Last summer Ms B & I decided to venture to the New Forest again as it was the start of the pannage season when local farmers have permission for two months to let their pigs roam free around the woodlands. The idea is that the pigs eat all the acorns that are harmful for other animals like the free-roaming ponies, horses, and donkeys (in principle the acorns are harmful to pigs too, but these smart badasses simply spit out those bits). Anyhoooo.. didn’t see a single pig, so resorted to other activities. Besides horseback riding (post here), the most fun activity was our 3h kayaking trip with New Forest Activities (£39.90 per person). The starting point is at the beautiful Buckler’s Hard Maritime Museum (open air, admission included) on the banks of the Beaulieu river. At the start of the 18th century a highly ambitious and (following his […]
Horseback Riding in the New Forest
During our recent visit to the New Forest, Ms B & I did a 60-minute horseback riding session with Brockenhurst Riding Stables. We had done the same two years ago, when they were still located near the Forest Park Hotel, where we usually stay (they moved to the new location just off Balmer Lawn Road, just over five minutes walk from Beresfords restaurant (see our blog post here), walking away from Brockenhurst). Sharon, who runs the yard, is a lovely person and very skilled at what she does. Her sense of humour and way with people can perhaps best be described as a bit rough on the edges, but in a very good way. Just like last time around, she immediately made us feel welcome. As requested, we had arrived half an hour before the start of the session. Five, six other guests had already arrived and the rest of […]
Beresfords at the Balmer Lawn in Brockenhurst
During our recent visit to the New Forest, Ms B & I enjoyed a dinner at the lovely Beresfords restaurant at the four-star Balmer Lawn hotel in Brockenhurst. The dining hall is spacious and pleasantly decorated. After short deliberation Ms B opted for a ‘Beresfords bite’ which resembled a prawn cocktail (£5) and sea trout (£22). I went for grilled beef heart (£6.50) and roasted guinea fowl with fries (£19). The starters arrived quickly. I hadn’t had grilled beef heart in a very long time, so had forgotten that it can have quite a strong, peculiar smell, which came as a bit of a shock at first. The taste however was very pleasant, and I had no regrets ordering the dish. Ms B’s prawn cocktail was light and not too spicey, just as she prefers it. Our mains were delicious. Ms B’s sea trout was very flavoursome, I loved the […]