Just a routine day in August...

As the restaurant was closed yesterday, we decided to make the most of the day and went for a day out. First, we went to Red House Farm where there was a corn maze (or maize maze as they call them here - admittedly wittier). This is about the 3rd one we've done; they're always kinda fun as you have to find certain things within the maze to complete - not to mention finding your way out! It's a good way to spend an hour or two walking without feeling like you are!

We finished there around 4 pm and drove into Manchester - just in time for our 2nd activity; skiing! We had told the kids that we might be going skiing and they thought we were crazy for wanting to ski in August! Anyway, we packed up our ski clothes before we went, so they knew we were going to ski, they just didn't know HOW we were going to do it.

We'd booked our time from 5 - 7 pm. We arrived at 4:30, and managed to get onto the slope by about 5:10 pm; next time we'll give ourselves a bit more time to change and get our equipment. It's pretty basic; two poma lifts on each side, with one main slope in between. Going up and down takes only a few minutes, but I think it's a great place to get some practice in before going to the mountains or especially a great place to learn before you decide to splash out on a ski trip. There was also a place for tubing and a "luge" ride plus a little kids snow-play area. This past winter we had planned to take the kids skiing, but it just didn't happen, so it was great to see that they haven't forgotten how!

And as if that wasn't enough activity for one day, this is what Martin did in the morning, before the rest of us even got out of bed!

Hiking