Thursday 25 June 2009

A little learning......

Sorry it's been a while since I last updated the blog - why are good habits so hard to get into whilst the bad ones are hard to break? I guess if I knew the answer to that one I'd be a saint.



Whilst walking the dog this morning I stopped to take in the view and it dawned on me that although I was surrounded by plants and animals my knowledge of the plants are around me was pretty limited. I can identfy a broad selection of British birds and small mammels but ask me the difference between a moss and a lichen and wouldn't have a clue - I can tell you that the fungus growing on the tree behind me is a bracket fungus but which one?


When I was a child I relied on my dad to give me the information I needed - he was my walking talking guide book and always had an answer to "what's that bird?" or "what's that flower called?" and even "what animal left that poo there?". I'm not sure if it was his army training that helped him make up an answer on the spot or if he really knew all this stuff but it kept me happy and gave us something to talk about on our walks.


With this in mind I have made a new pledge (another good habit not to get into?) to try and learn a little more about the plants and animals that we encounter on our family walks. Today I had my camera with me and have photographed some of the plants and will endeavour to find out what they are, an interesting fact about each, and try and remember it so that on our next family walk I can impress my kids with my vast knowledge of all stuff natural.


So, my first plant:


Obviously I knew it was a thistle, but now I know that it is a creeping thistle.


As for an interesting fact, how about: the roots and leaves are edible but the roots have a propensity to cause flatulance and the leaves have spikes making them hard to digest. I think the idea of a fart inducing thistle will appeal to my kids, if your kids are a little more civilised than mine they might be interested to know that this plant provides food to over 20 varieties of finch!





Plant number two:


I would go as far as to say it's an iris (I've seen enough Van Gogh paintings to get that far). But so far that's all I know. I haven;t a clue as to whether it is an horticultaral escapee or a native British plant. I will try to find out and report back next week.






As we're in the middle of a heatwave I won't be doing much walking this week. I have had sun stroke before so will be doing all I can to make sure I don't suffer from that again. Hat, suncream and bottle of water will be my best buds for this week.

Don't forget that you can get sunhats and sunglasses for your kids at http://www.littlewideworld.co.uk/.

If your a twitter user you can keep up with our daily ramblings and share the bits of news that catch our eye by following us - our twitter user name is @littlewideworld.

Our fan page on facebook has recently had some discussion boards added - we're looking to know your favourite campsites, camping recipes and out and about tips. You'll also find details of any special offers and new products at the online store here; http://bit.ly/11V8hj


And my last word about the shop, we have just taken delivery of puck 10 backpacks in red... very nice they are too. I will be adding these to the site in the next 24 hours.

Wednesday 3 June 2009

More sunshine, More time to enjoy the outdoors

Wow, it's June already.


A quick rundown of walking festivals this month;


The Gower Walking Festival includes 47 guided walks at day and night taking in the history and wildlife of the stunning peninsula between the 6th and 21st June. More details at http://www.mumblestic.co.uk/.


Bishops Castle walking festival in Shropshire runs from the 9th - 11th June with 11 guided walks including Railway walks, Iron Age forts and woodland walks. Details at http://www.walkingfestival.co.uk/.


Langport Two-Day waling festival runs over the 13th and 14th June. Eight walks through the Somerset countryside run over the 2 days. Contact the organisers via Slams@btinternet.com for further details.


Rothbury and Coquedale Midsummer Festival in Northumberland runs during the week commencing 13th June. The walks cost £7 and all funds raised will go to the Northumberland National Park Good Nature Fund. details at http://www.rothburywalking.co.uk/.

The 13th & 14th of June is the date for the Muirkirk Walking Festival in East Ayrshire. Visit http://www.east-ayrshire.gov.uk/ for further details.

Herefordshire Walking Festival runs in the same week as the Rothbury festival and includes 61 guided walks so there's bound to be something to suit whatever your ability. Walks cost £3, children walk free. http://www.walkingfestival.co.uk/

Details of the Peak District's Historic Borders Walking Festival can be found at visitchesterfiels.info. This walking festival includes walks and cycle rides in the peak district with the "longest walk on the longest day".


There are loads more events running up and down the country and if we have missed something you think should be mentioned please drop me a line at campingkidz@littlewideworld.co.uk.

I am still traipsing up and down the ridgeway - sometimes with the kids, sometimes not. This week saw a 7 mile stretch nicely tucked under our belts as we walked between Goring and East Ilsley. Sunburn was aquired and the dog managed to get a blister! I had no idea dogs could get blisters. This weeks walk is weather dependent and looks like it will probably be a stretch of Ridgeway between Chinnor and Nuffield, part of which is under trees to shade us from the forecast rain.

At the shop; we have taken delivery of more kids backpacks. I'm delighted to say our best selling pack, the Vaude Puck 10, is back in stock. The Puck 10 is the perfect pack for nature detectives as it comes with it's own magnifying glass and seating mat for sitting very still waiting for bugs to come out. My son has been using his for the last year to carry everything from his packed lunch at school to binoculars and gaiters when he is out exploring. We have also added the Ayla 6 pack in a variety of colours - the red arrived this week and is certainly my favourite.

Get in touch; As always I love hearing about the outdoor adventures you ar ehaving with your family so please share stories, walking & camping tips or recipes, or general chat via any of the following methods;

Email; campingkidz@littlewideworld.co.uk
Twitter; http://twitter.com/LittleWideWorld
We also have a Camping Kidz facebook page which we are trying to make a little more interesting - I've created a few discussion boards here were we can share camping tips and recipes so if you have something to share why not get in touch here. Or if you have a question or subject you'd like to discuss add it to the discussion board.