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Return to Runswick
Fortunately, the only requirements to keep James and the dog amused are a bag (for “treasure”) and a tennis ball respectively.
There are lots of seaside destinations within striking distance of our house, but we like Runswick Bay best. A wide, sweeping bay with a picture-postcard village, it also has a waterfall, cliffs, fossils and an excellent cafe. What more could you want? It’s a good idea to check the tide times before you go because on a high spring tide you can’t get onto the beach without either wading or dodging the waves. Because the cliffs are made of clay this can be a messy business unless you do it either in wellies or in bare feet. Once you’ve negotiated this, you’re ready to feel the sand between your toes!
James diligently collected pebbles. Some of these were passed to Daddy for him to skim on the sea while James offered helpful advice on technique; and others went into his cloth bag which he lugged along the beach determinedly with grunts and groans which grew louder as the bag grew heavier. Where the Cleveland Way leaves the beach, there is a waterfall and a stream which runs down to the sea. James likes to float things down this stream and fish them out before they are taken by the tide. This time it was a piece of polystyrene, and as usual it kept him amused for ages – amazing how fascinating a bit of water can be when you’re three years old. “I love it here this much!” he said, arms thrown wide.
When the tide’s fully out, we like to walk to the far south end of the beach to look for fossils in the shale pavements. And to round off the day, what could be better than a trip to one of Whitby’s famous fish and chip shops? James earnestly gave the waitress the order: “Please may we have fish and chips? But not for the baby, ‘cause he only drinks milk you know!”
Comments (4)
It looks like James had a great time and I'm very impressed that you took your pram on the beach, that's dedication!
Ah yes, the pram! A brilliant bit of kit! It's an original (2007) New Zealand-made Mountain Buggy 'Terrain' with a fixed front wheel and 'go-almost-anywhere' tyres. It really does have an all-terrain capability and will see off snow, mud, sand, stones, and all the other things encountered on outdoor adventures. It is one of the best bits of outdoor kit we have because it's let us crack on doing the things we enjoy. It has been on many adventures with us and will no doubt appear again in our future posts. (Note that Mountain Buggy were taken over a year or so ago and the models were changed and/or discontinued. I would advise anyone looking for a genuine all-terrain buggy to seek out one of the older models which were made in New Zealand. These are absolutely bombproof and won't let you down. There are folding and non-folding variants and they come in double and even triple models!).
I agree Helen, we had a Mountain Buggy Terrain for Willow too - it really is an all terrain buggy and even went up Snowdon! I used to take it on long jaunts across the New Forest, across tree roots, through water and when I got home I would give it a jet wash and it would look as good as new. I think Phil and Ted's have now taken over Mountain Buggy and you can still get them in New Zealand.
Hi, We live in New Zealand and I have a single mountain buggy made before Phil and Teds took over and before they began manufacturing them in China. I agree with Helen if you are looking to get a mountain buggy I would look for an older one that is still in good condition. The new ones are not nearly as well made and definitely not as robust. We too have taken ours all over the place....in fact we've always had a bit of a moto that this mountain buggy can and will go anywhere (even if that has meant carrying it with child over rocks or trees or bog here and there). One thing though...our can do attitude coupled with living near to the sea and taking it on the beach has meant it rusted badly and we've had a fair amount of parts replaced. We got a double chariot buggy/bike trailer when we had number two....and its lighter than the single mountain buggy and more manouverable! In fact I can manage to run with both girls in it still (just not uphill). I looked at the double mountain buggy and they are so wide and so heavy. Personally I wouldn't recommend the doubles. The other thing you can now get in the mountain buggy range is a scooter that attaches to the buggy or can be removed if the child wants to scoot off on their own for a bit. We don't have one of those but they look pretty cool to me!!!