The second stop on our summer trip was spending three weeks in England, trying to catch up with some of our friends there. Shawna first flew in and Keith joined her a day later as he was in Switzerland at the KISC member meeting.
London Gatwick
Shawna spent two nights and Keith one at the Courtyard Marriott Gatwick airport. Shawna caught up on admin and rested from our previous two weeks in Italy. The hotel is a bit run down but it served its purpose. All meals were also at the hotel.
Lyme Regis
We spent two nights in Lyme Regis on the Jurassic Coast visiting with Steve who recently had had surgery. We were last here briefly before a wedding we attended so was nice to return and spend more time.
 |
| Lyme Regis |
Accommodation:
AirBnB - We stayed at this 2 story, 4 bedroom cottage with 2 baths and a large kitchen and living room. The house is dated but it was clean and the bed was very comfortable. It's also walkable into town.
Activities:
We picked up Steve from his house in Southsea and then went to visit his parents for a bit - his mom is turning 90 this summer and his dad 100 later this year. They both seem to be doing quite well. Once we got to Lyme Regis and put our bags into the AirBnB, we went for a walk along the wharf and beach searching for fossils as the area is known for having dinosaur bones and fossils - thus the name Jurassic Coast.
 |
| Visit with Steve's parents |
 |
| Walk along the coast in Lyme Regis |
The following day, we hiked the Charmouth Beach to Golden Cap loop. Steve joined us for part of it. The first part of the hike was nice as it followed the coast but the loop back was not as scenic. It total, we hiked 7 miles and 1.5K feet in elevation and took 2 hours and 40 minutes. Before dinner, we did another walk along the river path to Uplyme - the path was very nice.
 |
| Hike to Golden Cap |
Lulworth Cove and Durdle Door Circuit Hike - We drove to Lulworth Cove and hiked this beautiful trail that has wonderful views of the coast. The hike was 6 miles and 1.2K feet in elevation and took about 3 hours.
 |
| Lulworth Cove Hike |
Restaurants:
Athelhampton House and Gardens - We stopped here on our drive in for a late lunch. We shared a lamb curry and scone.
The Ship Inn and Lyme's Fish Bar - We got fish and chips from Lyme's Fish Bar as take-out and ate it with a beer at The Ship Inn. Fish was pretty good.
The Alcove - We stopped here for a Cornish pasty for lunch and sat on the boardwalk guarding our pasties with our lives as the seagulls swooped down to try to steal them!
Rock Point Inn - We had a G&T here before dinner and sat on the deck with views of the ocean - it was chilly but nice views.
Lal Qilla - We were craving some proper Indian food so had dinner here, sharing the very spicy lamb vindaloo with rice, raita and garlic naan.
The Boat Shed - After our hike, we had lunch at this cute cafe on the water in Lulworth Cove, sharing a soup and sausage roll.
 |
| Lunch at The Boat Shed |
East Sussex
We spent four nights in the East Sussex area with Ewan and Sharon - the primary point of our visit here (other than seeing one another) was to do some sparking wine tasting which apparently England is now known for!
Accommodations:
The Southern Bell - Located in Brighton, we spent one night here. Small place with comfortable and modern rooms. We had breakfast here - breakfast sandwiches.
 |
| The Southern Bell |
The Bull - Located in Ditchling, we spent three nights here. It's a very cute pub and inn with a great restaurant and beer garden. The rooms were very nice but ours was small and it was quite hot so unfortunately, we did not sleep the best. We also had most of our meals here (see below).
 |
| The Bull |
Activities:
In Brighton, we walked around the city, stopping by the Royal Pavillion (a seaside retreat build for King George in the 1800s), walking through the Lanes (a cute area with shops and restaurants) and along the coast and boardwalk. The weather was quite warm so there were a lot of people on the beach.
 |
| Brighton Beach Pier |
While in Ditchling, we hiked to Ditchling Beacon, the nearby hilltop, which was about 1.5 hours. We also did the Devils Dyke hike which was 7 miles and 1K feet in elevation, taking about 3 hours. Both of these hikes had nice view of the rolling hills. On our last full day, we drove out to the coast and did the Seven Sisters hike which was 8 miles and 1K feet in elevation, taking 3 hours - really nice views of the chalk hills along the coast.
 |
| Devils Dyke Hike |
 |
| Seven Sisters Hike |
The main event was sparkling wine tasting - we went to two wineries on two different days:
Everflyht - We did a tour and a tasting which was very interesting. The winery is quite small and they only produce sparkling wine. We really like the cuvee so bought a few bottles to enjoy over the next couple of weeks.
 |
| Tasting at Everflyht |
Aretelium - Another small winery that produces both still and sparkling wines. The tour here was not as nice and was a bit depressing as they tossed quite a bit of their crop to frost. That said, we really liked their cuvee and sparkling rose - we bought a couple of bottles of the cuvee.
Restaurants:
The Meeting Place - Located on the beach in Brighton, we stopped here for a drink before dinner. Nice views of the ocean.
The Urchin - Located in Brighton, we had dinner here at this cute, seafood focused restaurant. We shared a few appetizers for the table and then shared a shrimp entree. Everything was tasty.
Shelter Hall - A food hall located on the beach in Brighton - we had lunch here sharing some tacos.
The Bull - Located in Ditchling, we had breakfast here one morning and had three dinners here. One night we ate inside the pub and the other two nights we ate in the beer garden. We had trout, pizza and the traditional Sunday roast for our dinners. The food was very good.
 |
| The Beer Garden at The Bull |
Green Welly Cafe - Located in Ditchling, we had breakfast at this cute cafe one morning - we each got the yogurt.
Yorkshire Dales
We spent four nights in the Yorkshire Dales - just the two of us. We had spent a day here in our previous trip to England so decided we wanted to explore the area more. On our drive here, we stopped for brunch in Winchester at The Long Barn and met up with Rachel, Quintin, Dawn and Stewart.
 |
| Brunch at The Long Barn |
Accommodation:
AirBnB - We stayed at this cute 1BR, 1 Bath house in Gayle, near the cute town of Hawes. The house was very cute and the bed was super comfortable. The owner was also very nice. We had the use of a washer in the kitchen and a drier in the garage. The only downside was the wifi was super slow. We had all of our breakfasts here.
 |
| Our AirBnB |
Activities:
Buckden Circular Hike - We did this 8 miles, 2.2K feet elevation gain hike through the hilly farmlands in the Yorkshire Dales National Park. Beautiful scenery. The hike took 3.5 hours and went through sections of the Dales Way which is a trail that starts at the Bolton Abbey in the souther part of the park and goes all the day to the Lake District.
 |
| Buckden Circular Hike |
Keld and Tan Hill Circular Hike - We did this 11 miles, 2K feet elevation gain hike that went through a small section of the coast to coast trail. It took us 4.5 hours to complete it. The first and last couple of miles were very pretty but then the fields got plain and monotonous. There were a few cool ruins along the way and at about half way, we got to Tan Hill Inn, the highest inn in the British Isles. It was super busy so we didn't get anything inside but they did have an outside tent serving a few things so we split a bacon and sausage roll.
 |
| Approaching the Tan Hill Inn on our hike |
Hawes and Hardraw Force Circular - We did this 6 mile hike that took us to the highest single drop waterfall in England at 100 feet. We then walked through fields back into town. It was an easy and pretty hike.
 |
| Hawes Hike |
Restaurants:
We picked up some cheese and crackers in town and had that for dinner two evenings as well as made tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches another evening. Some of the cheese was purchased at the local Wensleydale Creamery.
White Hart Inn - We had a few drinks in their beer garden and then had dinner here, sharing a mushroom appetizer and lamb dish for our entree. We decided to have lamb given all the sheep we have been seeing!
 |
| Beer Garden at White Hart Inn |
Lake District
We spent seven nights in the Lake District as we love this area so much. Rachel and Oliver joined us for the first four nights.
 |
| The river by our house |
Accommodation:
Grass Ings Cottage - We booked this house on Sykes Holiday Cottages. The house is located in Skelwith Bridge, a small hamlet west of Ambleside. The house has three bedrooms (two with Queen beds) and three bathrooms along with a large kitchen and den area. It also has a wonderful deck where we ate most meals with wonderful views of the hills and river. The gardens are also quite nice. The house far exceeded our expectations!
 |
| Our house and view in the Lake District |
Activities:
Walk to Skelwith Force - We did a brief walk up to the waterfall in Skelwith.
Old Man Coniston Hike - We did this 6 mile, 2K feet elevation gain hike which is our favorite hike in the area. We added a couple of miles to the hike as we parked in town and walked up to the trailhead. It turned out to be a sunny, beautiful day. At the top, we relaxed and had a few snacks while Rachel had her tea.
 |
| Old Man Coniston Hike |
Hike to Grasmere - We hiked to Grasmere, skirting around Loughrigg Fell and stopping at Rydal Cave. In Grasmere, we visited the church and Wadsworth's grave and had lunch before walking back, stopping in Elterwater for a beer.
 |
| Rydal Cave |
Hike to Hawkshead - It was a rainy day but we still ventured out, walking 5 miles to Hawkshead where we visited the church and explored the town a bit. This is a very cute village. We took a cab back.
 |
| Hike to Hawkshead |
 |
| Hawkshead Church |
Little Langdale Hike - We did this 7 mile and 1.7K elevation gain hike that took 3 hours - the hike was very nice as we crossed over the famous Slaters Bridge (which is the oldest bridge built of slate in the area) and we visited the Cathedral Quarry which is quite large.
 |
| Slater's Bridge |
 |
| Cute sheep |
We wrapped up our time here by enjoying a couple of relaxing days at the house.
Restaurants:
We had breakfast at the house each day and Shawna cooked several meals. The first night we had Italian with cheese and crackers to start and then cacio e Pepe pasta and eggplant parmesan with arugula salad. Another night she made mediterranean meatballs with orzo and roasted vegetables - we had hummus and pita and veggies to start.
Talbot Bar - Located across the street from our AirBnB, we had a beer here when Rachel and Oliver first arrived.
Royal Oak Pub - Located in Ambleside, we stopped here for a beer before dinner.
Jintana Thai - Located in Ambleside, we had dinner here sharing a couple of curries, a stir fry and a noodle dish for the table. The food was very tasty.
Grasmere Gingerbread Shop - We stopped here to get some yummy ginger cookies. The bakery has been in existence for over 170 years.
Grasmere Tea Gardens - We had lunch here, sharing a panini and chili.
Britannia Inn - Located in Elterwater, we popped in for a beer on our hike.
Chocolate Factory - Located in Hawkshead, we bought some chocolate and fudge.
King's Arms - Located in Hawkshead, we popped in for a beer. Cute place.
Birmingham
We spent four nights visiting with Charlie and Lena and their kids. On our drive down, we stopped at Levens Hall in Kendall and toured the beautiful topiary gardens and the house. Before we left, we grabbed a few items from their bakery to snack on a light lunch.
 |
| Levens Hall |
Accommodation:
Birmingham - We stayed at Charlie and Lena's house in the same large and cozy guest room we had last time.
 |
| Huins / Dodds Family |
Activities:
During our visit, we participated in a few of the kids activities - including tennis lessons and an award ceremony for the rugby team. We also rented a canal boat with Anglo Welsh Waterway (the same company we used in Wales two years earlier), riding down the river from Wooten Wawen along the Stratford Canal, crossing over an aqueduct and several locks. The kids really enjoyed helping with the locks. We had cheese, bread and sparkling wine onboard for lunch.
 |
| Canal boat |
We also went for a few walks. One was for a few hours in the Lickey Hills Country Park, taking a few rests for the kids. Another one was a 6 mile hike in the Malvern Hills with Charlie - turns out that we had hiked in this area two summers prior when we spent a few days in Wales. The weather was great and we had wonderful views.
 |
| Hike in Malvern Hills |
Restaurants:
Lena cooked for us one night where we had a yummy Iraqi dish of chickpeas and ground lamb. We ordered in pizza another night. For our last night, Charlie made salmon, rice and salad and we had some yummy baclava that he brought from London.
Chakana - The real treat was an early birthday dinner at their favorite Peruvian restaurant. We got the tasting menu with the wine pairing and the food was delicious!
 |
| Dinner at Chakana |
Faun Bakery & Cafe - Located in Malvern, we stopped here for lunch during our hike. We had soup, a sandwich, burrata and a wonderful labney and white bean dip. Very tasty!
