It's a long way from Manchester to the Isle Of Wight, so an early start, 15 toilet stops, 2 spilt drinks, 1 stalker bee who chased us for miles, and when we boarded the ferry that afternoon Manchester was 10 degrees colder than Portsmouth, and rainy...
We stayed on an amazing eco-friendly campsite, (and I'm not just saying that because it's owned and run by 2 very good friends of ours). I have never had such a fabulous view while I washed the pots, or such sunshine while I ate my breakfast at 6.30am...
Beach Day!!!! That first morning we were at the beach before you could say "let's bury the Zombie"...and we stayed until teatime...
After tea the sun set while we roasted marshmallows and toast over the fire pit...we really couldn't have asked for a better start to the holiday...
It was 8 years since we'd last been to the Isle Of Wight on holiday, nostalgic for our big children and awesome for us to watch them introduce our 2 little children to Carisbrooke Castle - and the Knight School!
Another day, another beautiful beach. Why is it as soon as you lie down to sunbathe someone gets the camera out?...blinking paparazzi
Never mind Shaggy dropping that Scooby snack - look at those knees! This is what happens when people from Manchester are exposed to sunlight...
Meanwhile, back at the campsite...
We spent a full day visiting Godshill, it's a lovely little village....
And a great place to stop for lunch....
And then, you will not believe what happened! On holiday, in the UK...
That was the only rain we saw all holiday, and it was so warm and brief we really didn't care...and it didn't spoil any of our plans...
Pay close attention to this photo of the gang ready for another beach day...there'll be a 'spot the difference' later...and notice how they're already showing a fear of piers...
My OH says this photo is 'ok', I'm still impressed I managed to make it look like Fred's torch is shining, and it only took me about half an hour...
It requires an early start if you want to see the 100% awesome genuine dinosaur footprints on Compton Bay beach. Luckily I had a vague memory of where they are, and we just made it there and back before the tide had come in to our knees.
One Iguanadon footprint - 3 tiny minifigures!
The rest of the beach isn't so bad either...
Back at camp and Shaggy helped my boys investigate some wildlife...
Our last full day was also the day of the local village fete. Rob Da Bank lives nearby and had donated some of the prizes for the raffle, which made an eclectic mix of farming trophies, Firemen, Bestival chillwave and the world's best ice cream van. Perfect actually for what turned out to be the hottest day of the holiday...
By now I was getting a bit complacent. A bit over-assured. I thought I was expert at taking photos of the Mystery Machine in holiday settings.
What could be better than on a bench on a slatted wooden pier? Well....anything as it turns out. It was a nice photo, but it came at a cost. Immediately after I took this a gust of wind blew the Mystery Machine backwards off the bench. Thanks to Fred's habit of securing everything inside, damage and loss was limited to the back of the van, and everyone was safe. Zombie was traumatised though...he'd been in the back with Scooby Doo.
Fred confirms the worst "The big end's gone".
The Zombie never got over his scare and says he'll never go back to Yarmouth, he can't even bear to see it on a map...
And then it was goodbye to the Isle of Wight, and goodbye forever to the rear end of the Mystery Machine.
Until next time...
The Mystery Machine also went on tour to the Just So Festival, and I think it'll be back again this year...
If you want to see the less plastic version of our Isle OF Wight 2015 holiday then see my post Eco-Camping On The Isle Of Wight With Teenagers And Children...
Our stay was free of charge - we stayed at Camp Wight near Yarmouth.
Jenny I don't know anyone who gets as creative with LEGO as you! Actually when you were posting these photos on social media in the summer I was reviewing some dinosaur figures and you inspired me to take them out into the woods for a photo shoot instead of just letting go the kids play with them :) I love your ideas!
ReplyDeleteI saw your dinosaurs! It's loads of fun putting them into their 'natural habitat'. Thanks for your lovely comments Karen :)
DeleteWhat a brilliant holiday and the Scooby foo gang look like they had a lot of fun too (besides the paps, but what can you do eh?)
ReplyDeleteHahaha.... :D Darn paparazzi. It was a brilliant holiday - the weather was amazing!
DeleteWhat a brilliant idea! Love that the LEGO gang have a fab holiday too!
ReplyDeleteThanks Eileen! I think they did have a fab holiday - except for the whole 'broken van' thing :D
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