Swimming, Camping and Exploring

 The spell of good weather we'd enjoyed over the Bank Holiday weekend continued into the week, thankfully. Little Misses disappointment at not getting into the waterpark the day before was short lived, and after a lazy start to the morning we were joining the masses in the queue to get into Alpamare. Overhearing staff members talk about the unprecedented crowds of the previous day made me very grateful we hadn't been able to get tickets.

 

It was still very busy. We didn't go on the slides, but we had a wonderful time in the outside heated pools, and indoor pool with wave machine. Little Miss loved it. 

On Wednesday, I was heading off for my first ever camping trip with the chap. We had booked somewhere not too far away, near Helmsley. We met in Helmsley, stocking up on supplies for our night under canvas, including filling up the cool box at the butchers, then we set off to our camp site and set up our new tent. 

The field next to our tent

The site itself was lovely, situated next to wide open fields and very quiet in itself. We had plenty of space. 

Yorkshire Spa Retreat

We went for a long walk, and decided to take a wander to the nearby Yorkshire Spa Retreat. It's a place I've wanted to go to for a while so I was keen to take a look. Luckily for us, especially since the local pub had been closed, they had a fabulous bar and restaurant where non-guests were welcome. We had a drink, and I had a bit of a nosey at the spa itself, before taking the scenic country walk back to our tent. 

So happy with my hanging grill

We set up our fire pit and the fabulous new hanging grill I've bought to cook on it with, and then tried to light a fire. We're clearly not well practised because it took us forever, but we got there in the end, and then cooked burgers and chicken kebabs. It all tasted delicious, washed down with cans of Madri. 

Then, we just sat by our fire and listened to the peaceful sounds of the country side. As the evening went on, a change in the weather started to come in and it grew colder. Time to retire to our cosy little tent. 

The chap cooking breakfast

I slept surprisingly well and the chap cooked our breakfast on the stove the next morning. We agreed, we need a new stove before we go camping again because everytime there was a gust of wind, our stove went out. As we finished off our breakfast and washed up our plates, we heard a rumble of thunder in the distance signifying it was time to pack up our camp. 

We did get a bit rained on, but missed the worst of it thankfully. It was a fabulous experience and we can't wait to do it again, with a better stove. 

Sunset over our tent

The break in the weather didn't mark the end of half-term adventures, but you'll have to wait for the next instalment.