Customer Story - 50 Treasure Trails Completed!

We were delighted when Peter and Marion Calvert agreed to be interviewed for the blog to mark their milestone of 50 Treasure Trails completed!

Peter and Marion live in South Wales and are active retirees who have travelled extensively and who both love Treasure Trails! Married in 1962 they have two children who now have families of their own.

Peter told us “I first discovered Treasure Trails after arranging a short break in Carbis Bay, near to St Ives.  It was in November 2010 and I scoured the internet for ideas/places to visit.  Treasure Trails provided the perfect solution. Our first trail was Plymouth, on our way to Cornwall.  Plymouth seemed an interesting location; we had not been there before.  The author had researched Plymouth’s highlights, many of which we might have passed unnoticed, and challenged us resolve a series of clues.  Despite a biting wind, it was a thoroughly enjoyable afternoon.”

We were hooked

“Having now followed fifty Treasure Trails, it is impossible to pick out any particular favourite moment.  We have enjoyed visiting unfamiliar places; finding surprises around so many corners.  We were very taken with the charming villages on the ‘Weobley and More’ Trail in Herefordshire.  However, one moment does stand out, in the churchyard in Newchurch in Pendle. Marion laid her hand on a grave and will swear to a presence. She felt a constriction in her throat and I pulled her from the churchyard. The grave was a member of the Nutter family, possibly a relative of Alice Nutter, one of the Pendle witches!”.

“We have done Trails as far west as Lands End, south to the Isle of Wight, Cambridgeshire in the east and Lancashire to the north.  Needless to say, we have done Trails all over Wales.”

“Treasure Trails have drawn us to places that we would not have visited otherwise.  We do so in the knowledge that someone has identified points of interest that are easily missed by casual visitors and set a series of clues to challenge us.  Even familiar towns are seen in a new light.  Our days out are becoming increasingly wide ranging as we seek new Trails to follow.”

Someone has to win

The Calvert family secured a regional £100 prize in 2013 after taking to the road to solve a number of intriguing clues as part of the Llanblethian to St Donats Treasure Trail. On that occasion, Peter said “Whenever my wife and I want a day out, or a couple of days away, I look for a Treasure Trail. I know that if I was compiling a Trail I would endeavour to showcase the more attractive and interesting aspects of the location. I assume that those setting the trails are like-minded; therefore, someone with local knowledge has scoured the area and set a challenge whilst directing us to the scenic, historic or more interesting places within that locality. We have had our eyes opened many, many times in locations all over the southern half of the UK. We all absolutely love solving the clues and we thoroughly enjoyed the day we spent following your Trail as it was really excellent!  Thank you! To receive the news that we are this year’s South Wales prize winner is fantastic!!”

Milestone 50 Trails

Peter contacted us after his day out in Ross on Wye as it was the fiftieth Trail he and Marion had completed. He told us “We had driven past Ross on Wye on many occasions and without the prospect of a Treasure Trail to follow I have no doubt that we should have continued to whizz by on the A40/A449.  The Treasure Trail was the sole reason we drove 100 miles each way.  Marion enjoyed looking in the shops, and entered one or two; we lunched in a cafe, completed the Trail and returned home happy.”

Ed : Sounds like the perfect day out to us! Thanks Peter for sharing your story.

We love hear our customers' stories, let us know how many Treasure Trails you have done.