Hi All,
We have a lovely Black Lab and are thinking of taking him to the beach in the very near future.I live in the Midlands and it would seem breen/weston are the closest beaches to me,any opinions or advice on the best beaches to take him to?
Also we are thinking of staying overnight and therefore would need a travel crate to take with us,the crate he sleeps in now would be too big to fit in my boot,does anyone know where i could get a LARGE crate that is easily foldable to fit into a standard boot?
Thanks in advance for any help/suggestions
Michael

(I hope i have put this in the correct category??)

If you park on Berrow beach, do be careful as 6 cars were lost in one day last month! :(
http://www.burnham-on-sea.com/news/2009/cars-stranded-beach-20-08-09.php

If you come down to junction 22 and take the B 3140 to Burnham, Poplar Road, Grove Road and Allendale Road will all be on your left after the Esso Garage roundabout.  Park at the end of any of these (free) and turn right (north) on the beach and you can walk on a quiet part of the beach with your dog for as far as you like.

Check the tide times here so that you're not paddling! :) 
http://easytide.ukho.gov.uk/easytide/EasyTide/ShowPrediction.aspx?PortID=0528&PredictionLength=7

I don't think that any crates I have will fit in a boot either... :(

Hi Michael

The beach at Sand Bay is a good one for dog walking - sometimes includes a horse or two.  There are places to stay all along there so all you have to do is step out of the door!!

Have you checked mileage to Wales?

Crates: are you looking for a travel crate?  Depends on the size of your car but you can get different sized ones that have sloping backs too for hatchback or estate.  These are ideal for in car safety but can also be used indoors.  For a long term option you can get companies to make crates to fit your exact car.  What vehicle do you have? 

If you are intending to only transport the crate to use when you arrive then a 36" one will fit in most cars.  A 42" will probably need the back seats putting down.  Fabric crates are quite handy if you have a dog that is used to a crate - they aren't terribly robust but handy to stop your dog from bed surfing in your hotel/bedroom.  Most of these are on eBay but there are other options if you Google.

The mileage does come out similar to Wales also,happy to go to what people consider to be the best beach to take him

The crate i require is only needed for somewhere for him to sleep when we are there,so it needs to be able to fit in my car,unable to fold the seats down as will also have kids in the car.I have a ford mondeo hatchback

> The crate i require is only needed for somewhere for him to sleep when we are there,so it needs to be able to fit in my car,unable to fold the seats down

If in doubt you can go to Pets at Home and they will let you try the crates in your car.  They have display crates you can practice with, they also have fabric ones if you want to give one a go.  Dogs are allowed in store so you can see what is the smallest your lab will fit in.  You don't have to buy from them if you decide not to.

I have a wire haired vizsla - he uses a 42" crate at home but can happily fit in a 36" one for overnights. 

Lots of different options here - including detailed measurements

If you don't have much room after luggage you could try renting a crate.  I found one company in Windermere that deliver - see here.  Alternatively put a wanted ad on here - some of us locals might be able to help out! :)