THE IRISH TRIO HIT THE ROAD

We have been friends for 42 years, since the day we all started nursing at St James' hospital in Leeds. Our lives have taken different paths, I ventured into journalism, Maggie nursed at a doctors surgery, Ann returned to Cork in Ireland to work in a nursing home but we have always kept in touch. Although we do all admit we are pretty useless at keeping in touch for ages but when we do reconnect it is just so much fun and laughter, we ask ourselves why don't we do this more often.

So I was really excited to go to Leeds Bradford airport to meet up with Maggie and collect Ann from the Cork flight, so that we could spend a week together in my lovely motorhome. We all squealed with delight when Ann came through the arrivals door and we headed off to the fab campsite that I had found at Pool Bank Farm.

The views over Wharefdale were to die for and we just sat outside with a few gins and caught up with all that has been happening in our lives. Ann had just retired from nursing. I had just retired from nearly thirty years at the BBC as a radio and Television journalist and Maggie is still working as a nurse but contemplating her retirement before too long. So we all had plenty to chat about. And I was eager to show them just how I was getting to grips with the motorhome life. I expertly turned the gas on and connected us to the electricity. And just to really prove a point I filled the tank with water so that we could all shower in the morning. Thankfully this time it all went smoothly and they seemed suitably impressed with my efforts. Although I think I did get them a bit annoyed stressing about us taking boots on and off getting into the motorhome. Something I had to work on and take a chill pill, because I want to have as many guests as possible and don't want to stress them out. So I plan to get a big box to put boots in that will go under the motorhome to keep dry. I will also buy another matt to put by the steps to enable people to take boots off. It is things like this that I am learning along the way and it makes life so much easier. I knew they would be great as first guests because they would tell me what works and what doesn't and they would not take any nonsense from me.

I made us a delicious dinner then we settled down for the night chatting over a few gins. I can highly recommend Dingle Gin (thanks Ann).  It was great fun having a girlie sleepover and there was plenty of room for all three of us. In the morning we sat in bed for ages drinking coffee and nattering. I even managed to cover poor Maggie in Allbran when I tried to get the tub out of the locker above her. It was hilarious to see her sitting there covered in it and in shock. 

I made us all bacon butties and we had lovely warm showers (which impressed the girls just how easy it was to shower and how there was enough water for all three of us)

then we decided to head off for a walk in the beautiful Yorkshire countryside. None of us had a map and it is fair to say none of us has a great sense of direction! but after a few false starts we managed to find a footpath that took us to Otley, via Chevin FirstPark, a designated nature reserve, which was magical to walk through even if it was quite hilly at times.

We did actually wander into a field on the walk and realised there was big fat bull sitting down in the distance looking at us, I have never walked up a hill so fast in my life saying "oh my god its a bull, it really is a bull, and it is looking at us" Thankfully we found a fairly low wall and quickly clambered over it.

Otley is a market town on the river Wharfe, and I would highly recommend a visit to it. Round every corner there are little cobbled areas or old market places. You can clearly see that many of the buildings are steeped in history. It is somewhere that I definitely want to revisit.
We then headed back to the motorhome and another night at PoolBank Farm poolbankfarmcl.com
Tomorrow we planned to packup and head off for a few days walking in the Lake District.