Last weekend we were celebrating a friend’s 75th birthday down in the New Forest. As there were so many of us, three campervans and a tiny caravan Pod met up at Lytton Lawn Campsite near Milton On Sea.

We left home around 13.00 on the Friday afternoon and had a dreadful drive down through torrential rain and Friday afternoon traffic. At least the rain stopped by the time we arrived and it turned into a blustery but dry evening. As we were getting ourselves set up on our pitch, we found we had a stowaway!

We went round to our friends for a lovely meal and catch up ahead of the proper celebration the next day.

It was a last minute decision to join friends camping in the Cotswolds last week. They had found an adults only, over 30s site just outside of Bourton on the Water so we were hoping that it would be a tranquil and peaceful campsite. Field Barn Park was that and more. Generous 100sqm pitches with hedges for privacy, electric hook up and water points near every other pitch. Although a mile and a half from the hubbub of Bourton, it could have been 500 miles away as it was so relaxing and calm. It even had a farm shop with an honesty box and food waste disposal (a rarity on UK campsites).

We arrived on the Monday afternoon (August 18) just before our friends, Caroline and Val with their gorgeous dog, Luca. We had a chilled evening with a BBQ in the setting evening sun. A perfect start.

Having spent over 5 weeks recovering from knee surgery, we agreed that Jo needed a short break away. We decided to visit Mersea Island and have lunch in one of the seafood shacks on the seafront. Although it was the Friday of school half term, we managed to book a table at The Company Shed for 14.00 to give us plenty of time to get there. We also needed to factor in when high tide was as the causeway over to the island can flood. We were fine as we crossed a good two hours before but then it took us another half an hour to find somewhere to park. We managed to find a spot in the car park by the high street (just as well we don’t have a longer van!) but it meant a 20 min walk back to the sea front which was quite a way for Jo with her new knee!

We realised that we hadn’t been out in Dora for a while. This was mainly due to family commitments and Jo having knee surgery in late September. A while ago we had signed up for a rally with the Adria Owners Club down in Dorset. We hadn’t been on a rally with this lot before but thought we should give it a go. It also included a brewery tour so what’s not to like?

We left late on Thursday afternoon thinking that we would get caught up in all sorts of traffic but the run down was uneventful and in good time. We thought we wouldn’t arrive until around 21.30 but we were on our pitch at South Lytchett Manor Campsite (S4S#224625) well before 21.00. Dinner in the oven and bottle of wine opened. All very civilised.