Holidays – Page 2 – Oxford Phab

Not a lazy Sunday at Avon Tyrrell – breakfast, more activities, and packing to go home

Breakfast was not as elaborate as the Full English we had on Saturday, we had a tasty continental breakfast instead.

We followed this with more activities. People who had not had a chance to do the High Ropes on Saturday now had a chance.

All this activity gave us a good appetite for Chicken Casserole for lunch.
We packed out bags, loaded the minibus and cleaned the chalets.

Finally we had the group photography – always an activity in itself !
Here Helen and Simon are setting up cameras on auto timers to take the picture of the group gathered outside the cabin.

The seaside at Avon Beach

Oxford is a long way from the sea, so when we have the chance on a Phab holiday, we love to go the the sea. Last year we went crabbing at Mudeford, but this time we went for a evening trip to get Fish and Chips from All Things Fish at Avon Beach (OSM).

After eating we enjoyed being at the seaside, looking for shells and pebbles, paddling, and watching the view of the Isle of Wight.

High Ropes at Avon Tyrrell

We greatly enjoyed the High Ropes last time, and looked forwarded to challenging ourselves again this year.

Archery at Avon Tyrrell

We brought out our inner Robin Hood in a couple of Archery sessions, split into two groups so everyone had plenty of opportunity to have a go.
Once again they had a gadget which allows archery, using a standard bow in a clamp, with a gate latch to release the bowstring.

Everyone who wanted to was able to have a go at archery.

This is just a selection of those who took part.

Evening meal and Campfire at Avon Tyrrell

After our swim some of us played games in the large chalet.

We had a choice of pasta carbonara or pasta with tomato sauce for our evening meal, with salad and home made coleslaw.
The drink in the wine glass is elderflower and pomegranate, rather than rosé!
After the meal we went down to the campfire site by the lake, and built a fire.

We toasted marshmallows, and sang campfire songs.

Swimming at Avon Tyrrell

After unpacking in the chalets, we went down to the pool, which we had booked for a swim. The pool was heated, the sun was shining, a lovely start to our holiday!

Oxford Phab Holiday at Avon Tyrrell 2016 – Highlights

We had such a good holiday at Avon Tyrrell in 2015 that we decided to return, doing some of the same activities, and trying some different ones.
We booked the same chalet, with its large communal area for cooking, eating and socialising.

Travel to Avon Tyrrell in the Silver Minibus, and a couple of cars.
The first thing we did when we got there was to go swimming
In the evening we had a Campfire
On Saturday, after a leisurely brunch, we did Archery
Then we went on the High Ropes
We ended the day with a Eurovision Party
On Sunday we returned home via Mudeford, where we ate a picnic and went crabbing

We hope our next holiday will be as good as this one !
We now have a video, made by Patti, of the highlights of the holiday.
https://vimeo.com/172919607

We also have a PeerTube Playlist of videos from the holiday at https://peertube.paladyn.org/videos/watch/playlist/fe4d9703-76d7-4763-8968-cafa9486fc02 – more videos will be added as I get round to them

Error : Peertube playlist id 1 not found !

Lunch and Crabbing at Mudeford

On Sunday, our last day at Avon Tyrrell, we made a picnic lunch, packed the minibus and cars, and set off to Mudeford.
We ate our picnic on the quay.

We threw lines baited with bacon into the water…

and caught several crabs – which we threw back.
We then returned to Oxford, tired but happy.

High Ropes at Avon Tyrrell 2016

After our Archery session we moved on to the High Ropes. These are allowed us to get high up into the trees !
In the middle of this picture Maria is climbing a tree, watched by Tom and some of the Avon Tyrrell instructors.
I am walking along a log above the forest.
https://vimeo.com/167383472
I do make it to the end !
Trisha climbing.
Trisha has climbed even higher, while, in the background, Helen has climbed up to the horizontal log.
https://vimeo.com/167383748
Kelly going for a swing !
Sarah on the High Ropes – heading up,
and has enjoyed the experience !

This short clip of Tom is hosted on this PeerTube server.

Note that PeerTube takes privacy very very seriously – accessing YouTube or Vimeo videos also shares your IP address, but does not warn you.

Swimming at Avon Tyrrell

Avon Tyrrell had (in 2016 when this was posted) a swimming pool, which although it is outdoor, is heated to be comfortably warm – which is great for those of us who lose heat easily.

Unfortunately the swimming pool is no longer in use, possibly due to a combination of rising energy costs and the need to make best use of their trained staff.

They had a hoist, which can be used with a chair or a sling.
https://vimeo.com/167105277
The hoist in action !

This page was updated in November 2021 to reflect that the pool is no longer available. We enjoyed using it, and are grateful to the support we received from the staff. We still look forward to our next Phab holiday at Avon Tyrrell to enjoy the other activities on their site.