This post is part of the A to Z Challenge.
On many occasions during my camping years I have, like all campers, experienced windy weather ranging from a gentle breeze to full-on gale force (as previously mentioned in my 'G' post) and so far I've come through it all with my tent or awning totally unscathed. Not so some of my possessions within said tent or awning though!
On one occasion three years ago, while camping at a lovely site in Cambridgeshire, I got back from a day out to find my flat screen portable tv lying face down on the groundsheet. What had been a very light breeze when I went out had increased to a wind during my hours away and I could only surmise that the side of the awning had blown inwards just enough to touch my tall larder unit on top of which was the tv; the unit must have rocked and the tv fallen off. Surprisingly the screen was okay so I plugged the set in and tentatively switched it on, fully expecting it to have suffered irrepairable internal damage, but against all odds it worked perfectly and continues to work to this day - not bad, considering it had fallen 4ft onto gravel hard standing!
Another occasion when my belongings were affected by the wind was back in 2011 on a lovely site right out in the east Yorkshire countryside. The site itself was just a huge level and very open field and yet again the wind struck while I was out for the afternoon. When I got back to the tent (the Kampa Minnis this time) it looked just like it had been ransacked - the two small tables were lying on their sides, the fridge was face down on the floor, the kettle, toaster and cutlery in a heap and the washing-up bowl face down, with the water which had been left in it soaking the tent carpet. Luckily nothing was damaged and I was able to dry out the carpet in the sunshine while I mopped and dried the groundsheet. And ever since then I do try to remember to move things away from the tent walls whenever I go out!
As far as water is concerned, this really links back to my previous post about views as it plays a big part in my photography. During my camping years I've taken many photos, especially on Anglesey, of harbours and beaches when the tide has been out, purely and simply because that's how it was at the time I was there, but one weekend a couple of years ago I deliberately revisited several places on the island when the tide was in. And what a difference water made; it filled what had, at other times, been empty stretches of sand, it floated the boats which had previously been beached at crazy angles, and it gave a whole different perspective to the views I was seeing. That weekend I must have got some of the best shots I've ever taken on that island and it reinforced one thing I already knew anyway - Anglesey is one of my two most favourite places in this country!
About Me
- Tigermouse
- Hi! I'm Eunice and I live in Bolton, Lancashire, with my two dogs Sophie and Sugar and an assortment of cats - well it used to be Sophie and Sugar, now it's Sophie and Poppie. I first began camping back in 1997 when my then partner took me to Anglesey for my birthday weekend. We slept in the back of the car - a hatchback - using the cushions off the settee at home as a mattress, and cooked and brewed up on a single burner camping stove. The site was good, the views were great, the weather fantastic and I was completely hooked. Following that weekend we got a two-man tent and some proper accessories and returned to Anglesey two weeks later, then over time we progressed to a three-man tent followed by an old trailer tent, then a new trailer tent, a campervan and finally a caravan. When my partner decided that the grass was greener on the other side of the street - literally - in April 2009 and I suddenly found myself alone after fifteen years, I decided there was no way I was going to give up camping and caravanning if I could cope on my own. This blog is the story of my travels, trials and tribulations since becoming a solo camper - I hope you like it
