After a final trip to the park, we waved off Anna and co on the next leg of their world tour as they flew off to Crete. We thought we’d got a relaxing morning ahead of us, until the cleaners turned up and informed us that ‘check-out’ was not what Anna thought! In a mad rush, we threw everything into what had arrived as a pretty organised car, and left with it stuffed to the roof with clothes, shoes and food.

Rather than rush away from London, we decided to take a trip along the famous ‘Long Walk’ as we were so closed. The statue of King Charles III looked suitably far away to make us question our choice of ‘rest day’, but we went for it anyway – and we’re glad we did (in the end!).

And it was well worth the hike. Fabulous views and a good stretch of the legs. We even saw some parrots in the trees that lined the avenue.

Next stop on our family tour was over on the ‘Martins’ side, to visit Patrick and Lucy. We arrived late afternoon and enjoyed a lovely evening with them and the lads, swapping stories and news over a huge BBQ before retiring to some very fine accommodation in ‘Wick Cottage’.

A breakfast of Patrick’s famous poached eggs (fresh from the chickens outside!), set us up nicely for getting back on the road and heading west for Somerset. A slow drive, but at least you get to see one of the wonders of the world for your efforts, as the traffic crawls past Stone Henge.

It was a wonderfully warm afternoon when we arrived at Pat and Bob’s – perfect for BBQing again.

Good times, with the new table tennis table providing the entertainment and exercise, between eating, drinking and strolling through Illminster, where incredibly, we came across another Parrot! This time an ‘African Grey’ – just relaxing on a bench on the High Street! (With it’s owner).

And finally, with a 5am start to avoid the worst of the UK traffic, we headed back north, to re-acquaint ourselves with The Cottage. Clare had the brunt of the drive, getting us through ‘Storm Flori’, but after arriving mid-morning through low clouds and heavy rain, by the time we’d got in and had a snooze, the sun had returned, giving us a warm welcome back – perfect for dealing with 5 weeks worth of washing and dirty climbing kit! It’s good to be back…. For a bit at least…