Winter

Where are you going to go? Well that depends on where you stay. In this part of the world the coast is usually a good choice, plenty fresh air and bracing winds. We often go to the same spot each year, and funnily enough we often meet the same faces as we did the year before, great minds think alike! If however you put some thought into it now it could well save an argument later. Being able to suggest somewhere always goes down well. Buy the kids something for Xmas that they can only use outside and it’s a good chance they’ll be first in the car a bike rides another option!

Wind and rain, not a problem after all it only goes skin deep. Woodland walks with a waterfall thrown in may be a good alternative, the trees affording some shelter from the elements. Everyone has a fascination with water, so why not indulge yourself, you really wanted to play Poo Sticks anyway. These and many other country walking traditions are being lost and not passed on down through the generations, stone skimming on a loch is another good one.

That new digital camera you are hoping for could well do with a test, so what better than recording a nice day out with the family. If you can find a nice waterfall there’s another photo opportunity.

There is plenty scope for the wildlife watcher as well, especially if you get those binoculars you’ve been hinting about for the last 6 months. Although they are new don’t keep them in the case, because by the time you get them out, whatever you saw will have gone, trust me! Many nature reserves only close on Christmas Day, so that still leaves you plenty time to seek out those rarities. Having said that, if you’re new to birdwatching stick to the more common species, they’re just as exciting and with your new binoculars you’ll be experiencing them as you’ve never seen them before and before long you’ll be hooked.