Category: Motorhome Adventures

We managed to get away for 2 weeks in May and went to explore part of the North Devon/Somerset coast. Our first stay was at the Mill Park Touring Park – a lovely premier parks site in a valley near Berrynarbor and between Combe Martin and Ilfracombe.

We used this as a 7 day base to explore the area – easy to do as the South West Coast Path is nearby as is a very handy bus stop! During the week we walked stretches of the South West Coast Path from Berrynarbour to Ilfracombe, Berrynarbour to Little Hangman (Combe Martin and beyond) and Ilfracombe towards Lee (didn’t finish that leg as we turned back after the Tor Park area as the heavens opened!) Stopping off for coffee and cake at the lovely Storm in a Teacup cafe in Watermouth harbour and cream tea at Sandy Cove Hotel along parts of the path to keep us going! This part of the coastline is very hilly and beautifully dramatic with stunning scenary and gorgeous wild flowers.

Next was 4 nights at the camping & caravan club site at Minehead up on North Hill (beautiful stop but up some tight narrow lanes!). On the way we visited Dunster Castle and village (National Trust) which was lovely; includes a working double watermill still milling their own flour, beautiful gardens and interesting Castle.

Minehead is the start of the South West Coast Path, a 630mile path all the way around to Poole. The town is dominated by its main employer Butlins Holiday Camp but also has a delightful old Quay area and a steam railway. Many shops and businesses have curious “metalhead” characters outside, made by a local man during the pandemic – a rather novel trail to follow around the town.

During our time here we walked from Minehead to Selworthy Beacon and incorporated the “rugged path” which is very hilly and very close to the edge of steep cliffs in places – we even had clear views across the Bristol Channel to South Wales. Being right on the doorstep of Exmoor we also saw some Exmoor ponies and heard cuckoos again.

Our final stop was the Lynton camping & caravan club site, another lovely site on yet another hill with views across to the sea. Here we walked more of the coast path and ventured into the Valley of Rocks with some amazing formations and lots of feral goats! Lynton (down a 1:4 lane!) is a lovely little village on the cliffs looking down to Lynmouth harbour. The Greenhouse cafe has good coffee and yummy scones.

You can walk down to Lynmouth or use the cliff railway – a Victorian tram system powered by water. Lynmouth was nearly swept away in 1952 after a huge deluge of 9 inches of rain in 24 hours on Exmoor – several properties were swept into the sea and sadly 34 people lost their lives. The village was rebuilt and the river diverted.

We loved exploring this coastline, with its dramatic cliffs and lovely towns/villages and would recommend it with the warning that there are a lot of hills!!!

We only managed a 3 night trip away in April, this time to Sway in the New Forest. Great to explore an area very close to us. We stayed at the delightful Rushcroft Farm which, in addition to the campsite, also has a couple of cottages, a shepherd’s hut and a romany caravan to glamp in, aswell as caring for rarebreed goats, 2 horses and 2 donkeys. There were deer grazing in a field over the stream at the bottom of the farm and we heard a stag calling to his hinds a couple of times during our stay.

Sway is a good place to base yourself as you have the New Forest within walking distance as well as having a good train and bus service to Bournemouth and Lymington, a couple of pubs, supermarkets, a deli cafe and great butcher (we had 2 days of BBQ meat from here). It also didn’t seem as busy as places like Lyndhurst and Brockenhurst.

We spent our time walking and exploring the New Forest landscape; traversing through inclosures (yes spelling is correct!) which are areas that are fenced off from commonors’ animals so that timber can be grown, through to the heathlands looking lovely with the gorse in full yellow flower. We spotted ponies and cattle and lots of deer grazing, heard our first cuckoo of the year and spied our first swallow of the season.

We walked from Sway to Brockenhurst one day and stopped off at the Commoners Wine Bar for a drink. Chatting with the bar staff we learnt more about the New Forest commoners way of life and their livestock – with the annual “drifts” of rounding up their ponies for worming, trimming of manes and tails and general health checks by the agisters to ensure they are still fit enough to continue grazing on the New Forest lands.

We loved our short break away and learnt a lot about a beautiful area of the UK not that far away from where we live – it just shows that you don’t have to travel far to have good holidays.

#meanderingmumfords #motorhomelife #rushcroftfarm #commonorswinebar #sway #newforest

We had mixed feelings about going away in March; it felt wrong to be enjoying ourselves when there was a war going on in Europe, but then if we have learnt anything in the last 2 years it is to grab every opportunity that you get because you don’t know what is around the corner. So on that note we packed up Lizzie and headed to the Isle of Wight for 2 weeks.
We took the Wightlink ferry from Lymington to Yarmouth (caravan and camping club members can get up to 50% discount or ask your campsite as they may also be able to get you discounts).

The Isle of Wight is a very seasonal place with many things opening up at the end of March / early April – including campsites. We stayed at the Riverside Paddock touring park just outside Newport as this is one of the few with hardstandings open early March. It’s right on the old Cowes – Newport railway line, now one of the many cycle routes on the island and a pleasant walk along the Medina River.

After our first day being a washout due to heavy rain (a day of puzzles, DVDs and books), we set about exploring in what turned out to be a gloriously sunny, warm, blue skied fortnight – not expected in March!

As well as walking to Newport and then Cowes to surprise an old friend Helen (producer of yummy chutney under the name Borneo Pantry and wonderful grazing plates under the name Cowes Grazing and can also be found at the Cowes Compass Bar), we bought Southern Vectis Freedom bus passes (7 day but you can get different versions). This enabled us to easily explore the island from Ryde in the East to the Needles in the west and Ventnor in the south to Totland in the North of the island and lots of villages in between! We visited well known attractions such as Quarr Abbey, Osborne House (EH) Queen Victoria’s summer home, Carisbrooke Castle (EH), Mottistone Gardens (NT) and the New and Old Batteries at the Needles (NT). And walked about 101 miles (according to Andy’s app!) along beautiful lanes, cycle paths, parts of the coastal path and some of the various Downs. Cycle and footpaths are really well marked throughout the island making it very easy to explore.

Lots of birds and wildlife spotted, including 5 red squirrels, lots of Blue Jay’s and bullfinch and although it was early spring there was lots of colour with many gorgeous magnolias and camellias in flower.

Oh and of course we had to sample some of the Islands locally made alcohol!! Mermaid gin – the pink is delicious. And then Andy rather liked the Wight Gold Ale and I liked the Planet Lager.

We loved our time on the Island and hope to revisit, maybe in the Autumn to see it in a different light – thank you Isle of Wight and the lovely friendly people we met along our travels.

#meanderingmumfords, #motorhomelife, #borneopantry, #cowesgrazing, #compassbarisleofwight, #southernvectis, #englishheritage, #nationaltrust, #mermaidgin, #wightlinkferries, #isleofwight.

February saw us steal a 4 night break away to Wells, Somerset. The weather wasn’t brilliant but what did we expect in Feb in the UK!

The site we used was a Tranquil Park adult only site – Wells Touring Park which is lovely, small, with half touring pitches and half lodges, beautifully clean, friendly helpful staff and small cafe/bar which was well used by us!!!!

It was about a mile to walk into Wells, either along the main road or more pleasantly along the Strawberry Line (a paved path along a disused railway), where we were escorted by more robins than I have seen in a long time!

Wells is easy to walk around and explore, has a good range of shops and a farmers market on Wednesdays and Saturdays – we picked up our lunch from different market stalls – quiche, local cheese, olives and scotch egg.

We explored the beautiful cathedral, chapter house and covered cloisters, visited Vicars Close (possibly the oldest residential street in Europe), walked around the moat of the Bishops Palace (didn’t go inside the Palace & gardens this time as was quite expensive. Apparently you can get a discount if you are a RHS member). We also walked across to Dulcote Village – you can just see Glastonbury Tor in the distance on this walk.

We had plans to walk the Wookey to Ebbor Gorge trail but after the horrendous rain we had on Sunday decided it would be like a quagmire so put that off for another trip!!

We enjoyed our short time in Wells and aim to return to explore more walks in the area.

#meanderingmumfords #wellstouringpark

Catching a break in the January weather, we took Lizzie out for a 4 night trip to the Waterrow Touring Park near Wiveliscombe in Somerset.

Lovely adult only all year round site set in a valley. The river Tone runs behind the site so you drift off to sleep with the sound of the river and serenaded by owls through the night. Facilities are clean and warm, useful information area, dog walking field, short walk trail by river. Pitches are fully serviced with water pipes and grey water drainage – need a long enough pipe though. We left our waste open to avoid frosting up with a bucket underneath as our hose wasn’t long enough!!
Tried out the new windscreen thermal cover and it certainly reduced the condensation and kept it all warmer so that was a good buy.
Lovely walk to Wiveliscombe first day on deserted country lanes – lots of killer hills for those of us who live in a fairly flat part of the UK these days, but with stunning views at the top overlooking mist laden valleys topped with clear blue skies. We had lunch at the Bear Inn with its own brewery- very nice.

Next day was overcast but we went off for a walk along the old Wiveliscombe road – more hills and rounded one corner to see two helicopters parked in a field!! On chatting to a couple of walkers later we found they were probably for the shoot that was happening in the distance. On our return we took a detour up to Chipstable to see its lovely little church and enjoy a sandwich on the bench whilst admiring the views.
Returned to van and cracked open the jigsaw puzzle to test out the puzzle roll we have – seems to be OK.
Rained throughout the night and we were woken up by mad pheasants making their odd noises. Next day the lanes were even muddier. We had hoped to walk over the fields but it was just way too muddy. So we did a small circular walk via the old Tone Viaduct (built by Brunel but now just a couple of pillars as the railway was discontinued in Dr Beechings cuts). Lovely views again in all directions at the top of the hill. We came back via the Rock Inn pub (only opens in the evenings in Jan and Sunday lunchtime) and treated ourselves to a lovely 2 course Sunday lunch, then had a lazy afternoon in the van, puzzle and TV.
This was a lovely winter break away and would recommend this campsite and hope to return to explore further.

In December we took Lizzie to Oxford for a couple of rather grey overcast days to try her out in colder weather.

We’ve not visited Oxford before and found it to be a lovely city to explore. It is quite compact and whilst there were numerous tours available we opted simply to wander on our own. We were also lucky as it wasn’t too busy – possibly due to covid increasing again.

We were able to walk in to the centre from our campsite along the Thames path, watching the various rowers and scullers along the way; entertained by their trainers cycling alongside shouting instructions to them.

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Oxford has 32 colleges and some are housed in the most beautiful buildings. The famous Bodelian Library and Radcliffe Camera were being prepared as film sets for the new Wonka film during our visit so we didn’t see them at their best, but what we could see was stunning. Oxford is used as backdrops for many films and TV shows (one of which, A Discovery of Witches, we watched on our return and could identify various places we had walked through). Then there is the Bridge of Sighs, the grand old Randolph Hotel with its amazing chandeliers, the Ashmolian Museum, the covered market and Oxford Castle and prison (part of which is now a Malmaison hotel – you can still see the prison layout in the main foyer!) to name a few places to check out. There are also lovely meadows and botanical gardens to explore in better weather.

We were spolt for choice with food and drink, lots of independents as well as the main chains if that is what you prefer. We tried (and can recommend) pies at Pieminster in the covered market and tried out the two historic Nicholson pubs (The Chequers and The Crown). Both steeped in history and were full of character.

We stayed at the Oxford Caravan and Camping Club site. It’s a little noisy as near a main road and railway line so earplugs are useful! The electric hook up was 10 amp so we quickly learnt to use Mix1 on our Truma heater/boiler to prevent tripping everything! The facilities are a little aged but were clean and the staff friendly.

It was a lovely city break to do in December and we have learnt a few more things about Lizzie and motorhome life! We will certainly consider returning to explore further.

We spent nearly 6 weeks exploring Kent and East Sussex in Lizzie in the autumn. We’ve never been to this area of the UK and can definitely recommend it. With its historic cities, medieval towns, castles, cathedrals and estate houses, beautiful coastlines with shingle beaches, world war 2 secret tunnels, white capped oast houses, ancient woodlands full of sweet chestnut trees, vineyards and orchards of local apple and pears trees, there is something for everyone to enjoy.

We based ourselves at campsites (listed at the end of this post) for a few days then explored on foot and public transport rather than uplifting Lizzie everyday. It was easy to in most places although we did use Lizzie whilst near Battle and Rye as the public transport wasn’t particularly good in these areas. Then of course you have the issue of parking a 6metre van (Battle Abbey – Historic England and Battle train station and the car wash car park in Rye are all good).

So where did we visit?

Canterbury – an easy to explore on foot historic city, full of beautiful old buildings and of course the famous cathedral. It also has good bus and train links for exploring Whitstable (with tiny streets and famous oysters) , Herne Bay, Ramsgate ( fascinating tunnel tour here used to protect the townspeople during WW2), Sandwich – a lovely medieval town and Dover (the castle here is a must see – from Tudor history through to its role during the second World War with its underground hospital and secret tunnels from where the Dunkirk beaches evacuation was planned).

Deal and Walmer – we stayed close by and walked in to explore the castles here – both of similar design but Deal was still as it was in Tudor times and Walmer is more of a home as it was later developed and has stunning gardens to enjoy.

Bewl Water – the CL site here was lovely and we spent a beautifully sunny day enjoying an 8 mile circular walk from the site that took in Scotney Castle (National Trust) and Bewl Water reservoir. We also visited Batemans (National Trust) – the beautiful home of the Kipling family on route to our next stop.

Battle – a lovely town with independent shops and of course Battle Abbey and the 1066 Battle of Hastings battleground. This was well worth a visit and is a very poignant tour. We took a train trip from here to Hastings to wander the small streets of Old Town and promenade, taking in the historic Net shops and fishing port (no harbour here, just shingle beaches where the boats are pulled up on to). Of course fish and chips had to be tasted too!

Pevensey – the site was right on the beach and whilst there is little here there is a train station to Eastbourne and beyond. It is also easy to walk to the ruins of Pevensey Castle.

Rye – another historic town with tiny streets (definitely not one for a motorhome!) and views across the river. We also took a trip out to the stunning Bodiam Castle (National Trust) from our site near Rye and stumbled across the Kent and East Sussex steam railway – sadly missed a trip on the train but did see the Cavell Van (railway carriage) which carried Edith Cavell’s body (nurse in world war 1) back to England and also the body of the Unknown Soldier.

Chichester – We stayed here on our way back home. The cathedral was hosting the Moon exhibition which was an added bonus. Chichester is another old city with ancient walls to wander around and easy to explore on foot. We then spent a lovely sunny day walking around Prinsted Beach, part of the much larger Chichester harbour area.

Caravan sites – we joined the Caravan and Camping club to give us a headstart and stayed at the following Club Sites – Chertsey, Canterbury, Normans Bay (Pevensey), Crowborough and Chichester. We then stayed at certified sites – Solleys Ice cream farm (near Deal), Eagles Garth (near Rye), Cedar Gables (near Bewl Water) and finally an independent site near Battle – Senlac Wood Holiday Park.

After a long discussion one evening a couple of months ago, meanderingmumfords plans were changed somewhat. We’ve decided to put Grey Gap Year Take 2 on hold until 2023 when hopefully more countries will be open to explore. Our original plan was to buy a motorhome after the world travel to use to visit the UK and Europe so we have brought that plan forward, after all we’re not getting any younger and life is too short to sit here doing not very much.

So after many hours of research and internet trawling we found a Rollerteam T-line 590, 4 years old that was a perfect fit – 6metre length, rear bathroom with separate shower, good sized fridge/freezer, 3 ring hob and reasonable oven with grill, an electric dropdown bed (so no need to make the bed up every night!) and awning. We’ve taken her out for her maiden voyage with us for a 3 day trip to a caravan & camping club site at Devizes and loved her. She had a couple of issues that have now been rectified by the Motor Home Dealer Group in Dorset, where we bought her, and is now ready for longer trips. Kitting her out has been interesting – never knew there was so much to learn about alarms, trackers, low wattage equipment, cassette toilets (cleaning etc) and the like but I’m sure it’ll be worth it.

Watch this space for our motorhome exploits over the next few weeks and months!

So having had our two jabs and with negative lateral flow tests we headed off to Dorset for a week.

We managed to hire a small motorhome for 4 days from GoSolent (bit of an upgrade for us from the usual campervans we’ve had before, went for a 6 metre van with bathroom!). We spent 2 days at Woodyhyde campsite near Corfe Castle and 2 at Lulworth Holiday Park and then, using our AirBnB vouchers from the Grey Gap Year cancellations, finished off with 3 nights in “pod” at The Penn Estate on the Isle of Portland.

The weather was kind to us so we had plenty of walks, got chased by a cow who thought we were too close to her calf, got to grips with motorhome living (trick is to be VERY tidy!), enjoyed a trip on the Swanage steam railway, explored the Isle of Portland with its Portland Stone quarrys and wonderful walks and had fun at the D-Day experience museum. When the weather finally turned we had a trip down memory lane revisiting Weymouth where we met each other many many years ago and then finished with a day in the beautiful village of Abbotsbury with its Swannery and Subtropical Gardens (we managed to use Tesco vouchers for the entry tickets to these).

Just so lovely to get away and relax and can definitely recommend the camp sites and experiences that we visited.