United Kingdom

Monday 27^th January 2009.

Weston-Super-Mare, 51 20 76 N, 02 55 99 W.  A very comfortable flight back to the UK, and our daughter Rhiain was patiently waiting in arrivals to collect us.  As you might gather it was an emotional re-union, even Rhiain and Jenny shed a tear, and borrowed a tissue each from my box of Kleenex!  It was a bit of a squeeze in Rhiain’s Renault Twingo but we managed to fit me and the luggage in, Jenny was last seen walking along the perimeter road of Heathrow, I guess she might be here (Weston-Super-Mud Mare) by Friday.  My first shock was the amount of traffic and the speed that the vehicles were doing and that was before we got out of the multi-storey car park, what didn’t surprise me was the amount of road works on the M4, some things never change.  Well so ends our world trip and what was the first stage of our nomadic journey and what a wonderful journey it was, it is impossible to describe some of the wonderful places and things we have seen, the snows in Bryce and Zion national parks in the USA, the beautiful corals and colourful fish and fantastic sunrises in the Cook Islands.  Lakes and Glaciers in New Zealand, the wide open spaces, the bush and animals of Australia and the national parks, not forgetting the botanical gardens in Singapore.  We have met some wonderful people and we make no apologies for naming some of them again, Brian and Judy our special Kiwi friends, Pat and Brian from Tasmania, Grace and Ian, Pat and Keith, Lyn, Terry and Tom from our Cape York 14 day safari, special thanks to Chocko our driver, guide and cook extraordinaire. Runa and Violet, we will never forget the laughs we had on our “Kimberley Wild” (very wild) safari and the hospitality when we met up again in Melbourne, not forgetting Gary the driver and guide.  Thanks also to Will and all the Britz/Maui team, especially David at the Hobart depot who got us back “on the road” again so quickly after our “window” incident.

What now?  Well finding and ordering a motorhome is a priority after visiting the “rellies”, we will update the website as and when we have some interesting developments to tell you about, keep looking.

Sunday 1^st February 2009

Our first visit to West Country Motorhomes at Highbridge since our return, we first met Andy the salesman at the Autocruise Motorhome stand at the Boat, Caravan & Outdoor show at the NEC, Birmingham in 2007 and visited the showroom several times before we left the UK.  We had also visited the Autocruise  website whilst away and checked out the 2009 model (the Starblazer) and we had noticed changes in the layout from the 2008 model, one big change was the table and lounge set up, which although initially we thought was a change which we didn’t like, on reflection decided would be an advantage.  Whoops!!!! what we hadn’t noticed that one of requirements of the  van from our point of view was a large garage (locker) at the rear under a raised bed.  When we were speaking to Andy in the showroom he told us that the “large locker” version was not available on the 2009 model, oh no!  Did this mean we shall have to start again looking at a motorhome that suited our requirements?  We looked at all the rest of the motorhomes at WCM (West Country Motorhomes) and also enquired price and delivery etc of another Autocruise model before we returned home.

Monday 2^nd February 2009.

Andy rang mid-morning with the price of the Autocruise Starblazer and also told us that Autocruise the manufactures had one in stock with the exact specification we wanted, 3 litre diesel, cab-air conditioning with cruise control, and with other extras we were really interested, but, could we live with one with a small locker?  Good news, the 2008 specification was a small locker version or the large locker (our requirement), the 2009 version DID have a large locker, OK, not as large as the 2008 version, but nevertheless a large locker, would this suit us?  Back to pouring over the specifications and the numerous magazines we have bought since arriving back.

Tuesday 3^rd February 2009.

More good news!  Andy rang to tell us that Autocruise have invited us up to the factory at Mexborough near Doncaster to view the motorhome on Thursday.

Thursday 5^th February 2009

After a great reunion with our son Michael, his fiancée Sharon and the bump, (we are going to be grandparents in July. Yippee!) yesterday, plus a visit in the afternoon to the dentist, and opticians, we drove to Mexborough through the snow, we had intended to visit the large shopping centre at Sheffield before arriving at the Autocruise factory but due to the inclement weather rang Jaime at Autocruise and she very kindly arranged to bring forward our appointment so we could drive back to Birmingham earlier.  Without going in to all the details the “Starblazer”  despite the changes, met all our requirements and we returned along the M1 motorway very happy.  We arrived back at my brother Brian and sister-in law Linda’s house where we are staying (thank you both) and rang Andy at WCM to confirm our interest to buy and have arranged to visit the showroom on Sunday to sign and receive the necessary paperwork.

Sunday 8^th February 2009

We’ve done it!  After first seeing an Autocruise at the NEC in 2006 and visiting many shows, exhibitions, showrooms, open days, and looking at so many different manufactures models and layouts plus purchasing every motorhome magazine that ever existed we shall be the owners of an Autocruise Starblazer in March.

Monday 9^th February 2009

Got the “reggo”  (sorry thought I was still in Australia), I mean registration number, If you see an Autocruise Starblazer WA09 BWM on the road, its us, beep your horn!

Tuesday 17^th March 2009.

Cheddar, 51 16 30 N, 2 46 59 W, (27 Mile).  The day we have been waiting for since arriving back from our world trip, we have picked up our new Motorhome!  What excitement!  We were a bit late arriving at West Country Motorhomes, Rhiain was delayed on her flight back from Tenerife, (there was a hydraulic leak on the aircraft) and didn’t arrive home till the early hours (passengers always forget that air cabin crew are also effected by delays and they are working)!  She said she needed some “beauty” sleep, I said she didn’t need it, (creep).  There it was our Fiat Autocruise Starblazer WA09 BWM our home for the foreseeable future, looking and smelling all new.  Andy was waiting for us and the first decision, outside or inside first?  We opted for the outside and Andy talked us through the items we needed to familiarise ourselves with.  This is where Rhiain came in, her brain being a lot younger than ours so we are sure what I forget, Jenny will remember, what we both forget Rhiain will remember.  Where was the electric hook up again, Andy?   Then it was time to look around the interior, cooker, refrigerator, heating, control panel and of course the television.  The instruction books were next, enough to fill a small village library, plenty of bedtime reading for Jenny! Andy went and fetched some coffee’s and then left us to go around the motorhome ourselves, looking in all the cupboards etc trying to decide where we will put, what.  A couple from Wales wanted to have a look inside which we consented to, if they buy one, we expect some commission.  After Andy returned and  went through the alarm system (how long before I set it off accidentally?) we returned to the showroom to complete the paperwork and then we were off.  First stop was the West Country Motorhomes Service Centre to pick up the Sat/Nav, (A Tom Tom which was part of the Deluxe Pack),  We still have “Betty” our Garmin Sat/Nav and we have decided to keep her, so Rhiain has appropriated the Tom Tom.  We also spoke to Nick the alarm specialist who showed us where the “secret” switch is for the Cobra Tracker, (how long before I forget that as well and have a call from the “tracker” security office?)  Next stop Rhiain’s to collect our personal effects from her home, gosh, her house suddenly looked empty, then a short drive to Cheddar and the Caravan Club site, where we will stay until Tuesday to get ourselves organised.  No cooking in the motorhome tonight we were too tired so Jenny, Rhiain and I went to the local “Brewers Fayre” and had a meal there before returning to the camp site for a early night, while Rhiain returned home.

Wednesday 18^th March 2009.

If I said I had a good nights sleep I would be lying, the local church clock not helping by chiming every 15 minutes and I was still excited!  Rhiain came mid-morning to help us (and drink our tea, must remember to buy   biscuits, she complained).  After a busy morning sorting out our “bits and pieces”, Rhiain drove us to Taunton to look at storage boxes and various other requirements we needed before we returned to Weston Super Mare to collect our car from Rhiain’s, (we will use it for driving local for a short while).  Whoops, we forgot to get something out of the fridge for our evening meal so we stopped on the way to Cheddar at the “Brewers Fayre” again, 2 main meals for £9.00, so, as Rhiain would say “bargin”. Bit cool tonight so we tried the heating for the first time , very cosy, and we relaxed watched a bit of “telly” before our second night in our new home.

Thursday 19^th March 2009.

A busy morning sorting out what we were going to put into the storage boxes we had purchased.  A careful measurement yesterday meant that they fitted almost exactly in the “garage” (the large storage locker with doors at either side of the motorhome, beneath our bed).  Jenny organised 3 of the boxes, I only needed to put a couple of tools in the other, we also put “antislip” linings in each of the overhead lockers.  We are so pleased with the storage we have in the motorhome, we still have some unused space, although we have not collected our box of alcohol from the storage unit yet, so we may need the room!  By lunchtime we were hungry so we walked down to Cheddar village, a lovely stroll along the River Yeo and a pleasant surprise of spotting 2 shoals of small trout, then onto a disused railway now used as a footpath before arriving in the village proper, right next to the Tesco Express.  After lunch we went into Weston-Super-Mare to purchase new pillows, we have not been comfortable since arriving back with our old ones, so a visit to Dunhelm solved the problem.  We then stopped in at Rhiain’s and cooked our evening meal there (saving our gas already).  Jenny “tried” to sort out Rhiain’s never ending problem with BT, what a useless company they are, from India (3 times), Warrington (twice), Leicester (twice), Stoke and Sheffield and despite now having been on the phone at least 3 hours in the past week, the problem has still not been resolved.  To quote one of my old sayings “it makes my blood boil”.

Friday 20^th March 2009. 

Another morning of getting things in the motorhome safely stored and into appropriate places.  We also sat in the front seats and familiarised ourselves with the controls, (we will leave the “mode” switch and the cruise control until another day) before Rhiain came over and we all walked into the village.  We then decided to continue the walk along to the “touristy” part of the village the street up to the gorge, we didn’t get too far before finding the “Cheddar Cheese Factory” and I was “forced” to step in and try some of their cheese samples.  We started sampling with the mild and went along to the strong, I particularly enjoyed the smoked, whilst Jenny and Rhiain liked the blue (I wouldn’t even try that, ugh!).  However, we did buy both and with the fresh French bread we had purchased earlier we had a great lunch.  A relaxed afternoon at the local garden centre where Rhiain purchased some plants for her aquarium before we returned to the camp site for our evening meal.

Saturday 21^st March 2009.

We are getting there with our organising, today we drove down to Weston to purchase some more plastic containers for different storage uses and we had bought from “Staples” a rack to stand at the rear of  the passenger seat to put our maps and caravan site books, it was so successful we went back today for another one for the back of the drivers seat to put our reference books on birds, butterflies, plants, etc, in. I am not casting aspersions (I wouldn’t  dare) on Jenny’s cooking, but we also purchased a fire blanket to fix near the cooker.  We also “attempted” to use the new O2 mobile broadband, as you can see by the update date we were not very successful, so back to the drawing board, we are not sure that the “dongle” sim card is fitted correctly, we questioned the salesman in the O2 shop who insists that it is, we remain unconvinced and will wait until we visit Lichfield next week and go to the O2 shop there, they may be more helpful!

“Happy Mothers Day Mum” from Rhiain and Michael XXX.

Sunday 22^nd March 2009.

Jenny received wonderful bouquet of flowers for mothers day and we have borrowed a vase from Rhiain and they will look lovely on the table in the motorhome, we have already worked out how we will transport them when we move on Tuesday.  We went to the local “MacDonald’s” for mothers day lunch, (no not really, we just went there to try and use the WiFi, that’s another story).  We then went back to the garden centre we visited yesterday to purchase some fish (no not to eat, to put in Rhiain’s aquarium).  I have kept tropical fish in the past and still enjoy looking at them in a aquarium, it is so relaxing. ZZZZZZZZZZZZZ.

Monday 23^rd March 2009.

Still a few things to sort out, fitted a small safe for our documents and other paperwork, (no, not going to tell you where) tidied the book box and our maps and fitted some more anti-slip matting in to the rest of the lockers, the rest of the day we have relaxed, (reading instruction manuals) and even had time to watch a film on television, we cannot get all the channels at present, but we know that television reception is poor at this camp site, we could have bought a co-axial cable to fit in to our site power box, but watching television is not on our priority list, at present we will make do with the channels with the stronger signal, (just a pity I cannot view TelevisionX).  Tomorrow we will drive up to the Midlands, our first “proper” drive, we will let you know how we get on.

Tuesday 24^th March 2009.

Wythall, Near Birmingham, 52 22 45 N, 1 53 56 W, ( 116 Mile).

We left the campsite at 9:45am after a careful departure making sure we had done everything correctly before we left.  We have printed ourselves a “departure check list” which we went through to make sure we had not forgotten anything which includes items like, turning off the gas, to switching off the tracker, refrigerator door locked etc.  Jenny drove the Fiesta to Rhiain’s where we are leaving it and we collected a few items to put in to our storage unit, which we are not using at present.  A nice smooth drive (the engine is very quiet) up to Wythall, I did wonder why the trip figure on the speedo' was not moving, then found I was looking at MPG data instead, another look at the Fiat instruction book is obviously required.  We stopped at Strensham on the M5, only really to see what the parking was like for a motorhome, dead easy, there was parking for caravans and there were more motorhomes than caravan’s so we parked there, taking advantage of the toilets at the same time.  We could also park there overnight for £10 which isn’t bad.  We arrived at the Caravan Club camp site at lunch time, so after some delicious smoked cheddar cheese rolls, we found a suitable semi-permanent place for “Betty” the Sat/Nav and also programmed the radio with “our my favourite stations and set the bass/treble etc.  Still no luck with the Internet and our O2 mobile broadband, we will sort this out some time, we thought it would be easy back in the UK, we are surprised this (at present) doesn’t appear to be the case!

Wednesday 25^th March 2009.

Kingsbury Water Park, 52 34 15 N, 1 42 21 W, (98 Mile).  First stop this morning was Lichfield to see our son Michael and his fiancée Sharon, they were obviously excited to see our motorhome, however we didn’t invite them for a four course meal,  We were excited to see how much “the bump” had grown in Sharon’s tummy!  We then had a drive to Ryton-On-Dunsmore near Coventry to AS Bikes, these were the folding bicycles that we saw at the Boat, Caravan and Outdoor Show at the NEC, Birmingham in February which we liked, however we could not try them at the show (Health and Safety Rules, not surprisingly when Jenny gets on a bike) so we were able to try them around the yard at AS Bikes, we were very comfortable on them and we are now the owners of two Metallic Blue Explorer Plus folding bikes. “Go Outdoors” the camping superstore was our next stop, the “Camping Club” does not allow clothes lines hung from trees, etc, or in our case from the motorhome to the car (we had our knuckles rapped by the warden at Cheddar), so we purchased a rotary clothes line, very portable and very light, stowing away in its own little bag, Brian and Judy (our Kiwi friends) have just had a clothes line bracket fixed to “Mammal” (their motorhome) they just peg Brian’s underpants to an attached line and they dry in the wind as they motor around the New Zealand countryside, seems a better idea to me, could do the same with Jenny’s panties as we motor up the M5!  One last stop before a night at the very pleasant Kingsbury Water Park, Camping and Caravan Club site was at another camping store, Jackson’s of Old Arley, a store we have used for camping equipment for at least 40 years, I dread to think how much we have spent there, this time however, 4 eggcups, a mixing bowl and a kettle (for when we are on gas only) didn’t break the bank.

Thursday 26^th March 2009.

Lichfield, 52 41 86 N, 1 50 58 W, (20 mile). A very short drive this morning to the storage unit at Tamworth, there were a few items we have decided not to keep in the motorhome and wanted to leave in storage and we also wanted to collect some summer clothes, (a bit premature me thinks) also we had an Opticians appointment for Jenny in Lichfield , which we then had to rearrange because of a computer being down, (back to the reading board on the back of the door, with one hand over the eye, I say).  At last we think we have sorted out the mobile broadband, thanks to Mark at the Lichfield branch of O2.  He painstakingly went through all the settings on our laptop, spending almost an hour attempting to connect with O2-UK, in the end he identified the problem, the USB dongle was faulty, after substituting for another one we at last had those important “invisible waves” from the phone mast to our laptop.  Coffee was the next priority at our favourite coffee shop Café Nero and we were able to use the laptop to catch up with emails and internet banking, hopefully we will be able to update the website shortly, although the signal speed may be a problem.  We are staying the night in Lichfield, at the Cathedral Grange Campsite and walked from there into Lichfield a much longer walk than we thought, especially walking back with more storage boxes, groceries and the laptop, next time we will jump on the bus and make use of our free passes!

Friday 27^th March 2009.

Kingsbury Water Park, 52 34 15 N, 1 42 21 W, (32 Mile), Today we went to the “Ordinance Survey Outdoor Show at the NEC, what a disappointment, we have been in previous years and it has always been very good and interesting, with plenty of stands with a huge variety of things to look at.  Not this time, it was only in one hall and unless we were scuba divers, mountain board enthusiasts, climbers, wanted to join the Army, Navy or Air force (wouldn’t mind the Air force actually if they would allow me to fly a fast jet), or even be a member of the Boy Scout’s (which I wasn’t) or Girl Guide’s (which I wish I was) it was of no interest to us.  In previous years also they had interesting people giving talks, Brian Blessed, Sir Chris Bonnington and Ben Fogle to name just three, not this time, we actually left before 1:00 pm having seen everything we wanted to see (or not as was the case), we shan’t bother going again.  We decided because of an appointment in Lichfield on Tuesday that we would spend the weekend back at Kingsbury Water Park, we had unpacked the bicycles at Anchor Storage, (thanks Christine, for getting rid of our rubbish) so once we got to the camp site we assembled them and tried them around the site, before we put them in their carrying bags, hopefully (weather permitting) we will try them properly tomorrow, we also need to buy safety helmets before riding too far on them.

Saturday 28^th March 2009.

Up early this morning, 5:00 am, well it is the start of the F1 Grand Prix season and I wanted to see the practice from Albert Park in Melbourne, Australia, how we wish we could have been there at the right time to see it, still we did race the Britz VW camper van around the circuit when we were there in December, I think I would have got on the grid in front of Hamilton’s Maclaren, lets hope they solve the aerodynamic problems quickly.  One thing that has not changed, me doing my “Sherpa” impression and taking all the washing over to the laundry, we have had to use the dryer, it doesn’t dry here as quickly as in Australia, hanging it out wasn’t an option with today’s showery weather.  We needed a newspaper (for the TV magazine) and a tin of pineapple so we took the opportunity to try out the new bikes along the paths to Kingsbury village, we were most impressed, very smooth and despite the small 20 inch wheels coped well with the bumps,  The same can’t be said for my “bum” by the time  we got back, it’s a long time since I rode a bike, Jenny chose a different shaped “Gel ladies” saddle for her bike, I think I may pinch that one next time we go out, I wonder if she’ll notice?

Sunday 29^th March 2009

Up before 6:00 am and also loosing an hours sleep, this time to watch the actual F1 grand prix proper from Melbourne, worth it to see Brawn GP cars coming first and second, even more pleasing that a team manager I have always admired is Ross Brawn and both the drivers Rubens Barrichello and Jenson Button.  Another re-sort of the “garage” trying the bicycles in a different way and measuring up for a plastic storage box to put the spare (guest) bedding in, instead of having it in the overhead lockers above the cab.  We also tried out the new rotary washing line, I must have assembled it correctly as it didn’t fall to pieces.  After a relaxing afternoon, we decided to watch the television, or at least we switched it on just before 8:00pm because Jenny wanted to see “Lewis”, I wanted to watch Yellowstone but as it is repeated tomorrow night, I, we, Jenny, decided that I would watch it then!  Guess what, we hadn’t changed our wrist watches, forgot all about BST and Jenny missed a hour of Lewis, served her right.

Monday 30^th March 2009

Lichfield, 52 41 86 N, 1 50 58 W, (16 mile). Another trip back to Lichfield, via Tamworth to do some shopping at Ventura Park.  We managed to park at Asda and we walked over to Homebase (hooks, screws and storage box), Halfords (safety helmets and lock for bicycle), Comet (Dyson mini-vacuum accessory kit) and groceries from Asda, before stopping at the storage unit (again) to leave a few more items we have decided not to take with us.  It was late afternoon before we eventual arrived in Lichfield, just in time to walk (again) down to the town for a few other bits and pieces, (yes, would you believe we are almost organised).  I knew I should not have put that last sentence in yesterday, he who laughs last, etc, etc, I completely forgot about my programme “Yellowstone” and only saw the last 15 minutes and it was the last of the series, never mind I will just have to visit there instead!

Tuesday 31^st March 2009

Kingsbury Water Park, 52 34 15 N, 1 42 21 W, (17 Mile), Yes the distances are shorter than those earlier, I have plucked up courage to drive to the camp site along the narrower lane, complete with hump-back canal bridge, saving about 4 mile and also missing the major traffic island above the M42 at junction 9.  After an early morning appointment in Lichfield (the reason for us staying at the Cathedral Grange camp site overnight), we made our way back to Kingsbury Water Park.  We had a great afternoon with my brother Brian and his wife Linda visiting us, it’s a small world, Joan one of the wardens at the campsite is Linda’s cousin who she had not seen for about 20 years!  Brian just had to try the new bike, he came back grinning from ear to ear and puffing like an old goat, I explained to him it had got gears (he hadn’t noticed , not having ridden a bike for about 50 years) and away he disappeared again, arriving back so enthusiastic he is going to buy himself the same model.

Wednesday 1^st April 2009

We have not been swimming for a long time, it was such a lovely morning we went for a swim in the lake, we forgot our swim-suits so we had to go naked.  A  bit of DIY today, hooks to fit near the door for keys (not left there overnight) and a clothes hook in the bathroom, we also purchased brackets to fix in the garage to hold an assortment of “tube like” bits, everything seems to be coming together well, we will shortly be able to relax and enjoy the motorhome and have time to pursue our many pastimes.  We did use our bicycles this afternoon, riding the many paths around the lakes, we also found a nature reserve with bird hides, we will certainly come back to Kingsbury Water Park and explore further later in the year.  It is ironic that we have lived so close all these years and although having fished the lakes, didn’t realise how much it had to offer.  If you believed the first

sentence check the date!

Thursday 2^nd April 2009

Cheddar, 51 16 30 N, 2 46 59 W, (179 Mile).  A easy run down to Somerset, and I experimented with the cruise control on the M5, what a “boon” it will be on the longer distances and how we wish we had got it on the motorhome in Australia.  Switch it on, set the speed and that’s it, with the armrests of the “captains” seat down it was so comfortable, if we had got the gas switched on, I could have gone and made a cup of tea!  After a quick stop at Cribbs Causeway to buy Rhiain’s birthday present, we continued to the “Caravan Club” camp site at Cheddar, where we stopped when we picked up the Starblazer, we managed to get a pitch on the other side of the site this time, much better as we are in the sunshine rather than in the shade of the trees, quite the opposite  to what we did in the high temperature’s of Australia, where we sort the shade.  Rhiain and Kevin came over late afternoon and helped us with the awning, something we had intended to do as soon as we got the chance, at least Rhiain (thank goodness) remembered the instructions that Andy at West Country Motorhomes gave us

Have a very Happy Birthday Rhiain, Lots of Love from Mum & Dad XXXX

Friday 3^rd April 2009

I did it whilst we were away last year and I am still doing it now……… talking, yes,  a 5 minute task this morning of washing and drying the breakfast dishes took about 30 minutes, Jenny in the end came to see where I was, she thought (perhaps hopefully) that I had left her, but I did have a good yarn with the other people that were in the dishwashing room!  After finally finishing “my chores”, we walked down (with one of the couples I had been talking to) to Cheddar village for bread, milk and a birthday card, before driving to Rhiain’s in the Fiesta (Kevin drove it to the campsite for us yesterday)  to give Rhiain her birthday present.  At last, Rhiain having at last sorted out her BT broadband problems, we have finally managed to get on a decent connection with the internet, although we have purchased O2 mobile broadband (see above), it is to slow to update the website, we will have to have a re-think how we will do it, as part of the O2 package we have unlimited access to “My Cloud” broadband, it looks like MacDonalds beckons for a cup of tea and their WIFI zone.

Saturday 4^th April 2009

A relaxing day, still needed to be “up and at them” before the practice on BBC1 of the Malaysian Grand Prix which started at 9:00am, how much better on “The Beeb” without adverts and the new combination of David Coultard and Eddie Jordan both the pundits were both informative and amusing, having Fleetwood Mac’s  “The Chain” return as the opening theme tune was also welcome. I did have a couple of DIY jobs to do on the Motorhome, fix the fire blanket in the table stowage cupboard and a bracket in the garage for a very important piece of equipment, my fishing holdall.  Wow, I even had time this afternoon to read a newspaper, then I spotted a speck of dirt on the motorhome so decided to wash it all over, well not quite all over, as it is much too tall for me to reach, plus the water off the sponge was dripping down my arm, we will have to invest in a long handled mop/sponge whwich we have seen at some of the caravan shows.

Sunday 5^th April 2009

Up before 9:00 am to watch the Grand Prix, suffice to say it was both exciting (because of the rain) and disappointing (also because of the rain), work that one out!  This afternoon we drove to Tesco to top up our groceries, wrong decision, there was a cycle race on the sea front of Weston Super Mare, so we got caught up in a diversion, wish now we had gone to Morrison’s, I blame Jenny.  We then went to Rhiain’s, we had bought her a Kodak Picture Frame for her birthday, we should have been able to link by wireless between her computer and the picture frame, wrong we have tried for several hours to get it to work to no avail.  We even tried the software on our own computer but it still didn’t work, back to the drawing board.  Tomorrow we have booked a campsite in Dulverton on the edge of Exmoor, see you there.

Monday 6^th April 2009

Exmoor House Caravan Club Site, Dulverton, 51 02 48 N, 3 33 20 W, (63 Mile).  Good practice with the motorhome today, after the easy drive the short distance along the M5 motorway, we then had to negotiate the narrower lanes to the campsite at Dulverton,  A very pretty and quiet site with views up a valley and a pitch overlooking the River Barle.  How nice it will be tonight with the sound of water again as we drift off to sleep.  Although it is raining quite heavily at the moment so all we may hear is the sound of the rain hammering down on the roof of the motorhome, a different noise to Australia, when it rained on the motorhome roof there, being metal (as opposed to fibreglass) it sounded like a million nails coming down!  Hopefully, although the weather forecast is not that great, tomorrow we will be able to either walk or cycle around the area.  Talking off bicycles, my brother Brian rang today to tell me he had bought the same model collapsible bike which we have bought, he was a bit more sensible than me, he went for the “comfy” saddle, I said I thought he had plenty of padding in that region anyway!

Tuesday 7^th April 2009

Couldn’t get the television to work last night, then I had a thought, is this part of the country on digital? No, switched to analogue and away we went, must remember that next time, wouldn’t normally bother but I wanted to watch the Man’ United match tonight. A short walk into the village this morning, habits never change, first stop the Exmoor Park Information Centre to get some (free) leaflets and brochures on the local area, we did however purchase a Ordnance Survey Map to add to our growing collection. Next stop the bakery, but were was it? A 10 minute walk away from the village “next to the weir” the lady in the info’ centre told us. Surprise, surprise, we found bakery straight away, Jenny ordered a loaf of bread, “is there anything else?” the lady behind the counter asked, “no thank you” Jenny replied, “at least I don’t, he (me) would have all the cakes in the cabinet, “Oh, what a shame” the lady replied, and offered me, which I snatched off the plate, a piece of Cinnamon cake. No! I didn’t give Jenny any. The rest of the day we relaxed, Jenny baked some scones, I fitted a extension lead to the power to make using a multitude of electric plugs easier and then I watched the match!

Wednesday 8^th April 2009

Lynton Camping and Caravan Club Site, Lynton, 51 24 94 N, 3 51 98 W, (46 Mile). A pleasant drive across Exmoor, stopping at a lay-by for tea and biscuits before arriving a Lynton at 1:15 pm. We decided after lunch to walk the mile into Lynton Village for bread and milk, the signpost said 1 mile to Lynton, however we are sure that the “Costcutter” supermarket was at least another mile further AND down a very steep hill. What goes down, must go up and the walk back to the campsite was very tiring, how quickly we have seem to have lost the fitness we had in Australia, a big effort is now required to get it back, with the bikes and the walking we are sure we will both manage it. A surprise tonight, tried the O2-UK mobile broadband had the connection showed as “excellent” and we Jenny was even able to update the “online banking”. We did notice yesterday on the walk into Lynton (which we have almost recovered from) that at the top of the hill there were 4 transmitters, as these are only approximately ½ mile away from the campsite, we can only presume that one of them is a “O2” transmitter.

Thursday 9^th April 2009

A very wet night was followed by a very wet day, well it is nearly Easter, needless to say we have not been very far today, actually only to the amenities block.  It has given us chance, once again to peruse the instruction manuals and attempt to make sense of some of the more technical items, i.e., the bass on the radio, (joking).  I am still, would you believe also sorting out the photographs,  I have still a few thousand (really) to look at and either delete or categorise, before transferring them to CD, the sophisticated television, (another manual to re-read) which seems to do everything except make tea, accepts photographs on either disc or compact flash so we are looking forward to seeing them on the “big” screen before to long.

Friday 10^th April 2009

No improvement with the weather, although this afternoon did become a little brighter, we therefore did very similar to yesterday, read and relax, I had a in- depth look at the new photography book I had bought, without sounding boring I am going to change to another format of capturing an image and hopefully improve the quality of the photograph’s, unfortunately it won’t show on the website because to be able to upload the photograph onto the web page, I have to reduce the image quality.

Saturday 11^th April 2009

A very cold night, but that was because the skies cleared and we woke up to a frost, with not a cloud in the sky.  After breakfast we walked down the very steep hill into Lynton for bread and milk, plus “The Sun” to get a free TV guide, we decided to have a cup of tea in a small café whilst we were there, we also indulged in a Hot-cross bun each at the same time. The decision was then made to walk the coastal path, through the “Valley of Rocks” and along the zigzag bridle path back to the camp site, we also stopped for lunch on the way, a fresh baguette and Wiltshire ham, sitting overlooking the valley, magic!  Although the walk back was a much longer distance than the way down to Lynton, at least we didn’t need crampons to climb back up the hill.

Sunday 12^th April 2009

A very lazy day, continued studying my photography book and actually finished the Sir Jackie Stewart autobiography “Winning is not Enough” that Rhiain bought me for Christmas 2007.  A fantastic read, which I would recommend even for those people not interested in motor racing. Jenny also finished reading an autobiography written by Sara Henderson, a lady who despite all sorts of trials and tribulations succeeded in successfully building a homestead in the Northern Territory, Australia a book which we picked up at a “book swop” whilst we were there, another good read and made the more interesting as we could relate to some of the places up in the “NT”, that were mentioned.  For the third night running, I walked down a couple of meadows to take a photo of the sunset, I learnt a lesson from last night I wore a fleece and a hat, while I waited for the sun to go down!

Monday 13^th April 2009.

Well it is a bank holiday so we deserved to lie in bed, and then continued where we left off yesterday, relaxing, reading and other than a short walk we didn’t do much else, the weather however has improved today, although it is very windy.  A couple arrived next to us with a caravan and they were really struggling to get their awning erected, so we went out and helped them, we thought everything was OK when we left them but 10 minutes later we were out there again, this time we waited until most of the holding down pegs were driven in, not helped by the site being hard-standing, not conducive for hammering stakes in, David and Shirley were very grateful.  Another walk down through the “play field” to take a photographs of the sunset, the sheep in the field are getting to recognise me!

Tuesday 14^th April 2009.

We had originally only booked the site until today, but whose counting? We have decided to stay an additional night, Jenny went to pay the extra fees, how long does it take to pay some cash over?  Me thinks she spent an  awful lot of time talking!  After breakfast we walked down (and down and down) to Lynton, after a quick shop for some baguettes for lunch and also deciding to have coffee and cake at the little café, we walked even further down to Lynmouth, for our overseas friends, Lynton and Lynmouth is really one town, one part at the top of the hill (Lynton) and the other (Lynmouth) at the bottom with a small harbour and rocky shore.  We visited the memorial hall where the history of the tragic flood of 1952 which claimed over 30 lives was displayed and included a scale model of the area, prior to the disaster.  Interesting to note that part of the tragedy was blamed on the building of a hotel, which narrowed the West River Lyn near a point were it met the East river Lyn.  Twenty-four hours of torrential rain and a thunderstorm (in August) bringing down rocks weighing in excess of 50 tons in a torrent of water, mud and other debris. Strangely enough, Jenny although only six at the time could not remember the tragedy, I can remember it quite clearly, I can’t however remember what we had for tea last night!  After a browse around the shops and a very interesting art gallery, we cheated partly on the way back to Lynton, we rode up on the cliff railway, a marvellous feat of engineering, powered by water, built in the late 1800’s.  After a strenuous walk back up to the camp site, ( the camp manager telling us that the hill is called “Cardiac Hill”, which doesn’t surprise me one bit),  we thoroughly deserved a sit outside the motorhome with a cup of tea and a biscuit, chatting to our neighbour David.  The sky looked inviting tonight for a good sunset, but I also wanted to watch the Chelsea v Liverpool football match, I walked down the field and whilst I was away Liverpool scored 2 goals, typical, Murphy’s Law, still the sunset was stunning so I didn’t really mind and the sheep were pleased to see me.

Wednesday 15^th April 2009.

Mortehoe, Damage Barton Camping and Caravan Park, 51 12 15 N, 4 11 30, W (24 Mile).  A very short drive this morning, stopping at a large Tesco superstore on the way for re-provisioning, because we had stopped an extra day at Lynton we have run out of some important food items, (I got the blame).  However we only had an apple, pineapple and grapes for breakfast, no orange, banana and strawberries, we didn’t even a have crust of bread for toast.  If you think that a fresh fruit salad sounds a healthy breakfast, you’re right, it is what we enjoyed and got used to in Australia (Jenny especially as I prepare it) and we see no reason to change.  Damage Barton?  No idea where the name is from, we will have to find out, the camp site does boast beautiful views over to the sea, only trouble is with the murky weather, we can see no further than the end of the next field, no sunset tonight!  The first thing we do after switching the power on and organising ourselves is have a cup of tea (we all have our priorities)  We should have read the information brochure first before we did, it was a bit chilly when we arrived so we put the heating on, whoops! The site has only 10amp power, so with the heating on and the kettle we overloaded the site power box, I then had to walk up to the amenities block and get the keys to reset the switch, well it did warn us in the information pack, we will know work out our power loading for all our appliances (or rather I’ll as my brother Brian to do it).

Thursday 16^th April 2009

Why is it that sea level is always down hill from a camp site, there must be a simple explanation!  We walked all the way down to Woolacombe a place I had not visited since I was a schoolboy in short trousers.  It was a great walk along the lane, through a large holiday park, and a National Trust woodland before joining the public footpath into the town.  We didn’t stay to long, we had a cuppa at a café and then sat on the front eating our sandwiches and Jenny’s homemade ginger cake, I did share a bit of sandwich with a family of Jackdaws, the cake?  No chance!  We returned to Damage Barton “clearance in a wooded valley” via the “ Donkey Path”, named after a lady originally from Lichfield. another very picturesque alternative, before eventually re-joining the original path to the camp site.  Another great sunset tonight, with the sun setting over Lundy Island, no sheep, but a sign close by saying “Adders nest here keep out”, might investigate that further tomorrow.

Friday 17^th April 2009.

We have had the motorhome a month today, we feel really at home in it already and are looking  forward so much to many more happy months and years in it.  A lady camping in a trailer tent was interested in looking at the motorhome so I showed her around it, they were leaving today so her husband also came and had a chat with us before they left.  We had purchased leaflets from the camp site on local walks so we decided this morning to walk to the village of Mortehoe, take the cliff top path to Rockham Beach, a wonderful array of rocks and cliffs, found the rusty remains of the SS Collier which was wrecked here in 1914, as you can imagine there was little left of it, we continued to the lighthouse at Bull Point, were we sat on a bench to have our lunch, (no ginger cake left, but the malt loaf was OK.  What a wonderful walk, primroses, bluebells and many other wild flowers were in abundance, we returned along the Kinever Valley, alive with birds with a small crystal clear stream, trickling along the bottom and then along the edge of the fields full of spring lambs back to Damage Barton.

Saturday 18^th April 2009

Mortehoe, Warcombe Farm Camping Park, 51 11 11 N, 4 11 25 W, (3 Mile).  Chinese Grand Prix practice, so once again I was up before 6:00am to watch, Jenny stayed in bed!  We now need to explain why we have only moved 3 mile, which included going in the opposite direction to call at the village shop.  On Wednesday Jenny I thought that this was the campsite that we were going to and had booked, it was only when we stopped that we weren’t sure.  Jenny went into the reception and enquired where the Damage Barton campsite was, (it was actually the next turning along the lane).  The manager was very pleasant and “jokey” and wanted us to stay, Jenny explained that  we had already booked at the other site. We were however very impressed with the camp site (especially as it has a fishing lake) and the accountant in charge (Jenny) worked out that over 3 days it would be £10 cheaper, we have decided therefore to stay here for a few days.  We also have 16 amp power, so I won’t need to traipse up to the amenities block to get the key to the power box, when Jenny switches the kettle and heater on together, (I think she did it on purpose)! We are on a fantastic pitch, surrounded by bushes and trees, nobody either side of us, very impressive amenities and great views, the weather is getting warmer too.

Sunday 19^th April 2009.

Up at 7:00 am to watch the grand prix, thank goodness that after next week the grand prix circuit moves to Europe and the start times will be more to my liking, i.e. I won’t have to (have to ?) get up so early.  We bought so many motorhome magazines in the last few months and although we have read them, we thought it would be a good idea to re-read them and pull out the information we wanted to keep and as it has probably been one of the warmest days of the year, certainly the warmest since we have had the motorhome, we took the opportunity to sit outside in the sun and sort through the magazines.  This is when we appreciate the decision we have made to buy the motorhome and visit all the places we want to see, everybody else has packed up and gone home after the Easter holiday, other than 2 or 3 others we are the only other people here and have the place almost to ourselves.

Monday 20^th April 2009.

The first opportunity today to use our senior citizens concessionary travel (read, old age pensioners free bus pass) card having decided to go to Barnstable for the day.  The lady at the reception gave us a bus time table and told us it would be better to walk up to the “corner” as there were more buses from there.  We duly walked the mile up to the bus stop and waited for the bus, when it came along I asked the driver “does this bus go to Barnstable”?.  To which he replied, “yes, after we go to Woolacombe”, 5 minutes later we passed the bus stop outside the camp site!  The bus goes in a anti-clockwise direction, passing through the village of Mortehoe, calling at Woolacombe, before re-joining the main road to Barnstable.  At least we were sitting on the bus, instead of standing at the bus stop which was actually approximately 200 yards further along the road to the one we were originally waiting at 30 minutes or so previous.  We stayed at Barnstable for the afternoon, strolling around the many shops, having a very nice carvery meal at a hotel and walking along the River Taw, before catching the bus back, with the bus stopping right outside the camp site.  Strange, but true, we were talking to a couple of people at the bus station with a motorhome on another camp site close-by, they were from Cardiff, there travel pass cannot be used in England . . . . . . and we call it the United Kingdom, another couple used their free passes, but had to pay for their 2 Dalmatians dogs!

Tuesday 21^st April 2009

Yet again we have decided to stay at a camp site an extra couple of days, at this rate it will take us the next year to drive around the south coast. We still want to cycle part of the Devon “coast to coast” and we are saving our energy today to tackle it tomorrow, all we have done today is read, listen to music and I have edited some of my photographs.

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