Five miles out of Brockenhurst lies the lovely little historic Port Town of Lymington. You can park a Motorhome on one of the three Marinas there, provided you pay for two spaces . On this occasion we decided to take the train for a bit of a change. It’s a ten minute ride from Brockenhurst and costs only £4.20 per person return.

Hubby is a bit of a train enthusiast so he really digs old railway stations! Couldn’t get him out of there!

it’s a colourful little place. In school holidays, the slipway by the harbour is lined with children crabbing. It was a bit of a grey day when we visited but charming nonetheless. Not so many folk around. From the pier, you can take a short ferry ride to the Isle of Wight, with or without your car. There are some great shops in town. I was in my element. Let me at em! Finally, I got my Quba Sails jacket, yay! As well as the usual chains, Joules, Quba, Crew etc., there are several super boutiques selling classy, relaxed, slightly bohemian clothing. Very much my style at the moment , I just love it here. There are a couple of very nice interiors shops too. Mostly with a coastal theme. Stocked up on my favourite St. Eval candles. Best scented candles ever, Seasalt! Fab.

We were both craving fresh crab sandwiches. There’s a funky little cafe on the water front, the food is really good there. Despite that, we just couldn’t resist fish and chips. Weak willed! We ate them out of the paper overlooking the boats. Yummy! We went for coffee and cake at the cafe to finish off. We’ll save the crab for next visit.

There are a few good pubs, most serving decent food. The Stanwell House Boutique Hotel is an upmarket but fairly reasonably priced and stylish place to stay. It is dog friendly and has a quality restaurant. Julia, when are you coming to visit? How can you resist? I’ve found you a great hotel and shops!!

There is a seawater baths in Lymington. It’s the oldest seawater lido in the country. You can take river cruises from the little jetty. On Saturdays there is a lively, bustling charter market selling great local produce. We absolutely love the Juice Shack and Vegetable Shop at the top end of the town. They provide an excellent service delivering fruit and vegetable boxes. £12.50 for a fabulous selection of fresh, organic fruit and veg, all grown locally. What you get depends on what’s in season. You can have fresh juices and smoothies delivered too. It’s a brilliant concept and the owners are so nice and helpful. You can order on line or over the phone. We are trying to get our campers ordering their fresh stuff as they already deliver to The Pig just down the road. Please support them if you can.

Well, we’ve had a very pleasant day indeed. We will return next week as I’ve booked an eye test, (yes, once again I’ve managed to break my specs!). Our Son, Matt, is coming to stay so it’s a good place to bring him to for lunch. There is a Waitrose, here, joy! I can steal his car and do a food shop!

Time to head back to the station and home to Brockenhurst, swinging my lovely bag of swagger!

That’s another mini adventure in the bag! Back at base now. I have been marinating some rather good filet steaks for tonight’s supper. A Japanese stir fry dish with lots of cumin and chilli. I’m pretty sure I’ve given you the recipe in a previous post. It’s one of my favourite go to dishes. Want it again? Go on then!

It’s very simple and amazingly tasty. Just slice and marinate the beef in 4 tablespoons of soy sauce, 4 tablespoons of port or sherry, two of water, a thumb sized piece of grated ginger, a teaspoon of cornflour and a pinch of Seasalt. Warm in a wok, a generous splash of sesame oil and 3 cloves of finely chopped garlic and chopped chillies. I use Birdseye ones but adapt to your own tastes. I like it hot and spicy!! Add the meat mixture. Cook on a low light for about 4 minutes. Remove from pan leaving half of the liquid. Stir in a heaped tablespoon of freshly ground cumin. When it starts to turn fragrant, return the meat to the pan. Cook for another couple of minutes. Add shredded spring onions and a handful of chopped coriander. Serve with Thai Jasmin rice and Nan bread. It’s a lovely light supper and healthy too.

Enjoy my friends. Time for me to turn in now. My bed is calling. Back to work in the forest tomorrow. Tune in next time if you can.

Take care all. Be happy. xxx