Category: Uncategorized

August 18th 2019

We are closing in on our next trip which commences on Friday 30th August in Cambridgeshire and then on to the continent for approx 5 weeks.

We have spent some time emptying every drawer, cupboard and locker, examining every item with care and deciding if it needs to remain in Homer for our longish trip as we need space for different items. Unfortunately Layla has had to remain in the house as she wasn’t being too helpful!

One problem that had to be addressed was LPG supply. Currently we use two 6kg swappable bottles that in good weather last us for some time, however with the unknown before us and the inability to access the same bottles on the continent I decided as many have before us to fit a refillable LPG bottle.

I wont pretend it was easy, I had to fit the filler point to the skirt of Homer and then turn the feed through 90 degrees to enter the gas bottle locker, it wasn’t at all complicated just need 3 hands on occasion but eventually with a few skinned knuckles as evidence we drove to a LPG filling station only 3 miles from home where the 22 litres of gas only cost £11 in comparison to the usual £24 when I exchange the 6 kg one that contains 11litres.

I have kept one 6kg connected as a back up should the larger tank run out and we aren’t near a filling station, I’ve downloaded an app that shows filling stations across Europe so hopefully all will go well.

 

August 1st 2019

For some bizarre reason we had it in our mind that we were due to leave the French house on a Thursday and arrive back in England Friday, however I’d left the ferry ticket on the desk in the house and on Monday Michelle looked at it and realised we had got the days and dates misaligned, we were due to sail Thursday morning.

This meant we had a day less than we thought and we had to move ourselves to finish some tasks part done, leave the house ready for the next trip, get to the bank and fill up with fuel. We had booked Layla into the vets for 9 am Wednesday morning for her pet passport medical, so as soon as that was done we were off and driving north. I then realised that there needs to be 24 hours between the treatment and being able to board the ferry, the time on the passport was 8.55 and the ferry left at 9.15am. Mmm!

We quickly settled into travel mode, stopping at regular intervals for a coffee break and to allow Layla to stretch her legs, water the grass etc. We were making good time and stopped at a motorway picnic area (not a busy services) and had our packed lunch.

When we eventually leave the motorway system we drive through Normandy on our way to Le Havre, normally everything passes us by in a blur as we are in a rush to either get to the house or the port. However on this journey we had plenty of time to stop and explore so our first stop was at Gacé, we have thought of doing this before as it is in the motorhome books as a place you can stop over for the night free. The motorhome aire was in front of the Marie, Town Hall, and very picturesque, within 100m there are cafe/ bar/restaurants a pizza restaurant and a supermarket.

A short drive further on is a town called LIVAROT, the name always makes me smile as it seems a suitable place for heavy drinkers to live!

We stopped here and had a walk around the town, the area is part of the Camembert cheese making, so when I saw some for sale, in its traditional round box, in a shop window along with Calvados I went in to purchase some, however I was somewhat bemused when the assistant told me their boxes didn’t contain cheese but chocolate, how bizarre, I didn’t buy any.

The rest of the journey to our hotel in Le Havre went smoothly and we spent a relaxing evening both reading and taking Layla for a walk.

This morning it was with some slight trepidation that we made the 1km drive to the port arriving at 8.15 am concerned that we might get some officious person checking us in who would notice that Layla’s passport time had another 40 minutes to run before it was legal, thankfully the pleasant young lady booking us in made no comment and it was with a sigh of relief that we passed through passport control onto the dock and eventually the ferry. I’m currently sitting in our cabin with the sun shining through the window a calm sea outside, dreaming of our next trip.

Sunday 28th July 2019

Over the past 7 days we have experienced some weather changes, slowly the temperature rose until we were hitting at least 41 degrees each day with it still being over 30 degrees in the house when we went to bed and 27 degrees outside when we got up in the morning. It has made tackling jobs around the house very uncomfortable, I tried to some plastering but the mix set in the bucket before I could apply it to the wall. Then on Friday the weather broke with a thunderstorm that lasted all day and heavy rain, this continued for Saturday morning as well.

During the week Peter and Alison arrived at their bungalow and we took advantage of their kind offer to cool off in their pool.

We’ve been to 2 vide greniers and spent a little money on a bizarre variety of items.

The throw on the left is on the settee as I write but the artist materials and the Union Flag, which I bought of an English woman, are going home with us.

Layla has coped extremely well with the hot temperatures not showing any distress at all, she did join us in Peter and Alison’s pool where she did 2 lengths and cooled off. Here at the house she has a coloured tennis ball which for most of the time she is here she becomes permanently attached to, even carrying it when we go on a walk, she loves chasing after it when we throw it.

Whilst sitting outside on Friday afternoon we spied something moving slowly across the field, when we went to investigate we found to our surprise a turtle, slowly making its way we think to our neighbours pond, looking it up on Google I found it to be a European Pond Turtle.

When we were here last we participated in a quiz night along with a Peter and Alison, at a bar restaurant we use and we won, the prize being a voucher worth almost 80 euros towards a meal. So Saturday night we took advantage of our success and went for a meal, a very pleasant evening it was too, with a few extra beers and cognac we only had to add a small amount to our winnings. I tried to take a photo of the menu but as it is laminated it didn’t work too well.

Today we went to Villefranche-de-lonchat which hosts annually a festival celebrating the best of the region, there are lots of craft stalls and exhibits such as barrel making, spinning, bee keeping etc and the afternoon always ends with displays from marching bands, folk dancers, a group of people who roll wine barrels at great speed, exhibit of sheep dog skills but with ducks, shepherds on stilts, a brass band and a cavalcade of ancient cars and then tractors pulling floats prepared by each village in the region. Great fun.

Friday 19th July 2019.

We left England last Monday on the afternoon ferry, not a normal departure for us although we have done so in the past and driven the 380 miles down through France overnight. However this time we decided on a different approach and I booked us a room in the Ibis Budget Hotel approx 1km from the port, it is along the lines of a Premier Inn/ Travelodge but at £49 for the night including tourist tax was much cheaper, it was also a lot cheaper than paying £109 for an overnight cabin on the ferry.

First task when we arrive is always to cut the grass, so I fired up the tractor, it started at the first turn, ran for a minute and then stopped, it turned over but wouldn’t start, after a close inspection it turned out there was an air lock in the fuel pipe.I cleared that and in so doing found the fuel pipes to the filter and from the filter were seeping diesel, so the next day a trip to the local garden equipment centre was undertaken where a metre of fuel pipe was purchased for 13 euros, which seemed expensive to me. However I was amused because when I showed the assistant the pipe off my tractor and asked if he had any like it he replied “non” he then walked off and came back with a reel of pipe and said ” this is the same but it hasn’t got holes in it! ” I was amazed I never normally find people in these places have a sense of humour.

A week ago I began to suffer with arthritis in the big toe joint of my left foot, either one or the other foot flares up each year, I thought it was on the mend but by the time I arrived at the house it had got worse and has now spread to the next toe joint, it makes walking very painful. I decided to visit the pharmacy to get some anti inflammatory tablets. My French isn’t too good so I used Google translate to write a note before I went. Thankfully it was a good idea because no one spoke English, so I produced my note ” L’ arthrite est dans mon pied, Jai besoin de comprines anti inflammatoires, ” big smiles all round and I walked out with 30 tablets for 3 euro 80. I didn’t know before the French for tablets so that was a learning curve.

Our fruit trees are heavily laden, the apples are rather small and we are feeding those to our neighbours donkeys, however it looks like we will be making both peach and plum jam before we leave.

Since we were here last there must have been a storm as one of apple trees in the orchard which was heavily laden has blown over, so the chain saw has had to see some action.

Since we arrived the weather has been glorious, averaging 30 degrees each day with bright blue skies. We have quickly slipped into hot weather routine, working in the morning whilst it’s cool enough and again later in the evening, the afternoons are far too hot, so we shut the shutters to keep out the sun and keep the house cool and sit in the shade reading or taking a siesta. Some years ago my French neighbour after a solitary trip to England asked me why in England houses he had seen with shutters had them screwed to the walls, how he asked me, did they keep the sun out?

Thursday 4th July 2019

It’s been another hot day with the temperature ranging between 22 and 25 degrees, this unfortunately curtailed our activities a little as it’s too much for my mother.

We commenced the day with a drive across Exmoor to Barnstaple which is the main town of N Devon, the town was a former river port located at the lowest crossing point of the River Taw. This ancient town was given its charter in930AD by King Aethelstan and had its own mint before the Normans arrived in the area. From the 14c it was licensed to export wool which added to its wealth.

The town remains a thriving market town with its traditional Pannier Market and has many fine buildings in its narrow streets which we had a slow ramble around before having lunch.

From here we drove the short distance to the coast, unfortunately it would have been a bit of a difficult walk for us to get on the beach/ Staunton Sands, this beach is 3.5 miles long and has golden sands backed by an impressive dune system. We made up for our disappointment by taking photos from the headland.

We drove on from there to Croyde and managed to park at Baggy Point car park administered by the National Trust, as we are members it saved us the £5 parking fee. Unfortunately here you can’t take the dog on the beach from May to September so we had to make do with a short walk around.

We finalised our day and the holiday with an enjoyable meal in The Rest and Be Thankful pub in Wheddon Cross, the highest pub in Exmoor.

Wednesday 34£ July 2019

It has been a glorious day today full sunshine and the temperature in the low 20’s I think we have all caught the sun today, well personally I don’t burn just go a deeper conker colour.

We headed out to visit Lynton and Lynmouth and the area around it, I hadn’t remembered how beautiful Exmoor is or how high it becomes in places, at one point the altimeter on the sat nav showed 1240ft.

Lynton and Lynmouth are twin towns on the north coast of Exmoor and have a history dating back hundreds of years. Poets Percy Bisshe Shelley, Coleridge and Wordsworth composed poems whilst staying here.

In the late 1800’s Sir George Newnes MP a prominent publisher and editor of popular magazines including one that first serialised Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes mysteries. Sir George played a prominent role in the development of the area including the financing of the Cliff Railway, a unique water powered lift, the Town Hall and the 19 mile Lynton and Barnstaple Railway.

We paid our fee and took the Cliff Railway down to Lynmouth where we enjoyed some freshly cooked fish and chips sitting in the sunshine on the sea front, very british, all we needed was the deck chairs.

In 1952 torrential rain on Exmoor flooded the valleys of West and East Lyn, the flood water carried trees and boulders which burst through Lynmouth causing devastating damage and significant loss of life.

On leaving Lynton we drove the short distance to the Valley of Rocks which is a dry valley running parallel to the coast and has spectacular scenery.If you have time and the energy it is well worth a walk along the rocky outcrop, but sadly 96 year old legs weren’t up to it. We drove on from there along a toll road, £2 placed in an honesty box, past Lee Abbey a Christian retreat and followed an extremely narrow one track road which gave wonderful views down to the sea and coast line below us. I was extremely grateful I wasn’t in Homer.

When we eventually joined a main road we saw a sign for a railway station, curiosity taking the better of us we followed the sign and ended up at Woody Bay railway station. This station was reopened in 2014 and is the first stage of what is hoped eventually will be the complete reinstatement of the Lynton and Barnstaple railway.

Well who can resist the site of a steam engine and the smell of coal burning, 15minutes later saw us taking the short ride of one mile there and one mile back on the current restored track, a short and expensive trip back down memory lane completed with a tub of vanilla ice cream on our return to the station.

July 2nd 2019.

Michelle and I are participating in something very strange to us, we are having a “normal” holiday. For at least a decade our holidays have consisted mainly of visiting the French house or travelling in Homer and where circumstances dictated a few nights in a hotel. We have rented a luxurious lodge outside Wheddon Cross in North Devon and are spending 5 days away with my 96 year old mother, our youngest daughter Steph and her partner Will.The last mile of the journey here was full of incident as without any pre planning we met Steph and Will coming down a single track road heading towards us, we were both following Sat nav directions! We turned up another single track road and ended up in a farm yard that was a dead end, whilst reversing to allow Will space to get past me I ended up with my two offside wheels in a ditch hidden by overgrown nettles. This resulted in me having to be towed out by the farmer with his tractor, thankfully there was no damage.

When we eventually arrived at the lodge and were relaxing with a drink our daughter and her partner announced they had got engaged the day before, thus making the holiday even more special.

Private road to the Lodge.

The Lodge is situated 800m along a private road in beautiful gardens with a view from the lounge down to the Bristol Channel.

Today we took advantage of the gorgeous sunshine and behaved like normal tourists, we visited Dunster and walked around the pretty village and treated ourselves to a delightful ice cream each. The castle, a NT property looks very interesting but visiting it would have meant leaving Layla in the car and would have meant my mother spending a lot of time walking.

From there we visited Minehead where we had a pleasant lunch sitting in the sunshine and walked along the sea front.

Our last visit for the day was to Porlock Weir, Michelle and I were here last December in Homer, it felt very different in the sunshine today and we had a slow walk round stopping for a cold drink outside a cafe/ restaurant. On the way home we drove up the notorious Porlock Hill and across Exmoor back to Wheddon Cross.

Friday 21st June 2019

We have seen a lot of the canal and it’s towpaths today, plus a few fields and country lanes having walked in total 12.5km hopefully we should sleep well tonight. This morning we walked into Droitwich and the journey took us along the canal and a footpath alongside the River Salwarpe into the centre of Droitwich Spa.

Droitwich Spa is a town in North Worcestershire on the river Salwarpe and was called Salinae in Roman Times. The town is situated on massive deposits of salt and its natural brine is 10 times stronger than sea water rivalled only by the Dead Sea. In the mid 19c Droitwich became popular as a Spa town, not for drinking the water but for muscular relief floating in the concentrated salt solution. Salt is still extracted to this day by evaporating the water to leave the salt deposits.

We walked around the town and rested our feet whilst drinking a coffee in the sunshine outside a coffee bar, I bought a book from a charity shop, a few treats for Layla from the pet shop and on the way out of town 6 eggs from the butchers who came out of the shop to pet Layla but unfortunately they had no bones to spare for her. We also found another pumping station which I’m sure I’ve seen on TV which is still being used to extract the brine.

On the outskirts of Droitwich Spa is Chateau Impney a Grade 2 listed 19c house built in the style of a French Chateau, now a popular hotel, hosting amongst other things weddings and an annual car “hill climb”. I remember it from the 60s as being famous in the area for its Cellar Bar Disco held in the basement area of the hotel.

Also in walking distance of the Marina is Hanbury Hall a NT stately home built in the 18c which makes for an interesting visit and has beautiful gardens, however as we have visited that in the past we didn’t take the opportunity to re visit on this occasion.

June 20th 2019

As is becoming our custom we are taking a two night break away between other longer trips. We aim to find a spot to stay within 30 miles of home, it doesn’t matter if we know the area as the camp sites, hidden away usually show us a side to the area we haven’t seen before, so here we are on a CL site adjacent to, and part of Droitwich Spa Marina on the Droitwich Junction canal.

The canal towpaths are great for taking Layla for walks even though she always does her utmost to accidentally fall in.

The marina has 238 berths for narrow boats up to 70ft long and was opened in 2012,it has electric hookups and water points by each boat a purpose built toilet block with underfloor heating, a laundry room with washing machines and tumble driers and even a special shower room for dogs, I’m not sure how they reach the taps!

After pitching up we had a leisurely afternoon sitting in the sunshine then took a short exploratory walk before our evening meal. After we had eaten and chilled out we took a walk across fields and along a country lane and arrived at the Eagle and Sun pub, where a pint of ale for me and a G and T for Michelle was consumed. We walked back along the towpath in beautiful evening sunshine and sat out for some time watching the light slowly fade.

Saturday 1st June 2019

After yesterday’s experience we decided to take the most direct route home which in our case was mostly the M1/A1 and the A38, we travelled exactly 200 miles in 4.5 hours.

All in all we feel that our anniversary trip has been a success, we enjoyed visiting again the hotels where we married and honeymooned, also all the new experiences of this trip, the Kelpies being a major hit.

Altogether we travelled 939 miles and stayed at 8 different camp sites which varied in quality and facilities, the price paid not necessarily matching the quality of facilities.

It was also the first time we have toured with friends and I’m pleased to say we quickly fell into a routine that meant spending the days doing our own thing and the evenings socialising and swapping experiences.

Now we begin the process of planning our next trip.