campervanliving

I have sent Jo off on a kayaking course today in our local pool. Why? Here's the story of what happened last time she got in a kayak, from my series in MMM Magazine about our trip to western France. "On our first full day in the town we managed to prize the kids away from their hammock and headed off in search of adventure. We found a kayaking centre on the banks of the Contis River. As this was on my list of ‘must-do’ adventures on this trip (I had wanted to kayak down the Dordogne) I booked us in and convinced everyone it would be great. It was only when we were about 50 yards into the trip that Joanne revealed to me, whilst drifting the wrong way downstream, that she’d never piloted a kayak before. By that time it was too late. We had been driven about 5 miles upstream and then shoved off the bank in two sit-on kayaks by our guides, with one child each. I assumed one of the guides would come with us but they just waved and wished us ‘bon chance’ as we disappear...

I have been developing curmudgeonly ways. I guess it happens to us all at some point or another. Perhaps sooner for those who choose to pootle about in vintage style transport like many of us merrily do. Are the old ways better? I don’t necessarily think they are, but I do think that we can learn from what went before. And I think we could also sometimes do with a dose of the bleeding obvious too. So, call me old fashioned but… Why are many of today’s cars so homogeneous and boring? Why should loose vegetables cost more than those encased in plastic packaging? Shouldn’t supermarkets be encouraging us to buy products with less packaging? Why should MPs get a pay rise when no one else is? Why do some people think it's okay to bag up dog poo but then leave it where it is? Surely, if you are too lazy to pick up it is better to actually leave it? Surely if you are too lazy to pick up you shouldn't have a dog? Why are shops allowed to sell packaging if there is no l...

Lauren Bacall has died. Now I might seem like an unlikely person to offer an obituary of one so famous, beautiful and gifted, and this blog might seem like an inappropriate place, but I am going to do it anyway. That's because I was lucky enough to meet and photograph her in Hollywood in the late nineties when I was working on a documentary about the late Jack Cardiff, Britain's first Technicolor cinematographer. My job was to arrange interviews with people who were relevant to Jack's illustrious career. Since Jack had been the cinematographer on Bogart's African Queen, and Lauren Bacall had been on set during the filming of it, we desperately wanted to talk to her. It was another life away. I'm not joking when I say I chased her for six months. I phoned her agent in New York almost every day for the entire time I was working on the project to find out whether she'd take part, when she might be available and where we could interview her. It wasn't e...

Roadford Lake campsite: a great spot that's just yards from the waterside. I recently started writing up my list of favourite camp sites over on martindorey.com .  This is because I get asked all the time about good places to stay. I love to be able to share my fave spots, but I guess it's easier for everyone if I list them, give out all the details and explain why I like them. It's not yet complete but it may be worth a quick look if you're thinking about a nice destination to head for. Who makes the grade and why would I prefer one campsite to another? What makes a campsite camper van friendly for me? There are a number of things, but mostly it's about the location.... and the mode of transport... and everything else... Why a campervan and not a tent? When I first got into campers it was for purely practical reasons: I surfed throughout the year and didn't live near the beach so needed somewhere to sleep that wasn't expensive or impractical or ...

Hello. How are you? If you've found this blog post then you're probably thinking about food, camping and campervans. Right? Good. Then I hope that you won't mind one more click to see my latest idea, a series of reviews of the campsites I have visited over the years. Goodness knows I have been to a few. I am not one for holding back about this kind of thing so you can expect genuine reviews with a little of the practical stuff and lots of first hand experience. I will also include things to do locally (that I can recommend) surf in the area (if appropriate) and what's good to eat (if I found anything). Basically, if I love it it's in. The reason for doing this is that I get asked a lot about camp sites and spots to camp. I think a lot of people share my love for a good campsite, whatever that means to them. It's often hard to know what's going to be right for you - unless you've got an impartial review from someone you trust to go on. I like th...

WIN copies of The Camper Van Cookbook and The Camper Van Coast. Postcards from last year's comp... I love a postcard. And I love a good, old fashioned postcard competition. So, following last year's post card competition in which I gave away a few copies of the DVD of "One man and His Campervan", I thought I should do another one for this year. But what for prizes? Well, I have a bunch of books here that I'd be happy to put up as prizes as well as some of the original publisher's samples of my books (these are called BLADS) and some 'I can cook' aprons. So it's a little package of camper van goodies. What do you have to do to win? It's easy. Send me a postcard from your travels. That's it. I shall give prizes for those that make me smile the most. It could be cheeky, funny, inspiring, far away, VW camper related or just something that looks lovely. Or it could be a joke or a silly message or a picture you have drawn. You could ...

From time to time I get sent stuff. It's nice, being sent stuff. I understand how it works: if I get sent stuff I am duty bound to tweet or blog about it. It's what's expected and I really don't mind. I also get lots of requests to blog about unrelated brands or products on here. I nearly always turn them down because I believe in being honest about the things I like and I refuse to blog about stuff that I think you will find pointless and, basically, rubbish. So you know, when you look at this blog, that you're getting an authentic opinion. It's not paid for and that's important. What I am trying to build up to here is a review of a book I was sent recently. The PR department of the publisher called and asked if I'd review it. Seeing as it is a book about VW campers I said I would be happy to take a look and write a little something about it. I never said I'd lie about it though. So here's the low down. The way I see it. The book is cal...

I've been having fun. So far this year I've been lucky enough to go on a few great camping trips. And it's all been in the name of work. I've been writing a new series for  MMM Magazine called 'Great British Adventures' in which I've been sharing ideas for great adventures around the country. Each of the episodes features three different adventures with advice on how to do it for yourself, what to expect and places to park up the camper or motorhome when you are there. The series covers the whole of Britain, so we've been making strategic forays to various parts of the country to spend a few days doing the adventures, taking pictures and staying over. Doing this research hasn't exactly been tough and I have enjoyed every moment of it. We've seen things and done things that we'd never normally do and it's been really liberating. I've explored underground tunnels in Exeter, surfed the Severn Bore (that was amazing), sailed a ding...

Hello again. I have been wanting to make a little film about the #2minutebeachclean for ages. Finally I got the chance. This is it. Hopefully it will help to send the idea even further than it has gone already. In case you didn't know An Taisce, the Irish version of the National Trust, began their own #2minutebeachclean campaign this week. I have also been talking to Keep Wales Tidy today about them taking it on and running with it. It's very exciting. Anyway, enjoy the movie.

It all began with this shot of me doing the Indoor Luge, idly posted to Facebook in February 2010.  The weather, in case anyone doesn't remember, was appalling during the Winter Olympics of 2010. So we were housebound for a lot of it. That led to idle hands amusing themselves in idle ways - and the creation of the Indoor Olympics. The first picture was posted as the luge but it was pointed out to me that it was, in fact the skeleton bob. So I corrected the shot. And it all kind of went from there.... Skeleton bob, not the luge. The luge, with Bob. Maggie attempts a tricky Ski Jump. Without the use of skis.  The Curling was one of our favourite events at the Indoor Olympics Four Man Bob, without Bob. Another favourite, Speed Skating. You want to watch out for those Ice Hockey players. They'll get you. Bob Sleigh. Not strictly an Olympic event but we had a Bob so why not? Nice grab air from Charlotte in the snowboard half pipe. ...

This weekend we're expecting some huge surf on Cornwall's north coast. So, in case you were thinking about going storm watching, take a moment to read this. It's about how tides work. Just in case you didn't know and thought that it might be a good idea to head out to the beach...  Whatever you intend to do at the coast – storm watching, foraging, beach combing, taking part in a beach clean, surfing or just having a lazy day out – it’s vital to understand just a little about it. If you don’t, you can unwittingly get into all sorts of trouble. Whilst it might sound like fun to get a lift home in a helicopter or on a lifeboat it really isn’t. And it can cost a lot more than cold hard cash. UNDERSTANDING TIDES: PAGE 1 Understanding what the tide is doing, where it’s going and how it works is the first line of the first paragraph of the first page in the big book of hanging out at the seaside. Some people are surprised that they are different every day. They vi...

I have on my desk two - as yet - unused chopping boards made with birch ply and Formica. I like them a lot as they fit my idea of good design. They are Functional, well made and nice to look at. They also match my van quite nicely, which is also a bonus (they come in a range of colours). Our interior was remade out of birch faced ply a couple of years ago so these boards fit right in. Whilst we loved the old Moonraker interior that came with our van, it just didn't work that well for us as a family. There were certain aspects of it that I didn't feel right about, like not having two inertia reel belts in the back for the kids and not having head rests in the front. So we installed full height T25 seats, a full width bed (for more sleeping and relaxing space on rainy days), seat belts, captain's seat (to extend the interior space) and a buddy box for the porta potti (for staying on aires or going wild) and then had a shorter but deeper kitchen unit made by our friends at...

The #2minutebeachclean is gathering pace. It's turning into something. And I, for one, am very very pleased. I was thrilled to see beach litter in the bins at Crooklets beach today that wasn't put there by me. I was thrilled to see tweets with links to pictures of the hauls people had made in their very own #2minutebeachcleans and I was even more excited to talk to two people at the beach yesterday who promised to pick up a few bits and pieces on their way. But okay, let's not get carried away. I like the simplicity of the #2minutebeachclean because it's easy and manageable and can be fun. It's also up to the individual so there are no restrictions, insurances, risk assessments or paperwork. This is also where its power lies because the more individuals do it and make it habit, the more we'll get done and will continue to get done. But....we do have to do the small print from time to time. Yes, so it's onerous and against the spontaneous spirit of a #...