At last...........

got meself a new camera, and I've been over to Reculver on the North Kent coast, to try it out. There's a couple of pictures on the Kent page. I look forward to trying it out some more shortly..........

Sorry folks.........

Wouldn't you know it..........just come back from a fantastic week in North Wales, and there should have been pictures galore of some wonderful sights and places. However, my camera decided to pack up as soon as I got there.

Oh well, I'll just have to go back thee again next year (with a new camera) and photograph all the wonderful things I saw ;)

Back from my hols.

Just had a fantastic trip 'Oop North'. 1600 miles on ten days, touring mostly Tyneside and North Yorkshire with a little foray into Scotland and Cumbria.
The pages on Scotland and North Yorkshire have thus been updated, and there are updates on Newcastle and Beamish

No Lorries - No Quarry

There's a place in Kent called Dungeness. It lies at the most southerly point in Kent, close to the border with Sussex. (I refuse to call it East Sussex - but that's a whole other story!) It's just a huge bank of shingle sticking out into the sea, with two nuclear power facilities standing on it. So, what's so special, I hear you ask? Dungeness is beautiful. In fact, it's an area of outstanding natural beauty. Despite the power plants, or maybe because of them, it's quiet, bleak and lonely. There's a pub, three lighthouses, and a handful of shacks, but not a lot else. There's plants that grow here and nowhere else in Kent. There's a couple of big lakes, and an RSPB wildfowl reserve. There's snakes, lizards, and a whole lot else.

And now they want to build a quarry and excavate the shingle for sea defences elsewhere along the coast.

This quite simply must not be allowed to happen. This place is so special and unique that nothing should be allowed to disturb its ecology. Nevermind the fact that taking away huge amounts of shingle will also render the few habitations down there liable to flooding.

If you don't want to see this happen, then please protest to your MP. There's a site been set up here with facilities to help make yourself heard.

Please join the fight....................

2012

So, here we are, the start of another touring year. I promise to not be ill this year, and to fulfill all the trips I've got planned. So, what lies in store this year? Well, so far, in May I'm off to Somerset and the North Devon/Exmoor area. July will see me in Northumbria and North Yorkshire, and September it will be back to the beautiful landscapes of Wales. There's still so much I haven't had time to see there yet. That's what's planned so far. Of course, there will be other breaks, I'm sure. I'm hoping to fit in some time in Suffolk, and there will be a winter city break to decide upon later. I also promise to show you some of my home county of Kent. I really have neglected it so far. Problem is, I know it so well, I tend to go out and forget to take my camera with me. Pretty much the same can be said for its' neighbouring counties of Sussex and Surrey. They're just day rides out for me. 

So there you have it...............

2011 hasn't been a good year for travels, what with a poor summer weather-wise and ill health.

However, I have just uploaded a few pictures from Herefordshire and Shropshire, and added a whole lot more to the page on Wales.

Enjoy!

Back Home...............

.....from a lovely, scorching hot weekend in Dorset. See the Dorset page for some new pictures.............

Castles

This is another article that was written for my other blog, before I set this one up, and it's just a quick run down of some of the beautiful British Castles I've visited. If you like castles, you'll enjoy this (I hope!) http://thelifeoflittleinsect.blogspot.com/search/label/castles

Another wet weekend :(

Well, it's Summer Time - what should we have expected? Despite the grey and drizzly weather, we've just had an excellent weekend in the New Forest, primarily to visit the Sammy Miller Motorcycle Museum. Excellent..................except for me breaking my ignition key, and my Other Half having to do a 100 mile round trip to get my spare, that is. I've added a bit about the museum on the 'Hampshire' post. Actually, even if only one member of the family is into old bikes, it's a good day out for all the family. You can enjoy a leisurely drive through the New Forest, looking at the ponies wandering free. The Museum complex itself has something for all the family. There's a children's farm, with friendly alpacas, pygmy goats, rabbits, birds, chickens. ducks etc. There's a few nice little craft shops, and an excellent tea rooms cum restaurant. Why not check it out? Or combine it with a trip to Bucklers Hard. I would suggest Beaulieu, but that needs an entire day all to itself.