Leaving for Holiday

 We left on Friday for the border of Somerset/Devon for our next holiday.  After depositing the cats at the Cattery we then went home and bought all the things we needed with us managing to leave out by 11am.  We were slightly worried as the weather was rough and extremely windy and this would only be our third trip out this one being the longest trip and also away for a longer period than we have been thus far. However, once we got going and we took our time the winds calmed down a lot.

OH had decided to use the Sat Nav which is installed in the car to arrive at our holiday destination.  I am not sure that was a wise idea.  When we have come down to the West Country in the past we have always gone via Northampton, Oxford, Birmingham, Swindon, Bristol, Taunton, Barnstaple and then travelled along the Atlantic Highway.  Admittedly this is when we go down to Cornwall and so I thought that we may well have ended up coming the same way.  How wrong could I be - completely wrong we were taken a completely different way.

Sat Nav took us via the backroads past Stamford, past Uppingham, down Wardley Hill.  Then on to Leicester on through to Warwick, past Stratford, Gloucestershire.  Then on through Avon to Bristol before hitting a familiar road at Thornbury Docks just outside of Bristol.  We were aware of this stretch of road, but even so things have changed so much in the last ten years since we came this way.  Especially in Somerset as we always used to pass the Reed Man on the side of the road in open fields.  Those open fields are now very much built on although the latest reincarnation of the Reed or Willow man is there.  It is one of those landmarks we always used to look for.  

Things went wrong just outside of Taunton.  This is where the Sat Nav decided to throw a very serious wobbly. From here on in we were not familiar with the area.  Sat Nav took us down a small road and then started taking us uphill and through the Quantock Hills.  Beautiful scenery but only pony and trap roads with very tight turns and certainly no room for manouvring.  Would be a lovely place to live peace and quiet but not conducive to a large double-axled caravan being towed behind an estate car.  This is when things then became something of a white knuckle ride with steep roads, not being able to see because corners were extremely tight and hardly any turning spots, not that we would be able to turn. There was traffic coming the other way as well and very fortunately for us they backed up and we were able to continue forward. With the assistance of a local lady we were able to get back onto a proper road but our faith in the Sat Nav had seriously diminished as even when we were back on a proper road she was still giving directions to go down little tiny cart tracks.  We then got more lost just outside of Watchet and had to contact our caravan site host to see if she could put us in the right direction.  Fortunately her father was able to give us the most direct route which involved us going through the Medieval Village of Dunster underneath Dunster Castle.  We were informed that things would be a bit tight but doable.  What a lovely place Dunster is - stunning.  Did not know that places like that existed in this country and I am very much looking forward to going back and having a good look around.  Indeed, I have never been to Exmoor before and had not realised just how beautiful the area is generally.

From then on things were more straightforward and we were able to locate our site and arrived just after 6pm.  OH was a little cream-crackered by then, but we got the caravan sorted then something to eat.  We had not stopped for drinks or something to eat although I had drinks and food in the car with us.

On inspection the car had sustained a little damage on the rear wheel and one of the rim panels has been damaged, we think as a result of the tight corners (fortunately the caravan has not been damaged at all).

After eating, and walking Missy, it was then very much a chill and relax time watching some TV and then not being long before we fell into bed as we were completely cream-crackered and tomorrow is another day as they say.

Catch you soon.

Pattypan

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