Down South And No More ‘Touristing’….

On Tuesday morning we woke up late from our last night spent in a campsite for this year.  Campsite mornings in the UK have us mystified; even when there are a large number of campervans and caravans on site, there are very few people moving about or in the shower blocks.  Even when we leave around 9am or 10am, we very rarely see anyone.  We’re fascinated with what they’re all doing inside their little homes….?!!

We joined the A1 and followed directions to ‘The South’.  According to the traffic reports the whole of England was covered in fog and mist and we could certainly confirm it was hanging over Durham.  We stopped off at Thirsk and Rodney gave Eileen a thorough jetwash outside, while I whipped around inside with the ‘Spray & Wipe’.  As we approached Scarborough the fog thickened and the temperatures dropped.  We arrived at David and Wendy’s around 4pm and so started a lovely evening of chatting and a lot of reminiscing for the boys.  It was midnight before we flopped in to their enormous spare bed for a good night’s sleep.

Wednesday morning arrived too soon and we had a big drive ahead.  So after a bath and more chatting over breakfast we hit the road.  The ‘sea fret’, as it is called in Yorkshire, was still hanging over Scarborough, so we never got to enjoy the wonderful view of the coastline from their lounge windows.  But even without providing us with the scenery, we still thank you so much Wendy and Dave, for the lovely meals and for inviting us in to your gorgeous home again.

 

The fog lifted a little bit en route to York, but it seemed the weather report was correct and the whole of England really was blanketed with the stuff all day again.  We drove down the A1 to Newark, then the A46 towards Leicester, then on the M1 and the M69 towards Coventry, back on the A46 towards Warwick and on and on and on.  It was really sad zooming across so much of England and not having the time to meander down the country roads and visit sights along the way; but we had to get to ‘The South’.  We had to be in Taunton, in Somerset the next day, for a security system appointment for Eileen, so after driving about 250 miles (400 kilometres) we finally stopped at Neroli and Ians’ driveway near Chew Magna Lake in Avon, just south of Bristol.  It was our longest drive in one day and we’re pleased to say that Eileen coped very well.

 

We opted for an early night in Eileen, as we were both really tired.  Then in the morning Ian took us up to their fields to meet their Ryeland and Lleyn sheep and their herd of Dexter cows, which have short little legs and look rather like they are sinking in the mud…!  We then set off down to Taunton for our 2pm appointment.  It took 2 ½ hours to get the security system fixed up and certified, so we drank a lot of tea and read a lot of magazines whilst we waited. After a yummy pub meal with Ian and Neroli and another night at their place, we set off east to Hertford.

We had a great time at Bill & Ang’s house when they held a very noisy dinner party on Friday night. It was a brilliant evening, thanks guys.   Since then, we’ve done a lot of unpacking and sorting of paperwork and belongings, but it all feels a little sad that we’re at the end of another chapter.  Our touring in Eileen is almost at an end for this year; we just have to visit a few more friends and family and then we’ll spend the weekend of November 10^th and 11^th preparing her for storage over the winter in East Grinstead.

Travelling around the UK in the wettest summer in 100 years………with farmers unable to get crops out of fields at harvest time because the fields are under water….. was probably not the best idea.  But we’ve had a brilliant time and on November 12^th we’ll be flying off to South East Asia and warmer climes.