Day 2 in Bluestone Resort, Wales….

We woke to the most glorious, crisp winter day. Having arrived at around 5pm the evening before it was our first opportunity for a bit of exploration….and to find a coffee shop – coffee is extremely high on my priority list and we needed to see if by some remote chance a coconut milk latte was possible in the Welsh wilderness.

Our walk down from the cabin was stunning and we had plenty of opportunities to get some great pictures.

Who doesn’t need a picture of themselves taking a selfie of themselves…

The head….

And the tail of the Welsh dragon…

We arrived in the village and had a quick wander around….

I found it….Ty Coffi….the village has a coffee shop (jumps for joy)…

The best bit? They served a very fine latte with coconut milk so our week here is going to be just fine. Lovely place and even lovelier people serving us. We got our ‘free with your first drink’ reusable cups which we will most definitely make use of each day with a 10% reusable cup discount – better and better.

Next we headed further downhill through the forest trail to see the festive lights. They did not disappoint – even in the daytime. Here are a few of our favourite pictures….

My trusty steed never disappoints and got me down and back up the green route – the easy option, but not for anyone of faint heart and weak pushing arms!

A lovely lady gave me a push over one of the uphills and between my pushing the wheels and Maryam pushing from behind with her walker, we managed the slow ascent eventually collapsing onto a bench at the lake. What’s the saying about the blind leading the blind?

A short bus trip back up the hill was definitely required because no way was I able to wheel myself that distance and elevation. Free bus or train trips run every half an hour and it was no time at all before we arrived back in Preseli View ready for a cuppa and a rest.

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Be there gold in them their Preseli Mountains?

Take 4 ladies of varying nationalities, each with their own unique cultures and origins,

2 children,

2 cars,

1 wheelchair,

1 walking frame,

3 walking sticks,

and a smattering of health and disability issues.

Put them together in a log cabin in the wilds of Pembrokeshire, Wales and you are bound to have an interesting holiday!

Day 1 and after a drive from Lancashire for one car and another from Milton Keynes we were so happy to be greeted by the friendliest staff at the reception gates.

In no time we were checked in and directed to our cabin at 43 Preseli View.

We’re in a lovely four bedroom cabin with 3 big bathrooms, open plan living, dining and kitchen and a nice big entrance that acts as a mud room where we can store all the shoes, coats and mobility equipment.

After unloading all our stuff Using our trolley to help with the load and fewer trips, I headed off to find out how I could move my car off site and then get back to the cabin. When I was told that because I’m disabled and have a blue badge I could keep and use my car on the site I was overjoyed because you should see the hill we are staying on!

The choice of bedrooms was between a twin downstairs and 3 bedrooms upstairs so that was an easy one because the South African wheelchair lady and the Iranian knee replacement lady both don’t do stairs, AND there is a lovely big bathroom next door; one that I can get my wheelchair or my walker into.

An early night was definitely in order and the impeccably clean white linen was calling very loudly by this point.

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Wandering in Wales…..

A good story needs a good opening lines doesn’t it? So,….

An Englishwoman, an Irishwoman, an Iranianwoman and a South African woman descend on a resort in Wales.

What could possibly happen? Keep coming back over the next few days and you may find a few stories to entertain and inform.

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Trekinetic mucking about on boat….

On those rare occasions that my human leaves me to sit in another location, there is nothing nicer than mucking about on boats!  I thoroughly enjoyed the views across the Saar river in Saarland, Germany on my latest boat trip…..

Trekinetic wheelchairs are all about adventure!

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Trekinetic in the wild….

When left to its own devices, the Trekinetic K2 loves to be out in the wild camping. Here we see how well prepared and organised it’s campsite is. Enjoying a bit of German sunshine without human interference….

…..those precious moments when you’re not being pushed around!

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Freiberg – historic and beautiful….

1st Oct 2015

A quick 60km north and we arrive in the city of Freiberg, and the old historical part of the city definitely doesn’t disappoint.

The Munster is set in a very large square and despite some scaffolding covering parts of the spire, it is magnificent….

Outside on the square and in the surrounding small streets are the most exquisite buildings which are grandly painted…..

…and the most historic looking McDonalds I may have ever seen….

In this city, even the gutter covers are beautiful…

This is definitely a city that should be visited because it isn’t just the Munster and town centre that are lovely, but the bridges along the waterways are each a work of art as well.  

My trusty steed, the Trekinetic K2, did an incredible job once again, and made short work of all the cobbled streets.

Back to Sulzburg for a bite of dinner.  The village has an Espetata restaurant which is amazing!  The food was simply superb and we may have to visit here again.

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A BIG welcome to…..

Michelle and her sister who have just launched their brand new website as a distributorship for Trekinetic.  I wish them all the best for a long and successful career making lives easier and more enjoyable for every new Trekinetic owner.

www.beyondtheboundarywheelchairs.com

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Round the Moskva river….

Armed with a round trip ticket for the boat down the Moskva river and all we need now is to figure out the easiest way down to the boat!  A flight of stairs with my hubbies help was fairly easily handled by the Trekinetic – I did cheat by putting my feet near the floor in case I tipped out – after my stair experience on the steps of the Chateau in France, I am taking no chances.

1) Boat on the Moskva river;  2) Peter the Greats memorial; 3) Cathedral of Christ the Saviour; 4) Me and St. Basil’s church from the boat; 5) Hubby contemplating life and the river

Floating down the river on a sunny afternoon – very true in our case.  The weather couldn’t have been better and I am really pleased we went today.  The views from the boat were really amazing and I am very happy we made the effort.

On our return we struggled up the stairs to the embankment and head back down the river to our hotel.  A wonderful walk in the early evening sunshine was a great end to another lovely, but long and tiring day.

1) Me on the Moskva river embankment; 2) One of the seven Stalin sisters which were built in the 1950’s to house foreigners in Moscow (now the Radisson hotel)

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The wheels are off….

Pre-flight checks taking place before the taxi arrives to whisk us off to Manchester airport.
Off-road wheels are our chosen tyres for this trip because we have heard that wheelchair access is very poor in Russia.
The taxi is here. I hope this isn’t the last picture of my Trekinetic in one piece!
Bon voyage….
пожелай мне удачи (wish me luck).

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Rivington Barn and beyond!

Take one bank holiday weekend and terrible weather and what do you have? A perfect opportunity for a bit of bundu bashing.  Hubby was away on a trip to Australia and I was desperate to go out and get some fresh air, so I invited my son, son-in-law and grandson to give me some support. Where to go? After a little thought I opted for Rivington Hall Barn in Rivington as it is not far from us and has a tea room for that essential cuppa to prepare us for the heavy work ahead.

Did I mention the lousy weather, of course, it was a bank holiday? It had poured for the two days prior and as a result it was a mud bath in the country but being the intrepid travellers, this was not going to put us off.

Parking was a little difficult as human nature seems to dictate that the closer to the door you get, the bigger the prize! Parking accomplished and now for a bracing beverage before setting off. Tea, latte, hot chocolate and bacon barms safely despatched and we set off.

The part of Rivington we decided on is near the Go-ape adventure facility and my goal was to see if I could follow the trail in my K-2. We started off on the high path which was reasonably flat but with enough mud to put off all of the other walkers with prams and wheelchairs. We however were not to be daunted and when the mud got too deep (not for the Trekinetic, but my son didn’t want to get his converse too dirty!), we just went round them through the forest! Roots, rocks and mud were no match for us and we were soon looking for more of a challenge. Rather than going along the path from the high road to the low road we cut across the forest down the steep incline towards the reservoir. Wow, what a buzz! We went zig zagging down the hill over the forest floor with the tree climbers whizzing past us on the zip line. My son helped out a little so that I could practice using my steering and drum brakes and soon we arrived at the footpath. Amazingly we were the only ones I saw taking the off-road option and definitely the only wheelchair that made it round the route. Bearing in mind that I have only been going off-road for a week and need plenty more exercise to build up strength, it was very tiring and I did need son-in-law power to assist me back up the steep slopes.

Muddy and happy we got back to the car and headed home. Next mission – find a way to clean off my wheels before loading the car!

(Photo’s not from original day out as we forgot the camera at home!)

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At last – our first adventure

5pm and we are off for our inaugural ramble! Armed with new K-2, energy drink, fleeces, camera and plenty of enthusiasm (oh, did I mention the not so great weather?).

Our destination, Southport beach, with a car park surface that might have been laid back in the 60’s and is now more like the lunar surface. The first time we decided on this walk we didn’t even manage to get out of the car park – definitely not wheelchair friendly.

 

 Hooray! Our first goal achieved – out of the car park and onto the trail. Getting used to the unusual steering meant that I was all over the place at first, but the good thing is that wherever I unintentionally steered, I could get myself out of without my husbands muscle power. This independence lark could get addictive. With our sights firmly set on attaining the waters edge, we set off .

Now, if you know Southport you will realise that this can be no mean feat because the tide only seems to come in every few years and the rest of the time can be miles away. Apart from this we forged ahead and in no time were getting excellent practice over stones, mud, sand, grass and a mix of them all. Not being used to going off road it soon became apparent that I would need to be patient with myself and build up my strength. Pushing yourself around a shopping mall and a beach are entirely different matters. This did however give my hubby a chance to see how easy it was to push and before we knew it we had gone about a mile with the sea still just a distant glimmer! At this point we noticed we were the only people on the beach and rather than become the next headline on the North West news – I could imagine it – “Women in wheelchair rescued from incoming tide”, we decided to turn back and try reaching the beach another day when we had a tidal report.

 All in all, it was an amazing first trip. We tried and conquered a number of different terrains and at the same time got the confidence to go on to bigger and better things.

Tired but happy we returned home to hose off my K-2 ready for the next adventure.

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Day one – delivery

Delivery – Have K-2, but no place to go!

 After much excitement and anticipation the day for delivery of my Trekinetic K-2 has arrived. Mal dropped it off early on Friday morning and after going through some instructions and useful information, left me to get acquainted. I immediately went out onto our road for a few laps to get familiar with the new and unusual driving style. It was at this point that my hubby disappeared back to the office leaving me to spend the rest of the day reading the manual, pushing up and down the living room and waiting impatiently for his return so that we could go for our first outing.

Tick, tock, tick, tock!

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