Devall Travels

So day 1 is sorted.. simply the drive to Back of Beyond and set up for the first night in the camp. We have two nights there before we move on. So for day 2 we need something to fill part of the day. I have been looking at National Trust sites. There are quite a few within a short distance, and a few that would be better off the next day as we head to Brixham. Waypoint 3 is Kingston Lacy . Another country mansion. Either side are two sights on the river. Waypoint 5 is Corfe Castle. I have never been there although in the 80's we used to go to biker rallies in the area nearby. I haven't finished yet as we need a visit to the sea whilst we are out. The start and end is of course the camping ground.

Done. After trawling the internet for cottage booking sites I finally found a place that meets our criteria.  I actually wanted a place near to our childhood holiday resort of Dawlish Warren. I couldn't find anywhere in that area that suited us but we decided to stick to Devon anyway. In the end we have booked and paid the deposit for a nice looking place in Brixham in Devon. It has two bedrooms and really importantly when you have a dog, an enclosed garden. The bonus is that it has off road parking for one car. We only have one! So many places are street parking or even council car-parks. Total the cost for a week is £660 and I paid a third deposit today  It's still ten months away so we have plenty of time to refine things about what to do when we are there and of course, getting there.  I think we might have to do the same as friends who live in the same area as us and leave about 5am! Gulp.

It's a toss up between Suffolk and Devon. Personally I am in favour of Devon.  When we went in 2019 it was a long day in the car both days to get to North Devon where we had a cottage.  Next year I will have retired and we will have unlimited time to drive down there.  The Juke is automatic and that will make it easier to drive if the traffic builds up. It has stop/start technology as well as auto hand-braking. I had a look at dog friendly cottages today. Being able to go when we like and not stuck with school holidays means that the rental costs are much lower at the majority of places. With a dog that likes to control his environment and becomes a little protective of the space, I always look for somewhere with a secure garden, and hopefully he'll be able to settle down. He does like to think that most of the area around our house is his territory and will bark at people he considers invading it.  So apartments are definitely out! I have found a couple in Brixham i...

We were up early again as Reggie was on his early pee and poop regime again. In the end we left at around 9.30am. TomTom reckoned it would be just short of 5 hours to get home.  If only.  First stop at the start of the A303. Three hours for 86 miles. Heavy traffic. Very heavy everywhere. Holidaymakers in both directions. Wankers having accidents causing more holdups. We got in the house just before 7pm. Sadly I had to reset the TomTom earlier in the week and so I have lost the complete trip stats.   So that's it... Another superb holiday top and tailed with terrible driving conditions. For the holiday I created a Fuelly profile for the Corsa. Only three fill-ups on the entire trip after starting with a full tank at the start of the holiday.  I had expected it to be higher, but an overall 45mpg isn't bad considering the traffic jams we were stuck in for about four hours in each direction, where we crawled along in first...

Today we decided to stay local as we set off for home tomorrow. It will be a long day in the car for us and Reggie especially. So our first stop was as ASDA in Bideford to get some cash and fill the car ready for tomorrow.  A disappointing 43.7mpg. I guess all the low gear ups and downs of the Devon countryside. The next was at Tapeley Park just the other side of Bideford. Another estate with a garden open to the public. Again it was on the Gardener's World 2-1 offer and seniors we got in for a fiver. The house looks at first a bit run down but the gardens are very nice. An Italian garden and the kitchen garden are the highlights. We met Hector who "runs the place" and is actually one of the owners of the site. He was accompanied by his English Bull Terrier called Wayne. Reggie barked at first but they got on after mutual sniffing. On the way out I saw the field alongside the carpark had a herd of Highland Cattle. Reggie barked as a calf came close.  To soun...

Today our day was already planned. A lunch date with Claire's friends from the "old days" in Kent, Robin and Mark, at their house (mansion!!)  near Exeter. They have two golden retrievers and Reggie was okay until they mobbed him and he growled at them a few times. Lunch was great. Company great. Tomorrow last day in Devon.

As a reward for a walk along the nearby Tarka Trail... Someone has to do it. Later we'll have dinner in and think about tomorrow. We have a lunch appointment near Exeter with a friend and former boyfriend of Claire's. 

Didn't we have a lovely time on Dartmoor?  No we didn't. I set up a route to take in some bronze age and medieval settlements on the rugged moors.  We set off and ahead the weather looked increasingly black overhead and then it simply pee'd down. Roads began to run with water. None of this deterred the locals who continued to drive way too fast for winding country roads.  We aborted and set a course for Okehampton, somewhere to the west of our position. In the end we passed through and decided to head back to the cottage. By chance we saw a sign right to a small town called Hatherleigh. A chance for a cup of something and Reggie to "stretch his legs" etc. There is a Co-Op shop and a nice thatched cottage lined high street. Plus, find of the day, One Market Street Cafe, where we had lunch. Hatherleigh, Devon Pasties and chips for us and a bowl of water and a gravy bone for Reggie. I also had a bonio in his accessory bag. Claire popped into the Co-Op for essen...

As is his current trend Reggie had us awake at 5am for his first pee trip. Then at 6am and finally at 7.15am for breakfast. We had sorted the bins as well as the instructions said to have them out for Monday. Different recycling regime to gone but at 4.45pm they are still by the kerb untouched. But back to the morning. Today we decided in a trip more locally (!) to a garden at Castle Hill Gardens. It is in Claire's Gardeners World 2for1 offer booklet.  We spent a few hours there traipsing around the estate and park looking at the follies and plants/trees. Again a lot of uphill and downhill walking! Three days running. Castle Hill Estate Then back via Lidl in Torrington to get lunch etc. And of course cider. We took it in turns to shop and mind the dog in the car. This evening eat in again and plan where to go tomorrow. About time we headed for Dartmoor. 

We decided on a National Trust site at Arlington Court near Barnstaple. TomTom said it was about 40 minutes away and for once it was almost accurate. The site is also the home of the National Trust Carriage Museum.  After a coffee we set off on the 2 mile circular walk around the estate. Although the weather was iffy when we set off, but it looked up.  The walk is pretty up and down. The first part goes through an avenue of monkey puzzle trees. Amazing. Some are nassive. Monkey Puzzle Trees This was just the beginning! The lake itself wasn't all that exciting.  Along the route were photo suggestions. A photo in a frame and above it an empty frame to show where to shoot. The bridge over the stream from the lake was full of dragonflies. Very colourful. At the top of a steep slope we had a sit down. The house to our rear and the pond ahead. Claire wanted to go to the gardens and headed to the dog poo bin and the carriage museum. The collection is quite extensive. Carriage Mu...

Miserable start to the day. Well, not at 5.30am when Reggie decided he needed to go out into the garden. At least he had a pee! At 6.30am it was Claire's turn to get up. Parenting a 🐕 seems like having a baby! He did nothing but run off the night asleep. By the time we got up at 8.30am - it is Sunday - it was raining. Grey and very chilly. I thought about getting the woodburner alight but have no idea where to start although it looks to have wood in it. It's a long time since I was a boy scout lighting fires. I did have a badge for it... I also had hand axe and knife... https://members.scouts.org.uk/supportresources/3655/scout-skills-fire-lighting I'd love to share images of the badges but it seems the Scouts have purged the internet. Using a knife and and axe probably not PC nowadays. So once it warms up. Warns up. Where to? posted from Bloggeroid

Up late. Well I was. The lack of sleep at the Days Inn with Reggie wanting to go out every two hours and the long hours at the wheel and I was knackered. We chose to visit Clovelly. TomTom reckoned 10 miles until we set off. We had been going a while and it was 9! It looks like TomTom's initial guess is that it's as the crow flies until the route gets planned. Clovelly is pretty famous. We have been before but not with a dog. The descent to see sea and harbour and the Red Lion pub is in three phases. The first downhill to the pottery is slight. Part two from there to the top of the main Street steeper and made of stones not proper cobbles.  Wear Skechers at your peril. The third section is the main street. Same underfoot stones and steps in places. We had a break at the New Inn for a sandwich and a drink. It rained a bit but the prawn and crab baguettes were very nice. I had a half of the local Golden Pig beer. Nice and hippy. Not quite the after taste of IPA. An ice-cream ...

Forced to use the Corsa instead of the Insignia due to an "engine fault" light. Too late to get it fixed before the trip. Even with several hours in traffic jams, sometimes not moving, today's fuel stop came out at 47.6mpg.  I have created a Fuelly account for it. A total of 338.6 miles since I filled it up on Thursday morning.  Without all the holdups it could have been so much better. Sadly I don't see the return in Friday being any better.

Up early and popped across to the main services for breakfast. Decided on McDonald's. A nice bacon and egg McMuffin. It's on the other side of the motorway!  Dogs are not allowed inside the services building and the bridge is inside. Bugger it. Once across the bridge to McD and queue was out of the door. None of the ordering screens were working. Not queuing. Subway almost next door do a really nice sub with bacon, egg and cheese. Also no queue.  So we had that. Finally on the road just after 10am and all seemed to be going well until about three and a half miles short of Stonehenge. Stopped dead. Two lanes go down to one. Some 45 minutes later we crawled past the stones.  Why the f**k there is no bypass for anyone passing by?  The A303 is stop start pretty often due to either dual carriageways running out, or the two lanes becoming one.  Surely the locals want bypasses for their villages rather than solid traffic and all the pollution? We arrived at our planned...

Whether it was the journey here or the hotel, but Reggie was up all night.  Bed time about 11pm and his last pee and walk. And again at 1.30am. At 3.30am and 5.30am. If only he had spent more time asleep until it was time to leave... Finally asleep!!

Packed and left home around 7pm for the overnight stop at the Days Inn at Fleet Services at the M3. The motorways were relatively free moving. The usual lane hoggers in evidence in the so called "smart motorways". We get an extra lane and it is mostly empty. Instead car drivers seem to think proper lane to drive in is the third lane!! Arrived about 9pm. Checked in and unloaded the car. Then went across to the services for a coffee. Bummer they don't do Starbuck's points and no dogs allowed in the empty services.  Then a walk for Reggie to do his loo things but he didn't do anything.  Time for bed then.

The final payment has to be made by today so I did it yesterday.  The three of us will have a week holiday in the UK instead of the planned trip to France. Now I have made the payment I have the full address so I can refine the routes I have planned for getting us down there.  Rather than a vague area. I can also see what there is to visit locally. Places where Reggie will be as welcome as we are.  To ensure that we have a good start I have also booked a Days Inn motel part way along the journey.  As the journey takes us on the M25 around the south of London and the nightmare it can be in a car on a Friday morning I decided to book an overnight stop on the Thursday evening at Fleet in Hampshire.   It's not scenic. A chain hotel on a motorway/freeway service area. As long as there is a bed and somewhere for Reggie to pee etc. then that's all we need.  We can set off in the morning and hopefully miss the motorway rush hour. My curren...

FR19 may have crashed and burned but rising from the ashes like a phoenix from the flames is Devon Staycation. Coded GB19. A week in ear!y August in sunny Devon. Or at least I hope it's sunny. Devon is a popular holiday spot for English families. With two national parks, Dartmoor and Exmoor, and places to visit where even dogs might be welcomed. I searched for dog friendly on the 'net, with an added filter of "enclosed garden". I rejected a few until I came across Annas Cottage. And it features an enclosed patio and seating area.  Even Reggie won't be too unhappy with that, plus in the reviews people say that there is a field for dogs to run around. Whatever he will make it his personal territory. I paid a third deposit today. Balance end of May. So now to plan things to do!! Annas Cottage