Beddgelert: highs and lows

With the recent facelift done it was time to get back in the van and get using it again. A trip to Beddgelert was on the cards for my birthday, to do a spot of mountainbiking, bbq'ing, and generally chilling out in the forest.

Cue the worst rains in June for a long time! Not that it would put us off.

Camped-up the van looks even more at home on the campsites now it looks less like a tradesman has come to fix the plumbing!

We'd had the worst of the rain on the journey down, a quick walk in the woods (and in the drizzle) had made up our minds - pub.

The next day dawned bright so a trip was made down the valley for a clamber over Caernarfon Castle - a great recommendation for big kids as well as small:

Overnight rain then brought out those seeking damper hobbies:

Great to watch but it looked cold. These guys were paddling down stream through the spectacular Aberglaslyn Gorge; a gap between slate hills barely wide enough for the river, road, a footpath, and the railway to all fit through. Seeing the Welsh Highland Railway train come through was a bonus.

From here it was down to Porthmadog to stock up on provisions (we managed two barbecues during the break) and then a trip on to the beach at Black Rock Sands.

So those were the highs, what about the lows you ask?

Well, on first arriving on the campsite I quickly took to the van with a cleaning cloth and almost dropped to my knees... STONECHIP!

Surely not? Wait, and another, and another... this can't be right?

A quick email and photos to Alex at Merseyspeed (and a couple of beers to calm down) to arrange calling in on the way home. It seems that the VW factory-primed section of the bumper hasn't taken the paint at all well. The top coat of stone blue paint can be scraped away with a fingernail - fair play to Merseyspeed, a date has been set to put things right.

No doubt more will follow on this in due course.