Archives for April 2016 | On The Island

Saturday, April 23rd, 2016Sunday, April 24th, 2016

Saturday 23rd April 2016

We had our breakfast and a woodpecker came right up to our window. We had heard him last night having a go at one of the trees near us.

I can’t believe how very lucky we have been with the weather. The sun was out again so we walked out of the site and straight on to the Red Squirrel Trail.

They are very proud of their red squirrels here. There are no grey squirrels on the Isle, they outcompete for food and territory and also carry squirrelpox virus that is fatal to the red squirrels.

We then went into Ventnor for a walk around and had lunch in an amazing cafe, all decked out in 40’s style with 40’s music playing. It’s called Lady Scarlett’s Tea Parlour. The couple who run it do re-enactment. Again dogs welcome and Ellie was spoilt with even more treats!

We walked along the sea front afterwards and Ellie smelt the fish they were just bringing in. How embarassing, she just sat down and refused to budge, good taste, they were walking past us with fresh lobsters they were bringing in from the fishing boats!

In the evening we were looking for somewhere nice to go and eat and somewhere with a bit of a St George’s Day flavour which seems to be sadly lacking this year. We decided to go to the sea front in Shanklin and went into The Waterfront Restaurant. Again, dogs welcome and I think Ellie was so spoilt with all the treats and cuddles she was given! There was a resident dog as well. BUT again all the dogs were well behaved. The food was excellent too.

Ellie had been so good after dinner we took her on to the beach opposite and she went for a paddle.

Thought for the Day – “Don’t be pushed by your problems. Be led by your dreams.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Friday, April 22nd, 2016Saturday, April 23rd, 2016

Friday 22nd April 2016

We had breakfast, took Ellie for a walk in the woods, packed everything up and left for the second part of our Isle of Wight experience and drove to Shanklin Old Town. Unfortunately it started raining. All this time we have had a huge, lovely caravan with central heating and it was so warm outside, now we are homeless for a few hours and it’s not suitable weather to be doing much walking. We did find a really nice tea rooms, Laburnam Cottage and another place where Ellie was welcomed, given treats and a bowl of water! She is soooo enjoying this holiday!

We wandered around the old town and went into a few of the craft shops.

By 2 we thought we would try the caravan park and sure enough they let us in 2 hours early. Another lovely park but a smaller van and no central heating but it warmed up very quickly when we put the heaters on. This caravan site is so close to everything and even has a Lidl next door!

Back into Shanklin Old town in the evening and we had dinner at The Crab where again dogs can go in!

Thought for the Day – “People don’t notice whether it is winter or summer when they are happy.” ~ Anton Chekhov

Thursday, April 21st, 2016Friday, April 22nd, 2016

Thursday 21st April 2016

We went to Cowes in the morning and did a circular walk all through the parks and along by the sea. There seem to be a lot of famous trees in Cowes according to our info leaflet!

Enough walking and then we headed for The Blacksmiths Arms, believe it or not another dog friendly pub! I love the sign they have as you enter the pub…dogs are obviously the priority and Ellie was given a dog biscuit. I love shellfish and if there is crab or lobster on the menu, that is it for me! Huge sandwiches here. The view from the back of the pub is stunning and the is the Tennison trail from just behind the pub. Ellie is so chilled while we eat and also loves all the attention.

Another busy day!

Thought for the Day – “If you have the power to make someone happy, do it! The world needs more of that.”

Wednesday, April 20th, 2016Thursday, April 21st, 2016

Wednesday 20th April 2016

Villa in north Cyprus for sale

The sun was out and so we were up early again and out early. We went to Newtown and had a really good walk planned. We did some of it and then came across a hide overlooking the estuary and surprisingly Ellie was allowed in. The volunteer there was just pleased to see she was on a lead (as if she wouldn’t be with all those birds around!) Well, the volunteer was extremely knowledgable, used to work for the BBC and has carried out lots of research on the local wildlife including adders which she told us they have found a lot on the Isle of Wight. We chatted so long, we missed part of the walk we planned and it was getting on towards lunchtime!

We then drove to the Horse and Groom in Ningwood for our lunch. It’s a great pub and has a huge sign outside “Dogs Welcome”. To be honest most of the pubs on the Isle seem to welcome dogs. Ellie was even given a biscuit from the barmaid. She is enjoying her holiday.

From here we went to Fort Victoria Country Park and did a very long woodland walk and got covered in mud!

Thought for the Day – “The past is where you learn the lesson. The future is where you apply the lesson.”

Tuesday, April 19th, 2016Wednesday, April 20th, 2016

Tuesday 19th April 2016

Villa in north Cyprus for sale

It’s just like being at home, the birds woke us up with their dawn chorus. Our caravan is right next to the woods and overlooking the sea. I guess my “ontheisland” titlle still holds, Cyprus, the Isle of Thanet and now the Isle of Wight! The UK is an island anyway.

We started off by going from Brook Bay along the Chines, ending at Blackgang Chine and walking along the coastal walk and also on the beach. It was a really glorious day.

From here we went to Allum Bay only to discover that the car park was £5 but that was for all day and we were already half way through our day, so thought we would leave this for another time and headed on to Yarmouth A quaint town. We went into Yarmouth castle and so glad we are members of English Heritage as the castle is not worth the entrance fee! We ticked that off our list and then went to the quay and had a delicious fresh crab sandwich. Another dog friendly place , Nammets. The teas and coffees were only £1 each. It has to be the cheapest place to buy them!

After our sandwiches we went to Carisbrooke Castle. Now that one really is worth a visit AND we could take Ellie in. The only problem here were herds of rowdy school kids and it looked as if the teachers had no control over them!

It was a busy day and in the evening we went into complex entertainment centre. Not fantastic but something a bit different! Mal wasn’t impressed at £4.70 for a bottle of Speckled Hen! I don’t think we will be drinking much in there.

Thought for the Day – “When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace.” ~ Jimi Hemdrix

Monday, April 18th, 2016Tuesday, April 19th, 2016

Monday 18th April 2016

Villa in north Cyprus for sale

We were up early , let Ellie have a play in the beautiful garden and then had our breakfast in the conservatory. All in all a lovely stay.

From there we went back to the common to let Ellie have a good run as she’d be in the car for a while.

We arrived at Portsmouth port early (I always am!) and they let us on the 11.00 ferry even though we were booked for the 12.00. We took Ellie up to the top deck and she loved it, a very smooth crossing. She is becoming a well travelled dog and so many people admired how well behaved she was on the ferry.

From the ferry we stopped at Sainsbury’s to get some provisions and then on to have our lunch in The Traveller’s Joy. We tend to look at dog friendly pubs even though we don’t mind sitting in the garden. This one we believe, the dogs out numbered the humans in there and they were all very well behaved lying under tables. We agreed with a few of the locals this situation was probably preferable to more humans! Talking of locals, they were so friendly.

From here, on to our caravan park in Thorness Bay and they let us have our caravan 2 hours early. It was right next to woods and the dog trail and the van is enormous, has central heating and TWO bathrooms!! I can’t believe this was so cheap and pets go free and also the ferry was free! You can see we have a sea view from our door.

We had a very long walk around Thorness Bay. I can’t say we were too impressed, a lot of it was mud flats. Very tempting for Ellie but we managed to keep her out of the water.

What a contented dog, she settles anywhere. I am so grateful to whatever idiot dumped her in Cyprus. Our gain.

Well done to Spurs 4-0 against Stoke!

Thought for the Day – “Just a reminder in case your mind is playing tricks on you today: You matter. You’re important. You’re loved. And your presence on this earth makes a difference whether you see it or not.”

Sunday, April 17th, 2016Sunday, April 17th, 2016

Sunday 17th April 2016

We walked around the orchards, it was really nice and sunny. BUT we were slightly mystified as to what the small pieces of bamboo cane are that are attached to about a third of the apricot trees? Any ideas?

Well, during the day someone from Wingham told me they are to catch earwigs! So now I know.

We packed our things up and headed for Hampshire where we are staying for the night. It’s a lovely BandB appartment in a village called Liss. The owner is a lovely lady and she showed us the appartment and we have use of the beautiful garden, along with her two dogs, one an Italian Spinone. He was rather excitable when Ellie arrived and then proceeded to pee up my leg, the poor lady was so embarrased. Mal and I couldn’t stop laughing. That’s never happened to me before!

The owner told us where an excellent dog walk was, over Chapel Common. Ellie found a mole and chased it and then wouldn’t leave it alone, we had to hold her while he dug his hole and escaped.

In the evening we went and ate at The Flying Bull. We had to go to this pub which was just down the road as it is in two counties. The boundary between West Sussex and Hampshire goes through the pub!

Good news for Mal when we heard Hammers drew with Leicester!

Thought for the Day – “You have not lived today until you have done something for someone who can never repay you.” ~ John Bunyan