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Leaving Applecross, we followed the North Coast 500 on, mostly, single track roads to Gairloch. There weren’t too many other vehicles on the road and those we did encounter we passed easily on the numerous passing places. We stopped for a delicious steak sandwich in Gairloch, sitting by the water’s edge on the ‘sitooterie’. A wander along to the harbour to stretch our legs before more miles on the road, we saw fishing nets being mended and some keen sea kayakers. Our route took us slowly further north until we reached Ullapool complete with a very nicely kept Changing Places Toilet to change Racheal and Tesco to stock up on supplies. Just half an hour further up the road, we arrived at Inchnadamph Explorers’ Lodge which would be home for the next 3 nights. The ‘accessible’ room here was very small and required some furniture moving so we could get Racheal in. I had to push the two single beds together (and climb over the end of my bed to get into it) so we could manoeuvre the hoist for Racheal. Even then we often ended up with the hoist and or chair outside in the corridor to give us more space. However, we received a warm welcome and the staff were very helpful. Racheal could have a shower in the wet room, which was a bonus. Apparently there are plans to build a fully accessible extension to the main hostel which would be wonderful.

We drove from Inverness to Applecross via Lochcarron, where we found an accessible cafe for lunch followed by a short walk along the water’s edge. From there we took the single track, winding road over Belach na Ba to Applecross. Racheal thoroughly enjoyed the twisting and turning, up and down road, while Summer and I were awed by the scenery. I had to stop a few times to have a good look at the view because you can’t look properly when concentrating on driving. At the end of the pass we were treated to our first encounter with Highland coos before arriving at our youth hostel accommodation. Our room was in the bunk house, which we used our portable ramps to get into. We kept Racheal’s Treki in the car, using her smaller chair indoors to make it easier to get around. It was a very friendly place and we had our first really relaxing day since we left home - a walk by the river down to the bay in the morning and a wander through the tiny village in the afternoon. We continue to be blessed with gorgeous weather, so Summer went for a dip in the river before tea. We all loved Applecross and were sorry to leave so soon, but after two nights we were in our way again, heading north up the west coast on the North Coast 500.

Watch the short video below for a little review of Inverness Youth Hostel’s accessible room. We were able to give Racheal a shower here using an inflatable camping mat for her to lie on and hoisting her through to the bed to get dry and dressed.

This is our quirky cottage in Peebles. It’s important to point out that the majority of the accommodation we are using is not advertised as accessible. We have found that on the whole, fully accessible accommodation is way out of our price range and often not in the paces we want to go. We carry our own equipment to improve accessibility and make places work the best we can, checking with property owners about door widths, turning circles and steps before booking. We have the advantage of being able to manage without an accessible bathroom, as Racheal does not use the toilet and I’m happy for her to have a good bed bath if there is not a wet room. Our cottage in Peebles was tiny and had a step up to the door. We used our portable ramp and a smaller ‘indoor’ wheelchair chair, leaving the Treki in the car to save space. It was ideally located, close to the town centre and a supermarket. The only rectangular room was the sitting room. Racheal had a tiny triangular bedroom off the sitting room and Summer had a larger quirky shaped room. Ann and I slept in the sitting room. It was very cosy, but we weren’t there much as we used it as a base to explore Edinburgh, and to visit the Scottish Tapestry. Peebles itself is a small town with a busy high street, rambling side streets and an interesting ramp up to the church for wheelchair access. Having negotiated this, we sadly found that the wheelchair accessible door into the church was locked- a bit disappointing. The chocolate shop had been recommended and did not disappoint! A must on the day Summer got her A level results. The Great Tapestry of Scotland was only half an hour’s drive away. An accessible building with welcoming, helpful staff and only 5 minutes walk from the bus station where there was a changing places toilet. It’s one of those places you could visit again and again and still find more things to discover. Not only were the stitching and designs beautiful to look at, it also told the history of Scotland in easy to digest, bite sized chunks. We made some suggestions on how to make it more inclusive for people with visual impairments, as Racheal is blind, and the staff seemed genuinely interested. All in all, a relaxing day out when combined with a picnic on the way and a piece of cake in the café afterwards. When we left Peebles, after a 4 night stay, we dropped Ann off at the railway station and headed for Stirling Highland Games. There we spent a couple of hours watching the events, wandering around local craft stalls and eating our picnic. The sports centre next door had a changing places we could use before getting back on the road to head for the youth hostel at Inverness.

Two very hot trips to Edinburgh from our quirky cottage in Peebles. On Wednesday we took the Park and Ride bus into the city, found a little café for lunch, then ambled down the Royal Mile to watch street performers. Racheal was particularly taken with the hand pan drum and didgeridoo. The streets were very crowded, making it a bit awkward to get through with her wheelchair, but we weren't in a rush. We went in the Fringe shop, which had ramped access, then on to St James Place shopping centre where there was a fully functioning, clean Changing Places toilet. Just outside we found the 'W' hotel, an interesting spiral building with a lift to the restaurant at the top which had fantastic views over the city. Drinks here were only a few pence more expensive than the café we had lunch in. We didn't look at the food menu, which was probably pricey, but for a drink with a view it was a good find. As the weather was unbearably hot, Ann, Racheal and I sat in Princes St gardens while Summer went off exploring. We were treated to an incredible performance on the xylophone accompanied by tap dance and drum. Tattoo Thursday evening, not quite as hot but plenty warm enough, we had ring side seats for the Edinburgh Tattoo. Prior to the event we were able to meet in a nearby street to join a convoy of vehicles carrying passengers with disabilities, and drive right onto the esplanade. After leaving Ann, Summer and Racheal to find our seats, I drove back to the parking area where the cars were attended by security guards for the duration of the performance. The whole process then happened in reverse to pick passengers up at the end. All very well organised and so easy for those who have difficulty walking. Needless to say, the Tattoo was stunning. The photos below give a taste. Very late night as it didn't finish until 11pm, and we didn't get back to our cottage until 12.45am, but well worth it. A tick on the bucket list for Ann and me!!

After a very slow day yesterday, taking 3 hours to get out of Norfolk, then a major diversion off the A17, we eventually joined the A1 and finally felt like we were getting somewhere. Our journey, which should have taken 6ish hours including stops turned into 10 hours, so we were relieved to be shown to interconnecting rooms at Bishop Auckland Premier Inn where we could get Racheal settled and then relax a little ourselves. The second day of traveling north was much more relaxed. Lunch at Brocksbushes cafe, then exploring the Roman town at Corbridge, before settling in to a scenic 2 hour drive to Peebles with a photo-stop at the Scottish/English border. Our Airbnb is a quirky cottage with few straight lines and triangular shaped bedrooms! The country is in the middle of a heatwave. We had hoped that we would escape it being further north, but it is still very hot, so unloading the car, walking to the supermarket, cooking a meal and seeing to Racheal's needs has been a very sticky affair! The girls have had a fun evening listening to music and chilling in Racheal's bedroom, which is lovely to see. It's incredible to think that after all the planning, discussing, and researching of the past few years, and the trauma and set backs of recent months, we are here. The Wheely Amazing Gap Year has begun - hooray! Photos: Outside Brocksbushes farm shop; Racheal exploring Corbridge Roman Town; Feeling and artifact with Ann; Home Care Direct teddy at Corbridge (our mascot for the trip); Sticking one of our stickers on the Scottish Borders sign; Flags and rock on the border; Even a special welcome for Summer at the border!!;Girly evening listening to music.

Paddle boarding with Nancy Oldfield Trust The first activity of our Gap year was an amazing day paddle boarding and sailing with volunteers Mark and Paul from the Nancy Oldfield Trust, at Neatishead in Norfolk. This wonderful charity provide the opportunity for people with additional needs to experience a range of water based activities including sailing, canoeing, paddle boarding and day trips in wheelchair accessible cruisers. They also have accessible holiday accommodation with ceiling track hoists and profiling beds. Accessible Boating and Accommodation on the Norfolk Broads – The Nancy Oldfield Trust We were blessed with a beautiful sunny morning for paddleboarding. We rode out to the pontoon on Barton Broad on an accessible motor boat, then Racheal was hoisted from the pontoon onto the paddle board. She was supported on the board with a seat which has a quick release safety mechanism in case of emergency. The afternoon weather wasn't so good as it poured with rain. Racheal was dry under her waterproof poncho, but the rest of us got soaked! It wasn't cold and we still had lots of fun. Summer even had an afternoon of one to one sailing tuition!

Our overall plan for the year started (in 2021) with a few elements and gradually got filled in. The initial outline included Scotland, Ontario and Florida, Spain, the Martello Tower in Aldeburgh, Suffolk, and a return to Bendrigg Lodge (I worked there for a summer nearly 40 years ago!). Now it is a detailed 12 month calendar starting mid August 2025 and ending August 2026. Here is an idea of what we have planned. 6 weeks road trip in Scotland to include Edinburgh Tattoo; North Coast 500; Orkney; Shetland; The Great Glen; Mull; and catching up with some dear friends. 4 weeks in North America to include a visit to friends in Ontario, Canada; New York; Philadelphia and the Amish community; overnight train to Orlando; and a week in Florida to see Racheal's first foster carer, her much loved Mama Althea. (Edit: now just Canada, moving on to Montreal after Ontario, and then to Nova Scotia on the overnight ‘Ocean’ train. ) 4 weeks road trip in Europe to include Luxembourg; Italy; Austria and Germany. Passing through France; Switzerland, Czech Republic, Netherlands and Belgium. Home for Christmas!! A weekend at the Martello Tower, Aldeburgh. (This is a Landmark Trust property. Look them up if you like unusual places to stay.) A few nights in London sightseeing and going to shows, 2 weeks in Malta, to include the carnival. A week in Yorkshire staying in another quirky Landmark Trust property. 4 weeks in Spain and Portugal to include a visit to Andorra, Barcelona, and northern Spain. (Edit: we’re not going to Barcelona and Andorra this trip as we decided to spend longer in fewer places. Maybe another time. This trip will include Picos de Europa, Santiago de Compostella, central Portugal, Seville, Avila and the Basque region.) A trip to see the bulb fields and the cheese market in the Netherlands. 5-6 weeks in South Wales, Devon and Cornwall (via Milton Keynes!) to include some adventurous activities - iFly, Snozone, Surfability, and Wetwheels; LandsEnd; Eden Project; Scilly Isles; Minack Theatre and more. Our usual annual camping holiday at Shottisham. Keswick, Lake District - duration to be decided. The grand finale - Bendrigg Lodge for lots of exciting outdoor activities. Between Keswick and Bendrigg, there is another entry on the calendar - IEFA. This stands for If Energy and Funds Allow. I'm keeping that one under my hat for now, so watch this space!! Every trip has to be carefully planned to ensure accommodation will suit our needs whilst fitting into our tight budget. There is no room for spontaneity. I'm booking youth hostels and self catering accommodation a year ahead, Each one carefully checked with emails and phone calls back and forth with property owners and hostel managers. Any public transport we plan to use must be accessible and allow carriage of the additional luggage we need for Racheal - more emails and phone calls! As well as our Gap Year Calendar, there is a detailed budget spreadsheet, and each separate trip has a planning sheet showing travel times, accommodation details, facilities at each place we will stay and what equipment of our own we will need. More on that at another time. It's exciting, but more than a little daunting too!

I wrote the last entry on New Year's Eve. Since then a tremendous amount of work has gone into research and planning for trips which we will be going on in 2026, continuing to book as much as possible 12 months ahead. Malta, Spain & Portugal, and Netherlands are all booked, except for flights, ferries and Le Shuttle. The Malta trip grew a little longer than it's original 2 weeks and includes Gozo as well as mainland Malta. Our trip to Spain and Portugal was going to include Andorra and Barcelona, but the miles we would have to travel were prohibitive, so the route has been changed to make it more manageable. On all our road rips I have tried to keep the driving down to 4 hours a day, 5 hour maximum. This is partly because I will be the only driver and do not want to get too tired, and also to give plenty of time to attend to Racheal's needs while we are travelling. There have also been some changes to the plans we had made for North America. After giving it a lot of consideration, I felt it would be safer to stay in Canada for the full four weeks rather than travelling down through USA to Florida. This meant a lot of extra work, cancelling all the USA bookings and researching accommodation and travel options in Canada. The new plan involves a 22 hour train journey, in an accessible compartment, from Montreal to Halifax, after the initial stay north of Toronto where we are visiting friends. More on the Canada trip later. In May, I should have been working hard on our visit to Wales and SW England, but a very close friend was taken into hospital and it quickly became evident that she only had a matter of weeks to live. I was spending a lot of time at the hospital supporting her during the day while Racheal was out at school. At about the same time Racheal was allocated a new caseworker for Continuing Health Care who questioned whether it was in Racheal's best interests for us to go travelling for prolonged periods of time. The day after our dear friend died, I was on a Teams meeting finding out that the care agency will not pay Summer when we are away from home and that we had to have a Best Interests meeting to determine whether the girls' Gap Year could even go ahead. It was an enormously stressful time. I couldn't share any of what was going on with Summer as she was in the middle of her A levels. The new case worker was suggesting that I was misusing Racheal's money without even asking how our trips were being funded, and that our Gap Year plans would be raised as a Safeguarding concern if the Best Interests meeting didn't go in our favour. After all the encouragement and positive comments we had had from friends and professionals over the last two years, everything suddenly became very negative and distressing. The Best Interests meeting took place the day before our friend's funeral, finding in our favour due to the continued support from professionals who know Racheal and me well. Although I fully appreciate that professionals need to ensure that vulnerable adults are kept safe and that those caring for them are seeking the best possible outcomes, the way this was handled was far from the best for Racheal. If questions needed to be answered, they should have been raised over a year ago when I first shared our plans, and with much more sensitivity. I've been left wondering what else will be questioned in the future, and how to make sure we don't end up in a similar situation again. Now, I'm trying desperately to catch up on our plans from May 2026 onwards, whilst putting the finishing touches to the plans for this year's trips to Scotland, Canada and Europe. Emergency plans are finalised. We are as prepared as anyone could be if anything happens while we are away from home, with amazing friends and family who will fly to anywhere in the world if we need rescuing, and local contacts for most trips if we need help. With an experienced co-ordinator to take control if needed and a copy of the plan to carry, clearly displayed, in the car, it's a detailed piece of work I very much hope will turn out to have been a 'waste of time'! It's very exciting to think that in four weeks we will have already set off on our first big adventure touring Scotland. Packing will begin in the next few days, before Racheal leaves The Clare School and all the friends she has shared the last 12 years with. It will be a sad parting, but we have a new chapter now full of fun and new experiences which we look forward to sharing with you . If you would like to contribute to our GoFundMe page to give Summer some spending money for our trips we would be very grateful. Please click on the link to be taken to our GoFundMe page. https://gofund.me/2185cbce

For months we have been saying that we are going on our Gap Year next year, but in a couple of hours it will become THIS YEAR! That's exciting, but a little daunting too. Already, a lot of planning has been done though there's still 8 months until our first trip. Accommodation is completely booked for six weeks in Scotland, four weeks in Canada and USA, and our four week Europe road trip. Every place carefully researched for accessibility, space to manoeuvre the hoist, width of doorways, accessible parking etc. (We won't be using adapted accommodation as it is generally above our budget, or not in the right place, or both!) Hopefully the planning will pay off, but no doubt there will be some bumps along the way. Most places don't release dates to book until 12 months before, and some less than that, so we're generally working a year ahead. 'This time next year...' has become a very common phrase. January 2026 will be a quieter month; a bit of time to recharge our batteries and renew our strength for the second half of our adventures, so it follows that there will be less planning in the next few weeks. No shortage of things to do though! A thorough Spring clean and sort out of the house is needed, so that I know exactly where everything is when we come to pack. A few trips to charity shops to declutter and make space for the inevitable souvenirs too. Please follow us on our Wheely Amazing Gap Year adventures, and we wish you a Happy and Healthy New Year full of adventures and fun!

The honest answer is that I can't quite remember! To start with, I think it was really just a dream. I had a desire to share with Racheal my love of travelling and to give her new experiences, but a whole year of travelling seemed out of the question. It played around in my thoughts and slowly morphed from a crazy idea to 'why not?' to 'we're going to do this!' Let me explain a little about our situation. Racheal has profound learning disabilities, she is blind, non-verbal and a full time wheelchair user. She has cerebral palsy, microcephaly, and a number of medical issues which keep me on my toes. I need to be proactive to prevent, or at least reduce the possibility of, her becoming unwell. Despite all this she is a happy, fun loving young lady who revels in new experiences. Racheal enjoys the out of doors, travelling, musical & sensory theatre, making things, and hanging out with her peers. Racheal has been involved in GirlguidingUK since the age of 10. She was a Guide and then Young Leader in the local Guide unit, achieving her Gold award as a Guide, and is now a Ranger. Girlguiding has given Racheal some fantastic opportunities including attending an international jamboree in Norfolk, and a trip to Switzerland with her unit. I've been fortunate to share these experiences with her. Guiding has been in my blood since I joined Brownies at the age of 7, and it has given me a huge amount of pleasure to support Racheal on her Guiding journey. Girlguiding has also given Racheal some lovely friends who have supported her and included her in their activities. One such friend is Summer who has been a Guide, Young Leader and now Ranger with Racheal. We are delighted that Summer has chosen to join Racheal on her Gap Year and are looking forward to adventuring with her. In my life before Racheal, I was a Learning Disability and Paediatric Nurse. I was fortunate to have the opportunity to travel a lot, to north, east and west Africa, Mexico, India, Nepal, Canada and many European countries. Our house is full of souvenirs of my travels, particularly musical instruments, Much of my travelling in my adult life has been with my very good friend Ann, who will be joining us on some of our upcoming adventures. I am a Christian and try to live my life in obedience to God (though I fail on a daily basis!). In 2013, I felt called to make a major life change. I gave up nursing and became a foster carer for children with additional needs. After a few months of providing respite care to other young people, Racheal came to live with me. Her previous foster carer was retiring and, though she had given plenty of notice, we had just 2 weeks for transition as the Local Authority had been unable to find a replacement carer. Racheal and I hit it off immediately and I quickly came to understand her needs. She had a desire to communicate, and soon learnt to make choices and answer yes/no questions by turning her head to the right or left. This opened up her world and gave her a degree of control which has been nurtured both at home and at school as she has matured into a wonderful young woman. In 2018 I felt it was time to apply to adopt Racheal, and by God's grace, we became a family legally in August 2019. Going from being a single person to single mum of a child with complex needs was a huge step, and though I have never regretted it even for a moment, it came with a number of sacrifices. The biggest was freedom. In an instant I could no longer come and go as I please, and simple things like popping out for a pint of milk late at night, walking the dog early in the morning, or visiting a friend at the weekend became impossible or a highly organised operation. However, I was determined that Racheal would have lots of different experiences, so we found ways to manage camping holidays, visits to my Dad in Spain, and trips to the theatre in London. Even during Covid lockdowns we camped in the garden, slept in a den we bult in the kitchen and created our own rain forest in the dining room! So, back to the gap year dream. People would ask me what Racheal was going to do when she left school. I would jokingly reply that she was going to have a gap year. Gradually it stopped being a joke. If you say something too many times it's just not funny anymore! I started to think about how wonderful it would be to spend a whole year with my daughter, and dreamt of some of the places we could visit. Some people said to me that 'young people like Racheal don't have gap years'! So that was it - I had to prove them wrong. More and more ideas came to me, and before I knew it a year's itinerary was plotted on a calendar and a budget set. My biggest stumbling block was how I could manage away from home for long periods without any additional help. Ann could help for a week here and there, but has elderly parents she cares for and cannot be away for long. Then, walking home from Rangers one evening, Racheal's friend Summer said that she would like to have a gap year but didn't know who to go with. I was only too happy to invite her to join us, but told her to think about whether it was what she really wanted to do. When she came back a few weeks later to say she wanted to join us for the whole year it turned the dream into a reality and the planning began in earnest.