Our post Easter break would be a little longer this year, we’ve opted for another week away rather than just a weekend. So for this year, we’ve chosen Strathclyde just outside of Glasgow, looks like we’ll be doing a lot of Scotland this year!
Saturday:
We packed Friday night and were ready to go first thing on Saturday, apart from the internet being down at home, which needed sorting, otherwise the daughter would not be happy! We had a good journey along the A69 and then had a pit stop at Gretna Green services, a first for us. Astonishingly, there is a dedicated caravan parking area which we duly pulled into. There are about 8 spaces, big enough for the largest of rigs, drive in, drive out. Looking for some breakfast, we enjoyed some bacon butties from Harry Ramsden’s, for the bargain price of £15 including drinks :O
Following this it was a straight run to the site. We booked in and found our pitch. A bit of a tight reverse, a few shunts and then we were set. Weather good, usual routines followed, Saturday came and went.
Sunday:
Glorious weather, we sat outside first thing and enjoyed a cup of tea and the sunshine. It was on the cards today to walk around the Loch just down the road, so this we did! The walk is approx 3.5 miles around the Loch, very pleasant with a cafe available at the boathouse, we didn’t try this but on reflection, we wish we had. There is a funfair here as well, along with a playground for the kids. There was also a ‘It’s a Knockout’ competition taking place, great place for the family. We completed the walk and returned to the site. After a brief break, we then went to the Toby Carvery for Sunday lunch. This again is accessed from just outside of the site, so perfect for us caravanners! Weather stayed perfect for the rest of the day, so much so that we were reading 35 degrees inside the ‘van!
Monday:
Weather still glorious, we decided to head into Glasgow following breakfast. I booked the tickets online for collection at the station and then we headed off after washing up. Bellshill station is just up the A725, 10 minutes away. It has a good parking for vehicles and makes it the perfect solution for getting to Glasgow, rather than driving there. We parked up and collected our tickets from the machine. The trains are very frequent, so although we missed our train by seconds, another one was along in 10 minutes. The journey to Glasgow takes approx 20 minutes, and once at Glasgow Central station, you’re in the centre of all of the action. Well the action being shops, shops and more shops, with plenty of eating opportunities. We opted for a coffee and then headed for the river via a couple of shopping complexes. We returned back to the station following this and headed back to Bellshill. We stopped by Tesco’s in Bellshill on the way back to pick up a couple of items, and then back at the site, we enjoyed more sunshine!
Tuesday:
A trip to the Bo’ness and Kinneil Railway was on the cards. We had a good run to the site, weather still glorious. We parked up and caught the train straight away, good timing! We enjoyed the journey through to Manuel and back. The museum is also well stocked and informative. There are expansion plans afoot, so it’s good to see heritage railways still proving popular. Back at site, we enjoyed the weather, I cleaned the ‘van and then relaxed.
Wednesday:
Nothing planned, a day to relax – weather still unbelievable.
Thursday:
Nothing planned, another day to relax, after all – that’s what it’s all about!
Friday:
Departure day, everything went smoothly. I think we are there in terms of storage, what the car carries and general organisation. A few routines have changed, I now carry leg winder, blocks, levellers and water hoses in the car, in the lower shelf, so that we can set the caravan up without needing to rush with taking off the cover to access the locker etc. The boot organisation is now there, food has its place along with caravan security, fridge, awning and then clothes, they have found their home at last, it’s working well! The new car, well it’s brilliant, I cannot stress how much easier it is to tow with an automatic, makes reversing far easier as well.
- Date: 11th May 2019
- Nights: 6
- Pitch #: 79
- GPS: 55.803690, -4.048265
- M74 > Road