Ah Tuesday… weekly blog day. How has your day been? I hope you’ve had a good one, with no lingering stress and plenty of internal and external smiles. I started my day by dropping off a set of tyres at a workshop for my husband, before spending the day hunched over my laptop at work in various meetings and doing the work they pay me to do. Lunch was a chicken salad sandwich from Sainsburys, along with some cherry tomatoes, cucumber and grapes I took with me to snack on. And dinner this evening was the leftover paella I cooked in my new skillet last night.
Thankfully, though, you don’t open my weekly blogs to read about what I do on a Tuesday, because they are generally (naturally) very work focused – some might say a little bit dull. Rather, these little week-in-my-life posts are about the fun things I’ve done or lessons I’ve learnt over the course of the whole week.
The focus of this particular weekly blog episode, then, will be the last couple of days. We have been spoilt with the weather on the last of our three Bank Holiday weekends here in England this month – I hope you have been able to spend at least some time outdoors to make the most of that. I’m not sure when the weather is meant to break, no doubt that will be in a couple of weeks when I’m hiking in Cumbria!!
Batsford Arboretum
I think I’ve mentioned in weekly blog posts gone by that we have a list in OneNote of local-ish places to visit. This means that when we fancy heading out to see something new, we have a list of ready-made ideas to help make sure we can get up and go rather than spend hours researching. This weekend was an excellent opportunity to tick another couple of places off that list, starting with Batsford Arboretum.
Batsford Arboretum, apparently also known as “the Cotswold’s secret garden”, is home to a unique collection of some of the world’s most beautiful and rare trees, shrubs and bamboos spread across 60 acres.
We spent a couple of hours wandering around, using the (terribly drawn!) map to find all the hidden – and not so hidden – features of the garden. I think it’s the sort of place where it helps to have some knowledge of trees and plants, a bit more than we do anyway, but we got by just about okay. My husband and I decided that we prefer soft trees to hard ones (Giant Redwoods versus Douglas Firs), that woodland walking is superior to grassy fields, and that we’d very much like a back garden with woodland and a decent sized brook running through it that we can sit next to and ponder life’s big questions (and eat our sandwiches!).
It turned out it was the perfect week to go, as the famous Pocket Handkerchief Tree (also called a Ghost Tree) was in full flower. I’ve never heard of such a tree before, but it was so pretty, and quite rare if the articles I’ve read are accurate. I can totally see why it gets its name.
£10 for a Pasty?!
The arboretum is a few minutes’ drive from Moreton-in-Marsh, so we headed to this popular Cotswold village to get some lunch and have a mooch. As a bonus, parking in the main car park is free on a Sunday.
We walked past a bakery and saw the takeaway pasties were £5 and thought, ‘we can do better than that’, so continued walking along the main street having a gander at the menus as we went by. After a wander we went into Huffkins thinking that would make for an excellent lunch… but when we saw they were charging £9.95 for a pasty – an actual ten pounds – we abandoned that one!
Look, I know food is pricey at the moment, and we were in a bit of a touristy village which adds on extra on top, but that is ridiculous. They also wanted £4.75 for a Belgian bun, which seemed equally extortionate. Gone are the days when you could get a pasty in a café for a couple of quid as the cheap option, and a bun for less than a quid. It’s not surprising most of the tables were empty.
We moved on again, finding ourselves with a window seat in Martha’s Coffee House. And I’m really glad we did, this was a great call. It had interesting menu (I had a cheese and rosemary scone with bacon and maple syrup), was reasonably priced (not cheap but seemed much better value), and the food and service were lovely. We’d definitely go back here next time we find ourselves in Moreton.
A Treasure Trove of Memorabilia
After lunch we decided to check out Wellington Aviation Museum, a privately owned treasure trove of RAF memorabilia. I’d spotted it on the map as we drove into the village, and decided it was worth a look, as these private collections are often full of hidden gems you wouldn’t find anywhere else.
Within part of an old Victorian school building, this collection is the result of one man’s passion and pride at having served in the Royal Air Force. It is a window into how the second World War impacted upon a small market town like Moreton. Both the main room and the garage are crammed full of exhibits including photographs, bits of aircraft (including a couple of engines), personal effects, maps, and more.
It only took is an hour, but it was well worth a look around, and I’d highly recommend it. It’s only open on Sundays, but if you find yourself with a bit of time to spare when you are in or around Moreton, definitely check it out. Entry is £3.
Petromax Paella
In my last weekly blog episode I said I would be trying out my new Petromax cast iron skillet over the bank holiday – and I did keep my promise. I had planned on cooking something really simple in it like eggy bread or bacon sandwiches for breakfast to give it a proper basic test run before I cooked dinner in it, but that didn’t quite work out, so I ended up going all in and christened it with paella.
Paella is something I cook indoors on a semi-regular basis (I know my version is not super traditional, so don’t judge me too harshly!), and as it’s something that is traditionally cooked over fire, it seemed like a good option for my first skillet recipe. My version uses chorizo and prawns, onion, bell pepper and peas.
Cooking Outdoors
I don’t think it’s a slight on the skillet to admit in my weekly blog that I had to put in much more effort than I would normally for a Monday evening meal. It took two hours, including the time spent preparing and lighting the fire, waiting for it to burn to a temperature good for cooking on, and then cooking and eating dinner. The biggest difference was being unable to truly regulate the heat, given I was cooking on a wood fire, but having eaten delicious paella for dinner yesterday evening, and the leftovers earlier this evening, I reckon I can call this test a success!
Most importantly, I thoroughly enjoyed the extended period spent in my garden, tending the fire, and cooking our meal – and the extra smokiness from cooking on flame really did make the paella taste great. I’m not going to start cooking all my weeknight dinners over my fire bowl, but I very much intend to use this a lot more this summer.
I’ll use the skillet a few more times before I write a proper gear review here on Splodz Blogz – if you’ve got suggestions on what I should cook next, please do comment below.
In the Mail
It’s been a rather superb week for deliveries…
Hiking Socks
During the Cotswold Way I decided that I could do with some lightweight hiking socks for summer hiking. I have a selection of really fantastic hiking socks, but they are all full on midweight cushioned socks which are perfect for spring and autumn, but keep my feet too warm in summer. In preparation for the Cumbria Way, then, I have treated myself to four new pairs of socks – oh the luxury!
I went for one pair each of the Bridgedale Lightweight Merino Endurance Boot Socks, Bridgedale Lightweight Merino Performance Crew Socks, Darn Tough Bear Town Micro Crew in Aqua, and Darn Tough Hiker Micro Crew in Denim (actually a midweight sock but a shorter cut than all my others). Thanks to discounts and offers, I spent around £50 on the four pairs, which is an awful lot of money, but I rather hope these last as long as the socks I already have in my drawer.
Question is… do I wear these and wash them once before I hike the Cumbria Way next month? Or do I pack them new? What would you do?!
Paper Bag
This is a really fun gift I’ve been sent to try out. Paper Bag Co make backpacks out of paper designed as a sustainable option for festival goers. “The Festival Bag” is for people who want something fun for this summers trips while being mindful of the environment and avoiding single use plastics. And while I’m not heading to a festival, I reckon this will be perfect for road tripping this summer.
I really like it. It’s much sturdier than I’d imagined, and even has a zip closure to keep all the contents secure. It’s certainly not a one-use thing, it seems well constructed and has a waterproof coating, although I assume it won’t cope with too much rain. It came with a bunch of leave no trace-inspired essentials inside, too – a tee (which will make the perfect sleep shirt), folding coffee cup made from wheat, bamboo compressed face towels, dissolvable body wash, bamboo toothbrush and toothpaste tablets, natural wax earplugs, a biodegradable cornstarch poncho, and even an eco-toilet roll…
I intend to take the bag (and most of the contents) on my motorcycle road trip over in Europe later this summer. I’ll let you know how it fairs being slung in and out of my top box over the course of a week!
Kula Cloth
The leave no tracers amongst you will be pleased to know that I have finally got around to buying myself a Kula Cloth. It’s been on my gear list for at least a couple of years, with the intention of making my outdoor adventures have a little less impact on the environment.
This little square of material is a very nicely designed pee rag. On one side (the plain black side), it’s made from a super absorbent and very quick drying silver-infused microbial fabric, which you use to pat yourself dry after peeing outdoors, instead of loo roll. The other side (with the printed design – I went for ‘birds of a feather’) is waterproof, so your hand stays dry and clean. It has a handy hanging loop to attach it to your pack for quick access, and fastens in half so it doesn’t touch your pack once used, or indeed, get dirty on your hike.
Pee rags eliminate the need to pack out used toilet tissue, which will almost certainly need to be kept in some kind of single use plastic bag such as a dog poo bag of or freezer bag. It’s another step in my desire to leave no trace when outside, and to reduce my impact on the environment where I can.
I bought mine from Vampire Outdoor Gear, specialise in women’s products, plus size backpacks, and plus size women’s outdoor clothing.
I’m yet to try it but it will be coming with me to Cumbria next month. I guess I’ll let you know how I get on with it in practice!
Inghams Walking Holidays
As we come to the end of National Walking Month (read weekly blog episode 115), I received a really lovely package from Ingham’s in celebration of them launching walking holidays.
The package, which I totally know is to encourage me to talk about their new walking holidays on my blog, included a dark green Chilly’s water bottle, pair of Finisterre’s really thick wool hiking socks, and a box of Ingham’s walking themed Biscuiteers biscuits. Oh yes.
Known for winter breaks, Inghams are trying something new with these walking holidays, which work in much the same way as their winter holidays – with flights, transfers and accommodation included in the price. You get to hike as much or as little as you like around the most beautiful parts of Europe using Ingham’s recommended routes (or your own…), whilst still enjoying everything else you love to do on your holiday. The in-resort teams also organise guided walks, if you fancy meeting up with other like-minded people when you are away.
Would you go on a walking holiday like this? I could certainly be persuaded to; the format makes sense for skiing, so why not hiking?! They have resorts in Austria, Italy, Slovenia, France and Switzerland.
See You Next Tuesday
I think I’ll stop there for today so that I can get this weekly blog published and still have time to watch the first episode of the Sewing Bee before I go to bed. Don’t forget to share your skillet-friendly recipes in the comments, and I’ll see you next Tuesday for yet more random ramblings.
Buy Me a Cuppa?
If you enjoyed this weekly blog episode and fancy supporting me and my mini adventures in 2023, you can “buy me a coffee” (well, tea, if that’s okay). Head over to Ko-fi to find out more. Thank you.
