What are you all up to
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When we had the Thule fitted to our last caravan, we bought the sides to go with it. We found the extra bits quite heavy and bulky, so hardly ever used it. We haven't bothered getting the sides for the canoly on the new van. The canopy is enough to keep ourchandful of bits and bobs sheltered... and if it's too nasty to sit outside, we sit in the caravan. It's a large van and there are only the two of us and Lizzie the dog (a Cavalier King Charles)
David
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And, I have to admit that I do love creating reports to show whatever anyone asks me for. Sad.
Goldie - Might be the reason why you'll never really retire.
A nice brisk wind this morning to see us on our way.💨 We had to take a longer route than planned to get to our CL as otherwise we would have been toting a caravan around back country lanes. Not my favourite thing to do. Anyway arrived safely even if it took longer.
We're Billy-no-Mates. Middle of Summer holiday and not a soul to be seen. Nice rural view. Here for a few nights to break up our journey to Suffolk.
Wind has died down a lot now and a very pleasant evening.
Hope you all enjoy a lovely weekend whatever you are doing.
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We heard you were fighting off the wee beasties up there David so we've come to your neck of the woods.
Will be visiting Middleton Lakes and Hall later this week. Kenilworth Castle tomorrow, maybe Stoneleigh Abbey as well. See how I feel.
Lovely here not far from Tamworth.
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Rain stopped overnight and it has been dry all day but still windy at times. Haven't done a lot today as our daughter came over with lunch and a bag full of chocs, so we should be ok till Xmas nowl!😁 We safeguarding ones on this CL for a couple of nights but others arrived yesterday, with one having to go early as the lady on callout and needed!! Think the site will be empty tomorrow as it looks as if all are leaving in the morning. We are off to our last site of this trip for a couple of nights then home and back to the round of cleaning, car MOT & service, and appointments before we head off again.
Glad to read that you made it safely to your first site, WN, just a shame you had a longer than anticipated trip there.
Pleased to hear your G Daughter has had her op, Debs, fingers crossed that all had gone to plan. All the best for her recovery.
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Update: we now have car problems on the Isle of Lewis!! The car is going into 'restricted perfornance' mode (limp mode). Local garage reckon it is a cracked manifold (ouch!! £££), so as it cannot be repaired in time for our Thursday ferry booking, we're having to be recovered home....
Oh well! that's the way it goes, sometimes! 🫥🫥
David
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Hard luck, David. I guess you’re solo so don’t have the caravan to contend with as well.
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Sorry to hear of your car woes David. Hope the recovery goes to plan.
Lovely few hours spent at Kenilworth Castle and a walk to the former Priory. Didn't realise the castle was so large. Some photos enclosed. One of stables shows the children being taught how to use swords, a handy thing to have these days. Still they all seemed to enjoy it and of course all had to buy replica swords afterwards. English Heritage not stupid.
The amount of history packed into one building quite amazing, all the way from a Baron of William the Conquerer through King John, Edwards, Henrys, John of Gaunt and Dudley and Elizabeth I.
Spent longer there than we intended so didn't go on to Stoneleigh which will have to wait until another day.
Still only us on site. Lovely day with a warm breeze, gusty at times.
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Hope your car can get sorted David and a safe trip back home.
Well 38.2C today so a early dip in pool by 10am today as by 11am it was too hot even to be outside and a very hot wind yuck, another two days of 40C and then starts to get a bit cooler and storms by next weekend.
OH has a specialist nurse appointment Monday at 10am and then heart appointment on Tuesday at 3pm where he has to do a static bike test great in this heat so hope the hospital will be cool for him, he then has an hospital appointment in November from 8.30am to 12 noon for 3 different medics that will be interesting as I said I would go with him but not keen on walking around Cahos town centre for that length of time, we will park in the free carpark other side of the Lot river and walk in as car parks in town are expensive.
Not much done today except a bit of watering and will do some more in the morning before it heats up again.
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We love Kenilworth WN. We went a couple of.times a few years ago when we were doing a landscape history course. Such a wonderful and interesting place.
So sorry to hear about your car troubles DSB. I hope you get home safely and get it sorted quickly.
After storm Betty passed through on Friday night it has been a very pleasant weekend weatherwise here. About 24 degrees with some nice sunny intervals.
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Re french car parks. If you're coming to Dorset RK be warned that some coastal car parks have got very pricey, eg £15 per day, not gone down well with the locals or tourists! NT ones are good if you are a member?
Nice to see Kenilworth Castle WN, we used to live just behind the woods adjoining the car park, a lot has changed but it's always an interesting place to visit. I still have a friend living nearby, when the castle closes for tourists the old "Echo Fields" return to the locals.
Sorry to hear about your car DSB, I presume that will be a relay home, how long will it take? Our former Landrover spluttered to an end in the wilds of Caithness on one trip but we were directed to a local garage who got us moving again, we had lost power on the way up. Hope you get home safely.
Pleasant day here, recovering from a long session yesterday washing up in our village hall, people do like their cakes and tea! Also preceded by a birthday gathering for a very elderly neighbour and a quick walk round our local show. A good turn out, hope they can keep it going, it's getting very hard to find people willing to take these things on.
Hope it's been a good weekend for everyone.
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Thanks for the messages folks. We're 'sort of used to it'. We've been breaking down for years on holiday... 😀😀 in spite of regular servicing etc (at different garages). I'll let you know how,I get on.
It hasn't happened for a few years now, but it got to the stage where our family and friends used to half expect us to break down!! The 'various cars' we have had have often ended up having to be repaired abroad and on one occasion the car (a Ford Maverick) was recovered from the middle of France to home, and we were supplied with a Discovery to complete our holiday.
We did once travel from Calais to somewhere south of Macon on the French motorway. I pulled over to re-fuel, and in error put in petrol instead of diesel. Fortunately, I didn't put much in and noticed in time. Called the RAC who sent a tow truck. They towed me off the motorway and drained the tank. After refuelling with the correct fuel, I got back on tbe motorway and continued. When we eventually got off the motorway, I used the motorway ticket from Macon, saving me the cost of motorway tolls from Calais.... 🤣🤣 The tow truck managed to get out of paying anything to tow me off at Macon. Although it put a couple of hours on the journey, for the small amount of petrol I put in the tank by accident, I was quids in!! 🤣🤣🤣
David
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Hope it's all sorted soon David
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Fingers crossed that once you get the Disco home it is repairable, David. Best of luck.
Nice photos WN, it has been a long while since we visited Keni!worth.
Hope everything goes well for your OH, RK, and that it cools down somewhat for you and that the forecasted storms are not damaging.
Now on our last site of this trip, nice and quiet with only one other van on. Saw lots of units heading south on the M6 as we travelled north.
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Sorry to hear about your car troubles David and hope you're soon sorted. I've had a succession of Discos, over the years and whilst I absolutely loved them - especially for off-road driving - it was something of a love/hate relationship because something was always going wrong! It was that aspect which eventually persuaded me to change to the Touareg.
Had a lovely, if somewhat tiring day yesterday. Ros's birthday BBQ went well - glorious weather, great to be joined by the family and the food turned out well, even though I say so myself and lots of 'bubbles' consumed! They didn't go until early evening and by the time I had washed up and tidied everything away, I was ready for a rest
. I wasn't responsible for baking the cake - just the decoration!Had a bit of an 'incident' later in the evening. An elderly couple turned up in a small Toyota campervan and parked a couple of pitches away. Seemed nice enough as I was chatting to them after they had arrived. Then - they produced what can only be described as a mobile wood-burning stove - on legs - complete with chimney, and proceeded to get it ready to cook something on it. I can only guess at what it was they were burning in it, but it produced so much smoke, we couldn't see through it - and of course it was all drifting our way! Had to close all the van windows and roof-lights (it was still very hot) and after suffering for about half an hour and actually having difficulty in breathing, I had to go across and say something. They thought I was joking to start with but when they realised I wasn't, did actually put it out. We were both just so surprised at how inconsiderate some people can be. I don't mind BBQs at all - indeed love the smell of them drifting across a camp site - but this was something else
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"Thanks for the messages folks. We're 'sort of used to it'. We've been breaking down for years on holiday... 😀😀 in spite of regular servicing etc (at different garages). I'll let you know how,I get on."
Had a couple of Discoveries when we lived in Scotland seriously off road, but both were very prone to breaking down and repairs were very expensive £5k for recon gear box, transfer box & clutch was the last straw, so when we moved south I got rid and bought the Sorento, which, touch wood, has been excellent thus far 2013 model auto 90k on clock goes and tows like a dream.
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Thanks everyone. Unfortunately, it's not just the Disco's that break down in my case..... It's all cars.... perhaps something to do with the sort of mileage I do each year.... this is why a lease car with restricted mileage would never be any good for me!
Actually, my current Disco has probably been the most reliable car we've had..... until now! I'm probably going to regret saying that!! 🤣🤣
David
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Well a long morning here got OH to his appointment in our local town only for him to say oops forgot my paperwork printed out this morning heyho we were early so a quick trip back home then return back to OH with paperwork and I had a English paper to read and he was not long but the one medication he needed the nurse rang a different Phamacie and they had got 1 box so a quick trip to near Cahors and all ok with extra medication also collected and some put on order so he can have it before we go on holiday what fun and stopped on the way back to get a couple of croissants and found a shady spot to eat and a cold drink and got home at 12.45 so nearly lunchtime, pool dip not done as water too hot and by this evening 39C and the same as outside so getting up early tomorrow and a dip before breakfast as it is going to better even hotter for the next two days!!!!!
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What a brilliant day!
Decided to do something out of our normal routine and went into a city, Coventry, principally to visit the Cathedral. I'm sure everyone reading this will be familiar with the story of being burnt out during a bombing raid etc. We took the P&R in and visited the shell of the old Cathedral first. The new Cathedral sits adjacent to it. I was surprised that the shell of the old one is still recognisable. Both of us were a little taken aback for a few moments such were the feelings that took hold. A dry tear or two was shed. There was a little museum attached and this had items from the 40s-50s such as ration books and old school desks with the ink wells etc. Cupboards with powdered eggs and lard. Some items from the war such as masks.
We then visited the new Cathedral and for a building built in an atrocious decade or two for architecture just after the war it was a pleasure. Such light and space and use of Sandstone and lots and lots of stained glass but with a modern hue. The welcome message photo well worth expanding to read it. We stayed for an Organ recital of Bach before paying a short visit to the free museum and art gallery nearby. The photo of the Violinist is of Yehudi Menuhin. There was a lovely exhibit from Barbara Hepworth there but hard to get a good angle for photo.
We treated ourselves to lunch at a C16th. pub nearby which to my delight served only GF food.
All in all a smashing few hours spent in Coventry.
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Here's a snippet of info about the Baptistry window WN. Patrick Reyntiens, the glass artist who made John Piper's design come to life had to find so much glass for that window that he used some spare traffic light glass to fill in a few gaps (I think it was "green for go."
) He used to live not far from us in Somerset. Glad to hear you enjoyed your Coventry visit, did you go to the The Golden Cross by any chance?! RK, phew, hope you get some cooler weather soon!
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Thanks Brue. Yes we did get to the Golden Cross and an excellent meal was had. Good job you posted as I called it Golden Lion in a post I put up earlier in Where to Eat thread.
Some of the glass was vandalised a few years ago and 2 other artists have replaced it with quite a startling opening glass frontage which unfortunately wouldn't photograph well.
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Delighted wherenext enjoyed Coventry Cathedral. We thoroughly enjoyed our visit several years ago. We had 2 days exploring Coventry, there was so much history. But so moving. My mums dad, born in the 1870's so too old for WW2 but did WW1, took his, by then, 3rd family 😉 to Northamptonshire from the tranquil village, my grandmother described as the last place God built, of Pleshey in Essex. The 2nd night they were there Coventry was bombed, they could see sky in the distance and hear the planes. Back to the village the following day, he decided it was just as safe. So the impact of visiting Coventry for me was very poignant.
Good to read folks posts,
DSB hope car issues resolved for a reasonable cost.
Red kite good luck on those temperatures 🌞😩
DEBSC hope your daughter is progressing well.
Sorry for those not mentioned
We enjoyed a few days away with son and grandson in North York moors. Busy but fun. Son took us to Whitby, he wanted to go as he went with school. We'd done the Abbey but not town 😱😱😱😱. Not been in such a crowded place since before covid. We did get to see the swing Bridge open.
Garden had gone berserk in those few days, so much to harvest. Offering runner beans and tomatoes to friends and neighbours. Same with Victoria plums, not quite such a heavy crop as last year, but very few with added protein, the greasebands worked well. Neighbours and friends supplied again. Now awaiting last few to ripen.
Had all the bedrooms fitted with new carpet, so plenty to organise. Did pay to have help to shift furniture for 2 of them and for them to takeaway the old stuff. Very pleased with our choice and service. Wasn't in for date booked 😡 despite being 6 weeks since order. So agreed to have grandson, harvest! Then day before it could all happen as booked. Bit the bullet and said yes. Really hard work as OH forgets he's supervising at times 😢. So extra hardwork. Grandson decided against a sleep 😩 in his cot in the study. So a tired 2 year old as well as a busy one! All straight now, except we need a new wardrobe, one move too many!.
Spent the weekend recovering and enjoying sun. Its about time it reappeared, too many grey days. Been lovely today so managed to do so tasks in the garden which constantly got knocked off the top of the list. So tired again but satisfied.
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