castle

Monday 15th June 2026 – moving into East Sussex after a stop off at Folkestone….

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A bit more of a grey day today with some very half hearted attempts at rain first thing as we pack up and make ready to leave Canterbury and Kent behind.

First though we find parking on the seafront on the south side of Folkestone in Sandgate and walk along the promenade on Sandgate Beach heading northwards….

Passing Sandgate’s small castle….

Before rounding the headland onto Folkestone Beach, somewhat lost to the tide in places….

Folkestone Beach giving way to the deeper shingle Mermaid Beach which butts up to the Port….

The clouds here looked fairly dramatic but only produced a couple of spots of rain fortunately as we made our return to the van parked beyond Sandgate.

Moving on a couple of miles and stopping briefly on the seafront at Hythe to capture the beach….

Here the parking was chargeable so we decided to continue on our way to our next campsite another 40 or so miles along the coast in East Sussex at Normans Bay CCC and once we had arrived and were pitched, we crossed the road to explore our resident beach for the next week or so – Normans Bay Beach….

A nice bit of off lead time for Tilly and a nice bit of sea air to help us sleep!!

Today’s stats:

  • Miles driven – 65
  • Miles walked – 6
  • Beaches – 5
  • O/N – £11.10 no EHU

Sunday 14th June 2026 – a coastal walk along the beaches and castles of Deal….

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Another fine walking day with the same gentle coastal breeze as yesterday. Today we continue our journey around the coast heading south and find seafront parking at the northern end of Deal by the site of the former Sandown Castle and at the start of the promenade.

Sandown shingle beach continues north for several miles to Pegwell Country Park just shy of Ramsgate backed by several golf courses along the way and southwards towards the coastal town of Deal….

Apart from the odd fisherman dotted along the shore, the beach is pretty deserted until we arrive near the centre of Deal where the beach becomes Deal Beach….

The town itself and the promenade are quite busy on this lovely Sunday afternoon as we continue our walk passing the Time Ball Tower a Victorian Maritime Signal Tower, now housing a museum – the time ball is mechanically programmed to rise up the mast at 5 to 1 and drops at 1pm every day (we are too late to see this) and a little further on is Deal Castle ….

Beyond the castle the beach is occupied by a few fishing boats and wild flowers and looking back on Kent’s last remaining fully intact pleasure pier….

Pressing on along the promenade we wander past the village of Walmer (now pretty much absorbed into Deal) to it’s castle….

And very deserted but prettily strewn with wild flowers, shingle beach which eventually leads to Kingsdown which is just a tad too far for us, as we make this our turning point and after a time on the beach, we head back to the van….

Another lovely long walk not exactly beach walking but promenade walking which has to be the second best type and easily preferable when the beach is shingle!

Today’s stats:

  • Miles driven – 36
  • Miles walked – 7
  • Beaches – 3
  • Fuel – £99.63
  • Groceries – £51.71
  • O/N – £9.50

Friday 12th June 2026 – a lovely walk along the White Cliffs of Dover….

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Still a bit damp this morning but soon drying up and the clouds gradually thinning as the day wore on and we are keen to get out and about again.

Today we are heading for Dover, well more specifically the White Cliffs and headed for the National Trust car park up above the Port and Dover. The small motorhome specific car park (only taking 8 vans and certainly nothing over 7.5m in length) had just the two spaces left – lo and behold either side of an identical van (me on the right)….

We set off on a rather windy walk along the tops of the White Cliffs with views of Dover castle behind us and the white cliffs ahead (west)….

We were soon looking down on the black sands of Langdon Beach (accessible through a tunnel and steep metal steps – so not for us) and out at the cloud shadows and glimpses of sun out across the English Channel unfortunately it is definitely not clear enough to catch any glimpses of France….

We reached South Foreland Lighthouse and decided to continue along to the next village of St Margaret’s at Cliffe visible along the cliffs in the distance….

A steep climb down onto the beach at the bottom where we took a while recharging our batteries before making the climb back up….

Our return route was slightly more inland and away from the worst of the wind through lush green meadows with glimpses back along the cliffs….

Rejoining the cliff path for a look at the busy Port and down onto Dover and it’s beach in the distance….

Today’s stats:

  • Miles driven – 41
  • Miles walked – 9
  • O/N – £9.50

Sunday 17th May 2026 – a day in Vaduz, Liechtenstein….

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A lovely sunny day as we leave Austria behind and dip our toes into Liechtenstein for a night. My overriding impression was the lushness of this small country completely enveloped by the Alps. The road bobbed in and out of Switzerland with little fanfare just the two countries emblems – the border actually running down the middle of the Rhine as it snakes it’s way down from Germany.

We easily found our park up – a rather scenic train station car park bordered by the small captital of Liechtenstein, Vaduz and the Rhine….

We headed straight into Vaduz and enjoyed a wander around the pristine town, an interesting mix of new and old architecture but all immaculately presented….

The stunning church with it’s cool interior…

The main pedestrianised square and an obligatory Lindt Chocolate shop and yes we did….

High above us the Princely home and castle – home to the Liechtenstein Royal Family, is perched on the hillside overlooking the Capital….

It didn’t take very long, exploring the capital in full so instead of returning to the van we wandered along the footpath / cycle path which shadows this stretch of the Rhine….

Stunning and incredibly peaceful an absolute joy to walk, especially on the lower path which is cycle free and Tilly could happily potter off the lead. We ventured across the footbridge, marked with the national borders and wandered along the Swiss side for awhile before returning for a very peaceful and free night courtesy of the kindness of the country of Liechtenstein….

Today’s stats:

  • Miles driven – 76
  • Miles walked – 6
  • Countries – 3
  • O/N – free

Wednesday 6th May 2026 – a walk into Sirmione….

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The difference a day makes – having looked set for an unsettled week, the weather has brightened up overnight and another beautiful day has come our way. Good news for us as we have planned a fairly lengthy walk along the peninsula that is Sirmione, one of the most popular spots on Lake Garda.

Again access to the foreshore of Lake Garda is limited but we grabbed each opportunity even if it did add a mile or 2 todays excursion….

As we arrived at the main old town of Sirmione (having wandered through many leafy and affluent residential areas and hotels), this beauty was parked in one of the many car parks on the outskirts…

Rather ruined as the side was plastered with promotional stickers for some Real Estate company – how crass?

Though busy the main entrance to the old town was guarded by this magnificent castle – Castello Scaligero….

We meandered our way through the busy narrow streets lined with shops, bars and Gelateria’s and more typically quieter residential side streets….

Dipping out to check on Lake Garda where possible….

The far end of the peninsula was much quieter and largely occupied by manicured grounds of fancy hotels

At the very end is the Grotto di Catullo a chargeable museum, which we didn’t go into, enjoying the far reaching Lake views instead…

And on the return journey a visit to the much quieter and off the main beaten track, San Pietro in Mavino and its Bell tower dating back to the 1300’s….

On our return we found ourselves a nice quiet spot by the Lake to enjoy a pastry with our coffee and to rest our tired legs….

Before making our way back to the Castle and to prepare ourselves for the long walk home….

Today’s stats:

  • Miles walked – 9
  • Pastry – £1.90 (last of the big spenders me)
  • O/N – £24