Days 3 & 4 - Getting into our Stride

This evening we are bereft of wi-fi,  so we can't post, sorry. However, we will pen our post, so it is ready for the next sniff of some working wi-fi.

What a walk this is. There cannot be a walk like it for the sheer diversity of scenery. Yesterday we came off the Clwydian Hills only to walk through a forest ...


... then later, across a narrow path half way down some big, Lake District style scree elopes.

As a lot of people walk the path south to north, rather than north to south as we are doing, we get to meet quite a few fellow path walkers and have had some great chats. We even met a lady who had stayed with Ken and Barbie on the Coast to Coast (Aunty M will appreciate this).

Last night we stayed at the Squirrels in Llangollen. We didn't see any squirrels, but we made lots of new bear friends as it was a bear friendly B& B. Our new friend Porter was there to welcome us in reception ...


In a pub, the Wynnstay Arms, which we called into on spec, we met Offa's Dykes friendliest bar maid, probably Wales' friendliest bar maid, Nia. She was just lovely so we stayed longer than we planned to and enjoyed a tasty and great value meal.

Today rain was forecast for most of the day. We're delighted to report it largely stayed away and we only got a few spots. We also got enough sunshine to cause our minders to slap on the suntan lotion, so as not to add to their collection of sunburnt areas.

The climb back to the path from Llangollen was a big one but it was o.k. as we only had 12 miles to do today. Our route took us across the famous Pontcysyllte aqueduct which we had crossed a few years ago by canal boat so it was good to revisit and to sit by the canal and have a Spanish coffee, served barista style from an enterprising canal boat. Not long after leaving the Llangollen Canal, we encountered the historic dyke that King Offa built over 1,200 years ago for the first time. You can see the big ditch and sloping sides quite clearly.

We have ended the day at a B&B called Carreg-y-big which is attached to the Oswestry equestrian centre. As a result there are lots of horses here so we are all quite excited. Richard, our host cooked us an excellent chicken meal which we enjoyed with toffee fudge cake and red wine, so we all feel quite mellow now.

Hopefully we will get a chance to publish this post tomorrow so you can catch up with us.

Lots of love, George, Yorkie and Gio xxx

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Off(a) We Go - on Offa's

Dear readers

We're very pleased to be posting to you live from our latest adventure. We're currently two days in to the stunning Offa's Dyke long distance footpath and we're very happy bears as we sit in the Miners Arms in a village with one of those great Welsh names that is instantly forgotten by the English. We're happy as we've had a second great day's walking and have a pint of Conwy Brewery's Clogwn Gold beer in front of us and the anticipation of the hake special from the tasty sounding menu.

We actually have our female minder's Aunt Elizabeth to thank for this trip. She invited us all to her 90th birthday party in Cheltenham on Saturday, and this inspired to us to think about fitting in a holiday around the party, as it isn't often we travel so far west from our Norfolk base. The Offa's Dyke Long Distance Footpath (LDP) running for about 177 miles along the England/Wales border between Prestatyn and Chepstow ( or vice versa) seemed to fit the bill, so on Saturday afternoon, after a lovely birthday lunch, we found ourselves being party poopers (sorry everyone) and leaving afternoon tea early to take a bus and a train to the start of our walk in Prestatyn.

Travel arrangements ran smoothly and we reached the Beaches Hotel in Prestatyn shortly after 9.00 p.m. Our room was so close to the sea, if the tide had been in, we could have played stone skimming from the window of our room. We were tired teds though so we let the sound of the sea send us off to sleep.

Sunday morning we woke refreshed to tackle a full English before making our first steps along the sea front to the start of the trail.

Perhaps I should clarify that 'we' is myself George, chief travelling bear and most reliable blogger; Yorkie, my faithful travelling companion, who blogs less as he's too busy eating, and Gio because he simply loves walking and thinks the best holidays are walking holidays.


I'm telling you this as we didn't manage to get a photo at the start with all of us in.

The first mile of the route took us, in lovely sunshine, from the coast, up the High Street of Prestatyn and we have to say we were quite impressed by Prestatyn - it's a lovely little town. The rest of the day unfolded very pleasantly with a lovely mix of gorse covered hillsides, country lanes, woodland and pastureland. Navigation was no problem thanks to all the national trail way marking, it was just a case of follow the acorn.

We had to walk a mile off piste to our B&B (Glen Clwyd Isa) where we had a warm welcome in this comfy but quirky establishment. There were extensive grounds to stroll around in the evening sunshine before we joined the 3 other guests for a lovely home cooked meal of asparagus and salmon (or duck) and berry sponge pudding.

Today the weather had been glorious, with really Mediterranean blue skies. We've walked just over 14 miles across the Clwydian Hills. If you don't know these hills give them a Google and find out more. They are wonderful and the views across to Liverpool and Snowdonia are stunning. The path is mostly turf so kind to our paws, but the ascents and descents between the hills were challenging to say the least. There is no accommodation at the end of this stage but we got picked up and taken to the Hafan Dag B&B where we've really landed on our paws - it's a real gem.

There's only one reason to Growl - the Clogwn Gold has now run out - we haven't drunk that much honest!

Hope to have another report for you soon.

Lots of love George, Yorkie and Gio xxx
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

2015: What a Year We've Had!

You must have wondered what we were up to last year and we'll be the first to admit we've got a bit of catching up to do. The last big trip we were reporting on was our Northern India trip and we went on that in 2014!

We thought we would do you a potted review of our explorations of 2015 and then we'll be up to date. So here goes ...

We banished the post Christmas blues by escaping to some Spanish sunshine at the end of January. With Spanish bear Pedro as our guide and chief translator, we flew into Malaga and picked up a rather cute Fiat 500 to transport us round the Axarquia region and take us into the countryside for some good (if steeply mountainous) walking.

We enjoyed lovely sunny weather and some good paths and views as you can see. While the path in our picture below was a good one for walking, it was a long way from any roads and there were some big drops at the side, so we a bit surprised to see a 30 speed limit sign ...

... if you could get a car along this track then we wouldn't recommend going that fast - could be why the sign looks like it might have taken a knock - and for walkers, even runners, 30 (even if kph) is incredibly fast.  Not all the paths were this good; we abandoned one walk after getting scared by the loose scree on a very steep ridge walk. 

A rather special walk took us along a high path where we crunched through some remaining snow before a big descent down to a fossilised waterfall, in the background of our picture. 

It was a lovely spot for a swim for us, a paddle for our minders, and a picnic. 

Spain lifted our spirits and recharged our batteries so were happy to wait until after Easter for our next adventure. We took our much loved Eriba caravan, Ribs, up to a Caravan Club site on the edge of Buxton in Derbyshire and had a lovely week. We had some V.I.P company in the form of Miles who you may recognise from the Thomson holiday adverts ... 

As you'd expect from outdoor bears staying in a great walking area, we did a lot of lovely walking,
but we were doing some cultural sightseeing when the photo above was taken. We were exploring Buxton and having a coffee in the Devonshire Dome. The coffee wasn't bad but the dome was much more impressive. It's more than 150 feet in diameter and bigger than the dome of St Paul's Cathedral. It's incredible to think it was built to provide accommodation for up to 120 horses and the ostlers and servants of the gentry visiting The Crescent.

Our holiday highlight of the year was our flotilla sailing holiday in the Greek islands at the beginning of June. Captain Eddie had an expanded crew this years as new B.U. member RNLI Bear, Peter, was with us. He was strangely reluctant to take off his yellow RNLI jacket except when it got really hot, but it didn't take him long to agree with regular sailors Louis and Eddie, that a Greek Island sailing holiday could be the best holiday in the world. Even Yorkie and I, as more seasoned travellers with experience of a greater variety of holidays, really look forward to our Greek adventures.

This year we sailed in a new area, the Peloponnese and Saronic Islands. To reach our boat, Adriana, we had to cross the Corinth Canal. We had an opportunity to get out the bus and walk across the bridge over the canal, and see some boats motoring through, a long way below us. What an incredible feat of engineering the canal is.

We really enjoyed this trip as we got to visit some smaller islands and harbours, which are a bit off the main tourist trails; delightful places such as Aegina, Spetses, Dhokos, Hermione and Poros. These were mostly quiet except for one port - Hydra. Hydra is a real gem of an island: there are no cars, no scooters, just tiny cobbled lanes, donkeys, rocks and the sea. There is one drawback though. The harbour is unbelievably busy and, far more people want to anchor there than there is room for. Our while flotilla got there early, before the previous night's boats had departed. Even so, for every boat that left, there were at least 3 waiting to take it's place. Getting moored up was quite stressful, but our lead crew really showed there worth and got us all in. We ended up about 4 boats away from the harbour wall and our next picture shows what it was like ...

 

... the only snag is that you can't see where the harbour wall is - you will have to imagine it about 3 boats into the foreground. It wasn't too claustrophobic for us as we had a stretch of water behind us as there was a much bigger boat behind.

Our outlying mooring wasn't a problem for us, as bears are nimble enough not to have any difficulties crossing boats to reach terra firma. The boats nearest the harbour wall didn't get much privacy though!

The harbour on Hydra might be busy, but you can don't have to go far to lose the crowds. We took one of the footpaths along the coast and it was simply beautiful: it was just as advertised: no traffic, just donkeys, cobbles, rocks and sea, plus great views down to the harbour from the top of the town.

After Greece we didn't need to go away for a while, as a summer in North Norfolk has a delight and charm all of its own. It was in the middle of September before we felt the need to sally forth on another adventure. This time we decided to stay closer to home and enjoy a fortnight in Yorkshire, which especially pleased Yorkie. It was a rather special fortnight though. We spent most of first week walking the Dales Way which runs for 84 miles between Ilkley and Bowness on Windermere. We were following in the footsteps of St Clare (the Balding) who walked the Dales Way as part of her wonderful Ramblings series on the radio. At the end of each day's walk we'd list to the equivalent instalment of Clare's walk on our iPods.

It is a wonderful walk, taking your through some of the best Yorkshire Dales scenery and allowing walkers some great overnight pub stops. Our favourite was the Buck Inn at Buckden (as above): great rooms, great beer and great food. The pub truly knew what Welcome to Yorkshire was supposed to mean.

In our next picture you see us relaxing on the seat provided for Dales Way walkers only, a stones throw from journeys end, Lake Windermere. This was a lovely spot: sadly Bowness itself was not so good as it was overrun with slow moving tourists. It was all a bit of a culture shock after the tranquility of the way.

We didn't want to linger though as we needed to get back to Ilkley to pick up the Bearmobile and start the second leg of our September adventure. This was another boating trip so Captain Eddie was once again in charge, ably supported by his trusty crew of Louis and Peter. We hired a boat from Sowerby Bridge and she was the small, but perfectly formed narrowboat, Devon.

She was only 32 feet in length, but had everything we needed and above all she was really cute. We fell in love with her immediately. We took her along the Rochdale Canal up to the Summit and back. This required all paws to the pump, or rather the lock gates, as there was a big climb to the Summit from Sowerby Bridge, and canals don't climb without locks. Ironically, although the canal was really quiet, with few other boats out, the locks were all huge, 2 boat double locks, and not the best maintained. We had to go through most of them on our own. This meant we were all on almost constant lock duty, but it was fun and the scenery was very rewarding.  We all slept very well at night after our exertions and all that fresh air.

What a year we've had! We loved it all, and the only question that remains is, can we have an even better year this year? Well that remains to be seen. You'll have to keep reading to find out.

Lots of love, George, Yorkie and all at Bears Unlimited xxx

New Year Greetings

A very Happy New Year to all our readers.

We hope you all had a lovely Christmas and managed to catch up with friends and family just as we did.

We were lucky to have some safe journeys as we went visiting both the Midlands Branch and the Suffolk Branch. We're pleased to report that our friends all completed their historic journeys safely. Our picture below says it all ...

... Mary and Joseph are now a family as the Baby Jesus has arrived; the shepherds and their flock have found them and the camels have carried the Wise Men and their presents to the right address (thanks star). What's more, two guardian angels are watching over the scene. What more could anyone ask for?

All is well and the stage is now set for a happy and peaceful New Year. We hope this is true for you.

Lots of love, all at Bears Unlimited xxx

Nearly Here ...

Time is whizzing past at the Bear Cave and Christmas is almost upon us.  Preparations for the big day
are going well and we are pleased to be playing a small part in the greatest story ever told.

So what's currently happening ... ?

The scene is set at Bethlehem: the shepherds are aware something big is about to happen and are ready and waiting - they're a bit early but we blame the angels for this - they were so excited they couldn't keep the secret. At least the shepherds have remembered to keep their sheep with them and friendships are being forged ... with Gio and Olaf!

The wise men have set off on their journey and it's proving a popular trip as five of them have decided to travel this year ...

... the desert sands definitely bear a strong resemblance to our lounge carpet - how strange?!

And how are the three main players: Mary, Joseph and the donkey?

As you can see they are also on their way, and it is pleasing to see the tradition of hospitality is being maintained ...

... cauliflower pasta bake may not be a Mediterranean speciality, but it is going down well and Mary and Joseph are thinking of making a Master Chef nomination having watched the programme for the first time tonight at their current lodgings.

So all is unfolding as it should and everyone is looking forward to the arrival of the baby Jesus.

We'd like to wish all our friends and readers a very happy and peaceful Christmas and a wonderful year to come.

Lots of love

All at Bears Unlimited xxx

Introducing ...

It's time to catch up on the latest additions to the Norfolk Branch of Bears Unlimited. They didn't all arrive at once, and they all have very different previous lives, but the one thing they have in common is that they've all joined Bears Unlimited this year and have all settled in really well.

The first to be introduced is Victor of the lovely furry coat, who is sitting to the left of the picture. Victor was presented to our female minder as a leaving present when she changed jobs at the end of February. As our minder works for Victory Housing Trust there was only one name for this new bear, Victor. He might look a bit serious in the picture but he is a cheerful soul who does smile a lot - trust us.

Hot on the heels of Victor, came Peter who is proud to wear his yellow RNLI coat. You won't be surprised to hear he is a member of the Sheringham RNLI crew and, like Victor, he has very thick fur to keep him warm when out on the boat. Peter and Boating Bear Eddie, hit it off immediately and Peter has spend the summer helping Eddie out on his seal boats.

Bear number 3, in the middle, only arrived yesterday. He is Nick, the picnic bear and he arrived in the rather fine picnic hamper that the 3 guys are sitting on. Both Nick and the hamper were presents to us from two members of our extended family who got married yesterday. We allowed Nick a bit of a lie in this morning as he had such a big day yesterday, but he's been chattering non stop this afternoon - after all there are rather a lot of bears for him to meet. He's also been asking when he can go out with us on a picnic.

Welcome all 3 of you and we hope you'll soon join us in reporting lots of exciting Bears Unlimited adventures.

Love from all at Bears Unlimited xxx

This Day 9 Years Ago ...

Today is very auspicious day in the Bears Unlimited calendar. Anyone know why? It's 9 years to the day since our first ever post on the Bears Unlimited blog.

It was all inspired by our friend Naughty Bear who we met at the Greenbelt Arts Festival.

We'd never heard of blogging until he introduced us to his and patiently explained how it all worked. We decided that if Bear could do such a great job all on his own, with so many of us in Bears Unlimited, we should be able able to come up with something half decent.

We hope we haven't disappointed, even though we having been having a bit of a break recently. Once those autumn nights starting drawing in, we'll have a bit more time on our paws, and we hope to stage a comeback.

Representatives from all 3 B.U. branches have been getting together to celebrate and to plan for our 10th year.

If there are any special requests for an item on the blog do let us know.

Lots of love, all at Bears Unlimited xxx