Summer is about to kick off
It’s been really quite quiet this summer so far, mainly because I’ve been at work so much! We've also just cut short our most recent camping trip to Dots Camping in the New Forest due to the AWFUL weather. Typical isn't it? Blindingly hot for weeks and weeks, and then our one trip that we've had booked for several months, ruined by excessive wind and a little rain.
We made the decision to pretend to have a summer BBQ on the saturday, which basically meant sitting there while the wind blew horrendously, pretending we were having a good time and hoping the BBQ didn't get blown out.... Mind you the weather was a bit weird as it would be extremely windy one minute, making us fear for our awesome Sheltapod, and then suddenly it would disappear and the sun would come out. I kept putting my thick and fluffy hoody on, and then taking it off as I started to sweat, then off again and on and off and blah blah. Frustrating.
Then, it started to rain properly. Up until this point it had spat (spitted/spit?) only, but this time it was for real. We abandoned BBQ and headed into the Sheltapod, for it to then chuck it down for two minutes, and then clear off almost as quickly!
It was at this point we decided to pack up the Sheltapod and make our way that evening. We managed to leave it long enough for the sun to come back out and the heat to dry the tent, and then we stuffed what we could into the Sheltapod bag, and the outer of the Sheltapod into the van, ready to be packed away another day properly.
Funnily enough I just did that this evening, several days later. Even then I still failed, I only managed to squeeze the outer bit in and then realised the bag of various poles was still not in there. I lost heart and then realised the outer part of the bag has compression straps on top, providing a lovely place to hold the poles for the 3 nights we're not using it before we erect ;) it in Cowes on Friday morning. I only wanted the whole thing to be one unit to aid in van packing later this week, mission accomplished.
However, despite the drama of what was supposed to be a lovely relaxing weekend, we did get a bit of sun at the beginning of our trip on the friday night, managing to just get the Sheltapod up before dark, after we managed to squeeze our way through the new forest and up the extremely narrow passage to the campsite.
During our day on saturday, despite the random wind gusts, we had some lovely sun, and chill time. I have to admit I'm an old man and may have napped a bit in the van, but its lush when you have the side door open and one of the rear doors too. Nice airflow you know?
We did get to test out our new set up, which basically was just the addition of a horrible blue plastic folding picnic table. Honestly, the quality is shocking, but it has made a huge difference and was cheaper than a nicer wooden one. Given that a week ago I was still trying to get the engine to run properly with electrical issues, any extra money I had for a nicer table disappeared quickly. Not to mention my car insurance etc etc blah blah life is expensive. Adulting eh?
Anyway, the van performed admirably, wiring issue fixed, the new table was lovely to use despite lacking in quality, and it was helpful to have two tables and not just camping chairs to sit on. The new coolbox was also fantastic! Kept stuff proper cool, and as you may know if you've seen my instagram, pay cheap buy twice! Wish I'd bought this one sooner. Lesson learned....
Stay posted for stuff on our next trip, Cowes in the Isle of Wight, coming this Friday. We're catching the 3 am ferry out :( but it was cheaper, so friday will be pretty dead as we'll be knackered.
We made the decision to pretend to have a summer BBQ on the saturday, which basically meant sitting there while the wind blew horrendously, pretending we were having a good time and hoping the BBQ didn't get blown out.... Mind you the weather was a bit weird as it would be extremely windy one minute, making us fear for our awesome Sheltapod, and then suddenly it would disappear and the sun would come out. I kept putting my thick and fluffy hoody on, and then taking it off as I started to sweat, then off again and on and off and blah blah. Frustrating.
Then, it started to rain properly. Up until this point it had spat (spitted/spit?) only, but this time it was for real. We abandoned BBQ and headed into the Sheltapod, for it to then chuck it down for two minutes, and then clear off almost as quickly!
It was at this point we decided to pack up the Sheltapod and make our way that evening. We managed to leave it long enough for the sun to come back out and the heat to dry the tent, and then we stuffed what we could into the Sheltapod bag, and the outer of the Sheltapod into the van, ready to be packed away another day properly.
Funnily enough I just did that this evening, several days later. Even then I still failed, I only managed to squeeze the outer bit in and then realised the bag of various poles was still not in there. I lost heart and then realised the outer part of the bag has compression straps on top, providing a lovely place to hold the poles for the 3 nights we're not using it before we erect ;) it in Cowes on Friday morning. I only wanted the whole thing to be one unit to aid in van packing later this week, mission accomplished.
However, despite the drama of what was supposed to be a lovely relaxing weekend, we did get a bit of sun at the beginning of our trip on the friday night, managing to just get the Sheltapod up before dark, after we managed to squeeze our way through the new forest and up the extremely narrow passage to the campsite.
During our day on saturday, despite the random wind gusts, we had some lovely sun, and chill time. I have to admit I'm an old man and may have napped a bit in the van, but its lush when you have the side door open and one of the rear doors too. Nice airflow you know?
Stay posted for stuff on our next trip, Cowes in the Isle of Wight, coming this Friday. We're catching the 3 am ferry out :( but it was cheaper, so friday will be pretty dead as we'll be knackered.
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