Castle Rising.

Our Norfolk adventure took us through the small village of Castle Rising, just a few miles short of Hunstanton. Castle by name, but without venturing onto the beaten track you'd never know this place is there.

Aside from the road sign. That says Castle. Yea, that.

We left behind the overcast sky of Wells Next The Sea and hit the coastal road for Castle Rising. Not wanting our holiday to end, it felt like a cool way to spend part of our journey home.

One thing our adventures lead to, rustic, interesting, eclectic places. Buildings that ask you to get the cameras out and capture them. So that's what we did.

Built in the 12th century. It's a monolith. Originally part fortification, part hunting lodge and with connections to the likes of Henry VIII there is a lot of history to take in. Much of the detail remains, despite what 900 years of weather has thrown at it.

There are interesting details throughout the hollow chambers and rooms. Central to the building, the great hall has left a huge void, it's floor and roof both missing.

Whilst I wondered outside taking in the scale of the place, Kirst found some small carvings that remained intact.

We left wishing the weather had been kinder to us. But, with Doris running low on supplies for us, we knew home had to be our next stop sooner or later. We drove down the castles narrow drive and back onto the main road home. I checked the rear view mirror. No, you really can't tell this place is there. Apart from the sign, that says Castle. 

ed. 

Into The Peak District

Our Camperbus finds hills a challenge. They are not its strong point. So a trip out into the Peak District National Park is more of an adventure for us than for most. If we held you up on the A515, we are sorry. We were going as fast as we could.

With a slower pace you take in the scenery. The Peaks had a lot of it to offer. Once we broke free from Nottingham, tarmac turned into real roads and the views reminded us what the countryside can look like.

Pretty spectacular.

In Doris what could be a day trip easily becomes a night away. We made a short stop in the landlocked "seaside" town of Matlock Bath to eat our vegan mac and cheese (which actually contains no cheese, interesting no?)

Taking in the sights from the comfort of the bus we hit the road for our destination. Staden Grange, just outside Buxton.

Our home for the night was peaceful and relaxing. Staden Grange is a small campsite, in the woodland grounds of a traditional country house. With the sun dropping behind the hills, we spent the night in. Our pitch was sweet and the facilities excellent, nothing more was needed. Just us and the evening's sky.

Not everything could go our way. In the morning high winds picked up and the site had to close. Tall trees and howling gusts do not mix. We planned to move early anyway. We cut the day short and pointed the bus toward home, knowing later this summer we'll plan to go back, and spend longer in the Peaks next time.

ed.

Wells Next The Sea

The seaside. More importantly, one of our favourite seasides. Wells Next The Sea, a small harbour town on the North Norfolk coast.

Our first adventure of the year brought us back here. It was an easy decision. We stayed at Pinewoods Holiday Park, a large campsite that offers everything we needed. A few years ago it was the first place we ever took our bus on holiday. Starting another year of adventures with a stay at Wells felt just right.

Doris ate up the miles with ease and once we'd arrived and checked in, she became our home for 4 nights.

Wells is a relaxed, picturesque place. Even under a grey sky. Our pitch placed us around 5 minutes from the beach. Lined with a neat row of beach huts that go on into the distance the beach is welcoming and full of life, even with the tide well and truly out.

In the opposite direction lies the harbour. When staying at Pinewoods you plan the times you visit the harbour and main town, as the walk isn't short. Visiting the harbour becomes an adventure in itself. If you are feeling more laid back than usual, you can board a miniature train during the day. We opted to use our legs this time.

There are narrow lanes that lead you away from the sea, full of shops, cafes and places to eat. Temptation always takes us to the very heart of the town, where there is a pub that serves local ales. 

The town has a lot to offer. Arts and crafts blended with chips and arcades. Eclectic, but it works. 

For us, the Albatros is the main attraction. A Dutch cargo vessel over 110 years old. It's now a lively and utterly awesome bar and music venue. It's one of the few places that can tempt us away from Doris for an entire evening. They sell authentic Dutch pancakes onboard, too. 

Relaxing and much needed. That's how we would describe our first holiday of the year in our camperbus. And it will not be the only visit to Wells that we will make this year. As the weather gets warmer, there will only be more reasons to go back to one of our favourite seasides. 

ed. 

Just Getting Started

My first proper post. Everything here is new and awesome.

Take a look around, like us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram, you know the drill. If you've found this little website, it's probably because you're curious to see what I've tempted you to click on in that link I posted. Thanks for stopping by.

Every adventure we have in our VW campervan, Doris, we'll be blogging about it here. We'll fill our pages with pictures, stories, reviews, recipes, fixes and other stuff; but as we are just getting started, this little introduction is all there is for now. We've just got back from our bank holiday adventure to Wells Next The Sea, in north Norfolk. It's one of our favourite places to go to chill out and relax. But more on that later.

That's Doris in her natural habitat. Providing Kirsty and me with a van shaped home for the weekend. You may very well know what campervan life is about already. For us it's about keeping things simple. Finding cool places to temporarily call home. Feeling the sense of adventure when hitting the open road.

And the sense of achievement, and relief, when the 30 something year old bus gets us to where we wanted to go. That bit is really rather good.

Thats me. There is beer in that little camping cup I promise.

There isn't going to be a little conclusion to this first proper blog post down here. Summer is on its way and that means the adventure season is here.

Consider this the beginning.

ed.

Wrenching on the Oily Stuff

Don't they break down a lot? 

That is what people say to us. My answer is simple. Anything mechanical can break. 

It's part of her charm. Turning the key and hearing the starter that you installed yourself 2 summers ago, the day before Bugjam, turn over her aircooled motor. It's exciting and if you need to ask why, then you just don't get 'it'. Doris is over 33 years old. Things will break. 

But we will fix her.

This is where we'll document what makes Doris tick. It's where we'll post what needs oiling, what needed replacing and how we replaced it. We'll recommend specialists, spare parts and upgrades. 

They are not called Volkswagens for nothing.

Projects - They're What VW Intended

There is an unwritten rule. You cannot own a VW camperbus without making it your own. 

It's impossible. 

So whenever we add another personal touch to Doris we'll post it here, in Projects. We have plans. She needs a new rock and roll bed, she needs new hubcaps, an interior makeover is planned too. And stickers. You can never have enough stickers.

She'll never be finished, but that's the point.

When we start something new, we'll post it here.

Tasty Nom Noms

You have to get creative when you only have two gas hobs. Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, we almost always cook our camping teas inside Doris. Sometimes we crack out the barbecue, on special occasions. One pot meals are our specialty, they help keep things quick and simple. When you have a sunset to enjoy you don't want to get complicated.

Everything we make is vegetarian, too.

Nosh is where we will collect together our favorite campervan meals, posting recipes and methods, showing how we get the most out of Doris's kitchen. So, there's no meat, but stick with us, some of our creations will suprise you. Gutes Essen!