There are just so many places to go and things to see in the UK it is hard to decide where to go. What we have decided though is that we aren't fussed on big cities so we thought another camping trip would be a good idea. Our friend Chris Rance (from Otatara Community Nursery) is also over here at the moment and has been helping relocate her Mum into a smaller place near Manchester. So with this in mind we chose The Peak District and a little village called Hayfield for our base.
Camping grounds and facilities are a little different to the NZ. ones. Many of them are owned by Clubs though non members can use them too but with an extra fee. They provide toilet blocks, and usually a covered area to wash dishes but that is all. So you need to provide for all your own cooking facilities and anything else you may require. This particular place was excellent with friendly helpful staff, who were also camping on site for the season. They had a small shop for a few basics like milk and bread, but what I particularly liked was the herb garden we all were allowed to use.
Our pitch was on a level grass area and was just for tents. Around the perimeter of the camp were powered pitches, many of them with a hard surface and they were for caravans and campers. This year they also had three 'pods', cabin like structures available. You still had to provide everything for yourself except the tent. Probably a good idea, particularly this summer as there has been so much rain.
Our tent belongs to Jessica and Andrew and is a good size, having two rooms. Our equipment is basic but adequate and it is surprising what you can cook on one little burner. This is breakfast one morning. We also did a couple of evening meals but tried out the local pubs for our other meals. It was just a10 minute walk along a footpath into the village.
The area is very rural and many of our fellow campers were there to enjoy the numerous walks in the area. We walked one morning up above the camp and got some great views.
Another morning Stephen chose to walk on his own much further and up a much steeper path to Kinder Scout. This was the site a protest several years ago when the trampers were going to lose access to many of these areas. He got some magnificent views from up here. One particular point of interest (POI seems to be the new acroymn for this on the Navigation systems!) was a place that the sheep were washed once a year. It wasn't just a place for dipping either. The photo on the info board shows them actually been washed.
We based ourselves in this camp for four nights which was great as we were able to do day trips from here and see some of the local POIs. We were lucky with the weather as rain had been predicted for the week. We had a couple of passing showers one day, and it rained during the early hours of Friday morning but had stopped by the time we were up and ready to pack up. The only downside of this camping trip was that were in the flight path for Manchester airport and the planes went all night,with those landing being particularly noisy. I don't think it would have mattered which campsite we were at, all of the areas we visited during the week were also affected by this very busy airport. (Something for all of you who live in Queenstown when they start wanting to fly in there all night.)
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