Autumn Outings

Things to do and see this season.

Adventure and luxury come together at this year's London Caravan & Outdoor Show, from 16th to 19th November at ExCeL. Visitors can experience the great outdoors all under one roof - Yurts, Tipis, 4x4's, canoes, kayaks, and top of the range caravans, including the new silver Airstream Europe, will all be on display for visitors to have a browse around.

To add to the outdoor experience there will be barbequing demonstrations by celebrity chefs, the Land Rover 'Terrapod' experience, a canoeing and kayaking pool, a climbing wall and a fishing game. There will also be show discounts on camping equipment, including clothes, stoves and tents, and electrical equipment such as GPS systems, flat screen TVs and DVD players.

There will be over 200 exhibitors from across the outdoor leisure industry, including caravans, motorhomes, awnings, tents, accessories, boats, 4x4's, camping parks and destinations. Celebrity appearances include Aldo Zilli and Lesley Waters at 'The Outdoor Kitchen' and football master classes with Bruce Grobbelaar and Tony Cottee at 'The Pitch'.

Visitors can enjoy luxurious cultural camping in a Yurt and a Tipi , experience the creature comforts of the latest iconic sliver Airstream Europe, test their nerves on the Land Rover 'Terrapod' in their new Sport model, try fishing and test casting skills at the new 'Go Fishing' feature, have photos taken with the Barclays Premiership Trophy, enjoy canoe and kayaking in a specially constructed indoor pool sponsored and staffed by Desperate Measures canoe shop, see the new 2007 models of caravans and motorhomes, and take advantage of free caravan manoeuvring courses in the new Land Rover Sport - 'Start Caravanning' with The Camping and Caravanning Club.

For more information visit www.caravanandoutdoorshow.co.uk

Beside The Seaside

MP3 Pirate Tour Of Maritime Bristol
Landlubbers are being invited to join the pirate Long John Silver, Jim Hawkins and other colourful characters from Robert Louis Stevenson's maritime adventure Treasure Island on a free walking tour of Bristol's harbourside. The Bristol Quayside Adventure is a new audio tour which can be downloaded onto any mp3 player free from the city's tourist board website, www.visitbristol.co.uk. It takes listeners on a self-guided stroll around historic locations linked to the story, including King Street, Bristol Old Vic and the Hole in the Wall pub, reputed to be the original Spyglass Inn where young Jim Hawkins first meets Long John Silver. As well as dramatising excerpts from the novel the tour includes local tales of seafaring and original music from the Harry Browns, a group of 'shantymen' who sing seafaring songs. Author Grace Palmer says, "It's fascinating to imagine what the quayside would have been like when Bristol was an important port, full of sailors, merchants, pirates and tall ships."

Hunt For Rare Turtles On Cornish coast
The Marine Conservation Society (MCS) is urging Cornwall's surfers and other beach and sea users to look out for small critically endangered leatherback turtles, which have recently been spotted in the sea along the North Cornwall coast. While adult leatherbacks are regularly seen in UK waters, juvenile leatherbacks of less than one metre in length are rarely recorded here, and it is thought that this might be the result of our warming seas.

Turtle sightings should be reported to TURTLE, the national database of turtle sightings, on 01348 875000, or online at www.euroturtle.org/turtlecode, where information and photographs are available to help identificaton. Live turtles stranded on beaches should be reported immediately to the RSPCA on 08705 555999, and must not be put back in the sea. You can find out about the Marine Conservation Society at www.mcsuk.org.

'Brave New Beach Huts' For Lincolnshire
A remote, ten-mile-long stretch of the North Sea coast in Eastern England is to become the setting for an unusual experiment in open-air art next year. The Lincolnshire coastline from Mablethorpe to Chapel St. Leonards is the proposed location for the winners of Bathing Beauties, a competition conceived by artist Michael Trainor for artists and architects to design bathing huts with a difference. The first artist-designed hut, by Mr. Trainor, will be installed in the spring and is rumoured to be inspired by a gin and tonic. The judging panel has announced the winners of the competition and awarded four commissions to build and install the winning designs during 2007. The beach huts will be the property of East Lindsey District Council and will be available for daily public hire. According to the competition's website, www.bathingbeauties.org.uk, the beach hut is "where art meets architecture in the place where land meets the sea. They occupy an envious position of great natural beauty in the landscape where other building interventions are rarely permitted."

Extreme Sports & Ghosts On The Isle Of Wight
The Isle of Wight is offering the chance to get involved in paragliding under close supervision at the White Air Extreme Sports Championships and Festival from Thursday 26th to Sunday 29th October. The whole family are also encouraged to have a go at free ocean kayaking, windsurfing, surfing, and Thundercat powerboat and kitesurfing sessions. More information can be found at www.whiteair.co.uk.

Other events on the island have a Halloween theme, including Ghost Walks at the Isle of Wight Steam Railway on Friday 27th and Saturday 28th October, with scary tales in the dark, remote country railway station. You can find details at www.iwsteamrailway.co.uk.