
Last week we spoke about how myself and Rachel love a spontaneous ride out in the mini, well... This week was no exception!
Last Sunday evening, we were both bored out of our skulls, looking for something decent to watch on the TV, when Rachel did her usual thing of looking across at me, giving me a knowing look, and then looking out of the window directly at the Mini. It was time for a drive.
This was one of those occasions, where we had no idea where the destination was likely to be, but we just wanted a change of scenery and some nice photos. We got as far as Ashby, and we suddenly had the bright idea of visiting the Peak District to get some photos. So we found a random car park on google located at the top of a hill and punched it into the sat nav.
Turns out, we timed it PERFECTLY. We pulled up at a car park known on google as "Surprise View" just as the sun was beginning to set over the hills surrounding us. There was even a few very light wisps of snow in the air, that mixed with the stunning view and the sun setting, just made for absolutely incredible pictures.
No matter which way you looked, there was a photo opportunity, and in the distance, in one direction, you could see another hill that was ever so slightly dusted with snow at the very peak. (See the shot below!). We decided then and there that there HAD to be a road that took us there and no matter what happened we were going for a trip to those snowy peaks in the mini.

I handed the camera to Rachel and asked her to snap away as much as possible on the journey, and we headed off again. I'm a sucker for a good country road, and as we set off in what we thought was roughly the correct direction, there were yet more insanely breathtaking views and some amazing twisty roads, which were a blast in the Mini.
By this point, we'd managed to work out that Castleton was potentially the right way to go, and as we drove on, we could see more and more of the snow-covered hills slide into view as we got closer and closer.
Castleton is absolutely incredible, it's a quaint little village tucked away at the foot of a very large hill. You can imagine exactly what it's like, little tea rooms dotted everywhere, houses with thatched roofs, and lots of small shops selling sturdy walking boots and raincoats.
We'd definitely come to the right place, and as we'd emerged on the other side of the village, you could see another road that snaked its way up the hill to a little beauty spot literally just before the snow was starting to settle at the peak.
There was no way we were passing through without pulling in for some more photos, so I parked the mini up on this little slip road, and took what I'm confidently able to say are some of my best photos.
The sky was unreal, and I can tell you now it wasn't edited into the shots in the slightest. The pictures are so dramatic, and I'm in love with how they came out!

As the sun disappeared and the light faded, we decided to head back. Turns out the drive back down the hill was just as much fun, but ultimately took us on to the M1 where my only company was an army of gritters, as the snow was forecast to fall the very next day.
We finally arrived home at about 10 pm, in a very salty mini, ready for a late dinner and a beer. As much as I love a lazy Sunday, there was no denying that the trip had been worth it, and we're planning a little camping trip to the peaks as soon as it warms up a little bit more, so watch this space for more pictures!
That's it for this week, but I do have some very exciting news in the pipeline as I've teamed up with an exciting new company set to take the wedding industry by storm. I might reveal all on next week's blog!
Enjoy your Sunday!
Jono x
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