Having recently spent nearly two weeks in Northumberland, after a week back at home base to collect ourselves, we are now heading to the opposite end of the country for 2½ weeks in Cornwall.
We took the opportunity to break what would have been a 300-mile journey with an overnight at our friend’s house near Stroud; that would break the journey into one third and two thirds and we’d catch up after far too long with the erstwhile owner of Scamp, the dog we’d to looked after in Spain for several years, though he’s no longer with us.
10 minutes before our overnight destination is Gloucester Services on the M5 with an excellent Farm Shop. It’s associated with the other wonderful motorway service area, Tebay, on the M6. To me, this looked better. I could easily have spent a fortune on meat and cheese but with limited cooking facilities in Frodo, I contented myself with two hunks of cheese, a curiously named “Wyfe of Bath” and some Montgomery Cheddar, together with an irresistible piece of “venison backstrap”, a cut we have not heard of since being in New Zealand.
Mr. Scamp now has a new little cutie called Lola, so he’s going to have to become Mr. Lola. Lola is a difficult-to-imagine cross between a Jack Russel [not my favourite dogs] and a Chihuahua. (The mental image that mating conjures up doesn’t bear thinking about). Happily, Lola seems to have inherited more Chihuahua traits than Jack Russel traits; she’s quite delightful.
After our overnight stop on Saturday, we set off at about 10:00 on Sunday to head into Cornwall, pausing at Sedgemoor Services to get a Cornish pastie for brunch.
The forecast for the week ahead was excellent. Last time Frodo visited Cornwall he was just a baby. We were staying at St. Agnes Beacon when Frodo sprung a distressing leak during some very heavy rain that Cornwall chose to throw at us. We had to high-tail it home. We are due some better luck so the forecast was very welcome.
Once again we were beginning our Cornwall visit at St. Agnes Beacon. The Caravan Club campsite there offers great access to the coastal path and to the iconic Wheal Coates, an old tin mine overlooking the sea.
Like good folks, we began our approach run shortly after 14:00. You are not allowed to arrive before 13:00. The idea behind this restriction is largely to ensure that you don’t meet other departing camper units travelling in the opposite direction on challengingly narrow lanes, and the road approaching the St. Agnes Beacon site is, in places, very challenging.
As planned, we didn’t meet any departing camper units heading outbound. Unfortunately the Caravan Club rules about arrival and departure cannot legislate for Joe Public. In one of the narrowest stretches of lane we did meet a Transit coming towards us. The Transit was being closely followed by three other cars. I gulped, cursed, and began trying to reverse Frodo to find some form of passing place. Clashing slightly with the surrounding hedges once or twice, happily not seriously, we finally found a spot where the other cars could squeeze by. Breathe in everybody.
We continued, rounded a corner and soon bumped into [NOT literally] another stream of four more cars. The road here was a little more forgiving though. We’ve been to St. Agnes Breacon on at least four occasions and never met that much traffic. I suspect that Sunday afternoon, surfers and tide times were at least partly to blame.
With jangling nerves, we finally checked in and got Frodo settled.
One thing we have never done on all our visits here is to walk up to the top of St. Agnes beacon itself. At 17:00 or so in brilliant sunshine, Francine decided to go for it. With my difficulties of exercise late in the day, I chose to remain with another nerve-settling drink while Francine enjoyed the view from the top.
What we have done on numerous occasions is try to capture The majesty of Wheal Coates. Given the favourable forecast I was hoping I might be able to capture the setting sun behind the mine ruins. Sadly today, British weather being what it usually is, after a brilliantly sunny afternoon, a cloud bank positioned itself on the western horizon behind the mine. There was a hint of sunset colour, which Francine managed to capture on her mobile phone camera but a setting sun through a window aperture was not going to happen.
Fingers crossed for another day.
Recent Comments