Sunday, and the rain had gone – thank gawd. Music is like a drug to me – Saturday night was a fantastic high, despite the best efforts of the Theakston’s Pale and equally watery Merlot. Sunday brought with it the inevitable come down – a sign of the ‘Good Times’ the night before I guess. I love music – my tastes are not particularly broad – I put that down to staying up late one night as kid to watch Saturday Night Fever and was hooked by the music.
Anyway, back to the present - a lie in with a nice cuppa, then it was time to set to – you see we had two guests joining us later on, of the four legged variety. Some coordination planning saw me take Sandra to nearby Church Stretton railway station then call into the Co-op for a bit of shopping.
Sandra was travelling to Shrewsbury where she would meet her sister who had driven down in her car with the dogs and associated bits and bobs. Why didn’t you just bring the dogs from Chester you may ask? Well, we didn’t want to leave them whilst out a fair portion of Saturday, and we’d be going our separate ways at the end of the trip – me back to the south coast and Sandra back to Cheshire – hence the need for a second car.
By 11.30am Sandra was back with HRH’s Iona and Skye, who soon reacquainted themselves with HRH Patsy.
A baguette lunch with home cooked gammon, then I prepped coq au vin for the little slow cooker, which we had with green beans and mash that evening. Very pleased with the result.
Sandra’s car – a nippy little automatic Ford Ecosport - would be our chariot for trips out, not least because it had the dog seats in but also because it’s more economical for shorter trips and fun to drive. Monday saw us take the short trip to Carding Mill valley; an area managed by the National Trust which meant free parking for us as members. Coffee was partaken of in the dog friendly café before we followed the shortest of the marked trails.
What a beautiful place it was and whilst it would have been nice to have walked further and higher – neither of us could do so – it was nonetheless well worth a visit.
A rainy afternoon was spent in the van reading, napping and chasing letters around the keyboard, then after dinner – or tea – we paid a visit to the pub on the main road, the Pound Inn. Nothing new to try ale wise but the Butty Bach was good.
Tuesday saw us return to Ludlow – this time in the dry. We parked in the same place as before and it was a hive of activity around the castle as the get out continued, with barriers and portaloos being loaded on to various wagons.
Coffee and a teacake was taken at a little café in the castle walls and we learnt that they’d had the job of feeding all the staff and performers involved in the four day music event. Most were very nice they said, though some were considered obnoxious and rude. Sadly, some members of my favourite band fell into the latter category.
Ludlow is certainly a very picturesque town and we enjoyed just wandering, taking in the picture postcard architecture. After a circular route – and the mandatory perusal of a number of charity shops – we took our packed lunch in the little grassed area by the castle walls.
Wednesday and our last full day in Shropshire. Avoiding the A49 we took the narrow back roads – and a very long diversion thanks to a road closure – to Bishops Castle for a pleasant stroll up and down the high street ending with the usual coffee and tea cake. The town had recently celebrated the 450th anniversary of its royal charter and flags and bunting were still flying.
On our wander we noticed a number of small plaques denoting buildings that used to be pubs. Apparently at one time there were over 40 of them, not bad for a population of around 2000 that is thought not to have changed much over a thousand years. It had a certain quirkiness to it and I liked it.
Back in the car we headed for Clun, described by poet A.E. Housman ( I had to look him up..) as one of the quietest places under the sun, it was certainly beautiful and there was a calming feel about the place, the spot by the picturesque bridge over the river of the same name being particularly pleasing.
The return drive was via Craven Arms – a town named after a pub in the 17th century, though our stop was for nothing more than a few groceries – and couple of ‘research’ samples obviously. The Ale Archivecontinues to grow with over 900 entries.
That evening we tried another pub not too far from the site that came highly recommended by some fellow campers on site who visit regularly.
The Bottle & Glass didn’t disappoint, a proper old fashioned traditional village boozer that was dog friendly too – important with the girls in tow – and a decent pint, although nothing I hadn’t tried before.
Thursday, and time to set sail again. I had really enjoyed my time in Shropshire and whilst I can hardly say I’ve ‘done’ it, I’ve certainly got a good taste, and what a pretty county it is too.
Our next site was less than 50 miles away, across the border into Herefordshire and a straightforward run down the A49 – the awful traffic on the Hereford ring road notwithstanding. If ever there was a need for a bypass it’s here.
Another short single track road saw us arrive at Grafton CL, just south of the city. An artic unloading into the barn temporarily impeded our progress to the site itself, but he was kind enough to swiftly move. Set up was swift if sweaty – I’d noticed the temperature climbing a bit as we’d headed south. Thanks to a pitch side tap there’d be no hauling the Aquaroll back and forth for a week and showers, taken after dinner – or tea – were most welcome.
A short drive out that evening and another great village boozer, well patronised and friendly. In these difficult times it’s good to see a pub seemingly doing well.
Friday was a productive day if not overly exciting. You get these days when you’re lucky enough to be able to go on longer trips like this – I sometimes need to remind myself how fortunate I am to be able to do so. Anyway, first up was the laundrette to drop off an overflowing laundry bag which we picked up later, along with some shopping at the nearby Asda, all taking longer than necessary because of Hereford’s traffic. I’d ordered a USB hub, the intention being to try and tidy up the spider’s web of cables on the desk in the office – AKA the dinette table – and that was due to be dropped off at an Amazon locker located on route. I kept checking for the delivery confirmation but of course it wasn’t until we got back to Patsy in the afternoon that said confirmation came through, so I set sail again to go and collect.
A night off from cooking but Sandra went out to pick up a chippy tea from a local pub which went down very well indeed, followed by a nice evening in front of the telly. In my happy place, with a good friend and Patsy was behaving, I was about as content as could be. This time of year can be tricky for me as many will know.
Sandra:
Saturday – the forecast was not brilliant but on waking up, the weather seemed much better. It turned out to be hit and miss all day but we avoided getting too wet, we had certainly had enough of that the previous Saturday. We had decided to do the Black and White Trail – this is a pre-determined tour of south Shropshire/north Herefordshire, based on Leominster as the starting point. It is, however, possible to start at any of the points and work your way round – we started about halfway round and it is true to say we saw some beautiful black and white buildings on our trip. We were lucky enough to pick up a paper leaflet in Kington – thus doing away with the need to operate two phones, Android Auto link up in Sandra’s car for Sat Nav and Richard’s for the leaflet – much easier progress after that – a lesson to note – the leaflet is available online but if you rely on your phone and car for Sat Nav, then printing it off in advance is well advised. One sour point in Kington – we had chosen a little, local run café for a coffee and sandwich as it was now nearing lunchtime. There were seats outside under a small wind out awning – however, we were soon under a cloud burst and hurriedly stood in the café doorway. The café had wooden floors; the food service was away from the seating area – but they would have rather see us get soaked than let us shelter out of the rain!! Not very customer friendly at all! (We were waiting for our ordered sandwiches – before the rain started, so I asked for them to bag them up and they reluctantly agreed).
We then drove on to a slight detour stop, listed on the leaflet – WestonburyMill Water Gardens – an absolute gem of a find. Does not look too much from the entrance and there is an admission charge but worth every penny.
A café at the entrance served us with a proper pot of tea and China cups and saucers, most refreshing and the sun had appeared long enough to sit out and enjoy the stop. In fact, given the dryness of the wooden benches and tables, I do not think they had had any rain that day, which is how hit and miss it was. It is wheelchair accessible and toilets too, a big tick from us both.
For once, on both the outward and inward drives back to site, the Sat Nav did a superb job and we avoided the normal and routine stop, start crawl through Hereford. I have been doing that run since a small child and I have yet to drive through the city without doing so. If ever a place needed a by-pass then Hereford is it!
I really enjoyed our day out; I saw a bit of a county I know little about and had never visited. A steak meal, all cooked on the single electric hot plate in the canopy, went down a treat.
Sandra:
Sunday dawned and given the serviced pitch, no one felt guilty about nice hot showers. A stroll round the site in the sun and it was time to set off for a visit to a farm shop – yes you read it right, a farm shop, garden centre, clothes shop and so on. It sold itself as the Harrods of Herefordshire, hmm price tag wise in some departments perhaps but nonetheless it was very good of Richard to indulge me in a little retail therapy! He was, however, all smiles when he returned from his turn round the shop carrying two bags of ales which he had never had before. I was a tad envious, not for the drink as such, but that he had managed to find some new ones before me! It is a sort of informal competition to see who can find as many new ales as possible from different breweries and I have such fun doing so. Between the two of us, as Richard has said, it is over 900 entries! Utilising the now familiar Hereford city centre avoiding route from Sat Nav, we made good progress back to the van for a lunch of fresh bought/baked at the Farm Shop Ciabatta rolls which were lovely. A restful afternoon ensued with naps – good really as it has rained on and off ever since. It was my turn to make dinner – it being a Sunday I had promised a sort of roast dinner. Earlier in the week, we had purchased some chicken leg portions so two were earmarked as a roast chicken dinner – some par-boiled baby potatoes turned into roast potatoes, peas and gravy made for a superb first course. I also purchased a home made apple pie out of the freezer section so leaving it under the canopy to defrost, it was ready for warming up our portions, leaving the rest for another night. What I hadn’t seen – blame it on age, frosted iced up cover – it was a sugar free version. Now, neither of us use sugar in coffee, tea, or cereals, but unsweetened apple pie is a stretch for even us. A little dusting of sugar before the cream and warm apple pie, cream finished off a superb meal. An evening of watching some TV was a fitting end to the day.
Monday dawned and it has to be said the weather was not favourable again – still we set off to visit Hereford and the Cathedral. As I said I have visited before so was happy to pooch sit in the entrance and well out of the rain whilst Richard did the tour and got to see the various items – I will let him tell you about it. The purchase of a few essential items and as the rain was obviously set in for some time, we decided to call it quits and return to the site and eat our lunch there. I had hoped that I might have found somewhere down by the river to eat our usual packed lunch but the weather and lack of access meant it was not possible. Nonetheless, we will be travelling on the Wye in just over a week’s time.
Hereford cathedral is home to the Mapa Mundi - and I must show my ignorance here and confess that I’d never heard of it. History wasn’t my thing at school and I ditched the subject as soon as I could. I won’t tar you with the same ignorance as myself – it was fascinating to see, though I was grateful for a more recent version with English translation. Such incredible detail and neatness given how old it is.
As part of the same exhibition was the chained library, again fascinating and great to see such an ancient part of history being so carefully preserved but still accessible.
Sandra waited patiently with the dogs by the entrance but sadly the rain had arrived and we didn’t get to see much more of Hereford. Both of us had had our fill or rain already to be honest.
Back on site Patsy was smelling lovely thanks to the beef stew that we’d prepared earlier bubbling away in the slow pot.
Tuesday brought with it the 1st of August and with it the fifth anniversary of Trev’s death. As has become customary I sat outside for a few moments’ quiet contemplation then at 9:20am raised a glass of Whiskey in his memory. Thank you once again to everyone for all their kind comments – very heartwarming and it means a lot.
Flipping through the many photos of him I was drawn to this picture - the logo on the t-shirt says it all. I have, and so glad I did. Patsy is definitely my happy place wherever she is - in a workshop getting a new front panel notwithstanding!
Sandra:
Tuesday and Hay on Wye was the next port of call. It is the place for those who love books, old vinyl records and antique shops. It holds various annual festivals including the most famous Book Fair. Richard was able to indulge both of his hobbies – thankfully there were plenty of seats around, no rain, so I could sit and watch the world go by! We found a picnic area close to the river and ate our packed lunch.
Despite a good rummage in shops various I came away empty handed. There was no vinyl that took my eye – no James Brown and the only Chic LP they had I’d already got. Nevertheless it was fun to flip through the records, just like the old days when I used to bike into town on a Saturday morning as a kid.
Sandra:
It is some years since I visited and I was pleasantly surprised by the re-opening of Hay Castle – it has been restored beautifully. In the grounds there is an ice cream trolley and they also sell cold drinks, ice cream was local and delicious. It was lovely that dogs were allowed on the ground floor, gardens and café. Previously you could only walk in the grounds. I shall return to do a proper visit one day.
For dinner we concocted some meatloaf, with enough for another meal, then later headed out to a delightful olde worlde pub – the Bunch of Carrots. Nothing new to try – as my ‘research’ advances this is becoming more of an issue – but the Wye Valley brewery ales were good.
Wednesday and the prophets of doom at the Met Office were predicting rain for most of the day – the only variation in the forecast being its intensity – so a day at the ‘van was planned, completing the Site Review and Arrival video, and this. But as I type, apart from a short sharp shower it’s been a lovely afternoon so I will shortly be adjourning to the canopy for an ale or two before a dinner of sausages, beans and homemade wedges.
It’s been another good week, making the most of it despite the weather and I have at last got a little taste of Herefordshire. Next stop Gloucestershire and the Forest of Dean, a tow of at least 30 minutes – better plan the stops!
Thanks for reading and until part 5,
Beers and cheers
Rich