EVENTS & NEWS

New Forest Weekend – July 9-11, 2010

‘Where IS the New Forest?’ enquired the geographically challenged author of this piece when the trip was first mentioned. Well, just over two hours down the A36 from Bristol and there it is in all its verdant glory.   Our accommodation for the weekend was to be a 5 star luxury campsite on the outskirts of Brockenhurst, situated (not surprisingly) in beautiful woodland. 

Some of us prefer to enjoy a few home comforts while going about our outdoor exploits, and it was suggested to Julia that the only thing missing from her kit was the kitchen sink.  Janice, meanwhile, was eager to try out her recently acquired Vango Icarus 500, which is HUGE, much to the disgust of Clare who is thinking of writing to Trading Standards about her 5-person tent which barely accommodates her red silk pyjamas.

As cycling and walking were to be the main activities for the weekend, we soon made use of these skills to head to the pub for essential victuals and to entertain and be entertained by the few jokes we could muster between us.

After a peaceful night’s sleep (well apart from the chap who had clearly lost his way from the pub to his tent at 2:30a.m. and was shouting expletives that cannot be published here), we all awoke refreshed and raring to set off on a two-wheeled adventure through the Forest. At this point, and in obligatory British style, I must mention the weather, which was a real scorcher. So, when a couple of hours into the ride we happened upon an opportunity for river swimming there was no stopping us. While some had pre-empted this possibility by bringing costumes, others were not quite so well equipped but, undeterred, made best use of their underwear and other items to go for a plunge. As Dave discovered, padded cycling shorts are perhaps not the most befitting replacement for swimming trunks, but he was rewarded with a nice cool posterior for the rest of the afternoon.

Having experienced the delights of Beaulieu and Buckler’s Hard, we pedalled back to the campsite to prepare for an evening around the barbie.  Once Catherine had finished boiling her potatoes (it’s an Irish thing) on her industrial stove, and peace was restored, we were able to begin our musical soiree courtesy of Ian on guitar, and percussion provided by the gathered ensemble on various makeshift instruments created from plastic water bottles, cool boxes and the like.

The next morning we awoke to find that, much to our surprise, the leftovers from the barbecue had not been consumed by the ponies inhabiting our space.  An early morning downpour meant that we had to pack away wet gear before heading off to another part of the Forest for a ten-mile walk led by Steve, a Forestry Commission ranger whose extensive knowledge of the National Park gave us an insight into historical and wildlife facts that we would otherwise have been oblivious to.  A particular favourite was the ‘snogging tree’, a rare phenomenon where a beech and oak tree grow together as one.   A pub lunch provided welcome respite from the heat of the day, and many were tempted to stay put, but the remainder of the walk provided us with pleasant shaded woodland paths.

And so our weekend in the New Forest drew to a close. Thanks to Carol, Carol, Catherine, Clare, Darren, Dave, Ian, Jason, Julia, Matt, Mike, Sian, Sue, and Tim for great company, and a special thanks to Dave for organising a fantastic, fun-filled time in a beautiful location. 

Janice Fenton