The family having #Hibernot adventures. Photo by Dan Medhurst
As the days shorten and the temperature drops, you can be forgiven for ignoring the great outdoors in favour of the tiny (but, crucially, warm and dry) indoors. Angela Roebuck and her family had no plans to swap the comforts of their home in Greater Manchester for days spent exploring the Cumbrian fells, Scottish lochs and the Irish Sea until they were chosen by Land Rover for a week of thrilling outdoors experiences as part of the #Hibernot campaign. The idea is that winter isn’t a time to hibernate, it’s the time to hibernot – to get out with your family and embrace the joys of winter adventure.
If you’ve yet to discover #hibernot, it can be simply summed up like this: it may be cold but that’s no excuse to stay inside.
The family were loaned a Land Rover, the kind of vehicle that effortlessly took them in comfort from the Lake District to a slate mine at the Honister Pass to Snowdownia.
“Every day, we’re given instructions, we get in the Land Rover and we go to the next place,” says Angela, a school librarian. “It’s been amazing but I never would have described us as outdoorsy. I’d be the sort of person sitting in front of the X Factor at this time of year but instead I’ve found myself walking over the Honister Pass on a rope bridge. Up until that point, I was always the person holding the coats at theme parks.”
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Angela, her husband, Tim, and their two children Alex 10 and Ellie 13 have had no shortage of adventure – falconry, rock climbing, GYHLL scrambling. But the trip has also opened their eyes to some of the more remote corners of Britain: a night’s stargazing in Ayrshire; being taught to make their own fire and then cook a locally-sourced salmon by survival guru Ray Mears on the Highland lochside; a day exploring Anglesey’s seashore with marine expert Monty Hall.
Alex with the Land Rover that took the family on their #Hibernot adventures
“I used to think you had to get on a plane to have a proper break,” says Angela, “but now I realise what we can do nearer to home. You don’t have to sit on a sun bed to enjoy yourself. You can find something new, you can do it, you can enjoy it – and getting a bit cold won’t kill you.”
Look out for the BritMums #Hibernot Challenge in January. By sharing your winter adventure pictures on Instagram you could win daily prizes or a grand prize of Barbour clothing and an invitation to an exclusive Winter Barbecue! Look for the announcement on the BritMums blog soon. Until then, get inspired on the Land Rover site to have your own #Hibernot adventures.
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Emma T
Friday 9th of January 2015
Wow, looks like they've had a brilliant adventure. Not sure my OH would be up for it, but I can't wait til N is older to take him to places like this.
I remember camping in February in Snowdonia with my best friend. It was so cold, and we had to give up walking up Cader Idris because it was too misty and we couldn't see any markers. I was a wuss but it was fun doing something like that in winter instead of summer.
Domestic Goddesque
Thursday 8th of January 2015
what an amazing experience they had! We are huge fans of a driving holiday- we go to Europe quite a bit as we live close to Le Tunnel- but I'm not sure I could have done the high wire!