We have a book which is now available through Amazon, it can be purchased in a good old fashioned paperback or digital for all you screen addicts out there. Please click on the links (right hand side of this page) if you wish to purchase, or search it out on Amazon. Some stories may be familiar from the blog, others will be new to all, its easy and light reading, hope you enjoy!
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Many exciting things have happened and too much time passed since our last overland voyage aboard Kaerus the trusty Land Rover. However, an ideal opportunity to spend a week on the road came this August. Earlier in the year I entered a photo competition which managed to land us full family tickets to the popular Tartan Heart music festival, held on the amazing Belladrum estate near Inverness. A new addition to our family, the now 9 month old Innes, meant a few minor adjustments were required to the ever adaptable Kaerus before adventures could commence. These included a front facing baby seat bolted in place between driver and passenger seats, a drive-away awning to add extra crawling/toddling room and a full set of stunning new cushions for the living space hand made by Melissa.
Packed and ready we hit the road North, stopping for supplies and a new gas bottle en-route. The first nights wild camp stop was in an area called ‘The Hermitage’. Situated on the river Tay in Perthshire, this beautiful old forest contains many of Britains tallest trees, planted by wealthy landowners known as the ‘planting Earls’ a few hundred years ago. It has been told that cannons were used to fire tree seeds across to far reaches of the lands, whatever their methods they worked well, giving generations of people an opportunity to enjoy the expansive woods here. Various Georgian follies have also been restored, including an enclosed building named Ossians Hall which protrudes from a cliff and allows birds eye views of huge waterfalls tumbling down a canyon. The rain made a good show throughout the evening but this did little to dampen our spirits and glorious sunshine returned by the morning. The day ahead brought us through the mighty moors and mountains of the Cairngorms before pushing onwards to Inverness. The traffic jams were immediately evident from thousands of festival fans heading towards Belladrum, a section which would usually take twenty minutes took around two hours but we still got to the site in time for rustling up some lunch. The campervan fields filled up quickly, good job we arrived early enough for a decent pitch, not too far from the main arenas but just far enough so as to get some peace when sleeping. All was now ready for the three days and nights of festivities that lay ahead, bring on Belladrum. This was to be our fourth visit to this festival, it seems to get better every time somehow, even the weather shone favourably for the entire duration. The huge array of stages, spread over old country estate gardens, offered sounds for all tastes as always; we caught classics from the likes of Elbow, The Coral, Dodgy, Richard Thompson, The Sugarhill Gang, Jonny Marr, Glasvegas, Hawkwind and many other seasoned sessionists. The folk stages gave us skilled sonatas from Wildwood Kin, Sam Kelly & the Lost Boys, Julie Fowlis plus many who's names I forget. The main arenas filled to burst for pop headliners like Lewis Capaldi, Churches, Jess Glynne and Tom Odell, all accompanied by eyewatering light shows and visuals. The Jazz, Blues and country stages gave us many an hour of easy listening too, not forgetting of course the new and emerging artists area, many of whom will no doubt be headliners here in the future. Other than musical merriment, there was an entire fairground complete with ferris wheel, stunt shows from Britain’s leading two wheel tricksters Team Extreme, late night hilarity from The Cuban Brothers, zorbs to roll about in, craft corners, science labs, comedy shows, poetry readings, cabaret and even a full sized Coop supermarket for restocking of essentials. A great spot for a breather from the hustle ‘n’ bustle is always the temple chapel on the estate grounds, here you can sit and listen to harpists and skilled violinists within the pleasing acoustic resonance of a Historic Scotland registered building. You may have to move on when a wedding begins of course, two were booked in the temple throughout the course of this festi. Each year a theme is chosen for the event and this year carried the ‘Sci-Fi’ tag. Previous years have seen all sorts, I recall a superhero theme where myself and Melissa dressed as Batman and a rather feminine version of Robin (Melissa was the Robin just to be clear!). This time we thought three eyed martians would be a simple enough go at it, a few second hand fancy dress items were collected together, coupled with a bit of stitching from Melissa and a pair of old wellies spray painted in green car paint by myself. The sun was at its hottest and I felt the heat a bit in my giant alien onesie, we decided to pass by the fancy dress show and competition, much to my relief as it provided a bit of shade within a circus big top. The array of outfits was impressive, people had made such a great effort all round and creativity ran free. As it came our turn to parade onto the stage limelight we gave the crowd a wave and introduced ourselves as an alien family, Innes looked quite bemused by it all, very much as if we were all from another planet! The entrants eventually all had their moment and the judges were left to what they do best. Well I could hardly believe it, first prize goes to ‘the alien family’, winning full family tickets to Belladrum 2020! Reeling slightly from the rather fortunate occurrence, we continued on our way, thanking Innes for being such a cute alien baby. Throughout the following evening we became localised celebrities, as I sat enjoying an organic IPA from the Black Isle Brewery, kids approached wanting to chat with the alien family and random well-wishers congratulated our win. As is the way with all good things, the time on this magical Inverness estate was ending too as midnight of the third night approached. Energy levels were ebbing, as was the battery power on Innes’ space themed fairy lights adorning his buggy. The final fireworks had finished and we sat on a grass bank beside a vintage steam tractor which still puffed away solemnly as its coal fires glowed a heart of embers, a pirate folk band played on a stage nearby offering some last unique and memorable melodies before we hit the hay. The following morn farewell was bid to our various temporary neighbours in the camp, all of whom had been very good company. The traffic jams on the way out were even slower than the way in and, as if the organisers had orchestrated the weather perfectly, the Highland drizzle returned upon departure from the site. The direction now was South, along the banks of bonnie Loch Ness, no sightings of Nessie but the views were a treat all the same. We stopped in the afternoon below Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in Britain, deciding to pitch camp there for the night. The rain threw a few tantrums over the evening but we still had a great walk along Glen Nevis and then popped into a nearby restaurant for a meal as it seemed a bit damp for us to cook outdoors. The next day our journey continued through one of my favourite places, Glencoe. I have spent time here in all seasons and all weathers over the years, every time the bleak splendour of the place strikes a chord in me and I look forward to my next visit. A brief lunch stop in the midst of Rannoch moor and then it was time for the home straight via Loch Lomond. As we approached Glasgow and Southern Scotland, Melissa and Innes snoozed a contented snooze in the passenger seats, tired out after an eventful trip. The grey summer drizzle coated Kaerus’s windscreen as she climbed the Erskine bridge over the Clyde, our sunny journey to the Tartan Heart of Scotland now seemed little more than a perfect dream. Kaerus, our overlander Landrover, has seen many a varied task over the past winter months but none quite so unusual as today's venture. An old friend got in touch the other day, excitedly informing me of a recent purchase which he was struggling with the logistics of moving. The item in question? A giant fibreglass head, modelled on the controversial comedian 'Jimmy Carr'...hmm. I went to have a look anyway and figured we could likely move it with a large trailer and a sense of humour. A slow, careful and comical journey followed, from the sunny Solway coast, through a scatter of local towns before heading inland through the Galloway hills and ending near the Ayrshire border. The 15 foot, surprisingly heavy cranium now begins its new life as a bustling public bar. The story behind this strange creation sums up to; starting its life in a prime time Walkers crisps TV advert some years back, reportedly costing 70 grand to make, it was then bought privately as a novelty item for a large summer festival, before being dry stored until now. So anyway, enough about Jimmy Carr's oversized bonce. The weather is now really warming here in the lush hills of Scotland, with this in mind the trusty roof tent will soon be refitted to Kaerus, transforming her out of a current guise as the farm work truck and back into the go-anywhere home on wheels. Happy camping! By Ben Ade
The sun has now set on our ‘Scotland to Sahara’ adventure; we have arrived back in the beautiful rolling hills of Alba. 15 thousand kilometres were covered over the duration of 6 months, exploring new sights and experiences throughout six different countries. Many people along the route, friends back home and also followers of the online blog have all pledged donations to the charity ‘Doctors without Borders’, our chosen charity for fundraising. Have a look at their website, www.msf.org.uk, to see the amazing work for yourself. Many more ideas for adventures are in the pipeline, as and when circumstances allow. If anyone has any suggestions on how to raise funds for the next voyage or worthy charities that would benefit from our support next time then please get in touch, we would love to hear from you. Updates will still appear on the blog from time to time, also the archives from the past 6 months are available to view and read there. For now it is farewell, but I will leave you with a quote from the American poet, Robert Frost. “Two roads diverged in a wood, and I, I took the one less travelled by, and that has made all the difference”. By Melissa Shaw “If you don’t eat all your greens, you won’t grow big and strong”. A phrase I’m sure we are all familiar with dating back to childhood dinner tables? During this journey our taste buds have comfortably adapted to the tantalizing taste of foraged foods. We have grazed happily on many a patch of land in various countries. Cooking up cauldrons of nettle and potato soup, shredding the leaves to add to most dishes, discovering that a humble pan of sautéed stingers replaces the greens of spinach or kale quite nicely. Mulberries shaken straight off the tree into an umbrella offers a juicy, sweet treat to satisfy the sugar cravings. Wild damsons reduced in a pan with sugar and cinnamon, over the gentle embers of the fire brought a mouth-watering delight. Fresh off the tree almonds, peaches, oranges, dates, figs and cherries are just a few other treats from nature we enjoyed. One evening in England, as we grew weary with few options of a camp, we turned down a dead end road with the map ensuring a sea inlet. Parked alongside the narrow road we began our camp preparations before a brief wander to explore today’s garden. We were met by many dog walkers, fishermen, kayaks enthusiasts and afternoon strollers. It wasn’t until the evening that a gentleman approached us in our cab to provide a suggestion. He explained that we may suffer from a bit of disturbance as the night progresses, due to the youth’s knowledge of this secluded spot. “Why don’t you drive back along the road and come stay on my piece of land? You will be much safer there.” Accepting his kind offer, we remained parked up there for the best part of a week! Enjoying the benefits of the security of his land, knowing we were welcome. The owner had to go to away for a few days and advised us to help ourselves to his bountiful vegetable patch, or they would just go to waste. Neighboring horses would nicker to us across the fence, keen to see what we were up to. Wind chimes hung in the trees and would sing across the garden, adding to the sense of tranquillity. On our daily wanderings, along with the iron rich nettles we also gathered buckets of blackberries raspberries, sloe berries and ‘hit the jackpot’ when we discovered heavily laden apple and pear trees growing along hedgerows and woodland walks. I was quick to capture the moment and set to work preparing the apples for blackberry and apple turnovers (on the camp fire, of course!) Jar upon jar of apple sauce were also filled, dated and seal to ensure we relive the moment, perhaps at Christmas time. We quickly began to meet the locals and familiarise with the area. Ben and his sweet tooth made repeat visits to sample a selection of flapjacks and brownie goodies from garden stalls. A busy and inspiring couple we met gathered funds by selling their abundance of brightly coloured vegetables, earthy potatoes and free range eggs. We were beginning to feel very revived and refreshed as our bodies absorbed each nutrient, mineral and enzyme they could attain from all the beautiful veggies and fruit picked. Foraging for fresh food really can save money, benefit your health and, best of all, tastes great! By Ben Ade Photograph captured on a cold night in South-East England. A few nights were spent under the mighty boughs of this ancient oak tree whilst we explored the nearby coastline on foot by day. The majestic arbor was marked as a sizeable entity on maps from 1614, we learnt after chatting with a local land owner, giving a full age of well over 400 years. Many a weary traveller or gypsy family will have stopped here over the centuries I expect, we certainly found it a lovely area to spend some time and rest the wheels. By Ben Ade Our faithful four wheel drive vehicle proved herself once more, this time by lending a hand at the ‘Green Meadows’ music festival. Located between Cambridge and Peterborough, in the lush grounds of Elton hall, we spent around a week here, helping out and enjoying the summer festival. Winching out the mud bound revelers in between lashings of rain was the image I previously had in mind, the weather turned out to be rather lovely though and the mud never materialized much. During set up some traders got stuck and Kaerus happily winched a 7 tonne classic truck out from a field, followed by a transit van coupled to a large caravan. Some heavy maneuvering of trailers was next on the cards, among them was a 3.5 tonne mobile chippy. A huge mobile shop trailer coupled to a large van was also winched out at the end of festival, a number of battery jump starts were also needed around the site and car parks towards the end. This was really all that the organizers asked of us but we happily helped out with many other aspects of the setup and take down as it was quite enjoyable. Melissa found a 'forte' in the organising of people and traffic, becoming manager of the camper fields which she quite enjoyed. The staff, crew and organisers here were fantastic, they really couldn’t be friendlier. The festivities were also great, with a number of stages to wander around between catching bands, comedy acts and entertainers alike. Headliners included lively sets from The Stereo MC’s, ska beats from Reverend and The Makers, house sets from Danny Rampling, skilled folk musicians in the acoustic areas, along with all varieties of other bands, there was even a ‘BBC Introducing’ stage with new and upcoming acts. The days and nights here have been quite refreshing, but the time came to leave as the site slowly returns to fields and woodlands once more. Farewell was bid to new friends and neighbors before departing the green meadows and continuing North. By Ben Ade This proud vessel, which was known as 'Channel', long provided the essential shipping forecasts from out in the North sea. Now decommissioned, it has been purchased and restored by a local charity. Renamed as 'Trinity', groups of school kids visit to learn sailing and other essentials of nautical knowledge. Moored in an estuary, where the murky Thames river meets the open sea, she is no longer ocean bound. The ever present tide gently lifts her enormous weight with ease as it flows in, before setting her back down into the thick mud as it ebbs. By Ben Ade Our Dover bound Land Rover is nearing her country of origin once more. The British summer should still be in full swing, although there was actually more sunshine on the channel when we left in February. Now the cold lashings of rain drip down the grey ferry windows as we look out on this mid August day. The lands of England shall be explored for a few weeks, with a rough aim to head towards the South-Eastern coastal routes after docking. Let's see what surprises lay in store ahead. By Ben Ade Throughout this entire voyage we have learned to steer well clear of anyone driving a Dacia. Their driving ability is consistently terrifying, usually following the mantra of idiots, which sums up as 'driving fast = good driver'. We were not prepared however for a Dacia combined with a French driver. Parked in the town of Dunkirk for the evening, chatting about the days events, when out of nowhere a Dacia struck. Reversing at a surprisingly high speed, the vehicle ploughed into the rear nearside corner of Kaerus, with such a jolt that I dreaded the possible damage caused. The young lady, rather shaken, explained that she hadn't seen us somehow. Thankfully, being built like a tank, Kaerus had merely a few scratches of paint missing from her edge. The dacia however, looked a bit worse for wear with crunched in rear end and smashed back windows. We then helped her clean up the glass and ensured she was ok to drive. Very lucky that it wasn't a person she hit, a lesson to concentrate on her driving more, one can only hope.
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