Lanhydrock

Lanhydrock

Van-Man was irritated firstly because the waste water was full and started overflowing yet the gauge did not show full. Having emptied the tank he took umbrage at the Change Engine oil message which came up as we set off for Lanhydrock to meet our family. We walked past the house which as usual was splendid but as dogs are not allowed into the formal garden we carried on to the long woodland walk.

Cooling down

This time we carried straight on instead of doing the circular walk we did last time we were here to find the river. The children enjoyed running up to fallen trees and balancing on the tree trunks on the way down the hill. They then led the way searching for the river. This part of the park had few visitors whereas the formal gardens were full of people.

The river was lovely, winding and natural. Lottie had a dip to cool down and we settled down to have lunch. A train passed by on an embankment behind us which made our grandchildren run over towards the track and wave. They don’t see many trains in their part of Cornwall.

After lunch the children played pooh sticks from the wooden foot bridge.

Anyone else going to join me?

One ran over in distress. “I’ve thrown Dino in the water,” she said. We rushed to the river bank expecting to see the stuffed dinosaur swept away but it was caught on undergrowth near the water’s edge. Van-Man and I both agreed that Stu the father should retrieve it being younger, fitter and a longer arm reach. He scrambled down and retrieved Dino.

The cloud cleared making it a lovely afternoon. The children grew tired on the walk back but taking turns at walking the large Lurcher kept them going in the right direction. The younger children just followed Lottie which meant they had a meandering route.

Formal Gardens at Lanhydrock

Having passed the house the children picked up speed to play in the play area. Lottie did not like the noise and bustle so we soon parted company rather than listen to her complain. She lay quietly by the van while we had a hot drink then we headed to a supermarket for diesel and individual pies for the family dinner. This is a treat for them as they normally only have slices from a large pie. Back at our daughters we played a game with the older children, had dinner and left.

We pulled up at the camp site and Van-Man muttered “Oh no!”

“What’s up,” I asked.

“I left the fridge on gas mode,” he said. Fortunately no harm seems to have been done partly because the camp site is not far from our daughters.