South Coast East.

For our September trip we decided to head down to the Dover area and then move west from there. Our first stop was a campsite we had used many times in the past but only ever stayed one night at a time as we were heading for the Tunnel and France. You may have guessed it, Black Horse Farm at Densole. One of the attractions of this site was the regular bus service between Folkestone and Canterbury from virtually outside the site. For those that know this site it has a very large area of ferry pitches which fill and empty a bit like the ebb and flow of the tide! Those staying more than one day, like us, usually find a pitch further into the site where it is more peaceful.

Our first trip out from the site was into Folkestone. I had heard that the old Harbour Station had been refurbished into  restaurant/café hub. Not long after getting off the bus we saw a sign for the Harbour but hadn’t realised that this was going to be such a long downhill trek. We wove our way down sloping paths and steps and eventually got down to seashore level. Apparently, there is a Cliff Lift but it was out of action which would have been handy had we had to go back the same way! We eventually found the Harbour and the Station. This was where the London to Paris trains would pass through before boarding the ferry to France. The whole trip would take twelve and a half hours, compare that to Eurostar at just over two hours! Whilst the train lines have been removed the platforms have been restored with the original signage in both English and French. The grander idea behind this scheme is to provide a place for street food vendors, restaurants and coffee shops. I don’t know what it is about Mondays but everything seemed closed. We found one small coffee shop open, housed in and old shipping container! We enjoyed our coffee and Danish overlooking the Harbour. Thinking about how to get back to the bus station I found a stop near the Harbour. It was just by the road up through the old town which looked interesting but very steep.

I found out about the Station on the Walk With Me Tim YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/c/WalkWithMeTim Which others might find of interest as he does urban  walks all across the UK.

Unfortunately, the weather was not overly kind to us and our only other excursion from the site was up to the Folkestone Garden Centre about a mile from the site in the direction of Canterbury. On our final day on the site, it was announced that the Queen had died. Ironically 25 years earlier we were en route to Dorset with the then caravan when we learnt about the death of Princess Diana.

The next day we moved to our second campsite of the trip the C&CC Normans Bay site on Pevensey Beach. The beach is pebbles rather than sand. This site was not quite so convenient for public transport but there is a railway station about three quarters of a mile from the site with hourly trains to both Eastbourne and Hastings. Buses are probably equal distance in the other direction. This site is a bit remote so we are glad we stocked up before arrival! Between the site and the beach there is a high shingle bank which sometimes gives the impression of people walking along the roofs of caravans on site! We enjoyed several walks along the beach in each direction as hard as it was on the knees. Lots of houses and bungalows along the beach, some in better condition that others. It must be nice when the weather is good but they must take quite a battering when its bad?

We left the site in pouring rain with a short stop at the ASDA a mile or two from the site before setting off for our next site at Winchester. This involved using the A27 for much of the way. A lot of it is dual carriageway but there are some short stretches through built up areas which are very slow. Fortunately, by the time we got to the M27/M3 the sun had come out and we arrived at Morn Hill in bright sunshine.

 Morn Hill is newly refurbished with the lower section now being all hardstandings of various sorts. The upper section retains grass pitches plus some new hardstanding ferry pitches. Both sections have superb new toilet blocks. The only downside is the pub which used to be on the corner as you came in is long gone and now a furniture showroom!

This site has a good half hourly bus service from near the site. Our first use of it was a trip to Alresford which is a nice market town and also the home of the Watercress Line Heritage Railway. Having looked round  the Market and then had a nice coffee shop which I think must have previously been a bank because some of the seating was in the old vault! Refreshed we wandered down to the railway and we were lucky that there was a steam train about to depart. The following day we took the bus into Winchester which is a delightful place. At the bottom of the City main street is the famous statue of King Alfred still guarding the City with his sword aloft. The Cathedral, like many others around the country had opened its doors for free to allow people to pay respects to the late Queen. The bus on the way back was rammed, mainly with students. What a delight it was to see how well mannered they were by getting out of seats to allow the old folks the opportunity to have a seat, their mums would have been proud! We enjoyed our stay at Morn Hill but on the Sunday we travelled home to MK.