Treasure Hunting in Linlithgow

This is actually our second attempt at the Linlithgow Treasure Trail - we were snowed off the first time after 6 questions and decided to go sledging instead!

For take two, we had the in-laws through for a visit and, as it finally felt like spring was on the cards, we decided to give the treasure trail another go. As I've said before, we always do the kids quizzes when visiting places, so the idea of following a list of directions and clues in order to solve a puzzle at the end was right up our street. Getting to walk around and really explore Linlithgow for the first time was also an added bonus.

We all started just outside the palace and followed the directions given to find the solutions to each question. The trail took us up to the canal, back to the old courthouse, across to a church none of us knew existed before going around the peel (giving both Missy and Flash a chance to stretch their legs) and finishing up where we started. At a little over two hours (we did stop to read all the signs ) it made a very good dog walk for us all that was a bit more interesting and different. The company makes loads of them for just about everywhere, so expect more of them in the future!

The rest of the week has been taken up with a trip to London and then straight back into work and off to see friends! Speaking of friends, Missy is to have another 'cousin' - some very good friends of ours are getting a shiba inu puppy and I absolutely cant wait for the play dates! At 8 weeks old, we're going to have to wait a bit first, but I'm already super excited about it. Missy is terribly good with puppies (she just lets them wriggle all over her and mostly ignores the attention) so I'm looking forward to it.

Not much else to say this week, just a quick post. Was at a 'stash clearance' craft fair and may have bought some fabric and very old dress patterns from the 80s, so I think I'm going to start putting together a new project before the day is done!

Hmm...perhaps a puppy blanket...

Linlithgow Jousting

A very busy day today!

This weekend was annual jousting at Linlithgow Palace and, for the first time since I knew it existed, its landed on a weekend I'm not rota'd to work - so there was absolutely no way I wasn't going.

We started the day early and had a wander about the castle before it got too busy (and it did get very busy!) so that we could legitimately tick it off the castle to-do list. Missy has well and truly conquered the spiral staircase although we accidentally wrapped a few people up in her lead winding up and down! Everyone was in good humour though and she was quickly the centre of attention and got lots of pats and cuddles.

The event itself was much more than I expected. The historical reenactment societies were out and there was a host of medieval games to play, armour to try on and gruesome stories of torture and battle to revolt and enthral all the kids. Between the two jousting shows, the jester show, the dragon puppet and the games, we actually ran out of time to look at all the things on offer. 

Missys rapt attention

The jousts were cleverly done - we had our villain (Sir Checkmate) and our Knight-of-the-Flowers-knock-off good guy and they did tremendously well with their banter and theatrics. The horsemanship was impressive as they managed to not wound each other whilst keeping in character and shoeing off the various skills expected of a knight (I think we were all relived when the heads they were to cut in half turned out to be of the lettuce sort!)

The last standout moments were the jesters and the 'dragon training'. The jesters stood out because they were absolutely brilliant fun to watch with perfect comedic timing. They had the whole crowd laughing and cheering from the word go. The dragon training was actually a giant puppet. There was a puppeteer in the head and then all along the cloth body were holes with hoods on them for kids to go in. The day out was a whole family one so I had my niece and nephew with me and, as they were asking for volunteers, I was being silly and jumping and waving going 'me, me!' trying to encourage them to show some interest in participating and I got chosen! I was put to the head of the group and I think the idea was that the kids behind me could follow my lead/I could be trusted not to run into the puppeteer. Either way, it was tremendous fun running about in circles roaring and jingling the bells that were sewn into the body. I don't think I'm going to be allowed to live it down anytime soon, but that really doesn't bother me - all this being grown up malarkey is just boring!

Although the hubby has decided that I'm not allowed to be left unattended again at these things! He'd literally nipped off to the privy to find me parading about as a dragon, so I can hardly blame him for saying so!

Blackness Castle

Its another one for the Scottish Heritage pass! Desperately trying to make sure we get our moneys worth out of these...

So, Blackness Castle - the boat that never floated....

Seriously, from the pier it looks like a ship - its the strangest little castle you can imagine! And of course its dog friendly, so Missy has been continuing with her history lessons. This one boasts a prison tower, a great hall, a large courtyard and even allows you to walk around most of the curtain wall. We bumped into lots of other pooches who were enjoying their lessons as well, so it seems a local favourite for a nice afternoon.

This was a good castle for the dog as, despite the winding staircases (she's just about mastered them now without towing one of us to out imminent deaths) it was really quite open, and the grounds included a nice stroll along the beach which had plenty of rabbits in the long grass for shaking off any history-induced-cobwebs.

Missy is admiring her kingdom

In addition to trawling the local area for castles and other unusual and fun places to take the dog, I've been getting on with a lot of sewing projects. Whilst I enjoy dressing Missy up in silly hats and coats, the hubby prefers a more practical look for the dog (Missy, her wagging tail reliably informs me that she really doesn't care, so long as there is treats at the end of it all!) And so I present to you all (courtesy of Simplicty Pattern 1578) a doggy bathrobe! Perfect for little doggies like mine who absolutely hate being dried down (really, the way she acts when you try to dry her paws would have you thinking you were wielding a rusty saw at the dog!)

I also do sewing for humans too - mostly little ones like my nieces and nephew, but sometimes I do manage to make something a bit more grown up sized. I might do a wee post sometime soon with a wee sewing round up, but until then, cheerio!

Beecraigs Country Park

Place Name: Beecraigs Country Park

Location: Near Linlithgow, Scotland

Cost: Free

Parking: Plenty, and free to use

Walking distance: Variable, see map: http://www.westlothian.gov.uk/media/1344/Beecraigs-Country-Park---Map-2015/pdf/BeecraigsParkMap-2015.pdf

Restrictions: Dogs are not allowed into the visitors centre or in the play park. Must be on leads when walking through the caravan site and the animal attraction.

Refreshments: Restaurant is currently closed (April 2015) but drinks and snacks can be purchased from the visitors centre.

Website:  http://www.westlothian.gov.uk/beecraigs

For Easter this year we decided to celebrate the sunny weather with a walk around Beecraigs Country Park. This is our go to walk at weekends when the weather is kind (Missy is thankfully the sort of dog who dislikes torrential rain and sleet just as much as we do) and seemed a good place to start with this blog – please feel free to suggest layout changes, or let me know what sort of information would be useful.

Beecraigs is certainly one of the most family orientated forested areas locally to us. With plenty of activities on throughout the year, generous amounts of hidden geocaches, a massive play park and plenty of open woodland, there is something for everyone. Onsite there is also an ‘animal attraction’ which houses deer, belted Galloway cattle and of course some highland cows. There are also barbeque pits which are apparently bookable through the website – a ban is in place for unauthorised bbqs. Fishing and rowing is available on the lake.

Joggers, cyclists and the occasional horse rider can usually be spotted, so if your four legged friend is prone to chasing, it’s best to keep them on the lead or stay off the main paths. Also on the chasing note, there are deer, rabbits and squirrels aplenty, so be prepared to shout and holler for dog (Missys favourite past time).

For dogs who enjoy a paddle, there is a small lake although it is worth keeping an eye out for people fishing – Missy has a general distrust of water deeper than ankle height, so is not something I’ve had to pay attention to!

With it being Easter, the Visitors Centre had put on an Easter challenge whereby there were twelve questions dotted around the main ‘loop’ of the park – a sheet to put down your results and to try and match the visual clues could be picked up from the visitors centre and the answers were also located on the information board inside. Between us we managed to get all twelve right, but some of them were very challenging questions!

Overall rating: 4/5 – a good day for everyone, although it can be very muddy and certain areas very exposed to the elements, so sensible footwear and clothing is recommended.