Southgate Adventures

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Walks tend to start around 8am these days! But starting at 8am means we pretty much get everywhere to ourselves! You will see from the photos – nobody to be seen!

We parked on the edge of Bucklesham Road near an entrance to the woods! With wide open spaces and trees to jump over Jack could run around freely. From here the woods opens up to a large heath! We walked for about 40 minutes up and down the tracks with Jack chasing us!

Bit nervous about the hidden snakes and animals in the heath though! Had to stop Jack wading off to explore too much from the beaten track! We certainly didn’t want any trips to A&E!

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The best thing about taking Jack out to new places is seeing how confident he is getting. He loves to see new things and now even tells us what way we are going next! Since lockdown began his walking has come on loads! Gone are the days of having to pick him up all the time! Which is great as his far too heavy for me to carry that far now!

Check out my activity on Strava: https://strava.app.link/01Le52g3F6

Wowzers the sun has got his hat on! Its blazing hot out here! With that in mind I drove across to Rendlesham Forest to see if running in the shade would be cooler for us both! I don’t think I appreciated how difficult the terrain would be though!

Our mountain buggy has massive tyres on it, but the paths were super bumpy. Luckily Jack found it funny, but certainly didn’t look like a comfy ride! With the best of intentions I don’t think we are cut out for off road running!

Despite the bumps and the heat we had picked a good location to be isolated. Very few people walking around and the paths were easy to pass anyone you did meet!

Wherever I run with Jack I’ve been trying to make sure he gets something out of it too! After all its not all just about running! So on route we stopped to explore the forest and the dens! Some fabulous creations made in the woods – this one had a pinecone fire pit!

Now…here is the thing though! Jack has decided that we have bears in our woods! He honestly thinks noises he hears are bears! Between that and the crows our exploring came to a quick end! It’s so hard explaining what some sounds are when you can’t see what is making them!

Oh and we lost monkey in the woods!I had to retrace our steps and thankfully found him! The amount of miles I have done to recover toys…. I should be much fitter!

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We realised after doing this that having the kids there may have broken some rules, but we were super careful and ran two meters apart the whole time! It was so nice to do something normal and to see a physical person to shout at!

We luckily had our photographer to hand too! Brilliant photo by Alan down on the docks! The Ipswich Marina has remained relatively quiet so buggy running there has been a dream. We went up and down several times with the kids smiling from afar! One day the might be able to even play together again…. but for now this is better than nothing!

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Today was a risk! Felixstowe is busy at the best of time! How would it be on a Monday with lockdown being slightly eased! Well we ventured off to find out…… with the buggy in the car I thought we would run along the promenade and then have some fun in the sun!

It was warm one way down the promenade and blustery the other way! A tough 5 miles running with an ever growing toddler! There were quite a few people running and walking, but it was easy to pass people and to keep our distance! I swear though Jack spends the whole time snacking while I run! He certainly has the best deal!

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Although the promenade was busy the beach was quiet! Jack had most of it to himself! Sandcastles and some stone collecting kept him busy! There are even rumours that some of the icecream shops might open tomorrow…something for Jack to look forward to for next time!

Shotley Marina Ltd Shotley Gate, Ipswich IP9 1QJ 01473 788982 https://maps.app.goo.gl/qkfgHctkUayw61cs9

Another early morning meant we got to experience Shotley Marina with very little company! I think we were about the second car there! With only a few other walkers to socially distance from it was the perfect location for a Sunday walk!

A little boys dream place too! Cranes, boats and monster trucks to look at!

From here you could do two epic walks! The first is to follow the peninsula around to Pinn Mill – all the way to Ipswich. The other could take you by Holbrook to Manningtree! Maybe I will run from Ipswich to Manningtree one day and get the train back…. now that is something to think about! Frantically OS Mapping how long that might take……

To get to the main peninsula walk you have to cross a narrow bridge. This is over the entrance dividing the marina and the sea! It was entertaining to watch the boats going in and out! Like a mini lock!

So much space and so easy to pass the people we encountered! We did however come back with a few grazes on his legs! Sometimes he runs so fast he can’t stop! The end of this walkway also stops at a beach! A shell collectors paradise! We were the only ones there! Perfect!

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We probably stayed until about 11am when it started to get a little busier! Took a little thought to avoid people to get back to the car! Certainly the reminder we needed to keep going early!

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Nacton Picnic Site Church Rd, Nacton, Ipswich IP10 0EP https://maps.app.goo.gl/mXQwDuJwJGnpFRoX9

Yipee it’s the weekend! Many people no longer look forward to the weekends during the Pandemic, but weekends for us mean family time! No work and all fun!

With this being the first weekend with unlimited exercise allowed we were wary the outside world could be busy! Luckily we have an early alarm clock called Jack! He gets us up so early which means we can get everywhere before most people are awake!

We ventured down to the Nacton Picnic Site! It was quiet when we arrived with lots of parking! The woods and beach were pretty much deserted! A perfect place for Jack to charge around and let off some steam!

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Again the walking element was slow, but this location provided us a large grass area to run around, a beach to play with sand, stone and shell collecting facilities and some tree climbing! Plenty for a toddler to be entertained by!

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From here you can walk along the coast via Levington to Felixstowe! Maybe a route for when Jacks legs are bigger one day! You can also walk back towards the Orwell Bridge – but you need to be slightly careful of the tide! Don’t want to get caught out and get muddy wet feet!

Jack was exhausted from exploring and playing at this location! So much so he slept for three hours when we got home! So perfect location for an active toddler! We had a well deserved cup of tea!

Friday was the first time we had got in a car to go anywhere exploring in about six weeks. We only ventured about a mile and a half down the road, but it gave us a new destination to walk in! The main aim of taking Jack out exploring during this period is to make sure he doesn’t end up scared of the outside world!

Orwell Country Park Car Park A14, Ipswich IP10 0JS https://maps.app.goo.gl/vfQtV11EWKwmez1V6

Starting from the above location we ventured out without the buggy! Need to get this little man walking further! From here we could wander through several miles of woodland trails ending up on the beach! In reality we probably got about 400 meters into the woods and got distracted!

Taking toddlers out for a walk certainly tests the patience! A walk is rarely a walk! But the woods did help us chase our shadows, look for pine cones, pick up a million stones, climb a tree and roll about in the mud! We spent a huge amount of time stationary, but Jack thoroughly enjoyed being able to independently explore the area!

There were people milling around but we could safely keep our distances while still enjoying the outside location! Won’t it be fantastic when we can embrace strangers easily in conversation and children can play together again! Although we may need to master potty training before we go on too many more adventures! It’s always tricky to deal with incidents in the woods! All a learning curve hey!

1993- 1998 School
* Two Trips Wales – Activity Trips
* Year 8 Spain and Portugal- Driving Parents
* Year 9 Germany – Kat Family Holiday
* Year 10 Spain Alicante – Kat and Katie
*  Italy Tour – North East Essex Wind band

1998 – 2000 Colchester 6th Form
*2000 South France Kathryn

2000 – 2003 University UEA 
* 2000 Greece Falaraki – University Friends
* 2001 Venice – Kevin Sophie Gemma
* 2003 Dublin – Hannah
* 2003 Amsterdam Bruges Paris and Bordeaux
* 2003 Berlin

Post University
*2004 Inter Railing Pau / Bordeaux / Toulouse / Montpellier / Lille / Dijon / Brussels/ Antwerp – Sophie Gemma 
* 2005 Singapore Malaysia Thailand – Gemma

* 2005 Vietnam and Laos
* 2005 Prague
* 2005 Thailand – Kat Luke and Sarah
* 2006 Newquay – Rachel
* 2006 Peru and Inca Trail – Angela
* 2007 Austria Salzburg – Garry
* 2007 Fiji – Garry
* 2008 Rome – Garry
* 2009 Malaysia and New Zealand – Garry
* 2010 Germany Mini Run Garry Trotts and Kat 
* 2011 London to Brighton Mini Run
* 2o11 Gozo Malta – Garry
* 2o11 Iceland – Garry
* 2012 Wales Mini Moon – Garry
* 2012 Bora Bora and Tahiti- Garry
* 2012 Edinburgh Girls
* 2013 Bristol Balloon Fest – Garry
* 2013 China and Hong Kong – Garry
* 2o14 Cornwall – Garry
* 2014 Mexico – Garry
*2014 Dublin – Girls
* 2015 Sicily – Garry
* 2015 Liverpool – Girls
* 2015 Croatia and Bosnia – Garry
* 2015 Budapest – Garry
* 2016 Montenegro – Garry
* 2016 Norway – Garry
* 2016 Lake District – Garry
* 2016 London Trip – Girls
* 2017 Mauritius – Garry
* 2018 Jack was born
* 2018 Norfolk Garry and Jack
* 2019 Yorkshire Garry and Jack
* 2020 Covid 19 Lockdown – Travel Plans for us and Jack put on hold

Before Lockdown 2020 we have always been a family that enjoys exploring, adventures and travel. Needless to say the travelling has been a bit limited since having Jack and now the current restrictions. With daily exercise now being unlimited I thought we would keep a little record of our adventures with Jack and the routes we have taken.

With time on my hands I might even go back and catch up on our historic explorations! I already had fun writing down a timeline of all our travels! (* I will share seperately). We have been really fortunate to have had so many opportunities!