Devall Travels

As today was actually a in the low teens temperature wise we decided to get out to Sissinghurst and I could walk the dog, and Claire could pop into the garden to see what was happening - plant-wise. In the end there wasn't much but there are signs that the crocuses will be out n the next couple of weeks.  One of the success stories is that the path around the outside of the "moat" have been laid with hard core and graded. More for the needs of the estate's farm vehicles than us dog walkers. Still it means we don't end up in the mud or having to negotiate huge puddles. The photos abouve were taken on the Sony Cybershot before the battery ran out and I moved to my Moto G50 phone instead!

The idea was originally to set off Friday morning and drive up to the Carlisle area for an overnight stop. Given the hassles and massive tailbacks that are associated with the Dartford Crossing, I added another overnight on Thursday to get part way along the road so that we would have a pretty easy day on Friday. I chose a Days Inn near Baldock in Hertfordshire as it was cheap and dog friendly.  We packed the car and when Claire came home there were a few bits to do and we set off. Luckily later in the evening the traffic wasn't too bad through the toll tunnel at Dartford. We made good time and were soon checking into the motel on the A1 service area at Baldock. Reggie was okay in the car and despite a bit of noise he wasn't too bad overnight.  The odd bark and growl when people made noise in the hallways. As we left in the morning we saw this car in the car park. Pity the van parked so close to it! Friday we set off on the A1 route up to Scotch Corne...