Royal International Air Tattoo. Fairford

The Vulcan gave an amazing display!

These bi planes 

Well this is something that we have never done before.  We joined Robert at the Kempsford campsite which  is right next to the Airfield. We arrived on the Thursday afternoon and it was burning hot. Camp was soon established. We had booked adjoining pitches, so were able to establish a neat little encampment. Then we sat back to watch the planes arriving, and also the various planes and helicopters practising their displays. Kathy and the boys arrived on the Friday morning!

We spent Friday just sat by the tent watching all the arrivals and practising as well. There is a 'RIAT' radio station that broadcasts all day Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and is a really detailed commentary of what is going on, so we found that very useful.

Saturday was even hotter, so as we were not going into the show, we just sat by the caravan enjoying watching all the displays. The number of people in the show was absolutely staggering!

On the Sunday we went into the show.  As it was an airfield  I was able to easily push Lizzie around in the wheel chair. We got round and saw so many aircraft, as well as vehicles related to aircraft.
Here follows a selection of some of the planes and helicopters thhat we saw.

Our pitch

I have to say that we had an amazing weekend.  Lovely company, plenty to see and do. Good food and fine wines, and absolutely perfect weather.

Next year we will take a plane spotters guide with us to help identify all that we see

Bristol and West Land Rover Show 21st-23rd June

Well we arrived back at home in the early hours of Thursday morning.  Washing was done and we cleaned the Caravan. We replenished the gas and food lockers and were ready for the off on Friday lunch time.
It is only a short run down to the Bath and West Showground.
We arrived and it was cold and windy.  Unfortunately it stayed cold and damp all weekend
The show seemed to be well supported, although our stand never got particularly busy!
Tina and Ian, Bob and Karen joined us on the stand, with Mal and Aiden  turning up on the Saturday night.

No photos of this one though

Our French Adventure. 8th May to 20th June

Well we brought the Caravan home on Friday 3rd of May to use it as a spare bedroom as Robert and Kathy were coming to stay. Suddenly realised that the insurance on the Freelander2 would expire whilst we were away. So after some conversing with LV, they cancelled my policy, and immediately started a new one. £30.00 cheaper than the previous year and a refund on the unused part of my policy.  That was brilliant service.
 After the weekend the caravan was taken in for a damp check, which it passed with flying colours.  Whilst it was in Chipping Sodbury Caravans the water pump was replaced as it was found to be faulty.  We then cleaned the caravan and packed it ready for our trip.
We left for Poole at 4.30 on Wednesday. Got to the ferry terminal, steadies down, had tea and played scrabble before turning in.
06.15 on the Thursday we were woken by the Ferry men, and we finally got on to the ferry at 08.30, a bit late.  We were last on! Force 8 on the way to Cherbourg so we arrived late.

First stop was to Les Chevaliers at Villedieu-les-Poeles, for two nights. It was a nice leisurely drive down. We treated ourselves to our first proper French meal in the bar, as the supermarkets were shut as it was a bank holiday! This is the third time we have stayed here as it makes a convienient first stop in France. It also gives us a chance to accustom ourselves to French life and fill up with wine and cheese etc.

On the Saturday we were up early for us, we paid the bill, E32.00 as we were using the ASCI discount card.

Our next stop was to be La Foret, in the Vendee.  This entailed a four hour drive.  Unbelievably we saw no other English vehicles on our journey.  When we arrived at the site we chose our pitch. The Owner asked if we had a mover. As we have not got one, four of the staff unhitched our caravan and pushed and pulled it into our pitch. Now that is service!  I could have reversed it in but it would have taken some time.Weather was hot but a tad windy.

Our Pitch

We spent five nights at this site, and enjoyed relatively good weather. Whilst  we were there we visited St Jean de Monts and Noirmaster as well as lots of other villages.

The entrance to the site

We left on Thursday, moving further down through France to Pons.  A nice site built around an old mill.  This also had the advantage of an excellent bar on site, so we enjoyed sitting outside on the verandah, enjoying the sun.  We also enjoyed one excellent meal in the resteraunt.  Unfortunately we had a few very wet days.

The Terrace!

On Tuesday we moved on to Moissac. This site is on an island in the river, and is entered through a narrow enclosed bridge.  Bit of a bottom clenching moment as you go through it with a caravan following you.

The site was very wet so we took our time finding a decent pitch. Whilst we were on this site Lizzie bought herself a posh Sun Lounger at E'LeClerc, for half the price it would have been in the UK.  We spent time looking round the area, thoroughly enjoying our visits into town people watching.  The Sunday market was particularly good.

On the Monday morning we left the site at 11.30 to drive down towards Toulouse. We were due to meet Kathy, Rob and the boys at an aires, a French rest area beside the motorway, at 1.30.  By this time it was hot, so we pulled onto the aires, and set up our chairs to have lunch and wait for Rob and co.  Slightly
 ahead of time they arrive. We finished lunch, and set of down the peage, toll road, round Toulouse and down the A61.
We then cut off the piage and took a more sceinic route through Limoux and Quillan towards Perpignan. The drive spectacular through the mountains, or rather over them.Some of the roads were cut through the rock.

Also some of the villages we went through were horriffically tight.
Eventually we reached Le Barclaes, and after a bit of Off roading, yes with a caravan behind us, we reached our site for the next nineteen days.  The site is called Camping Club Floride & l'Embouchure. We were on  the Embouchure part which is alongside the Agly river and was less than 100 metres from the beach. Our pitches which were opposite each other had private bathrooms, shower, loo, wash basin on each pitch.  This also became a useful place to store chairs etc overnight.

Add caption

The first few days it was windy but we were well sheltered and were able to enjoy the burning sun. We soon got into a routine of walking along the front to the local village for coffee and to enjoy the market.



After we had been on site for a week we started to explore more than the local villages.

We had a pow wow and decided that Andorra was our aim, so we set off down to Spain and into Andorra.  We climbed mountain passes 3 times higher than Ben Nevis. We drove through snow! Diesel was only E1,12 a litre.

It was so relaxing on the site as we sat and soaked up the sun and watched people. It was most amazing to watch the French arrive in their caravans and unload Fridges, freezers and proper tables and chairs out of  the front windows.

Perpignan

We thoroughly enjoyed our time on this site, but are not sure what it would be like in high summer!

Our 19 days were soon up, so it was with heavy hearts we packed up the 14th of June. Rob and Kathy were leaving at the same time as us, but were aiming to drive straight to Calais.

We were heading for Camping de Montreal.  We found the site easilly after a very long drive. The pitch we chose was on the edge of a lake.

The view from our pitch

 We stopped here for two nights, and yet again enjoyed superb weather. We visited some of the local villages and countryside.


On the Sunday we cleared up and moved on again to Camping Campilo in La Vendee.  This site was very new, and should be superb in a few years time. We were only staying one night here. It was very hot and we sat outside.  That night was marked by a terrific thunderstorm!

On the Monday we moved on again to La Trinite Sur Mer.  Again we were only stopping for one night. Here we were due to meet Martin and Judith. Judith was taking part in a sailing race from the Uk to Portugal, and was due to be in port that night.  They came up and joined us on the Tuesday morning for coffee in the brilliant sun. It was really good to catch up with them.

We then left and drove up to Les Chevaliers at Villedieu-les-Poeles, for our last night in France, before heading for the ferry from Cherbourg home.

So ended a wonderful trip to France.  There is so much more I could have written as we had such a wonderful time.

Just one or two additional comments.
French fuel was cheap. about E1.24 a litre.
French super markets keep fuuny hours. Not opening until 9.00am  Some shut for lunch, and they all shut by 7.30 at night.
My French got better by the day!
Would we do it again? You bet, just watch this space

Pebbly Nurseries. Stow on the Wold 11th April

So we loaded the Freelander2 up and set off to collect the van from storage. Transferred the chairs and Cadac to the Freelander and left. Stopped at the second burger van on the A46 going north from the M4. Yummy burgers.
Then up through Tetbury towards Cirencester when Lizzie says did you put the duvet in?  Whoops.  Go back or carry on?  Well as we were going to buy a new duvet anyway we carried on.
Found the site easily enough. Thank goodness for sat navs.  Set up and found we needed to use an EHU lead and a half to reach the power socket.
Awning up and I headed for Morrison's in Evesham to purchase a new duvet whilst Lizzie finished setting up the caravan. Horrific rain on the way to Evesham. Why do people drive with no lights on in such conditions?
Found Morrison's and a new duvet was purchased and some boxes of wine.
Back to the site and the gate was locked so I had to go to the house to collect the key.  Enjoyed a scrummy tea of beef in a red wine sauce, before watching tv and curling up in bed. It is so good to be back in the caravan again.

How to start the day!

Friday was started with breakfast done on the Cadac , then up to Stow on the wold for coffee.  Then back to site to clean the caravan because it had got plastered in mud on the journey up. Set the satellite Tv system up.  Good views from the caravan.

Saturday started wet so after a light breakfast we set off to the Carpenters Arms at Fullbrook, Burford, to meet up with Jan and Richard Brown. Old school friends who I had not seen for years.  Good to catch up.  The pub was OK. Beer was excellent but the food was overpriced and not of a particularly high quality.
Back to the caravan to play scrabble.

The site.

It was very windy, but everything survived. There was heavy rain overnight, and the site was beginning to get a bit muddy.  Sun came out as we were breakfasting so we set off for Bourton on the water.  Absolutely heaving, so we went to Moreton in the Marsh for coffee. Then on to Evesham,  nice town with lots of empty shops which was a shame. Went through Broadway. Nice place that looks expensive.

Back to Stow on the Wold for afternoon tea in a very posh tea shop.  We had a window seat so were able to watch a classic car rally come into town.

This was a Talbot

Monday was still very windy but dry at last. After breakfast we set off for Bourton on the Water.  It was still very busy, but we were able to sit outside in the sunny and drink coffee. Mooched around the local shops and supported the local economy with a bit of spending.

Drove back to camp via Great Rissington.  That brought back memories of Scout camps in the past.
Then we drove through Chipping Norton, back to the caravan, to find somebody had pitched about 15 feet away from us. A whole field to choose from and they pitch that close..
Sat outside reading in the sun.

Tuesday we cleared up leisurely before a relaxed drive back to the storage site.

An excellent break!


This CL has featured in the Caravan Club magazine.

Minehead

After last times exploits at Michaelchurch Escley we decided that we wanted something a little easier than a muddy CL, so we settled on the Caravan Club site in Minehead.  This was also scheduled to be our first trip away after Lizzie operation.  However the operation was cancelled four times and has been rescheduled for the Spire private hospital in early March.

As is usual when heading south in England we opted to ignore the M5, and headed down south through Keynsham, Wells, Glastonbury and Street.  This adds about 20 minutes to the journey, but is a much more pleasurable route.  The only trouble on ordinary roads are the little old people, usually wearing hats and driving Nissan Micra's, who meander along, not realising they have a long queue behind them.  Certainly makes them jump when a Freelander2, towing a caravan overtakes them!

We arrived at the site and chose pitch 23.  All the pitches are hard standing, and are quite small. However I reversed on and got the caravan correctly positioned first time. On this site there is a post at the rear left of the pitch against which you have to put the rear off side corner of the caravan.  If you do not the warden comes and tells you to position it correctly It is all to do with maintaining an adequate firebreak between caravans. We set up with ease, and admired how clean our awning was. It came back so dirty from the last trip that we had put it through the washing machine!

It rained during the night and the awning was still waterproof!  Result!

On Friday I cooked the breakfast outside on the Cadac, much to the amusement of our neighbours.  It was only 5 degrees C outside!  We then set off for Porlock for coffee. Went on to Lynmouth and Lynton, and came back over the top of Exmoor through Simondsbath.

The hill down into Lynmouth.

I decided we needed internet access so paid £5.00 for a few hours worth.  Later in the evening I found an old internet access card that had a post-it note stuck to it saying that I had 5 minutes left on it.  Logged in with the card and it told me I had 19 hours access on it.  A good result.

Saturday dawned bright and sunny with clear blue skies. After a leisurely brunch we set off into Minehead to go on the West Somerset Railway.  We opted to go along the coast to Watchet.  The train was steam hauled, and very busy.  We discovered later that it was the first day of the new season.  I must admit traveling on a train like this really evokes memories of days gone by!

Coupling up !

A few shots of rolling stock etc on The West Somerset Railway!

Refurbished running gear on this DMU

The Guard watching on!

Rolling stock at the Somerset and Dorset Museum in Williton

Our Engine

Watchet Station

Our train arrives

Motive power in Minehead

On the Sunday I went down to wash the duvet, as it had coffee spilt on it on a previous trip.  It would not go in our home washing machine, so I popped it in the giant washing machine on the site.  I then spoke to the warden, and said we would be gone at 12 noon, as the Caravan Club rules demand, only to be told that as the site was only half full, and only 2 units were expected that day we could stay as long as we wished..
We spent the rest of he morning and the early part of the afternoon cleaning the caravan properly inside and out before setting off for home across the Somerset levels.

One thing that always amazes me when on Caravan Club Sites is the number of totally pointless signs!   Talk about stating the obvious!

I have to admit this was an excellent break, and we shall come back to this site one day!

Michaelchurch Escley

We were due to go away to The Bridge Inn, at Michaelchurch Escley on the 25th of January, but there was rather a heavy snow fall put paid to that as we could not get the caravan out of storage.  The access to our storage place is down a half mile long single track lane.  I finally went to get the caravan out on the Friday afternoon as virtually all the snow had gone from around us.  However when  I got to the storage site it was a different matter.  The lane had hardly been used so driving down it was interesting.  Finally got to the caravan , hitched up and began what was quite a perilous journey back up the lane, where that big ditch on the right became quite a major worry. Eventually though we were out.  Got home, popped the van on the drive and prepared for a Saturday morning depart.

Over the New Severn Bridge, and no tolls to pay as Lizzie has a blue badge now.  Does seem strange that having a Blue badge entitles you to no bridge tolls and free and extended parking in most places!

Anyway back to our journey. We followed a map rather than the sat nav, as some roads, once past Abergaveny were getting rather narrow.  As we approached the site we met Glyn, the owner, traveling in the opposite direction. He said just drive on to the site and park where we liked, but that it may be a bit soft underneath.

The site is behind the pub, and was covered with a minimum of 4 inches of snow.  So we selected where we would like to be and headed for it. Unfortunately I turned too hard with the Freelander2. and we were stuck!  Fortunately where we had stopped was ok, so we unhitched and leveled up the caravan..  The Freelander was having none of it though.  In trying to pull the caravan further forward I had really dug it in. No photos unfortunately, so here are some of the pub interior!

A local turned up to the pub with a LWB Defender, so a quick word to him and he came to assist. There was no way that he could extricate the Freelander 2, so we had a rethink.  Extra straps, and repositioning of the Defender on a road the other side of the fence, and I was gently eased out.  As soon as I was out of the ruts that I had created I could drive around with some ease!  How to get the caravan out though would be a different problem, but no need to worry about that at present,. so it was off to the pub, to buy our rescuer a few beers, and have some ourselves!

This shows how close we were to safety!

Over night was extremely wet and windy, and in the morning the snow had gone, leaving the site extremely wet, soft and muddy.

Breakfast was cooked in the oven, and the  we drove down to Abergavenny to get the papers and have morning coffee. We drove back, in a round about way, along mountain roads with the most stunning views.

Sheep kept following  us as I think they were hungry and they thought we were bring food!

We went to the pub again in the evening just an hour, before coming back to our toasty warm caravan, dinner and to watch some DVD's as television reception was non existent.

Monday dawned extremely wet and windy so breakfast was again cooked in the oven.  We then set off for Hay-on-Wye to browse a few book shops, collect papers, drink coffee, and peruse a few charity shops. We found a Murder and Mystery book shop, which we were let into by an adjacent shop keeper, and managed to find a Maigret novel that I had not read.  Drove home through the rain, and noticed that the river was rising rapidly.  We looked at the situation and decided there was no way that I was going to be able to get the caravan out!

As soon as we could see that there was some body in the pub I went over to call Mayday rescue. This is a Caravan Club service that guarantees to never leave you stranded!  Well we were about to test that.  Got through to them and explained the situation, that we just wanted pulling out to harder ground.  Ten minutes later, Lanes of Abergaveny were on the phone to me.  Explained to them and they said they would get something organized.  Less than ten minutes later, they were back on the phone to say that a local farmer was on his way with a tractor that had the correct hitch on the back was on his way.

He was on site about twenty minutes later, and after assessing the situation, gently eased the caravan out and parked it on a hard road at the edge of the site.  What a result!

We then went to the pub for an excellent Wedding anniversary dinner.

Tuesday morning and it was still raining and extremely windy, with water coming over the bridge.  I popped out to collect papers and to phone the council to advise them that I was unlikely to make the budget meeting that evening.

We cleared up and set off for home, opting to go via Ross-on Wye and Gloucester as the Severn bridge was closed to caravans and high sided vehicles.

Had a pleasant run home, stopping for a Burger at some roadside Burger van.

Thoroughly enjoyed our break, we were not put off by the conditions and would do it all over again.