Cadair Idris Lakes

Thelma & I had planned to climb up Cadair Idris in Wales yesterday - but when we arrived the mountain was cloaked in clouds and rain was forecast - so we decided it was not worth the trek up to the top if we were not going to see anything when we got there and in fact given my appalling fitness on lower slopes today - it was actually a very good decision.

Cadair Idris is the mountain with the clouds hovering overhead and as the day progressed it became completely covered in clouds.

There were lots of geocaches hidden around the area, so we changed our plans and walked and climbed to find these instead.

The first 3 caches were up this hill - which was very steep at the start and involved quite a bit of scrambling over the rocks to get to the top - yes the very pointed top of this hill.

We then had to walk along the ridge (all along the top of the middle hill in the photo below) to the next cache - it was so windy that I thought that even heavyweight me was going to get blown off.

The area is outstandingly beautiful - even on a miserable day like yesterday. Everywhere you looked there were gorgeous sights.
It started to rain after the first 3 caches so we had lunch in the car and then set off for some more goecache hunting - we are both quite tough cookies - a little bit of rain does not stop us! The first one of the afternoon was the one under the bridge that I posted last night. This one was bare feet or wellies and as I did not want to lug the wellies about - bare feet it was!

My walking boots looking a little bit like a Reginald Perrin story.

Me with a collection of other caches.

The reamaing caches were not too far from each other but all involved walks along roads and banks with inclines - so by the end of the day we were wet through and my legs were so tired I could hardly put one foot infront of the other - thankfully Thelma drove home!


This was the last cache of the day and by now I was soaking wet - I am definately coming back to this beautiful area - but only on a nice summers day!

6th April photo - I must be mad!

Just a very quick post to showcase today's photo.


Thelma and I have been to Wales today and done a series of 7 geocaches around the lakes of Cadair Idris. One cache was hidden underneath a bridge and guess who had to go and retrieve it - yes me in bare feet! The water was freezing - not sure why I am smiling! the things we do just to bag a cache! So this is todays photo. I will post a longer story of our day out tomorrow.

5th April photo - carrot & corriander soup

This is what we have just had for our tea tonight - homemade carrot & coriander soup and nice crusty bread.

It is very easy to make:

4 large carrots

1 large sweet potato

2 white onions

2 sticks celery

1 pack of coriander - stalks only in soup - you can add some chopped leaves on top for decoration if you want

100gm of ground almonds

2 tablespoons of Bouillon powder

salt & pepper

1.25 litres of boiling water

Chop the vegetables roughly and add to a large saucepan containing the water. Add Bouillon powder and S & P and coriander stalks. Simmer for 25 - 30 minutes - without lid. remove from heat and blend together. Add pack of ground almonds and blend a little more. Serve.

And before some publishers get me for infringement - I must add this recipe is not my own but one from Gillian Mckeiths - 'you are what you eat' recipe book.

I was hoping to post a picture of the lemon drizzle cake I made after being inspired by Jo's delicious looking one - but unfortunately it sank in the middle! We managed to rescue the outside bits - but I need a bit more practice before I can show my attempts at one of these.

4th April photo - yum mini eggs

Well now that its April and as Easter falls in this month - I can now officially eat these.

I have been unofficially eating them since Christmas - but now I can do it without feeling guilty!

Despite me being able to eat 50% of the UK chocolate intake and therefore keep Cadburys in business single handily - I think Cadburys must be feeling the credit crunch and have been putting less and less mini eggs into the bag - so that they disappear within minutes - or is that just down to me being a greedy piggy!

Mind you I should enjoy them while I can as the diet is definitely got to restart again after Easter and then it will be back to no Choc at all.

3rd April photo - Stiperstones walk

No geocaching today just a nice walk (4 hours!) over the Stiperstones. Julie & her daughter Kate joined Thelma & I today, so that her dog could and Mollie could socialise.

Today's photo was taken by Julie's daughter - who kept us entertained by asking 'how much longer?' Actually she did really well as it is quite a steep climb at the start of the walk.

At the bottom of the Stiperstones is the village of Snailbeach - where there are the remains of a working lead mine which closed in about 1912. They open to visitors each weekend in the summer and I really should go and have a look - but I am not too keen on going below ground in confined spaces - but the workers had to do it each day.
Some of the remains of the workings of the mine.

We finished the walk by this lovely but remote chapel.

The Stiperstones are quite renowned for their geology and rock formations like these are dotted all over the hills.
Even the dogs got a bit puffed as it became quite warm later on, with Aeofa laying down to protest - until she had a drink - then she got her legs back again.

As my blog does not seem to manage without a bit of nature thrown in these days here are some beautiful flowers Aubretia - I think

And some frog spawn in Thelma's pond in her garden.

2nd April photo - Steel.

I had not got any geocaching planned for today, but when my appointment with the Chiropractor was cancelled at the last minute - I thought that I would return to Telford again as I had an appointment with my hairdresser over there in the afternoon - and I ended up with another morning of surprises!

I found myself at the Museum of Steel Sculptures doing a series of 3 geocaches ( and I found them all which was a bonus!) and what a treat I had. As sculpture is my thing I was in 7th heaven. Therefore this photo of this blue structure is today's photo.

I took loads of photos - so hence another collage! These steel sculptures are rather manly and hard core - not sleek and sexy like those Vicki took recently of the John Moore sculptures but still fascinating none the less.

1st April photo - Telford's surprise

I did not want to miss going out today even though I had an appointment this afternoon, so I decided to quickly pop over to our neighbouring town; Telford, for a spot of geocaching and what a surprise I had.

Telford is a new town and has always seemed to me to be a place of industry and housing. I only ever go there for shopping and have never explored the area at all - until geocaching took me to lots of green spaces today. I could not believe it - every where I went I was surrounded by nature. I heard birds singing, woodpeckers pecking - did not see him though, saw wildlife and heard peace & quiet - all in this built up area.

I am not sure which photo to choose - the avenue of trees or this horse sculpture - I prefer the horse one, but I was just lining this shot up nicely - when a car appeared behind it - so I had to take it at a strange angle to avoid as much of the car as I could.

My finger was hardly off the shutter of my camera so I have made this collage of some of the sights of today.