My Bristol Bucket List

Ship-Shape graffiti in SouthvilleKnowing that (in our dreams at least) a move to San Francisco could be on the cards, Mr Ship-Shape and I have been trying to pack in as many exciting Bristol-based things as possible this year.

Despite the fact we’ve both lived in Bristol for a whopping ten years, there were still lots of activities that had remained unchecked on our Bristol Bucket List. As a result, the last 11 months have been about saying ‘yes’ to as many opportunities as possible, from blogger events to a spontaneous trip to the SS Great Britain. Here are a few of my favourites…

Cycling the Bristol to Bath cycle pathThe Bristol to Bath cycle path

I’m a bit of a wimp when it comes to road cycling but I love the Bristol to Bath bike path, where many summer weekend afternoons have been spent cycling and eating cake. Although rides have been 10, 15, even 20 miles long, I’d never managed to make it to Bath and back in one go until this autumn. My friend Hannah and I, looking very snazzy in our sporty outfits, above, managed the 37 mile round trip in four hours, stopping for a healthy salad at Jamie’s Deli in Bath’s Milsom Place.

Matilda the Bristol FerryA trip on a Bristol Ferry

The one mode of Bristol transport I hadn’t tried until a couple of months ago, these yellow and blue boats are an iconic, if everyday, part of the Harbourside. I’d always fancied taking a ride on one so one sunny Sunday afternoon Mr Ship-Shape and I hopped aboard for a tranquil cruise around the harbour, stopping at…

Flags on the SS Great Britain The SS Great Britain

So much of Bristol’s history is centred around water, so it felt criminal that I’d lived here for a decade and not been to visit this impressive ship, which is a major tourist attraction for the city. This spontaneous outing was timed perfectly as it was so late in the afternoon that there were hardly any other visitors around. I loved seeing the ship and the differences in living conditions between classes – it’s hard to imagine that passengers travelled in this relatively small ship for weeks at a time to reach their destination.

Lunch at The Runcible SpoonLunch at The Runcible Spoon

This teeny-tiny restaurant on Nine Tree Hill, Stokes Croft, has been on the list since it opened a couple of years ago but previous attempts to visit had been thwarted until our lunch on Friday. The menu is small but perfectly formed and you can choose from main course ‘big spoons’ or appertiser-sized ‘little spoons’. We went for the latter and had a selection of smaller dishes including beetroot-soaked sea bass, dill gnocchi and grilled vegetables with hummus. Delicious!

Bristol 10k finisher medalRunning the Bristol 10k

Bristol’s annual 10k and half-marathon races are always great fun and both of us entered this year’s 10k in May. Running alongside thousands of other people under the Clifton Suspension Bridge is quite exhilarating and I managed to run it in just over 58 minutes – a new PB for me!

Are there any other West Country must-dos that I should squeeze in before I go?

PS. This summer Gina wrote a very extensive bucket list for Bristol (no. 32 and 57 are the perfect combo for a great night out) so if you’re look for more Bristol-based inspiration, go check it out!

Bloglovin |Twitter | Facebook | Instagram 

Follow:

7 Comments

  1. November 16, 2014 / 6:54 pm

    Love this, Bristol is really not that far from me so I really need to come and check these out!

    Maria xxx

    • SJ
      January 15, 2015 / 12:54 am

      You so should – there are lots of gems in Bristol to discover :) x

  2. November 16, 2014 / 7:34 pm

    I keep eyeing up the Runcible Spoon, must visit!

    • SJ
      January 15, 2015 / 12:55 am

      You definitely should – it was delicious and trying a few of the smaller plates was a great way to sample it. You should take Hayley! Or Ben, it’v v cosy in there :) x

  3. November 18, 2014 / 10:51 pm

    Oh SJ! Don’t leave us!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *