Category Archives: countrywalk

What to Wear on a Country Walk – Winter 13/14

Country Walk EnglandWe have nine more weeks of Winter and that has not stopped us from going on country walks around our area of Bath, England.  However the shorts, sleeveless shirts, and trainers of our summer attire have had to be replaced by our winter wardrobe. When you are in England I always recommend double checking the weather right before you head out.  Check the temperature, the wind, and if rain or snow might be a factor.  Next, it is always good to plan your route before hand to give yourself a good time reference for how long you will be out.  With your information gathered you can than gauge how to dress appropriately for your country walk.  Remember just because you are going for a country walk, does not mean you have to dress frumpy. There are so many fashionable looks from Peter Hahn you can put together for your country walks from practical footwear to appropriate coats.

PeterHahnWinter

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An Autumn Country Walk

Autumn Country Walk

Welcome to Travel Tuesday with Bonnie here at A Compass Rose.  As we have just under two weeks left of Autumn I wanted to take you on a trip to England with me to view some of the picturesque views outside of the city of Bath.  While it may be getting much colder, we donned our coats, hats, and scarves and wellies too.  What could be more perfect than stopping halfway on top of the hillside to enjoy a warm mug of tea while looking down on the towns below? It was a beautiful weekend and I have prepared a lovely picture journey, so that you can join us vicariously through this post. Do not forget to link up with your travel, expat, and wanderlust posts below!

Autumn Country Walk

Autumn Country Walk Autumn Country Walk Autumn Country Walk Autumn Country Walk

Autumn Country Walk

Autumn Country Walk Autumn Country Walk Autumn Country Walk Autumn Country Walk

Autumn Country Walk

Autumn Country Walk Autumn Country Walk Autumn Country Walk Autumn Country Walk

Autumn Country Walk

Autumn Country Walk Autumn Country Walk Autumn Country Walk

Autumn Country Walk

Autumn Country Walk Autumn Country Walk Autumn Country Walk Autumn Country Walk

Autumn Country Walk

Autumn Country Walk

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Share your Travel stories and wanderlust addictions.

HERE IS HOW IT WORKS:

1. Share a post about travel! From road trips to trips abroad and from past travels to dream vacations. You can write about travel tips and tricks, favorite places to stay, or anything in between! Just make it about traveling somewhere!
2. Grab the lovely button. If you run into trouble, just make sure to mention Bonnie in a link! ;)
3. Linkup goes live every Tuesday after 9 am GMT.
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5. Please only one linked up post per blogger. Save other posts for future linkups!
6. The First Tuesday of every month will be a themed prompt if you want to join in!



* Photography by Bonnie Rose Photography © 2007 – 2013 All Rights Reserved | www.bonnie-rose.co.uk

To Solsbury Hill at Sunset

It has been a good several weeks since we have gone on a country walk.  At first it started with choosing to go kayaking instead as the end of summer was approaching.  However, in the last few weeks we have been so busy that we have not been able to schedule in one of our favourite pastimes.  It is our favourite reason for choosing to live on the outskirts of Bath where country meets town. Being able to just walk outside of our house to go on a country walk is a simple pleasure we all enjoy.  So this Saturday, Ryan made sure we fit in a country walk even if it was getting closer to evening.  It was our goal to end up on Solsbury Hill to watch the sunset.  We saw cows, sheep, and a pair of each of the following animals: horses, deer, and rabbits.  The boys collected their first round up of conkers for the 2013 autumn season, to play against each other back at home.  Then we watched the sun go down as we made our way to to the top of Solsbury Hill, where we got to see all the twinkling lights of the towns down below.  It was our first evening hike and a great one to start off the season here in England.  I really hope then when we find our new place to live in the coming months it is close enough to the country so we can continue this favourite weekend ritual of our expat life. 

*photography by Bonnie Rose Photography © 2007 – 2013 All Rights Reserved | http://www.bonnie-rose.co.uk

Cadair Idris

True Colours

I am linking up today with Casey from True Colours for the travel series: Wanderlust.  The theme for August is Natural Wonders and I continue our recap of our trip to Wales with a sneak peek of our mountain hike. We stayed in the town of Dolgellau in Gwynedd for our 10th Wedding Anniversary.   Dolgellau is located next to the mountain Cadair Idris in the southern end of Snowdonia National park. The famous peak on Cadair Idris is a popular location with many paths from which to choose from to get there.

The day before our hike my husband and I had prepared our boys for the trek with a stop at the local sporting store in town for hiking boots.  While there we talked to the store keeper about which path to take to the top.  He told us of two ways: one easy path and one more challenging trail.  On the day of during our hike we got to the point where we had to choose either the longer easier path or the ‘shorter’ more challenging path.  Since we take our sons, six and eight, on regular country walks in England we decided we could bypass the easy way.  
Our journey took us up the grassy sides of the mountain, through a trail of rocks and boulders, pass rock formations created by the passing of a glacier, and next to crystal clear lakes and rocky streams.  All of which were frequented by sheep, which became a common sight through out our ten hour hike. 
While the path we chose was more challenging than the easy path which our trail met up with eventually, it was nothing compared to the way back down.  Imagine making your way down a steep trail where your feet constantly have to secure their footing on the loose rocks before taking your next step. However it was all worth it to make it to the top peak with my husband and sons.  To be so high up that the clouds practically touched our heads, to see the towns so small below, and see as far out as the ocean where it met the land.  

My Wanderlust for Wales has only deepened since our journey. This is Cadair Idris.  Our first mountain to climb with our boys, and the first to many more to come. Both for hikes and for upcoming photographs from our time in Wales.
*Bonnie Rose Photography © 2007 – 2013 All rights reserved | http://www.bonnieroseblog.co.uk

Country Walk in Dollegau, Wales

First off if you are a reader from Casey’s blog, We Took the Road Less Traveled, and have come here by way of Essentials for a Country Walk, thank you for stopping by! Today I continue our recap from our 10th Anniversary in Wales.  
It is our first full day in Dollegau and we took the first part of the day fairly easy by exploring the town and taking all the kids to the park.  Ryan really wanted to do more exploring, so despite the looming dark clouds he got me out of the house for some alone time.  It was a good thing we had waterproof shoes and rain jackets for we got rained during the walk back.  However the rain only enhanced our experience in the picturesque countryside of Wales.  Between all the wild life I got on camera (minus the deer that leaped out into the road…it was too quick!) and the beautiful backdrops it was as if we had stumbled into our own fairytale.  When you are celebrating ten years of marriage what else could you possibly ask for?  
It always astounds me how much of a work out a simple country walk can be and how hot it can get with my wardrobe choices.  So when it decided to pour down rain on us, i actually welcomed the cool rain with open arms.  Seeing the really dark clouds and many electrical lines we decided to do an impromptu run back to our bed and breakfast.  I loved every second of it and so glad that Ryan convinced me to a pre dinner country walk.  It become one of my most favourite and cherished memories from our trip. I hope you enjoy the photos! 

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I will try to keep this short but I am a huge fan of my sponsor, Erika, of the blog Chimerikal. We met by way of the Blog Every Day in May challenge and since then I have loved reading her posts about travel, the world, and all her inspirational outlooks on life.  If you are having a bad case of the monday’s (or even if you are not) you should definitely check out Erika’s blog today for inspiration to brighten your week. 
Recommended Posts by Erika:
Be Friends with Erika: Blog | Twitter | Facebook


*photography belongs to Bonnie Rose Photography © 2007 – 2013 All rights reserved | http://www.bonnie-rose.co.luk 

Monkton Farleigh Manor – Fete

Yesterday we returned to Monkton Farleigh to go to the Summer Fete at the Monkton Farleigh Manor. You may remember our beautiful country walk in Browns Folly and Monkton Farleigh last weekend.  It was another gorgeous day with lovely warm sun and gentle english breezes to accompany the day.  
Maddox had the ‘class pet’ home for the weekend.  So Mikey, the monkey, got to come along on our country walk to Monkton Farleigh.  He even got to enjoy swinging on some trees in the forest of Browns Folly and was gracious enough to let me photograph the moment for Maddox. 
For it would not be odd at all to see a monkey swinging from the vines in a forest in Somerset, no?
This was actually a photograph on our walk back at the end of the day out, retracing our journey to return back home.  I want to say it is about an hour walk from our home outside Bath into Monkton Farleigh.  While it could have taken much less by car, we really enjoy our country walks through the villages, countryside of sheep, woodland forest, and colourful fields.  So much we would miss if we had a car. 
We were greeted by music when we arrived at the Monkton Farleigh Manor which gave my experience of this fete as very posh.  The manor house alone with the gardens and fountains would be a dream location to live in my books.  Many people showed up, but it was not so overly crowded that it made in unenjoyable. The boys even ran into several classmates from their school. 
The lush purple lavender hugging a sundial and the on looking gardens from the manor.  This was the view Ryan and I shared while we sat and enjoyed our cream tea and cakes on the lawn.  Lush indeed! There were lots of stalls set up with either things to sell, like the five books for a £1 that I partook in, and things to eat.  We enjoyed cream tea and cakes not once but twice, ate hot dogs, and almost had ice cream but they ran out by the time we managed to get around to that stall.  All in all it was a perfect day and a perfect location for a summer fete. 

What summer event in England would be complete without Pims?  They actually ran out and the long que of us waiting for our Pims stood patiently until they were able to replenish their stock.  It then sold out again in no time flat.  I am certainly not surprised. 

They boys were each given a few quid to spend where they liked.  Maddox of course went straight for a hot dog and some ice cream before partaking in the waterballoons.  
Ronan surprised me with how well he did in this ‘break the plates’ activity.  He was spot on with every single throw and broke something on every ball except one, which instead of shattering china bounced off.  He and his classmates then all had water balloons and were chasing each other through out the gardens.  When their ballons all broke they resorted to cups being filled by the fountain and dumping them on each other. It was about that time we decided to walk home.  Stop while you’re ahead, yeah?
My favourite part, aside from enjoying this wonderful afternoon with my family, was seeing the horses.  There were two in the field in front of the manor and they kept running together around the field.   They were so beautiful and I only wish I could go and ride with them. 

Of course I made Ronan take our photo in front of the gardens before we left.  It was a beautiful day and I wanted to remember every moment of it.

Q: Have you attended a Summer Fete in England or else where in the world this year yet?

Browns Folly & Monkton Farleigh

This weekend we were blessed with a break in the rain and a lovely sunny Saturday.  We took the opportunity to explore a new area near our home in Bath, England.  As active participants of country walks through the English countryside, we love finding new paths to enjoy.  We begun our walk through the town of Bathford up to the woods in the area known as Browns Folly.  My eldest had come here on a school trip this year and we had heard much about the mines and the ground flora we could find in the area.  We indeed did find some of the King Alfred’s cakes and the wild garlic. We also found a lovely horse that was very friendly, got stung by nettle, and covered in pollen as our path took us through a massive yellow field of blooming rapeseed plants. It was yet another day out in England where every ten minutes one of us would exclaim either how beautiful it was or how much we never want to move.  It is hard to feel sad or stressed out when you are outside scenes that look ripped out from a storybook.  Not to mention the tower that was so Rapunzel-esque and the beautiful view of our town below.  Here are a just a few of the many photographs I took on our country walk journey through Browns Folly and Monkton Farleigh. 

 

*photographs belong to Bonnie Rose Photography © 2013 All Rights Reserved | www.bonnie-rose.co.uk