the mystery of the disappearing ketchup...
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