Who doesn't like a little weekend away. With 3 kids and a dog it can be quite difficult and fairly expensive. Last year we made a spontaneous decision to purchase a caravan. So we can endure cheap UK breaks as a family. This is the 5th time we have been away in it now, with our latest holiday costing £60 for a 3 night. Now, this caravan is nothing special, a bit battered, a bit bruised, but in full working condition. In my eyes that's ideal, especially with kids who are just guaranteed to destroy it regardless. We named our caravan 'The Rolling Turd' from the late Robin Williams film 'RV' (it's absolutely hilarious if you haven't seen it, both ourselves and the kids love it)! Anyways we have had a few getaways now in our Rolling Turd and here's how we got on in Matlock, Peak District. Everything we did was child and dog friendly to suit our family.
In this piece I mention our excursions to Llam park, The Old Cheese Shop in Harrington, Cromford Canals, and Lumsdale (Lumsdale was the best, so if I bore you please go down the bottom to check out Lumsdale it was absolutely stunning!)
Day 1
We aren't the earliest of risers plus it was someone's birthday (mine but we won't go in the detail about that, apart from I got the cutest present! A dachshund bride and groom. So cute 😍) .
So we got to the campsite at around 3pm an hours drive from out house. It was a lovely campsite called Birchwood Farm, we specifically picked this one as it was in a fab location, had an on-site play park for the children and was reasonably priced. The kids helped to unload the car then darted off to the park. Which was great as they were out of my hair 😂. I sorted the insides whilst Tom sorted the outside. I definitely had the easiest of jobs as it's basically putting a few bags away, but shh, as far as he's concerned it takes me ages!
That night after dinner, which was our specialty of hot dogs. We headed off in the woods right next to the campsite. It was a fab little explore, the boys pretended they were mountain climbers, climbing over tree roots, up hills and through foliage. Within the woods we discovered a rope swing hung from a tree, handmade dens and trees so tall they swayed in the wind causing them to squeak which actually terrified me. This little walk did the children wonders as they went to bed as soon as we got back! The boys share the back bed that we leave out as it's too much effort to convert back to a seating area each day. Tink is still a dinky dot so she slept in her carry cot on our bed with us, as we felt this was the safest option for her.
Rise and shine Day 2
The day's plan included a trip to Dovedale to see their iconic stepping stones, and a trip to a highly recommenced cheese shop, in Harrington. Highly typical of us, the day didn't go according to plan, we didn't go to Dovedale but in fact Llam National Park. We didn't realise this until mid walk that we got the wrong place! I was gutted we didn't get to see the stepping stones at Dovedale but Llam Park didn't disappoint us, with a stunning waterfall, scenic walks along the river Dove, and a wander through the field full of sheep and newborn lambs, such a beautiful sight. Throughout the walk there were little signs to engage the children with little activities. We walked for about an hour, had our lunch then set off for the cheese shop!
What a disaster that turned out to be too. We actually drove through the village of Harrington where the cheese shop was, even saw a sign for it. But instead listened to the sat nav until we arrived at an Iceland car park in Buxton, which was clearly wrong! We spent around an hour going round in circles, trying to find this local deli, which is quite easy to find! Just type in Harrington. You can't miss it, with a small car park right in the centre (free of charge).
From the outside The Old Cheese Shop is a lovely quaint sight, (we tied our pup up outside). Inside, there was a wide selection of cheeses, including the local Harrington Silton and Dovedale Blue. It was a shame there were no tasters on the counter as this always helps with decision making! The little shop was busy with a steady flow of people came in so we had to be quick, not really having a clue what we were buying we spent around £20 on a selection of cheeses, a box of biscuits and a jar of handmade pear and walnut chutney to complete the ideal cheese and biscuit. Now to set off back home to enjoy our cheese and biscuits with a bottle of red!
Day 3
We started the day with a relaxing morning, the children playing in the park. At midday we went for a stroll down the Cromford Cannel, we would have liked to look round the Cromford Mills but we had Flo (the dog) with us. The boys got to play poo sticks, and have a go at crossing little streams. Again there were sheep everywhere! So many sheep everywhere and gorgeous landscapes. For lunch we stopped off in a local pub, The Fishpond that was dog friendly. We ordered 2 pizzas for £15, a side of chips and pulled pork nachos, all that fed the 5 of us and we probably didn't even need the nachos.
Lumsdale
Fully fueled we set off to Lumsdale at around 4pm. Fairly difficult to find, we thought we were going the wrong way again! Once arrived the sight immediately away was stunning, the waterfall was a natural beauty. I thought that this was it, but the entire place was huge. A huge waterfall over hung trailing rocks which you can get so close to and walk through. The site used to be an old painting mill built in the 16th century. There are lots of old uneven steps, it's unsuitable for a pushchair, so Tom had to carry Isabel. Picturesque old ruins remained that you could walk through with tunnels to the water. Words can't describe how amazing it was but I hope my pictures captured the moment of true beauty. This was ours and the children's highlight of the ENTIRE trip. Totally dog friendly and free it's an experience not to miss.
There was so much more we wanted to explore but just ran out of time, or it wasn't suitable with a dog. The other areas we wish to explore in a future date would definitely be the Cromford Mills, The Heights of Abraham.
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