First we headed out to Tintagel, a small village on the west Cornwall coast whose claim to fame is that King Arthur was brought up in the castle here. Our intention was to walk the coastal path to Boscastle, but we spent some time looking around the castle grounds before we carried on along the coastal path, with some very dramatic scenery with the angry waves crashing against the rocks below us. Once we reached ‘Rock Valley’, a very picturesque little cove where the exposed rocks jut out having been worn down by the river below, we decided it was a perfect spot for our picnic.

Next day we headed for Newquay. We had a walk along Newquay’s famous the beach, and up to Towan Head, then went for a wander through the streets of Newquay to try and find out what the things that looked like beach huts were on the far beach. When we got there they turned out to be beach huts, so we turned round and went back! We then took the dogs into the Headland Hotel where we had cream teas in the large bay window overlooking the sea, we have been before, so we knew they allowed dogs in!

Phil got himself up early the next morning and went on his bike into Bodmin and up to the Bodmin Beacon, a monument to Walter Riley which dominates the town. He then rode along the ‘Camel trail’, a multi use trail that follows the river Camel along its 12 mile course to the estuary in Padstow, where he met Linda with Tonks. We had a little walk around the pretty village of Padstow, then we put the dogs in the boot and went to Rick Stein’s fish and chip shop where we both had cod and chips, yum yum! We then drove round to Rock, where Phil bought a keg of Doom Bar from the Sharps brewery and we went for a walk on the very windy beach to tire the dogs out.
That afternoon/evening we went off without the dogs to visit the Eden Project. A very impressive site on entry with its massive domes dominating this former quarry site, we first went into the stage area where there was an ice skating rink, and then went into the rainforest biome. Inside it is like a cathedral of tropical plants with a little path winding its way through them, very warm and humid, a fascinating place. We then went in the Mediterranean biome, a cooler, and slightly smaller biome, and by now it was getting dark and the whole place was lit up, it looked fantastic with the biomes glowing and fairy lights in the trees, a very magical place.

Next up is Boscastle where the devastating floods took place in 2004

Our first visitors

We’re very excited as Marilyn and Ian coming to visit today!
They arrived about 3ish and we had a cup of tea at the van before taking them for a walk down to the beach. Then had a few drinks in the Queens Head and home to van about 11 drunk as lords!

Next day we met up at Wetherspoons for a hearty breakfast and then walked to the beach. We had a look around Minehead’s railway museum, a working steam railway which is free to enter (just give a donation if you enjoy it) we had a walk around the platform, the carriages and the turntable before heading back around the harbour and then up North Hill, where we discovered the Church steps which is a lovely little stepped street in the old part of the town with lots of little thatched cottages. Back to the van for a bite to eat and then our visitors had to leave for home, lovely to see you though!

On Monday Phil went and revisited Dunkery beacon on the bike, it was still foggy on the top, but it was worth it for the descent, rocky and fast. Linda took the dogs to the beach for a few hours, where they tired themselves out for the day!

We’ve now moved on to Bodmin. Only just got here, but we’ve had a brief walk with the dogs down the lane to the Camel Trail, a cycle/walking trail which follows the length of the river Camel. Along the trail we discovered Bodmin’s steam railway station, this is a short steam railway run by enthusiasts and a great tourist attraction, unfortunately trains don’t run until the end of Feb, so we won’t see any.

Thanks to everyone for your comments on the blog, it’s good to hear from you!

Minehead update

We’ve been out to Dunkery Beacon, about 10 miles from the site to do a walk out of Country Walking magazine. This is the highest point in Somerset at 519m, unfortunately the mist rolled in as we approached so we could only see about 20yds! We persevered and made it up to the beacon, a quick photo and back down. We then headed back to Dunster and went for a walk around the gardens and grounds of Dunster Castle only to realise afterwards that dogs aren’t allowed! Luckily we got away with it!

We also had a walk around Dunster village, an ancient village which has a yarn market at its heart, and some very pretty old buildings.

We’ve also headed to the Bakelite museum just the other side of Watchet. An unsuccessful visit because we thought it was free and we only had £5 between us. It turned out to be £4 each and when Linda saw someone looking at us from the café we had to run!

We went for a walk along the beach in Minehead, and stopped for a picnic under the new sea defence, then carried on along the beach and walked back along the Golf Course and the promenade where we were entertained by the boy racers (screaming tyres and handbrake turns).

Back to Tonks and we headed for Lynton and Lynmouth, 2 small villages just up the A39. Lynmouth is a village which was devastated in 1952 by a flood caused by extreme rainfall on Exmoor. A huge wave of water and debris was carried down the river Lyn which seriously damaged or destroyed 100 buildings along with 28 of the 31 bridges. In total, 34 people died, with a further 420 made homeless.

We parked in Linton at the top of the hill and walked the footpath which follows the water powered cliff railway down to Lynmouth. Lynmouth was lovely to walk around, particularly the tiny harbour and little shopping street. We took the dogs into a pub on the harbour and had a lovely pint before the big ascent back to Tonks. The view from the top on the drive back was spectacular as the sun set over Exmoor and we could see the Welsh lights across the Bristol Channel.

Minehead 20 Jan

We've been in Minehead a couple of days now and we're really enjoying exploring the area.
So far we've been for some great walks to the beach and up North Hill which overlooks the town, as well as exploring some of the smaller neighbouring villages.

Phil's been on his bike in the rain and as you would expect, came back very cold and very muddy. How is that fun?

Devizes

We've had a great few days in Devizes

We've been to see one of the many Wiltshire white horses (albeit in fog as thick as soup) as well as the World Heritage Site at Avebury, home to the largest stone circle in the uk.

We also did an 8 mile walk along the canal into Devizes, alongside the Caen Hill locks, the largest lock staircase in the UK. Later that day Countryfile did a feature on the locks, we must have just missed them as the canal was covered in the snow we had just left behind.

We have now moved on to Minehead in Somerset, where we've been to the beach already!

15 Jan - Devizes

We've broken free!

We left the lovely site and people of Broadway today and have arrived in Devizes, sorry to say bye to Roy and June, but maybe we'll see them again..

Had a nice walk along the canal before it gets dark, hoping to get to the staircase of locks on Sunday.

Much less snow here, but it is very slushy everywhere. Roll on the big thaw.

Still in Broadway

We’re hoping to be able to move on very soon, not that we mind being here..

We’ve had a day of sledging on the local hills which was great fun, and we’ve now got 2 snowmen outside the caravan!

We’ve been and done a bit of shopping in Cheltenham, stopped at the lovely village of Winchcombe on the way back and had a pint.

Stuck in the snow

We're still here in Broadway in the Cotswolds, staying a little longer than originally planned because of the weather! It's nice and warm in the van, but cold outside (minus 12 at night has been the lowest!), all our water is frozen but we can still get water from the service point.

Still, I can think of plenty of worse places to be! Pubs within walking distance, convenient shops and a picture postcard village.
There are very few people now still on the site and it is closed to new admissions, we've made new friends with our lovely next door neighbours Roy and June who are doing the same thing as us (touring for a year) in their motorhome!

Phil has been out on his bike a couple of times now, 20k on the local lanes, great fun with a foot of snow in places, there were more than a few sketchy moments!

We've also been on a few tentative trips to local villages Stow-on-the-Wold, Bourton-on-the-water and Evesham, so we're not completely cut off. Glad we've got a 4wd though..

First day - Broadway

Well, after clearing and cleaning the house we left at around 3pm to head for broadway in the Cotswolds on a glorious sunny day.

We arrived in the dark, parked up the van and settled in to enjoy a bottle of bubbly!

It is now the first day and we're in the deli in broadway http://www.broadwaydeli.co.uk/ as I type this just after having home made soup.

This morning we woke up to a snowstorm, which made the walk up to Broadway tower really picturesque.. And on the way into the village we saw Adam from Countryfile! Namedroppers...