Heads in the Clouds

Mum, Dad, The Boy and Nan had all been watching the weather very closely for today.  It was going to be a special day out for them.  Mum had booked a mystery treat for her and Nan way back in February and everyone was hoping that the weather would behave itself.  Fortunately, after unsettled rain and gloomy clouds for a few weeks, today was going to be sunny.  Hurrah!

After picking Nan up, they all chatted in the car as they made their way towards Snowdonia.  Nan had no idea where they were going as the plans had been kept secret.  She was very excited.  The roads were fairly easy going and before long they had pulled up outside Bodnant Garden.

Nan has never been to Bodnant Garden and so Mum thought it was a nice idea to show her one of The Family's favourite places to visit.  The sun beamed down as they got out and all raincoats were left in the car.  They walked down the ramp, through the ticket office and into the gardens.

The flowers in the Spring and Winter areas had come and gone, but as they all made their way to the terraces they were greeted with plenty of colour.

The cleverly-planted borders were much appreciated by Nan and Mum.

They did lots of bending and smelling and reading of labels.

And enjoyed the beautiful views towards the surrounding hills.

Nan (oops, eyes closed!) and The Boy on the terraces.  The 'angels' fishing rods' (dioramas) were huge and very pretty.  Mum thinks they were definitely her flower of the day.

The Pin Mill area looked lovely in the sunshine.  It was very warm indeed.

The Boy took this nice picture of Mum and Nan.

And this one of them enjoying a bit of cool shade with Dad.

Nan thought the house was lovely and that the residents must love the smell of the roses when they open their windows.

Oh yes, it would be a very nice place to live.

As they meandered their way back through the garden, Nan spotted a magnolia grandiflora.  The buds on it were huge and she thought Auntie S would love it.

They all had a fantastic morning pootling through the gardens.  There were plenty of flowers to look at and enjoy.  Nan said she could easily spend the whole day there but Mum said it was just a little introduction and that it was time to get something to eat and have a nice sit down somewhere.

They headed back to the car and made their way to The Ugly House in Capel Curig.  Mum and Dad have passed this house plenty of times and had never been inside, despite it being full of character.  Today was the perfect day to stop by and have a bite to eat.

Once they had parked, Mum, Dad, The Boy and Nan headed into the cottage.  They were seated at a table by an open window and learned a bit about the history of the peculiar building.  They all chose something to eat from the menu but when their meals arrived they got a bit of a shock.  The portion sizes were huge!!  Still, they ate as much as they could and enjoyed resting their legs after their morning walk.

 

Nan, Dad and The Boy outside The Ugly House.

The cottage garden went far beyond the walls of the building and was planted in that random cottagey style.  Beautiful!

A Mum and Nan selfie at The Ugly House.

Having been well fed and watered The Family went back to the car for the last part of the day.  Nan really had no idea what to expect and there were no clues along the short journey.  But, as they parked up at The Riverside Hotel is Betws-y-Coed, Mum turned round and explained that if the next activity wasn't Nan's cup of tea, then she did not have to take part.  And she meant it.  Nan was very puzzled but then she looked over a distant hedge and saw.....

The whirling, twirling rotors of a helicopter!!!!

There was obviously a lot of oh-my-goodnessing but Nan decided that she would definitely love to go for a ride in the helicopter with Mum, because she's a legend like that.  Yay!  They had a safety briefing in the hotel with their new flight pals, Alan and Hilary, and then made their way down into the garden where the helicopter landed on the grassy field to collect them.

Mum and Nan and their helicopter

Before they knew it, they were strapped in with their headsets firmly on.  The door was closed, the rotors picked up speed and they took off!   Goodbye Dad, goodbye Boy, Mum and Nan are off on a very exciting adventure!

Mum and Nan, taking off.  A video by Dad.

The helicopter flew across the field then swooped up into the air and climbed high above the hills.  Right from the off the view was spectacular!  Mum and Nan spent the entire 30 minutes whooping with joy and making lots and lots of excited noises.  Here's a selection of the photos that Mum took during the flight.

Llyn Elsi

Dolwyddelan Castle

The quarry at Blaenau Ffestiniog.  The trucks looked like little toys.

Pilot Dave took Mum and Nan along Afon Dwyryd towards the sea.

Whizzing along the estuary.

It was cloudy at Portmeirion.

Teeny tiny cows waiting for their food on the farm.

Llyn Dinas, Beddgelert.

The summit of Snowdon was covered in cloud.

Oh wait!  Hello summit of Snowdon!

Byebye summit and thank you clouds for dispersing just as Mum and Nan got there!

Llyn Llydaw

Llynau Diwaunydd

Swallow Falls

Mum and Nan's journey was magical and definitely had mountains!  They landed safely back in the hotel garden where Dad and The Boy eagerly awaited them.  Mum and Nan were full of chatter but it was quite hard to explain how wonderful their adventure was as they were both as deaf as doorposts!  

Flight pals Alan and Hilary enjoyed the flight too and they all had a good chat about it at the edge of the garden.  Alan said it was funny to listen to the two very excited Family members' chatter for the whole journey.

Anyone would think that they had had a brilliant time.

I think so too....don't you?