Room in the Rodings - 19th - 21st November 2021       

Friday .... Ive been Looking forward to getting away this weekend , yet I feel poorly having had my covid booster last Friday my glands have been up in my neck and I’m so achy .dosing myself up with pain killers has helped , As we were driving here Diane called to ask what we wanted for out take away , we got to the venue at 6 pm thanks to John for coming out to help Kev back up , we put the fridge on fed the dogs and went over to the hall , it’s been done up lovely cream carpet new curtains , everyone was over there having fish/chips Chinese , Indian , thanks to Roland for getting ours , it was lovely having a catch up with everyone , got back to our lovely warm caravan 9.30 pm had a early night .

Saturday ...woke to a beautiful sunny morning , after breakfast we had a drive to north weald , I brought a few bits for myself , we got back for lunch time , it was different this year as our friends wasn’t here so I done a little buffet in our caravan instead of going into the hall , it was lovely and cosy , we started to get ready as it’s early over the hall this evening .  6.45pm we had our posh frocks on and over to meet our members for a complementary wine , it’s so nice seeing everyone dressed up, ( see fb for photos ) 6.30pm we sat down the tables looked lovely thank you Doreen for the table decoration they looked so pretty . The food came out our prawn cocktail was massive and tasted great too , I had the roast beef with roasted veg and all the trimmings , I forgot to take a photo of my dessert that was so nice too pear something ??? A massive thank you goes to the ladies that made our tea/coffees mince pies and  after eights , Elaine said her thank you's , Kev won the fishing trophy , then the singer started it was so nice to have live entertainment again ( true 77 club style ) the dancing soon started ladies shoes were flung off , and
Half way through our dancing we had the raffle well done to everyone that won, some more than once , midnight came too fast we didn’t want  it to end , we all got in a circle and clung hands with each other as we sung NEVER WALK ALONE , which brought a few tears , Kev done a little speech to thank everyone , then back to our caravans , I must say a brilliant weekend had by all .

Sunday...another brilliant sunny morning , the weather sure has been good to us , members started to pack away and come over to say there good byes , I must say I wasn’t too sure how the Dinner and Dance was going to go , as we only had 35 members coming , but I must say everything was perfect a BIG thank you to Elaine and our committee  for doing such a grand job ending our caravan rally year with such fun . Kevin and I want to wish every single one of you a happy healthy Christmas and pray 2022 will be much kinder to you all , looking forward to seeing you all in February for our day meet ,   

Love Kev Karla Mr Bourne n Ronnie xxx

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​Hallowtree 5th - 7th November 2021

Thursday .... we left home once Gracie and Dottie came home from school there having tomorrow off of school , had a lovely drive here hardly any traffic , John met us at the gate to let us in , we are the only ones here this evening , it was cold windy and pitch black , our caravan is full to the brim for this weekends fun so took a while to empty it , once we were sorted the heating went on , Kev popped to get us fish n chips , our caravan soon become toasty , we snuggled down watched a film then off to bed .

​Friday ... we have lots planed for this weekend ,we took the girls out this morning for a walk to the river , as we were leaving Dave and Christine pulled up , the sun is shining the wind has dropped , It wasn’t long before other members started to arrive , we popped out to the Harvester for a early dinner which made a nice change , Kev Gracie and me put one of the old gazebos up so I could dress it up for our haunted house , lots more caravans were turning up (10) altogether , Ian and Catherine’s fiends are coming tomorrow, 8 pm all the children gathered outside our caravan , dressed up in there Halloween costumes , we started at Doreen and Ron’s caravan thank you so much for decorating your caravan , it looked great , in fact thanks to everyone that took the time and great effort your caravans looked amazing , the children absolutely love this trick or treating , lots of fun was had by them all ( and Kevin) it really makes a great evening when you all join in . 9 pm it was back outside our caravan to pay our weekend fees to Ian and Dave , Kev lite the fire drum , the children went into our caravan to start to colour there Halloween competition , it was lovely having chats to everyone , as it turned colder we all went back to our vans .

​Saturday ... it looked very overcast when we pulled the blinds up but it wasn’t cold , after breakfast Kev went and got the trailer , all the children jumped on the back , Kev drove them to collect the wood , it wasn’t long before everyone joined in the trailer was full high , we walked down to where we have the bonfire , thanks to everyone that helped build the bonfire and who helped to put the gazebos up , the children played so well together outside our caravan we could here them laughing , it put such a smile on my face it’s been such a long time since they had this freedom , Gracie came inside our van and asked if they could play bingo outside , all the children sat down while Gracie called the numbers out , after lunch we went over to the firing range for the 77 club shooting comp, Kev set up the targets , thanks to John for bringing his rifle , we all had 10 shots each , well done to Doreen and Bret for winning the adults and I think it was lily and Spencer for winning the children’s , we got back to our caravan the children made there chocolate apples , I think the adults had just as much fun making there’s too , Kev went down the the gazebos to get everything sorted for this evenings entertainment , 5pm Dave Ian Brett and Peter took the children on a ghost hunt , ( I went with them this year ) thank goodness we didn’t see any ghost this year . It was lovely to see Barry Kathy Chris and Ray come to join us this evening , 6 pm we all gathered around the bonfire , once again we had some brilliant guys thank you so much they do help the bonfire to go up much quicker , We all made our way round to the side of the gazebos thanks to Kev for getting the great display of fireworks once again , and to Ian and Peter for lighting them for us , after the display Kev and I cooked the sausages/ burgers thanks to Diane and Doreen for cutting the rolls , ( I donated pulled pork and giant marshmallows which went down well ) the children loved the marshmallows , once everyone’s belly’s were full Kev got the children some sparklers , then he started the music thanks to those that joined in singing , our Ella Winnie and Nellie came up this afternoon so she could take me home tonight as I’m going to London tomorrow morning to watch Back to the Future with our girls , we left around 10 pm , thanks you all so much for a great weekend I hope you all enjoyed it as much as we did.

​Sunday ... Kev Gracie and Dottie said they missed me this morning, Dottie was more upset I wasn’t there to cook her breakfast 😂😂 hope everyone got home safe , looking forward to see those that are going to the clubs annual Dinner Dance in two weeks x

Love Kev Karla Gracie Dottie xxx

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Pleshey Village Hall 22nd - 24th October 2021

Well what a great weekend!  So lovely to have the chance to catch up with everyone.

Friday night was our usual pay our fees and have a chat. 

Saturday dawned nice and sunny, the AGM was held at 2.30 p.m., the new committee  was welcomed and a toast made to the 77 Club.  Chris Russell has posted next years rallies for all of us to see, lets hope we manage to attend more  next year.

Saturday night we were entertained by Ian and Dave’s Cube Game, what a fantastic night, what seemed really simple tasks proved to test our skills, but was great fun.  Christine had another game, a large bottle of brandy was placed on the floor and we all had to try and skid a 10p as close as possible to it and the nearest person won the bottle, I joked to Joe that I was the Barking and District shove ha’penny champion in my youth and I then actually managed to win the prize, £14 was raised for the club funds.

Sunday morning back over to the hall for coffee, Joe won the raffle and then it was time for us to pack up.  We moved on to Sudbury for a couple of extra nights away.

Must mention that John seemed to be forming his own harem over the weekend!!

Great to see you all, we will not be able to attend any more rallies for this year, so look forward to next year.

Merry Christmas to you all and Happy New Year.

Love Bob and Deb

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Leaden Roding Village Hall 8th - 10th October 2021
Friday ....this has been our first rally in a while , and really looking forward to seeing everyone ,had a nice drive here the sun is shining , Mags came with us for the weekend , she didn’t stop talking on the way here with excitement , there was 3 caravans and 3 motor homes already here , Clive gave us the choice where to park , we were soon set up , Kev popped out to get us fish n chips which was lovely , 9 pm it was over to the hall , we shared it with the local indoor bowls club, they also invited some of our members to play so Erik and Glynis had a go , it was lovely seeing pam out with Fiona , think this is a new venue its has a nice field and small hall with a small bar , we went back to our caravan , it was so nice this evening we didn’t put the heating on .

Saturday ... the sun was shining through the windows , it was so hot we opened the door and windows , I cooked us a full breakfast then we had a ride out to north Weald market , it was good lots of stalls much better than the last time we went , we got back to camp and another motor home was there a friend of John n Joan’s , I done lunch and we sat outside in the beautiful sun , ( I even put my shorts on , 6 pm I cooked us dinner ,I even had a sleep before going over to the hall , 8 pm our fun started with Elaine’s pub quizzes we had two teams thanks to John and his Hiram ladies for including us in there team , we then played a game with cups filled with water we had to ping the ball into the cups , the team with the least cups lost , (our team won ) 10.45 pm we went back to our caravan ,thanks for a fun evening,

Sunday.... it started off sunny this morning , after breakfast it was time to go over for coffee , ( it started to spit with rain) Chris / Chris made teas coffees for everyone , Elaine gave out the winners for last night quiz our team came second , then our team won the ping pong games so Elaine walked round to let everyone chose a chocolate out the box , Kev won the weekend quiz , Chris Clive won the raffle , the new lady ( sorry don’t know your name ) won the arrival prize although you had to leave early this morning , thanks to those that helped tidy the hall , no one hung around as there was a children’s party at 1 pm in the hall, thanks to everyone that came this weekend , hope you all had a safe journey home see you in two weeks for our AGM , also I hear there’s still place for our annual dinner dance if any of your family or friends would like to come , there be made very welcome ,

Love Karla Kev Mags Ronnie n Mr Bourne xxx

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​Rally Report- August Bank Holiday Sutton Memorial Hall- 27th to 30th August

​We arrived at Sutton Memorial Hall at lunchtime on the Friday, a few members had already arrived on the Thursday and some the Friday morning. The weather was sunny and we got the awning up and managed to chat to a few members before dinner. We went over to the hall for 8:30pm to pay our dues and have a long awaited catch up with all the other members. Many thanks to Diane and Doreen for making the teas and coffees. By this time there were 11 vans in total. We had to be out of the hall by 11pm, so everyone cleared up the tables and chairs as there was kung foo going on in the hall in the morning for the locals.  

​Saturday morning came and once again the sun was shinning. The children enjoyed playing on the park and at 2pm a few of us got together for a game of rounders. There were a few injuries, poor Caitlin injured her knee and is still recovering and Neal got wiped out by Charlie resulting in a bruised back/leg. It then started to drizzle so time was called. It was over to the hall at 8pm for Ian's Quiz Medley, which Team Colchester ended up wining. Barry had been busy making a new disc game, so Clive made a square on the floor with tape and the children all enjoyed rolling the discs down the hall to see who could get them in. Again we had to be out of the hall by 11pm (much to Clive's disappointment as he was really enjoying himself) and it was all back to their caravans.

​Sunday morning came and again the sun was shinning. We had the morning to ourselves. The children played on the park and played football. At 2pm Ian hosted the sports day, which everyone got involved in and a lot of fun was had by all. I'm pretty sure there was a bit of cheating going on, Christine tried to trip Brett up in the egg and spoon race, Doreen was shielding her egg from the wind, Ian and Brett took each other out on the sack race, which resulted in them 2 being disqualified, meaning Natasha won the race!  The kids did fantastic in the races. After dinner it was over to the hall for "Old Skool" horse racing. Thank you to all the ladies, Diane, Doreen, Christine and Kim for taking the bets and to Peter for working out the odds. Everyone had a go at winding up the horses but I think quite a few people had sore hands and wrists afterwards. After that, Barry got his new disc game out. This time we played it properly and you had to use the ramp to roll the discs down the hall into the slots and gain various points. The children all had a go first to make sure it worked properly, Harley thoroughly enjoyed this and didn't want to share the discs! We then had men vs ladies, where there were 10 people on each team and we all had 2 discs each. Of course the ladies won, hooray!! Again it was time to vacate the hall at 11pm.

​Monday morning came and it was time for coffee morning at 11am. Again thank you to Diane and Doreen for organising the teas and coffees and to Christine for supplying the lovely biscuits. Prizes were given out and we won the arrival prize.

​Myself, Ian, Lily and Harley had a fantastic weekend and would like to thank everyone for chipping in when needed, joining in the fun and also to the children, who played together lovely and were so well behaved all weekend. 

​Looking forward to seeing you all again soon.

​Love us xx

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​Rally Report - North Fambridge - 13th August - 15th August
As we could come to Fambridge on the Thursday ,we took this opportunity to
Have an extra day ,  as for myself and Brian it's a good 2 1/2 hr journey ,and the A 12 is not a very nice Rd for traffic.

On that note we arrived safely to the site, Chris/Clive ,Pat/Derek, Rita/Bill, were already there, we got set up and settled.

Friday morning we were awakened to a weird noise , upon looking out of the window we spied 15 sheep ,they apparently came through a hedge from a broken fence ,   And there's me the day of arrival picking up was what I thought was dogs poo . Stranger things happen . They visited every day much to the delight of the children ,was funny trying  to round them up , Shaun the sheep comes to mind !! The farmer gave up, said leave them ,he would come back when we've gone ,eventually they went home on their own .

The weather was good to us nice and hot, members started to arrive Friday , Kevin had brought his van down Thursday , ready for Karla and little ones on Friday.
Peter/Edna, then Tina/Neil in their motorhome , Last but not least Julie/Joe
Altogether 16 of us, Eight units .

Saturday we took the opportunity to visit Brian's family  ,the children went crabbing and enjoyed themselves , lovely grandkids  of Karla and Kevin, so well behaved they enjoyed themselves the whole weekend first time out with Gracie and Dottie ,were Arny /Winnie  

In the Evening we all got together in the tent we played Bingo/ couple other games .
Our  neighbor's in the house at the bottom of the field were enjoying themselves in their garden was a birthday party ,so Joe sent them a happy birthday over the speaker ,which they thanked him for . They said there was fireworks! Never noticed any .

Sunday came all the usual get together giving out prizes Tina did well over the weekend got all the question right on football shirts 18/18 ,so we'll done Tina ,put the guys to shame lol
Peter /Tina won the money prizes ,as did Peter,  little ones got their sweets ,so thanks to all the hard work that was put in ,not many of us ,  but none the less enjoyable .
We stayed till Six o'clock Sunday had a good journey home arrive 8/30 so not a bad run.
Left Pat/Derek Rita/Bill there till Monday

So thanks one and all bye for now till next time , no bank holiday for us Wedding to go
to .
Best Wishes  June and Bry  x​

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NORTH FAMBRIDGE 13th to 15th August
Friday .... Kev brought our caravan last night , as we are bringing some of the grandchildren this weekend . He went to work from here this morning , I had a blood test today so once I was finished I picked Gracie Dottie up , got the girls Mcdonaldes and drove straight here , there was 8 caravans already here , the sun was shining everyone was sitting outside , Kev will be bringing Winnie here afterwork , as she had nursery today , and Hayley will bring Arnie here once he finished his swimming lessons , we sat outside Julie n Joe’s caravan playing games , (naming things from the Alphabet) , the little ones was very good at this games ,Julie gave the girls modelling balloons to play with , I must say if anyone gets fed up with the children blowing up balloons and making them squeak it’s Joes fault the taught them how to make that horrible noise , it wasn’t long and Kev came with Winnie , I do hope they enjoy there weekend as it’s the younger ones first time staying in the caravan . Thanks to everyone that helped put the tent up , back Over to the tent at 9 pm , it was lovely seeing everyone ,and having a catch up , I took the children back to get them ready for bed .as they was flagging ,

Saturday ... we woke to beautiful sun again, Kev opened the blinds there were loads of sheep in the field , right outside our caravan , the children loved them , and went outside to see them but they ran off behind June n Brian’s caravan , I cooked breakfast while the children played outside , they soon made them selfs at home and was off speaking to our friends , Kev took us to Maldon park it was fantastic and so much to do for the children , we stayed there for a couple of hours ,had a ice cream and walked along the seafront looking at all the boats , back to the caravan in time for lunch , Rita and Bill had some family visitors ,we meet Halle for the first time , after lunch it was time to walk down to the boats and do some crabbing , thanks to Neil n Tina , Rita’s n Bills family pat and Derek for joining us , thankfully Neil had 2 buckets so we borrowed one from him , we caught so many crabs good job there was 2 buckets , the children had so much fun , I’m so proud of them , it was Arnie and Winnie’s first time crabbing they really did do well , got back to our caravan , it was a quick wash and change as we had to go to Winnie’s nanny Jacs memorial party , we had a lovely evening with our son in laws family , I drove back in the dark it was horrible good job I don’t have to do that very often , got back to the caravan everyone was over the tent , Kev had a drink with them while I took the children back to our caravan for bed , theres a party going on in the garden by our caravans we could hear they was having a great time, even fireworks , it wasn’t long before the children was fast asleep ,

Sunday .... we woke to a beautiful sunny morning the sheep was in the field again , this time they didn’t run away and the children got close to them , in fact they came down to the tent while we was having coffee morning , the children loved getting there prizes for the weekend quiz and the crabbing , June and Brian won the arrival prize and Neil n Tina won the bonus ball , Julie n Joe won the adults quiz ,it was decided to get the tent down as a dark sky was coming over , thank to all that helped take the tent down , the farmer came over to collect his sheep as he said they shouldn’t of been in our field , so we all helped him to round them up , the children absolutely loved it , but I think we was making it much harder fo the farmer so he decided to leave them , and said once we have gone he will come back for them , I rounded our children up we said our goodbyes to our friends , as I was taking the children back home , while Kev got the caravan packed up , I was surprised they didn’t full asleep on the way home , as they was shattered , they couldn’t stop talking about the fun they have had in poppas caravan , hope everyone got home safe , looking forward to seeing you at the next rally .

Love Kev Karla Gracie Dottie Arnie n Winnie xxx

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Rally Report - Gosfield Shopping Village - 30th July - 1st August

​As we hadn’t been here before I was keeping an eye out for the entrance. Unfortunately, we overshot the carpark/entrance in the lane. Clive wasn’t impressed at having to back up 40ft while I stood in the lane to stop any oncoming traffic!

​Finally, we got on site. A lovely warm day to get set up. Next job find the water tap. The nice lady in the barn said “up there by the red tank”. Well, I looked all round the red tank, no tap. I had to ask Clive to go back to the nice lady and tell her I’m a bit of a numbty as I can’t find the tap. He finds out ‘up there’ means high on the side of a building where two ‘red’ gas cylinders are positioned. Hooray, water on, cup of tea.​

So on to the rally. Our hosts the Lawrences arrived soon after us along with Barry & Kath. Everyone was in place by Friday lunchtime except the Wesbrooms because David had to work. We had our new members Gary & Denise arrive, friends of the Lawrences.

Weather not so good today so putting up the tent was cancelled for the Friday rally fees. A lot of rain Friday night.

Saturday morning proved to be brighter, so the tent was put up and Clive took fees. Saturday morning free so most members took a stroll around the antique village shops. As the rally was called ‘Lady Chatterley’s Lover’ we were asked to dress appropriately, ladies in long dress and hats, men as gamekeepers or land labourer workers. In the afternoon our hosts laid out various fairground type small games, which most had a go at. Afternoon tea was organised by our hosts for around 2-3 pm, we were invited to help our selves to cakes laid out in the tent but bring our own tea. Everyone chose to sit outside as the sun came out. After a while I felt a single spot of rain! Decided to go in the tent before it started. However, had only picked my chair and plate of cakes when a downpour started. Everyone rushed to get in tent at the same time with chairs and plates.

The downpour turned into a deluge. Barry managed to keep us going with a few songs? Eventually rain stopped, everyone emerged safe from the tent and wandered back to their vans.

Evening entertainment was part quiz part music. Rain again, hope tent will be dry in the morning.

Sunday morning, dry and warm, hooray!! Coffee and prizes for the best dressing up and quiz. Our new member Denise won the for the ladies dressing up and Clive won for the men. Can’t remember who won the quiz. Coffee over, tent down in a hurry before more rain.

Thank you to our hosts Chris & Ray Lawrence, Kath & Barry Barker for a great weekend.

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Rally Report - Home Farm Fisheries 2nd - 4th July 2021

​Thursday; As I had booked off the Friday I decided to travel up Thursday night, I arrived around 7.30pm to find Chris & Elaine + Kevin & Karla already on site, I got set up and had a couple of drinks with Kev before bed (we were sitting at a table in the field with a candle (to keep the gnats away – although Karla thought it was most romantic)

Friday; I awoke to a lovely morning (I should add that Dawne was not joining me until Saturday morning as she had a Hen Do to attend) I got all my fishing gear, and Dawne’s all set up and spent an enjoyable day fishing, during the course of the day more members turned up giving I think, 10 units in total. I cooked myself dinner and then over to the tent for a chat and to pay and get my raffle tickets.

Saturday; All us fisherman / women were up at the crack of dawn for an 8am start, Dawne arrived at around 8.15am to join in, 6 hours of furious fishing later and it became clear that 1 person had smashed the competition and I think had more fish than everyone else put together, well done Kevin, he seemed to trap all the fish at his end of the lake and slowly but surely pull them out one after another. Dawne was over the moon with 3rd spot (that big fish at the end helped), special mention to Bob who despite a few rain showers fished to the end, and was not last this time. Many thanks also to Karla for the bacon & sausage sandwiches, they keep us going.

Some of us fished on during the afternoon. Due to the showers we were unable to all eat out together but soon it was 8pm and we all meet up in the tent for a night of fun and frolics, apparently there was a football match on so we had that on in the background, we then had Kev’s bingo, which like the football was a game of 2 half’s, Kev ran out of balls and nobody had won, it turned out that his sack only contained half of the required balls, nothing above 50 had come out, once he located the missing balls we were back at it and a winner was declared, it would have been Deb but she missed the number 19. Dawne won a few games so was happy. We also had to hook numbered ducks out of a paddling pool which we all took turns in pairs at, Edna & Peter won that one, all in all a fun night, and it was nice being able to sit around with everyone after such a long time, we ended with a “name that tune” on Kev’s IPad which Dotty & Gracie had got hold of. 11pm and we were chucked out into the night

Sunday; We awoke to heavy rain which luckily stopped around 10.30am and the sun came out, 11am and over to the tent for coffee and prize giving, we won the arrival price, hence this masterpiece of a rally report, Tina won the raffle and £20, Gracie, Dottie and Amelia had all drawn a fish and all won a prize, Edna won the “fishing” game and also got some sweeties. When we came out the tent was nearly dry so that got put away, we all packed up and said our goodbyes and started to leave.

 

Many thanks to Kevin & Karla for hosting a great weekend again, hope to see you all again soon. Steve & Dawne xx

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Rally Report - Home Farm Fisheries 2nd - 4th July 2021

​Thursday.... we are hosting this weekend, so we decided to go today. We waited for Gracie n Dottie to come home from school, (their head teacher has allowed them to have Friday off), had a lovely journey here, Elaine and  Chris were already here enjoying the sun. It didn’t take long to set up, Gracie n Dottie got our water and Kev soon got ready to do some fishing. We do love this venue, it’s so peaceful. It wasn’t long and Steve turned up , Dawn is coming on Saturday as she has a Hen night to go to. As it got dark, I took the girls in the caravan to play board games, Kev n Steve sat outside putting the world to rights having a drink .

Friday.... the sun is shining. While I cooked breakfast, Kev and the girls done some fishing. He is catching one after the other, let’s hope it like that tomorrow for the fishing competition! Kev took us into Saffron Walden to have a look around but the car park was so busy, so we went to Aldi’s. As we got back more caravans started to turn up. It was lovely seeing our friends again it’s been far to long (on went the kettle!), we had lovely catch ups. We had our dinner outside as it’s so lovely. Chris n Clive turned up and they had the tent, we all helped to put the tent up. 9pm, it was over to the  tent to pay our dues and for more catching up with everyone. 10pm, I took the girls back to our caravan their competition is to draw a fish and colour it in.

Saturday ...The sun still shining. Dawn came here early this morning in time for the fishing competition. Everyone got to their swims and at 8am they started. It’s great to see more fishing, good luck to you all! I’ve taken lots of photos, so look on the web. I cooked sausage and bacon sandwiches. It started to spit with rain but it didn’t last for long and the sun came back out. 2pm Kev blew the whistle so fishing Rods were pulled out. The fishing was brilliant , lots of BIG fish were caught. Kev won with 45 1/2 LB, Tina’s brother n sister in law came joint second with 10 1/4 each, Tina came 3rd with 7 LB, Dawn got 5LB, Steve got 4 1/4 LB, Neal got 3 1/2 LB, Joe got 3LB  and Bob got 2LB. Well done to everyone that took part, it’s much appreciated that you joined in. Some members carried on fishing, a few members had a drive out making the most of this beautiful sun. It was lovely seeing Chris and Ray pop to visit the club with there beautiful dog Ronnie. We didn’t end up all BBQing together, so after dinner Kev went over to the tent to help set up the TV for the football tonight (as it was requested from some members). We had arranged the evenings entertainment with the old fashion bingo and fishing the ducks. 8pm, everyone came over to the tent, Louisa and Colin popped in to say their goodbyes as she has to work tomorrow.  Bingo started off on the wrong foot, as a few of the bingo cards had the same numbers on so Kev had to change their cards! It was noticed that no high numbers were being called out, Kev then realized there were more balls in another bag. Once that was sorted the game carried on. Thanks to everyone for joining in and well done to all the winners. Gracie n Dottie helped to run the fishing duck games, it’s not as easy as I thought! We had to hook the ducks out the pool with a hand made fishing rod, the ducks had numbers on the bottom 1 - 20, the one with the highest number won. It was good fun. Peter took Edna’s turn, as she is finding it hard to stand now and he won for her with 30 points. Well done to ENGLAND for winning tonight. Our evening ended with a sing song as Gracie played Kev’s iPod.

Sunday.... it rained through the night, although we never heard it. Over to the tent for coffee and prize giving. Well done to all the fishermen/ladies! Peter won the weekend quiz. The children were asked to draw a fish and colour it in. Gracie, Dottie and Amelia all won as we couldn't choose a winner. Steve n Dawn won the arrive prize and Tina and Neil won the raffle. Thanks to everyone for helping to take the tent down ,and thank you to everyone that came to this rally, it was lovely to see you all! We hope you had a safe drive home and we are looking forward to seeing everyone again very soon .

Love Karla, Kev, Gracie n Dottie

Ps Gracie n Dottie said thank you so much for there money they haven’t spent it as there saving it to spend in the six weeks holidays xxx   

 

77 Club caravanning holiday 28th May /4th June 2021
WILLOW HOLT LINCOLNSHIRE
Friday.... we have been counting down the days for today to come, we’re so excited to be back in our caravan, looking forward to seeing our friends again. We set off from home at 10am, a little nervous as we are using Kev’s Land Rover, thankfully it towed very well. We had a little stop at lunch time, then back on the road. We arrived at Willow Holt at 2pm. Kev popped into the reception and got a warm welcome and we were shown to our pitch. Kev was over the moon to see how close we were to the lake and said he was looking forward to waking up to this view every morning. A massive thank you to Chris n Clive for choosing a beautiful site. We soon got set up and had a lovely walk around the lakes and ended up at the little Diner/Bar for a much needed larger, again the staff couldn’t be more helpful and friendly. We ordered some chips to pick up at 6pm to go with our Indian dinner. The sun is still shining, so we sat outside until dusk and watched the geese landing on the lake.

Saturday .... had a fantastic night sleep, my god i’ve missed this. The sun was shining as we opened our blinds, it was beautiful. The view from our window is just beautiful. We sat outside and ate our breakfast, then I went for a beautiful walk around the lakes. A lady was in her boat just cruising slowing on the lake , I had a chat with her (Bob S would have loved this), there’s a BIG rope hanging on a tree where you can swing in the lake, ( I’m hoping to get Kev on it). When I got back Kev was already fishing, within 10 mins he had caught a lovely Pike, I couldn’t believe the size of its teeth!!!! After Kev had finished fishing we popped out for a drive and we ended up at Horn Castle, a lovely little village. We had a walk around the lovely little shops, Kev was happy he found a tackle shop. We got back to camp and a few more members had turned up, it was so lovely seeing them after such a long time. Carolyn and Bob popped over to visit Kathy and Richard, it was lovely seeing them too. Everyone had turned up now all safe. Kev done some more fishing, while I laid back and watched the boats on the lake. It was soon time for our BBQ, the smells coming from each direction was so nice. We took the dogs out for a lovely walk after dinner, the sun is still shining. There’s a pair of swans here sitting on eggs. As we walked past the male hissed and fluffed at us, i’ve never seen Kev move so fast 😂😂😂😂 A few members popped over to the bar for a pint and a catch up, nearly time for bed let see what tomorrow brings .

Sunday ....another great night sleep! We opened the blinds to see the sun shinning. Dawn and Steve were fishing. Back in 2019, on Dawn and Steve’s Rally, they held Auction (for our Forget me not support group), Steve and  Dawn were the highest bidder for the cooked breakfast that I donated, so I asked them if they would like it this morning, I hope they enjoyed it! 11am Clive suggested a coffee morning to get us all together and to see who wanted to do some entertaining. Thanks to Barry for putting his hand up first for one of his quizzes. Kev and I are going to sort out our end of the weeks meal, as the weather is so beautiful most members sat around their vans and had a much needed catch up. A few of us had a drive out to find the boot sale, it had ended by the time we got there but it is on again tomorrow. We got back to camp, Kev done a bit more fishing then we went down to the little Diner for a drink, this weather is so amazing. I cooked roast lamb, roast potatoes and veg for dinner, others BBQ’d. I set the table up outside and after dinner Kev went back for more fishing, he still didn’t catch anything. I had a lazy evening, didn’t do much, and watched the world go by out of the window.

Monday..... Another fantastic sleep! We got up and went straight out to the boot sale, the sun is shinning again. It wasn’t massive just a nice size to walk around and we got a few little bargains. We stopped off at a factory shop, which was well worth going into as I brought lots. We were out for a few hours driving around some very pretty little villages, (can’t remember their names). We got back to camp, some members had gone out. Kev got straight back to fishing. 3pm, Barry invited us all to sit outside his caravan for a afternoon Quiz. It was so funny and caused a laugh with him trying hard to read out the questions and giving us lots of clues (Louisa’s team won). It was nice sitting round having a chat. 5pm, it was lovely smelling the BBQ starting up, the suns still shining down for us. I cooked Katsu curry on the BBQ tonight. Kev, Steve and Dawn went fishing again. Then we sat outside their caravan having a drink before bed.

Tuesday ... beautiful again this morning. It’s so hot inside the van, Kev opened the windows to get some air. The ducks and geese, with their babies, were outside our caravan. Kev got the bread out to feed them and then the swan came out of the lake, we fed him/her. Kev and Steve had a drive out to the tackle shop to buy more bait hooks etc. to try and catch a fish. Thanks Steve and Dawn for asking us out with them. We drove to ANDERBY CREEK beach but couldn’t get parked as it was heaving, so we drove onto SUTTON ON SEA. The beach was lovely, not many people were there. The dogs loved the sea and had a good swim. It was lovely sitting there watching the world go by. We ended up at ALFORD for a late lunch and the owners were so nice and friendly and the food was excellent. We got stuck in traffic going back to camp, we were only 2 mins away but it took us half hour. The fishing rods were soon in the water, Steve caught a pike, it’s such a ugly fish. Kev helped him get it off the line. It’s too cold to sit outside so everyone stayed in there caravans.

Wednesday .... sun is shining again. This weather has been brilliant, we couldn’t have asked for anything better. We had breakfast then had a lovely drive to Lincoln, until we got stuck in traffic. We didn’t walk up to the cathedral as Kev’s knees were playing up. While we were out the members had fun helping Clive’s look for his caravan keys only to be found in their caravan! Steve caught another pike and Kathy and Barry came to Steve's rescue as it got caught up in his net and needed to be cut free. Some members had a drive and lunch out in Skegness. Richard and Brian had a look around a old aeroplane Museum. We got back to camp, Kev done more fishing and I done more sunbathing. Kev got some water shoes so he could go in the lake for a swim, the dogs also went in with him and they loved it, and they done some training retrieving. We had massive Toma Hawk steaks for dinner tonight but they were to big for the BBQ. They were so tasty yet we couldn’t eat it all, so the dogs had a lovely feast for dinner. A little more fishing over the other side of the lake, Steve caught another pike, Kev caught 2 small roach. It’s been another lovely day and the week is going too quickly.

Thursday .....it was a little overcast this morning but the sun was behind the clouds so still warm. Our week is coming close to ending. It’s Dawn’s birthday today so Kev and I booked up the Diner on the site that ties in with our end of holiday meal. Kev had a little fish before having a drive out. We ended up in Sleaford,a nice little town. Some  went to Skegness, others went to Loathe and Bolton. We got back just after lunch, Kev done some more fishing, still not caught anything since we got here! 7pm, it was over to the bar/ Diner,  for our usual end of holiday meal and Dawn’s birthday. James got us all seated, they had laid the tables out well so we were sitting in our groups and well apart. We got everyone to pre order their food during the week, which made it a lot easier for Leanne the cook. The food was lovely and hot, we got served nice and quick. It was the first time they had ever catered for a large group and was very happy it went so well! It’s a warm evening, so we sat outside our caravan while the men fished in the dark.

Friday.... it rained through the night . Dawn, Steve and us had breakfast over the Diner this morning again, we wasn’t let down and will come back tomorrow before we go home. It was decided we would go to Boston this morning, thanks to Steve for taking us. We had a nice walk around and it started to rain a little. We got back to camp, Kev had another fish while I laid in our caravan. This has been a brilliant holiday for us, so relaxing, just what we needed. Kev caught another 4 beautiful fish, he was so pleased, it’s made up for not catching many through the week. While the men were fishing, Dawn and I drove to get a Chinese. We had to wait 40 mins for it. We ate it in our caravan, it was very nice so worth the wait. The men done more fishing in the dark.

Saturday .... a beautiful sunny morning. I’ve got mixed feelings today, I’m looking forward to going home to see our family yet I could stay here a few more days as it’s been a brilliant holiday. Kev got up early so he could do a bit more fishing before he packs it away. Brian and June had already left early this morning. Members started to take down their awnings. Kev, me, Dawn and Steve popped over to the Diner for another cooked breakfast before we packed away. Members walked around to say their good byes. It’s been a brilliant holiday, although we haven’t met up in the evenings as we couldn’t have our tent up due to Covid. Our weather has been fantastic but the evenings have been very cold. We left at 11.30am and had a good drive home. Thanks to everyone for a fantastic holiday and a special thank you to Chris and Clive for arranging it for us, you made a fantastic choice! I hope everyone got home safe, looking forward to seeing you all soon x

Love Kevin and Karla xxx Mr Bourne and Ronnie xx

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Rally Report - Brokhowse Farm Weeley 18th-20th June 2021

At long last, a “proper” rally!

We arrived, after a journey travelling through torrential downpours, most of the way, on Friday lunchtime to find many members already set up on site.

Fortunately, the rain subsided and we were able to set up in the dry, although the longish grass was very wet so I, amongst others, ended up with very soggy feet.

Other members arrived throughout the early afternoon and evening to make a total of 11 units on site for Friday (Dave & Christine Wesbroom arrived on Saturday to make 12 units in all).

Friday evening was damp and gloomy, and many wanted to watch the England v Scotland football match so it was decided to put off erecting the tent until Saturday morning, and we all stayed in the caravans for the evening.

Saturday morning dawned cloudy, but, hoorah!, dry.

It was all hands on deck at 10.00 to erect the tent, which, although it hadn't been used since 2019, and was last packed away wet, was, somewhat surprisingly, still in pretty good condition and wasn't at all mildewy or smelly as we had been afraid it might be.

We then all paid out dues and, apart from the committee who had a meeting later in the afternoon, the day was free to do as we pleased.

Some stayed on site, some went out, an inevitable few had a look around the nearby Homestead Leisure (at least all I bought was a new chair this time!).

Elaine had printed off a Dingbats quiz for the weekend so that kept us busy for a while.

Chris Russell hosted the first evening quiz night for two years, in the tent, which was a hard 5 round quiz with lots of laughter and (surely not) possible cheating.

It was the team with Joe & Julie, Bob & Deb that won, shame there was no prize in the end, apparently it was eaten by something furry on site according to Clive.

Well done Chris for putting on an Ad-Hoc weekend without much notice.

Sunday morning we found mostly dry with the odd bit of drizzle, so it was a quick visit to the tent for quiz results, prize giving (obviously I ended up with the arrival prize) and the usual roundup, then we all helped to take the tent down and pack it away.

Thanks to everyone for making the rally possible and may there be many more​

Peter