Day -2 Sandcastle flags

Sandcastle flags

If you're off to the beach then you need sandcastle flags - don't you? I thought that we'd make our own Girlguiding LaSER flags to plant in the sandcastles/pebble piles that we're going to build on each of the beaches that we visit. Thank you to Cleo, Ellie, Georgie and Nick for help in their construction. They look good don't they?

We've got loads of flags so hopefully with help from Molly and Greatstone Guides, who are joining us next Tuesday, we might build a whole city of castles on a beach somewhere in Kent. Look out for the photos of LaSER castles on every beach in the Region .... maybe!

Having decided upon, and now booked, all our campsites: Herne Bay, Deal, Romney Marsh, Bexhill-on-Sea and Angmering we can start to focus on the coastline and in particular the beaches. Please leave a comment, email, tweet or text your suggestions of where to go and linger and where to go only very briefly - your comments and suggestions will be very helpful in planning our days to our best advantage.

Choosing our campsites has been an interesting exercise. Initially I had hoped that we'd be camping almost on the beach but certainly with easy walking access. What was I thinking off? It's static caravan holiday park city out there! I don't feel inclined to pay for the whole gambit of facilities: pools, bars, evening ents and manicured park land that we have no intention of using, I guess that Guide campsites have spoiled my perception of camping somewhat. So, I started the search for 'tent only' sites and resigned myself to the fact that this would mean 'inland' rather than windswept cliffs or marran grass sand dunes, all we need is a patch of grass in a field, a water tap and flush loo within walking distance and possibly a hot shower. Then I stumbled upon glamping. There are some stunning sites nestling in the South Downs with all manner of tepees and yurts in woodland dells, campfire pits ..... and compost toilets. What?? We've spent the last 10 years moving from chemical loos on our Guide campsites to installing mains water flushing loos and now people are paying a small fortune for the pleasure of chucking a few wood shavings on their poo! Fascinating turnabout isn't it?

The sites that I've chosen all appear to be on working farms with animals in fields as our only entertainment. The reviews tend to praise the friendliness of the owners and describe the ablutions as 'tired but clean' or variations thereof- suits me down to the ground. They're also a fraction of the price of the glamping fraternity and the spend-all-day-in-the-holiday-park-because-we-have-everything-to-entertain-you-on-site variety. I perhaps should reserve judgement but I'm quietly confident that we've made the right choices. I hope that doesn't prove to be a case of 'famous last words'!

Last year's '19 nights in 19 different Counties' gave me lots of opportunity to fine hone the packing list. By mid-way through the trip we had loading the car down to a fine art and had jettisoned unnecessary kit at home on a passing-through day, it helped that I was driving an Astra and had no spare capacity at all. This year I'm driving a VW Sharan, a veritable juggernaut in comparison, but I'm looking at the mounting pile of 'stuff' and wondering whether we really need that plastic wine glass, what's wrong with drinking wine from a coffee mug? We're certainly not 'glamping' but we're not roughing it either so the odd luxury is perfectly permissable in my book - so will the wine glass make it into the box or not?

Watch this space!

email me at: pipmck@girlguidinglaser.org.uk Twitter: @PipMcKerrow