50 things to do in 2015, in association with The Caravan Club (part three)

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Treasure hunt, create a caravan holiday herb garden, become a grill guru and more in 2015

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Don't forget to head back to the 50 Things in 2015 homepage for parts one, two, four and five of our activities list, and make sure you match up the trips below with Caravan Club campsites too.

20 Harvest herbs in your caravan

Brighten up your holiday cooking with easy-to-grow herbs that will thrive by the caravan window.

Thyme: strongly flavoured, works well in stews. Chop leaves finely and pour boiling water over to make a ‘tea’, sweetened with honey. Lemon thyme makes a particularly good brew.

Salad burnet: adds flavour to raw vegetable salads and in winter can be used in casseroles. Blend with cream cheese for a tasty dip.

Chives: mild onion flavour makes them perfect to chop and add to an omelette, or mix with butter to add to jacket potatoes or a warmed, sliced baguette.

Dill: best mates with any fish dish, but also use in green salads or as seeds in lamb stew.

Caravan Club members, the Meek family, had a go at creating a caravan kitchen herb garden this summer and found that a garden-centre-bought basil kit worked well. Quick-growing cress was ideal as a project for the kids too. LM

21 Watch a wacky world championship, Southwick, Northamptonshire

Relive your childhood by entering the World Conker Championships (worldconkerchampionships.com), started in 1965.

Take on all-comers with nothing but a horse chestnut and a 12in length of string! Will your conker be a two-er, three-er or maybe more? There’s also plenty to see and do: music, stalls and entertainment. LM

22 Fun in the forest

Inspired by Harry Potter’s broom for Quidditch but a little daunted by the cost of such a simple item, we took to the forest in search of suitable building materials. It turned a treasure hunt into a test of dexterity, with little more needed than a length of string and something to trim uneven ends.

Free ideas for fun forest and woodland days out are also available from the Woodland Trust with I-spy sheets suggesting games of Whose Poo? (which, strangely, my kids loved…) mini beast safaris, while the RSPB has its as-seen-on-TV scheme of building nature a home. Remember to make sure public access to the forest is allowed, only collect materials from the ground and nothing actively growing and, should you make a broom, don’t tell the kids to ask Mum for flying lessons! LD

T 01476 581111
W naturedetectives.org.uk

T 01767 680551
W rspb.org.uk

23 Tour off grid!

It’s not quite Bear Grylls but caravanning with no electric hook-up is definitely something to try. In this day and age it’s hard to find someone not attached to a socket, or staring gormlessly into a television screen.

Use the money you save on not having electric to visit the local attractions and pubs. With no electronic distractions, you can actually enjoy family time – that is before the kids are too old (and wise) to want your company and would much prefer a holiday in Zante. Plus, with the kids void of computer games, they can engage in much more nurturing activities… such as fetching the water!

BUT…

If you do like your modern amenities such as lighting or there aren’t any toilet/shower facilities on site (yes, they can live without television for one week), bring a 100A leisure battery, fully charged, and a suitcase 15 watt solar panel to keep you topped up. CL

W caravanclub.co.uk

24 Go behind the bar at the Rovers, Manchester

Last year Coronation Street left the central Manchester set it had used since 1982, but since April it’s been open as a tourist attraction. That’s right: you can channel your inner Jack or Vera Duckworth (delete as applicable) by walking down Corrie’s famous cobbles and popping into the Rovers Return for a swift half. Well, the pub doesn’t actually serve drinks but you can still have your picture taken behind the bar and pretend to be the most famous beverage proprietor in TV history.

Once you’ve done that you can continue the guided tour and revel in being an unashamed Corrie geek.
There’s another particular reason why 2015 is the year you have to do this. The attraction might have only been open since April, but it’s closing at some point in the near future to be redeveloped into a retail and leisure complex. HS

W coronationstreettour.co.uk

25 Picnic at the Proms, Woodstock, Oxfordshire

Battle Proms picnic concerts are open-air evening events where you can enjoy your own food whilst being entertained with sublime classical music, choreographed aerial displays, cannon fire, cavalry shows and fireworks. The signature piece is Beethoven’s ‘Battle Symphony’ with 193 live-firing cannons providing a thunderous percussion.

The concerts are held in five locations across England, but my choice would be Blenheim Palace, for the sheer beauty of this World Heritage Site with its 2000 acres of park set out by Capability Brown and its sensational formal gardens.
Blenheim Palace is also the birthplace of Sir Winston Churchill.

Take your own picnic or opt for a ‘hampers and champers’ style picnic for collection on arrival. Chairs, tables and gazebos can also be hired. TO

T 01432 355416
W battleproms.com

26 Do a fun run

Yes, they can be fun! Especially when it’s the Color Run (sic!). Set up at different locations across the UK, The Color Run is a 5 kilometre stretch set up in aid of charity.

Each runner must pay a small fee to enter: this also includes a running pack which is comprised of your running number, a branded T-shirt, sweat band, and those all-important transferable Color Run tattoos.

Known as the “Happiest 5km on the Planet” (not ironic I promise you!), The Color Run is an untimed race that accommodates a varying demographic, catering for all ages and levels of fitness – as long as you are prepared to get messy!

Each kilometre of the race is marked by a checkpoint of colour. As you run through each checkpoint, volunteers will thoroughly douse you in a loud shade of coloured powder. On finishing the race, there is the gigantic Color Festival. Sponsored by Dulux, you are provided with even more coloured powder to throw to the beat of the music.
In 2014, more than £140,000 was raised!

Race locations include London, Manchester, Sunderland, Birmingham, Belfast, Brighton and more. CL

W thecolorrun.co.uk

27 Become a barbecue chef, London

We all love to barbecue, especially when caravanning, but it’s all too easy to end up with burnt or undercooked food. There’s much more to barbecue cooking than you might think and nowhere better to learn it than Weber’s Grill Academy, which has recently moved to London from Oxfordshire.

Weber says, “It’s the place to learn the freshest and most imaginative culinary ideas, all cooked on the barbecue!” You will be taught to cook with the lid on and shown a few simple techniques to help you grill or roast perfectly. On completion you’ll even be able to cook pizzas and chocolate brownies on your barbecue.

Courses available include the two-part Thrill of the Grill, Smoking Methods, and All American, where you can learn to cook the American way. TO

T 01756 692611
W grillacademy.co.uk

28 Ride in a horse-drawn carriage

We get into a horse-drawn carriage on Great Yarmouth seafront, and the driver closes the door and leads his horse onto the road. It’s a thoroughly enjoyable ride as we take in the sea views, gulls, and people having fun.

At the end of the ride, the driver stops and helps Vic out of the carriage. Just as I’m about to step down, it jolts and the horse is off!

The carriage door snaps off its hinges as it catches on another wagon and the whole thing starts to tip. The panic-stricken driver runs after us and his colleague grabs the reins! Thankfully they bring the animal back to the side of the road where I disembark safely. The poor driver is visibly shaking. He picks up the stricken carriage door and escorts his disgraced horse away. I believe it’s not always this eventful! SK

W great-yarmouth.co.uk

29 Go on a ghost walk, York, Yorkshire

There are many ghost walks available, from tracking Jack the Ripper’s butchering in the centre of London town to a slaughtered Cavalier in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire. But the original ghost walk is in York.

Established before 1973 and believed to be the first ghost walk in the world, the team here aims to give you accurate, authentic and genuine information whilst exploring the world of folklore, legend and dreams. Their terrifying tales are drawn up from York’s rich and immense history, walking in the very footsteps of the characters remembered, against the backdrop of the haunting beauty of the city at night.

Scared? Fear not! For the ghost walk begins in the King’s Arms pub, for those who need some extra courage, and starts for real at the infamous Clifford’s Tower Steps. Dare you find out the truth for yourself? RC

T 01904 764222
W theoriginalghostwalkofyork.co.uk