Can the Clines family travel and sustain an eco-lifestyle?
Family cycling in the Forest of Bowland was lots of fun. After an inspiring May Bank Holiday weekend at the Cycle Touring Festival, we decamped two miles up the road to Cross Lane Farm. We wanted to explore the surrounding area on two wheels and were impatient to sample some family cycling in the Forest …
Lightweight camping offers freedom. We enjoy having a minimal amount of stuff. When alongside car and van campers, we don’t usually look at other people’s set-ups and their comfortable kit longingly—except perhaps when it comes to a table and chairs. After years of spreading a groundsheet on the floor for all our camping meals, we …
Hoping to inspire the whole family about what was possible to achieve on a bike, we purchased a Sustrans map of all the bike routes in the UK and pinned it up on the kitchen wall. Soon after, we planned a route along the Trans Pennine Trail with our kids. Three weeks later we were …
Many cyclists, after becoming parents, put their bicycles to one side only rediscovering them, dusty and rusted, years later. As we prepared for the birth of our first child we were determined to continue our car-free lifestyle so we set out to discover the best ways to carry a baby or toddler on a bicycle. …
How easy is it to travel on the Hull ferry with children on bicycles? What happens when you arrive at Zeebrugge or Europoort? How do you find your way? Where’s the best place to go? Is the cycling safe? Cycling off a huge ship with children into an unknown country can be daunting. However, we …
To spend as many nights under canvas as possible is one of our goals in life. In nine years of camping with kids we have only used a (borrowed) car once for a three night trip. So the short answer is YES: no-car camping is completely possible with a baby, with toddlers, with small and …
Cycling round an entire island within a day certainly feels like a worthwhile activity for both children and adults. How achievable this is, depends on the island in question! A day out on the Isle of Cumbrae —oft called ‘The Cycling Island’ offers a satisfying ten mile ride around the circumference of the island with …
After the success of our trip along the portion of the Trans Pennine Trail from Liverpool to Sheffield, we were keen to continue our adventure and cycle from Penistone to Hull. Having cycled the spur from Penistone back home to Sheffield on our last trip, we took the train to Penistone to begin where we …
Train travel can sometimes feel daunting, especially with a family. It’s often easier just to pile in the car. However, there are many benefits, beside the obvious environmental pluses, to family train travel. Here are some tips to make your trip run more smoothly. 1) Book in advance For some journeys, especially long-distance ones, you …
Our aim is to celebrate how much joy we can bring in to our home through making family life more eco-friendly, rather than getting gloomy about being the mere drop in the ocean. We choose to recycle, but how much of our recycling actually gets reused? Or we choose local products, but they come wrapped …
Edale, in the beautiful Peak District, is our go-to no-car family camping spot in the UK. It is accessible by train and there are two campsites 5–10 minutes on foot from the train station. Whether you’re using bicycles or carrying backpacks and possibly a pull-along suitcase (or two), it’s extremely easy to reach. Getting to …
