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Archive : Barns Green

Sumners Ponds Horsham 14 June

We were originally to have spent two nights here but had double booked ourselves on the Friday night and so we set off mid morning on Saturday for the journey to the campsite near  Barns Green,  just outside Horsham. Mum has been staying in the caravan for a few days while Uncle D is on holiday and so we thought a night away might be nice for her. The trip took just over an hour and we received a very cheery and swift check-in.

We had booked pitch 82 (see map) which was next to a camping pod and very near the Cafe by the Lake.  We did wonder if this might be noisy but need not have worried. It was a very pleasant outlook and Paul swung the van round to make the most of the view.  We set  up and grabbed some coffees from the Cafe – which was doing a good trade –  and then sat and relaxed for a while. The rain came and went but was not too bothersome.

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Before the rains came
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Hiding
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Our personal island and water feature

The site has a total of 91 pitches but does not feel crowded. It is quite family orientated, with a good play area and a cute little train for little’uns. We’d definitely bring our two (Lenny & Evie) . Think they’d love it. It is also quite fishing orientated. Having said all that, I’d be glad to return – even though it is not our usual sort of site.

At around 2, we set out for Horsham, where we were scheduled to see a show that evening. We did a little shopping, including some nice new boots for Mr S from a nice little (independent?) shop called Moshulu – the tan ones in this link –  and had a cuppa. We had a table booked at Bill’s at 5 pm and by the time we had finished shopping it was time to find Bill’s and get parked. As Mum was with us, we had her blue badge, which makes parking a simpler matter than usual.

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Surreal pic of Mum
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The Cafe by the Lake

We got settled in Bill’s and placed our orders. The service was very good and we had a very nice meal – although possibly a little over-priced? It was not busy and so we finished earlier than anticipated. Also – at the time of booking our table,  I had not realised that the show had an 8 o’clock start, so we had a little time to kill.  We drove around for a while and then made our way to the Capitol Theatre, the venue for the show. The theatre (formerly known as Horsham Arts Centre) is located in an old cinema and has recently been refurbished. We have been to the theatre many times, as an old friend was the Box Office manager there for many years.

Mum at Bill's
Mum at Bill’s
Bersted Boys
Bersted Boys – with the Berstettes
Bersted Boys in blue
Bersted Boys in blue

This same old friend, Michael Gattrell, was actually appearing there tonight as part of “The Bersted Boys” – a male singing trio. It was a great evening and we all enjoyed ourselves immensely. It was good to see Michael in action. We stayed behind for a chat and then made our way back to the cam[site. It was the first World Cup England game and a crowd of people were watching it on a tablet outside the cafe (good free wifi) but they weren’t too noisy. We were relegated to the dinette bed as Mum was in the fixed, but Paul soon had it made up and we had a quiet night’s sleep. The Cafe does breakfasts and it was tempting, but I had brought duck eggs with us and so we all had a good breakfast anyway. We read and chatted for a while and fed the numerous ducks/geese and then it was time to pack up and leave. Just as we were leaving a chap caught a really big carp which was quite exciting!  We had a very pleasant- if brief – stay and we’d certainly return without any question. This time with the dog, who got left behind with George on this occasion (because of the theatre visit) .

Great Crested Grebe
Great Crested Grebe
Canada Geese
Canada Geese

 

The one that didn't get away
The one that didn’t get away