Easter mini-adventures (egg-ventures?)

Spring has sprung

The grass has riz

I wonder where the birdies is?

They say the bird is on the wing

But that's absurd

I know that the wing is on the bird

Trad/unknown 

School and university holidays are coming to an end. The older crew members have been at work but it has been lovely to cram in lots of vitamin sea and mini-adventures over the last couple of weeks. The weather has definitely helped us get out and about. Apart from a quick trip to Somerset we've been enjoying the moors, countryside and coast of Devon. It is a beautiful county on the South West peninsula of England known for cream teas, fudge, pirates and stunning scenery. The local paper have dug out some facts about Devon and whilst I wouldn't like to comment on the accuracy of their reporting it makes for an interesting read (12 facts about Devon - Devon Live). 

I remember when we returned to Britain being struck by how green and lush everything was; the upside of all our rain. There are signs of spring everywhere and the National Trusts annual blossom watch has started.

We started the holidays up on Dartmoor with the younger crew members completing organised expeditions. The trips to collect them on different days were a perfect excuse to walk on the north moor and explore. The pretty little village of Lydford has a fascinating history and has a Norman fort, links to Vikings, a medieval prison (known as Lydford castle) and a church full of wooden carvings. Although it is now a tiny place it held an important role in British history. In 1086 'it collected as much tax as London' and at one point had its own mint (thank you to The history of Lydford website which has a lot more information about the village).

Lydford castle

Not far from Lydford, is open moor. Dartmoor is one of the wildest places in Britain and has areas which are as far away from roads as it is possible to get in this country. You can sometimes walk for hours and not see another person. The dog and I followed this old railway track that was built for transporting granite up to a point that we could see for miles over the moorland. 

 

 

Open moorland and track

We did a family road trip to Torquay one day and had a lovely walk along the sea front. This part of Devon is known as the English Riviera because of its sandy beaches and mild climate. You can see palm trees growing along the water front. The town grew from the hamlet of Torre with its important monastery which was founded in 1196 and is still standing today. Torquay became a popular Victorian seaside resort and has many grand buildings to show its history from the time it was known as the Queen of watering holes. It's a lovely place to promenade along the seafront.

When we arrived in Torquay on passage from Topsham several years ago now, we walked along the deserted sandy beach in the evening and wrote 'Tarquilla was here' in the sand. So this time the middle one carefully wrote 'Tarqy isn't here right now'.

          

We have also explored woodland and fields nearer our new land base, finding our way around the new area and watching the changes of spring. Lambs, bluebells and wild garlic are filling the countryside at the moment in Devon and the fresh spring greens of new leaves are colouring everything.

Easter is the traditional start of the boating season in Britain and marinas become busy with people preparing for the summer. We made sure that over the holidays there was some time for the boat and headed down to her mooring a few times. Time to carry on sorting her out. We enjoyed being out on the pontoons, it feels like coming home to walk back into the boat. We are often asked if we like the new house or are missing the boat - the answer is definitely both. The dog soon settled back onto the deck to watch everyone else around him working. 

So, spring is very much sprung in Devon and the year ahead promises lots more adventure.