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California Club Meet Fort William meet, 28-29 May 2016

Ewan

Ewan

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T5 SE 180
We're organising a Scottish meet at the Glen Nevis Campsite on the outskirts of Fort William on 28-29th May 2016. I've set up a separate events page which gives more information on the meet, how to book and the rough programme.

I'd strongly recommend early booking. Since this is May bank holiday weekend the reserved pitches will probably book up over the next few weeks (there are 16 left as of today). Hopefully we'll be allocated pitches reasonably close together (on 'Homefield').

If you don't get a chance to book a pitch in advance then there are 150 non-reserved pitches on adjacent camping fields. I'd advise you arrive on site early afternoon (you can get on from midday) to be sure of getting a pitch - the site will probably be full that night.

It would be good if you could RSVP on the events page to let us know you're coming once you've booked.

Could you also reply on this thread to say whether you'd like to come to the evening meal (and for how many adults/kids), and if you have preferences for particular activities on the Sunday ? We'll need to book the meal reasonably soon.
 
That's us booked on Homefield. Happy to go out for evening meal, 2 adults. Fingers crossed for nice weather and nae midges.
Thanks
David and Linda
 
Thanks for organising this Ewan.

We'll grab a B&B or hotel somewhere in the area. (Thanks for your suggestion on the B&B though.)
Please count us in for the evening meal (2 Adults + 1 child under 2 years old.)

Look forward to seeing everyone there :thumb

Cheers
Tom
 
Have just booked and requested Homefield. Count us in for meal, 2 adults. Looking forward to seeing everyone again.Not stayed at this campsite but had a look round as we passed last year and it looks good. Great location.Stayed at the youth hostel a few times, many many years ago!
 
Glad you can all make it. Yes, fingers crossed for good weather and no midgies :)
 
Thank you for organising this meet. That is me all booked. Would love to go for meal - 1 adult - and, if anyone fancies a spot of not too gruelling hill walking , I would be happy to head to the hills as would my travelling companion Mr Monty Moo ( doodle dog). I've booked 28th and 29th. Said I was coming for the VW meet so hope to be beside everyone.
 
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We're booked into Homefield too, so will be there for Saturday night's meal.
Midges - this will give me a deadline to finish my midge screen....not yet started!

Thanks Ewan....love your aurora photos...I missed them again, but not sure if I'm dedicated enough to stay up for hours to see them, so am happy to see your pics! Amazing sight and to think they were floating around outside my house!
 
Booked to stay Thursday to Monday on the four nights for three offer and provisionally allocated pitch 26 on Homefield. Two adults and a new dog for walking, cycling and Saturday evening meal. Looking forward to meeting up with everyone again.

Ken and Gill
 
We are booked in Fri & Sat night. Another two adults for dinner.

Look forward to seeing the new Calis and meeting everyone.
Bob&Fi.
 
I only booked Homefield for Saturday night. I've contacted Glen Nevis to try and extend for Friday and Sunday however just heard that all their pre-bookable pitches are taken. They advised ringing on Friday morning to see if I can get one of the (150) 'first come, first served' hard stand pitches near reception.
In the meantime if any forum members need to cancel, please let me know :thumb
 
Maybe you should camp outside the gates on Thursday night?!
So that makes me think is better get on with my summer bookings......and the manufacture of th midge net!
 
I only booked Homefield for Saturday night. I've contacted Glen Nevis to try and extend for Friday and Sunday however just heard that all their pre-bookable pitches are taken. They advised ringing on Friday morning to see if I can get one of the (150) 'first come, first served' hard stand pitches near reception.
In the meantime if any forum members need to cancel, please let me know :thumb
You should get a pitch for the three nights, Alison. I think the unbookable ones become free from midday. You might not be in Holmfield but I guess we'll be spread out anyway.
 
So with a month to go I thought I'd give an update on where we are.

I think we have 11 vans booked in via the events page (18 adults plus 1 child) - but space for others to turn up on the day. If you haven't managed to pre-book a pitch I suggest arriving soon after midday ideally since it'll be a busy bank holiday and the unbookable spaces are first-come-first-served.

There are three who have RSVP'd "maybe": Calijane, Julian_Camper_Man and Taglish. Are you planning to come? If so, I'm afraid the pre-bookable pitches are gone but feel free to turn up on the day (or before).

Anyone else is more than welcome.

Has anyone been watching 'Caravanner of the Year' ? I thought we'd start with a Concours d'Elegance after lunch on Saturday, then a tight reversing challenge in between some tents after that, a navigation challenge against the clock late afternoon, then a cooking competition followed by a fancy dress party at night. So who's up for it? :Nailbiting

Hopefully it'll be a bit more laid back than that ... In fact, other than booking a large table at the restaurant for 6.30pm there isn't anything (yet) organised. But there are lots of options eg:
To try to match people up with similar interests/activities perhaps you can suggest what you'd like to do, either on Saturday afternoon or Sunday morning ?

What else would folks like to do ? Would it be interesting if we each came prepared to share/show off our favourite Cali accessory ? Or came with a photo of a memorable trip away with the van to share ? Any other suggestions ?

Finally, I know there are a few dog owners coming but unfortunately the bar/restaurant doesn't allow pets in the building (sorry..!). The bar manager tells me there's only one dog-friendly pub in the whole of Fort William. Not being a dog owner I don't know how big an issue this might be ......
 
OK folks, less than a fortnight until we meet up. If there are any changes to the numbers for the meal on Saturday night please let me know since I need to confirm final numbers very soon - I currently have 18 adults and 1 child. If you haven't already RSVP'd on the events page and are intending to go, please do so !

Dottie and I suggest we all meet up 3 - 5pm on Saturday afternoon to say hello. At these meets it's easy to miss people, particularly in a busy restaurant/bar or if everyone's doing different activities, so hopefully should this mean we all get to meet each other. Please bring a chair and a cup of tea (or something stronger?). Also, do you have a favourite, funny or useful gizmo you want to show off?

I'm up for hill walk somewhere on the Sunday morning if anyone else fancies that.
 
Do you want us all to reply to your activity options so you can get us organised in advance?

I like your suggestions and would probably be up for any walking options, so if I say the biking option is definitely out for us, I'm happy to be put down for the others and go with the flow. (I may take a body swerve on high level too...I'm a slow walker!)

Looking forward to getting away and meeting up with everyone...here's hoping for a return of summer! :happy
 
These are just some suggestions that people might be interested in. I've no intention of organising everything, but hillwalking and mountain biking probably need some preparation beforehand so it would be useful for people interested in those to think about routes and gear in advance. So it's more about coordination than organisation.
 
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Hi all, hope everyone is well.

We could be up for a walk, but nothing overly difficult please. I'm not the most energetic of souls. I was going to blame this on having our wee one with us... might as well be honest :)

Looking forward to the meal & the drink though. Always plenty energy for those two ;)

As it stands, the new Cali is in transit. Last friday it was either on its way to / sitting at the Port Of Emden. It might be here in time for the trip, hope so. If not, I'm going to take my folks' motorhome. In which case, I await the abuse....:D

See you all there
Cheers for now :thumb

Tom
 
Hi Tommy, I hope your new van arrives in time. It would be great to give it a first outing ... Whatever vehicle you arrive in I'm looking forward to meeting up :thumb
 
Hi all, hope everyone is well.

We could be up for a walk, but nothing overly difficult please. I'm not the most energetic of souls. I was going to blame this on having our wee one with us... might as well be honest :)

Tom
Hope you get the van in time for Glen Nevis meet...such a momentous time....be prepared for lots of advice being thrown at you from old hands (personally of 2 years' experience!...and still able to spend a mini fortune in Tisos tonight on my Mini Me lifestyle in my van! I am still an obsessive Eagle Creek fan...Tisos have a great stock...on 10% discount today!!)
PS I bought a handpresso after your demo of it at our last meet...I have a few gizmos to show this time...!
I too am not the most ambitious walker, but love the outdoors and usually make it to the top of ONE Munro, with lots of stops!
Van at VW Van Centre today, so repacking at weekend...can't wait to get on our way next weekend......hopefully will see you then! :happy
 
Hi Ewan, Suzanne,

Thanks for that. I hope it's there in time, but if not, it will still be a great weekend!

Delighted that you bought the Handpresso, they are good !! I will bring a bag of coffee pods for you to take away & try out. Look forward to seeing your new gadgets & hope the van is fine.

When it comes to advice & tips, it's the packing of the van that I'm really interested in at the moment.
Very keen to see how everyone packs & stores their stuff with boxes, etc. Lots for me to learn there :)

Look forward to seeing you all next weekend & hearing everyones' camping stories.
May it be a weekend for sun cream & not umbrellas.

Cheers
Tom
 
Sorry to say will not be able to make this weekend, hope the weather is kind to you all and there is enough breeze to keep the midge at bay.
 
That's a shame, Stuart, but thanks for letting us know.
 
I'm just gearing up for this weekend. The forecast looks good despite today's drizzle. I'll be arriving just after lunch on Saturday.

Hope to see you all around 3pm in Homefield for an initial get-together - bring a chair, a drink and maybe also a favourite gizmo you'd like to show off (not counting your Cali, of course).
 
Very nice to see you all again, we had a great time. Fantastic weather & we loved the site.
(First time on a campsite for us...)

Thanks to Ewan for organising this, much appreciated.
Hopefully see everyone again next time, all the best.

Back to the grind now.... oh well :)

Cheers
Tom
 

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