A weekend of walking

(and, of course, visiting tea rooms)

On Friday I had an almost half day- we had an Inset day (staff training) and these officially finish at 1.30/2, so Andy booked the Friday afternoon off and we headed to the Peak District. He said we had to be leaving quickly, as we would stop somewhere on the way. I thought it was just a pretty town, but as we were walking we could see the high street cordoned off, and it turned out to be the Olympic torch relay! I was very exited, because next weekend when it comes near us, we are at the Grand Prix. We did have to wait for about an hour (and put up with people selling tat like whistles and vuvuzelas  (sp?) to the kids- I mean how come the shops on the high street cannot have the rings in their windows, in case they profit from the olympics, but these people can wander up and down and sell junk, anyway, rant over!)- and the crowd basically pushed forwards and ripped the tape and everything. Plus there was a sponsorship procession- a big Coke truck and things like that. But seeing the torch being handed over, and the grin on the man’s face as he carried it past, was just brilliant. I did think it was a shame that I had no idea who that person was. It wasn’t on a sign, and it wasn’t announced. But anyway, it was special to see.

We stayed in a lovely B&B in Matlock, and had a day on Saturday making the most of our National Trust membership (10% back on Quidco right now)- we went to a lovely Tudor house (Little Moreton Hall) with the most brilliant guide, and then went to the tearoom. We sat outside which turned out to be a mistake- there were some very hungry and determined ducks. We each had a tea and shared a flapjack, and the ducks kept coming around and nudging our legs. They would not go away, and then one of them flew right up into Andy’s face! He was not amused!

We also went to some lovely gardens (Biddulph Grange), but by that time the rain had caught up with us- luckily during the heaviest downpours we were near shelter, but it was a bit miserable. Andy took some lovely photos but not sure when I will be able to add them!

This morning we had a lovely breakfast in our B& B again (Andy did laugh at me putting pb and cherry jam in my croissant- I am sure that is what the French do…) and then headed off for a walk at Dovedale.

This is what it looked like last year. This year the stones were closed due to flood damage- the water level was up to the top of the stones and a couple had been washed down the river a little. The river has burst its banks and so walking alongside the river was harder. We walked for about an hour (drizzled a bit) but seconds after we got back to the car it poured with rain again.

On the way home we drove to Kedleston hall, and had a look around the house. It did have lovely grounds but it was raining hard again, and we didn’t fancy getting soaked. We did manage to visit the tearoom- carrot cake makes a good lunch 🙂

Once we got home (we had to stop at Waitrose on the way home to get a few bits and I was very excited to see some Almond Breeze unsweetened almond milk for £1! And it doesn’t seem to be an offer price, it was just the regular price label- they also did a chocolate version) I headed out on a run. The plan was 6 miles, so I headed out on a route I always used to do but have not done for months. It ended up being something like 5.96 miles, and usually I would run up to the end of the road and back to add up the mileage, but I was so tired and thirsty I headed right in. I realised I had had hardly anything to drink (compared to normal) and it was quite warm out there, despite it being very windy. I had a nuun tab in some water, and then diluted some of the Sainsbury’s coconut water- having it half with water was much nicer, although it did mean I drank 3 glasses of liquid pretty quickly- I was thirsty! I was pleased because each time the garmin beeped (for each mile) I was speeding up- only a little but I think I started at 11.40 or something, and gradually increased to 10.30 or something for the end- I am trying to keep this going as I used to start out too quick on my long runs.

Much nicer anyway:) That nail polish was recommended by Jess (looks nicer on her blog too as the pic is natural light), and when I went to the Butter London website I noticed they had 30% off, so I have ordered another colour too- they have some lovely summery shades.

Right, I hope everyone had a lovely weekend. I am hoping for no rain tomorrow as we have a lot of outdoor activities planned at school for this week, but who knows. Has the rain put a damper on your plans this week?