Saturday 4th May (Day 1)
So a chilly start to the day but we soon had Billina2 loaded (at home) and were away by just after 9.00am. The dreaded M25 was our first hurdle. What a surprise, not a slow queue in sight yet alone stationary traffic. An unexpected joy. Then the M3 where I expected to be taken off on the A303 but our satnav lady took us all the way to the end and onto the M27. Travelling along the 'A' roads following the south coast we had one or two holdups caused through sheer weight of traffic. But by just before 2.00pm we were parked at Cummings Farm Campsite just outside Lyme Regis. It was a very relaxed in its management. Turn up, park up where you want and we will collect the money in the evening. We had lunch sitting in the unexpected warmth of the sun but sheltered from the breeze by the motorhome. Then a stroll across the fields and through the woods to Lyme Regis. A delightful walk with wild garlic and bluebells in abundance but downhill all the way, very downhill. We have been to Lyme Regis before but cannot remember when. We think it was before our children probably over 40 years ago. Surprisingly we remembered nothing of it. There was a 'fossil festival' on. Lots of stalls selling, well fossils, exhibitions and talks. In the nice weather ice cream was being devoured by children on the sandy beach and one or two were in the sea (knee depth no more). A pleasant walk around before sitting outside a pub having a Cornish beer. We decided that the walk back to the site would be too demanding and opted to catch the park and ride bus as the P&R was only a ten minute stroll to the site. A free park and ride, just for the fossil festival, so a result. By now it was cooling down so we ate inside, a bit of TV (a good signal) then bed.
Sunday 5th May (Day 2)
Well a very different day. A warm morning and as the day progressed it got cooler. After breakfast we walked across the fields (different ones from yesterday) down to Charmouth. Charmouth is less busy and commercial than Lyme Regis. Indeed we only found about three shops, one pub and three cafe´s. We walked along the beach for about a mile. There were signs to keep away from the cliffs as they could collapse at any time. I have never seen so many people with hammers and picks climbing cliffs and banging / tapping away looking for fossils. We wanted to return by bus to our site but it only ran every hour so we needed to retire to a pub to wait for the next one. Here we met 'Mr and Mrs Boring' from yesterday. Nightmare on Charmouth Street! We decided on another pint and to walk back as it was only just over a mile. That said the walkback was a real challenge as it was uphill with the emphasis on 'hill'. We had ro stop for breath three times. Back, eventually, at the motorhome we put our new pop up gazebo up to see how effective it was. While it was quick to erect and offered reasonable protection from the elements it had cooled down too much to sit out so we put it away and went 'indoors'.
Monday 6th May (Day 3)
So off today to stop closer to Highbridge where we had to be first thing on the morning. A slow start as there was no real rush, just a two hour drive to our next identified site. Just after 10.00am we left, after giving up trying to refill with water on the current site as I could wee quicker. The satnav took us on an interesting route, set on quickest but due to traffic the two hour journey was almost three hours. Part of it, at the end, was really a lovely route as we drove up Cheddar Gorge. We arrived at the site, 'a natural site giving the experience of back to nature'. We left it, as looking as if we would have been hard pushed to find a spot less than 20 degrees from the horizontal and it did not look very appealing. We had passed a Camping and Caravan Club site, Cheddar Mendip Heights, a mile back and decided on that. The site is at the edge of Priddy village, which is the highest point in the Mendips. With our 'age related discounts' it was cheaper than the last couple of nights stop with better facilities. Having settled and had lunch we opted for a circular walk to give us some exercise. Two miles or so walk across fields and we then went to the local pub for some refreshment. It was a busy place with much coming and going to keep us entertained. Back to the motorhome where, unusually, I laid down and went to sleep! We then had dinner and watched tv until bed.
Tuesday 7th May (Day 4)
I woke around 4.00am to the most amazing dawn chorus. This was followed soon after by a very weird, unearthly, sound which we discovered was a local kennels. After a shower and sort out we drove the 50 minute drive to leave the motorhome at Highbridge to be examined for the damp. We cycled into Highbridge and had a breakfast at the local cafe. This was followed by a further cycle along to Burnham-on-Sea and them onward to Brean. Not the most impressive of places. A place full of amusements, Pontins, caravan sites galore and tattoos. We stopped at a nature reserve and walked to the beach where we sat and enjoyed the peace and quiet. This was followed by a cup of tea at a local cafe before cycling through Brean Sands to the National Trust reserve. Here we walked up a 225 step climb. Next a walk along the headland to a fort and then back along the north side of the peninsula and down again to a cafe at the bottom of the hill While it was a total distance of only about three miles with he steep inclines it was quite challenging. Before making our way back to Highbridge we had an ice cream. Really nice but at over seven pounds for two the cost was eye watering. Arriving back at Highbridge we found the the motorhome had been ready for collection at 10.30am - pretty annoyed as they rang the wrong number to inform us. We then had a shop at ADSA and then drove to Glastonbury. We had selected an 'Eco friendly farm' to stop at but on arrival it looked like needing some serious tlc and at £18 a night with no facilities we gave it a miss. Just 200m away was the Isle of Avalon Camp Site, an independent. While it cost £22 this was with showers and toilets, grey and black disposal, fresh water and electric; a no brainer Having set up we walked into Glastonbury to find we were virtually the only 'normal' people around. The streets were full of incense, shops full of phychodelic type paraphernalia and people who were, in the main, like throwbacks to the 60's. Instead of tattoos we usually encounter like deaths head, eagles, ladies 'LOVE' etc the tattoos were OF unicorns, mushrooms, flowers, and fairies. All very different. We stopped in a pub, again following the theme of being a bit 'unusual', for a pint and to replenish the calories the day used up - three mile hard walk and the twenty mile cycle ride. It was then a relax in the motorhome and planning for the next few days.
Wednesday 8th May (Day 5)
Well, did it rain in the night- absolutely hammered it down all night. That said we had a dry start to the day. After a simple breakfast we drove off to Clarkes Village, in Street just outside of Glastonbury. It is a retail shop outlet. Parking the motorhome can often give a challenge at such places but not today. We rang the Control Room and they said we could just park in the staff car park, and we did not then have to pay. The alternative would have been to find space and squeeze in a normal carpark space, take up two spaces and pay for them both, so we'll done to Clarkes Village. Both Chris and I got something we needed; sandals for me and shorts and top for Chris. While shopping the heavens opened making us glad we were undercover. Thunder also rattled around. We had considered walking up to Glastonbury Tor but the weather (mainly) and difficulty to find somewhere to park near to the Tor put us off. Plenty to see here another time. A quick stop en route to Wareham, Dorset for some food shopping and diesel and by 2.00pm we were settled at a Certified Location called Trigon Farm, about three miles outsideWareham. As we approached up an unmetalled track we spotted a deer scuttling away, this was to be one of several. Trigon Farm site is a large grassy field where fifteen or more units could easily park with loads of room still around, so a maximum of five units was luxury. It was nice and warm so we had lunch outside and watched a couple struggle to put, what looked like a new awning on their caravan. After about 40 minutes we strolled over and offered to help, which was gratefully accepted. Between the four of us we worked it out and, once sorted, we bade them farewell. We felt that a bit of exercise was needed so we went for a walk across the moorland for an hour, again meeting a more deer, before settling down in our gazebo / shelter for a cuppa and a chat.
Thursday 9th May (Day 6)
Well that was a schoolboy error. It rained during the night, which should not have been much of an issue but, as I parked under a large tree, when the rain stopped the dripping continued. Also, as it was irregular, it was very annoying. On the plus side it did allow me to hear the owl hooting though. We had a fairly substantial breakfast, having re-positioned the motorhome away from the trees, as we were being picked up this afternoon for an early dinner. Before that we opted for a cycle ride. About a mile from where we are camped is the Sika Trail. (The deers we keep seeing are of the Sika breed.) So we cycled down to it and along the trail into Wareham. Here we secured the bikes and went for a walk around. Thursday was the Farmers Market day. Quite disappointing as not a piece of meat to be seen, it was more craft fair. We soon left and opted for a stroll along the city walls. Here one has to stretch the imagination as they are a continuous grass covered mound, part of the Saxon defence of the town. Part way around we left the walls and went to St Martins church - the oldest Saxon church in Dorset, circa 1020ad. Small, compact, but with some very old wall paintings. Also a life size 'tomb' of D H Lawrence who lived near and often came to a local cafe for coffee which is still in business. (He is in fact buried at Moreton.) A tea to revive us in a tea shop (where I saw a rat in the yard) and then a cycle back, with a slight detour along the Sika Trail, making 10 miles In all. We then sat around waiting for Jan and Terry Smith to come and meet us. They live about 25 miles away in Christchurch but originally lived about a mile away from our house in Hornchurch. We know them as their two sons attended the cub pack that we ran and Terry assisted with pack nights and on cub camp also with 25+ cubs. They left Hornchurch in 2016 and we haven't manage to meet up since. When they arrived we chatted for a couple of hours before they took us the three miles to The Old Granary pub down by The Quay in Wareham. Here we had a really nice meal returning to the motorhome just before 10.00pm where we said our goodbyes with a promise to return (and stop nearer to where they live). It is a test of good friends that you do not see each other for a long time but when together it is like you have never been away. A good time.
Friday 10th May (Day 7)
We had decided to go to Swanage today. This involved cycling back into Wareham and then catching the bus to Swanage. £15.20 return! I really didn't want to buy the bus! I am a regular visitor to Swanage, visiting every 55 years! The weather was bright, sunny and pleasantly warm. The bus trip passed Corfe Castle on the way. In Swanage we alighted from the bus by the railway station. Today it was 'diesel day' and no steam trains so we decided to give this a miss. The town is quite small but with some different shops. The decision was made to walk to Durleston Country Park and Castle. Some quite challenging walking with the steep hills - a feature of this whole trip. Arriving at the castle we were, to say the least, disappointed. It may have had four towers but no crenelations. Indeed it looked exactly like it was, a cafe and souvenir shop. We walked further along the headland past a lighthouse and back by the Tilly Whim caves. This was where, in the distant past, stone was extracted and lowered direct into a boat. Tilly was the name of the stonemason and 'whim' was the name of the type of crane used. Due to rockfalls it was off limits. Eventually after a five mile stroll we were back in Swanage where we had a snack and a much needed drink of tea (when will we remember to take some water). It was a really, unexpected, nice day. We caught the bus back and then cycled to the motorhome where we sat in the afternoon sunshine before packing the bikes and other bits way to move off tomorrow.
Saturday 11th May (Day 8)
Despite the improving weather we have decided to make for home as we have a busy week ahead. After a simple breakfast, and having packed the garage last night, we were off by 9.30am. A four hour trip that could be fraught with traffic but, apart for a small delay around the M4 / M40 junctions with the M25 it was a good drive. Home by just after 2.00pm