Iona stays by a Canal

Narrow Bridge Cottage, Hayton - Trip 7

May 9th - 11th, 2017. 

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It was an easy drive up the A1 and then to Retford and a bit further to the site. The entrance is down a narrow lane and over what looked like a steep hump back bridge over the canal. Luckily we made it over without scraping anything underneath.

The site is a C&CC authorised CL site although as we drove by the cottage it all looked a bit shabby, however the grass paddocks were fairly level. The electric hookups were in a shed complete with old fashioned coin operated meters that took pound coins. There was one fresh water tap by the entrance and an Elson point hidden by a fence which was decking with a manhole cover, on removing the cover you exposed an open cesspit, it was pretty gross and not for the faint hearted. However the Toilet and Shower block was clean and tidy.

After a bite to eat we decided to go for a walk along the canal back towards Retford, the tow path had recently been cut and it was a pleasant walk that took us past various gardens and a Swan sitting on a large nest. We passed under several typical hump back canal bridges. After the last one the canal turned to the right and just around the bend we discovered a Pub. The Gateway Inn. Although it was 3.30pm we decided it would be rude not to call in for a drink. We sat outside, although not sunny it was warm enough. A canal boat arrived and tied up, they had the same idea as us. It made a pleasant break and we made our way back to Iona.

By the time we got back the sky was clearing and the sun appeared. We sat outside with a drink until the sun lost it's strength as it began to set and the spring chill came back. Sue cooked a curry which was appreciated after the early evening chill. Tomorrow the forecast is sun so we will probably stay on site.

Day 2:

As forecast we awoke to clear blue skies and the Sun. I got the table and chairs out and we made ourselves at home. Out came the kindles. This place is so peaceful, we are surrounded by birdsong, pheasants having dust baths less than 20 yards from us, rabbits appearing at the edge of the campsite. 

Being  nosey I started to investigate the edge of the site and I found an old seed drill hidden in the undergrowth with hazel trees growing up through it's workings, a bit further on in the corner of the site was an old caravan and shed with a shelter between. With seats in the shelter and bird feeders hanging from a wire stretched between the trees. There was also a big cage suspended from a tree again with feeders inside, out of reach of the squirrels. The feeders were all empty and it was quite spooky in the trees and it reminded me of the film Deliverence. Luckily I could not hear any dualing banjos.

The Old Seed Drill

The rest of the day was spent sitting in the sun reading and getting sunburnt. Sue has a red nose that resembles the beak of a moorhen, talking of which, there is a laural hedge next to Iona, directly opposite our door there is a moorhen sitting on a nest four foot off the ground. 

We sat outside in the late sun with a glass of wine before retiring inside for a meal of Ribs and salad.

Day 3:

Another great morning with blue sky and full sun. Our last day and it started as always with the daily chores but first a shower in the van, I could not be bothered to go to the shower in the toilet block.

Then the job I had been dreading, emptying the toilet cassette, normally not an issue but as described on day one it looked pretty gross, and the experience lived upto expectations.

After a spell of reading and David Otter the owner appeared with an article he wrote and a picture of the sky taken as the finished putting in the final eleventh post of the Henge, in the sky vapour trails made the Roman numeral of XI. 

I suggested that we go for a short walk, so we set off along the canal in a different direction from our first outing. We very soon came to the Boat Inn that has recently closed and is awaiting another tenant landlord. It is a shame because it used to be a Brit-Stop where a friend used to stay in his motorhome. 

We continued along the towpath for a couple of miles, saw some swans, muskovi ducks and we nearly gained a dog as we passed a moored narrow boat. 

We could not find a bridge over the canal and the next one looked some distance away so we left the towpath and followed the edge of a field until we met a road and doubled back to the Boat Inn where we joined the canal towpath and headed home. Our short walk turned out to be just under five miles.

This evening the wind died and it remained quite warm even at 9.15pm when I went to check the electricity meter. We have had the electric heating on and the electric hob and we only used about £1.50 a day. 

The bird song was strong tonight with a Robin giving his all in a tree nearby, the pheasants called as they went up to roost in the trees in what David Otter calls his poets corner, an area of apple trees and pines with the odd Oak tree for good measure. This site is like no other site we have used, it is basic with ehu but so quiet with the only sounds  of  the birds and you sometimes hear the nesting swans on the canal.

Day 4:

Heading home today. The great thing about the new van is that there is no awning to pack away so we can take our time packing the cupboards. Today it is overcast so going home is easier than if we awoke to a sunny day.

Trip 7: distance 89,9 miles, av MPH 28, MPG 27.1, 3hr 11m.

Iona goes to Nottinghamshire

Midshires Barn, East Leake - Trip:6. 

April 25th - 28th,2017.

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We were going to a Temporary Holiday Site at Epworth in Lincolnshire, there was not EHU (electric hook up) so we would have to rely on solar power. This is not a problem but the weather forecast suddenly changed to sleet, rain and possible snow.  Not the sort of weather to wild camp in. We decided to look for a small listed site and Sue found Midshires Barn camping site, which has five hard standing pitches with all the amenities. We have booked three nights.

 

After trying to ignore the sat nav I gave up because it rerouted us every time back to the original route. We arrived after just over an hour and after paying and getting instructions we made our way to the pitch. They are still working on a shower block and toilet but the pitch did have water and waste which was a first for us, the downside is that the CDU is 200yds away by the entrance along with the rubbish bin.

The sun was out when we arrived but it is now clouding over, which is why the pictures look so dark.

Day 2:

Near the centre of the village is the historic St. Mary's Church, which dates back to the 11th century. The church has six bells. One of the earliest mentions of East Leake is in the Domesday book recorded as 'Leche.'

We awoke to sunshine and the forecast gave a dry morning so we walked into East Leake. It appears to be a very affluent village with plenty of facilities and some history. We walked the entire length of the village and it was apparent that the original cottages are still there although modernised. We counted five churches .

John Bley (1674-1731) who built the Bley Free School his school (1724) where the old Brookside Primary School now stands, and then his Georgian house on Main Street (1718). John's tomb is to be found below the west window of the parish church.

The Millenium Stone

Great Central Railway

We walked back home and went to look at the resident Alpacas. One of which took a liking to my bald head as I tried to get a selfie to outdo a friend's selfie with a goat.

This was my attempt at a Selfie

She took a liking to my bald head

The rest of the day was spent reading as plane watching as the site is under the flight path for East Midlands airport, however unlike Heathrow the planes came in batches as opposed to one every minute, and the noise was minimal.

Day 3:

Today it is raining and it is forecast for the day so we may just have to stay in and read. Although this evening our eldest son is coming to pick us up and we are going for a meal at the Windmill inn in Wymeswold..

The meal was very good and we were back in Iona by 21.30, where there just happened to be some wine, a good end to a great evening.

Day 4: 

We headed for home at 11.00am and the route was better and we were home by 12.30pm.

Trip 6 : 87.5 miles, 26.2 mpg, av speed 29 mph, 2hrs 55min.

Getting ready for Woodhall Spa

Jubilee Park , Woodhall Spa - Trip 5

April 10th - 13th,2017.

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Well, as you have read the warranty repair of the cooker is still ongoing. Nick is just waiting for the parts. In the meantime I have added rubber to the waste tank brackets to stop any movement.The new rechargeable sensor lights are up and running. I have purchased a filler cap for the fresh water, so I can connect the hose directly to the filler. I am not planning any more add ons but who knows.

Iona is all clean and ready for our next outing. We are planning this time to go back to Woodhall Spa.

It all started to go wrong when I could not lock the driveway gate, after readjusting the gate and clearing the bolt hole we finally locked up and climbed into Iona. I switched the sat nav on and nothing happened. I rebooted it and we got a blue screen. I gave up and because we know the way to Woodhall Spa we just set off. The trip there was OK but the road camber and the bumps make it a stressful drive. 

We arrived after an hour and we were escorted to pitch 50. The site was packed but not quite full of Tuggers mainly with a splattering of motorhomes. We levelled the van and I went for water. Water pressure was high and the hose jumped out of the aqua roll and did a series of spirals while drenching me on every pass, looking like a drowned rat I made my way back to Iona. With the pump setup I retired to change into some dry clothes. And then again I went for some more water but this time I was prepared and completed the task without getting wet.

I had a closer look at the sat nav and I think it was something to do with the power lead, but even when changing that it still froze so a couple of reboots and it appears to have got over itself. I left it charging in case that was part of the issue.

The original Spa

The Tea House

Primroses

After a bite to eat we went for an impromptu walk to the Kinema in the Woods and the old Spa buildings. While checking out the work that the woodsmen had completed since we were last here we saw a large Roe deer buck. He was quite happily walking along until he saw us and froze. He watched us for several minutes and then turned and ran off into the thick rhododendrons. We found a path that took us by the golf course and came out at the Tea Shop in the woods, unfortunately I had left my wallet in the van so we carried on walking towards the park, taking pictures as we went.

We had an amazing tea of beef wellington with a port jus, garlic mushrooms and butter mash, accompanied by a nice red wine.

Beef Wellington

Day 2.

We were joined at 11.am by our daughter in law and our grandsons. The sun was out and there is a play park 100mtrs away. Katie, our daughter in law, had some friends staying at the same site in their caravan, so after lunch they all went off for a walk around the woods and peace returned for a while. I joined Sue outside and sat reading our books behind the van out of the wind.

Nannie

Katie and the boys returned for a drink before they set off for home. We returned to sit outside for a bit longer but the wind got stronger and we gave in and went back inside. At 18.00 it was still sunny and our neighbours had the BBQ on the go.

Day 3:

We woke up to thick cloud and by 9.00am it was raining. We spent the next hour doing the normal jobs around the van. The rain soon stopped and we walked into Woodhall to post an order and to see if we could find any chunky wine glasses. After the post office we popped into the co-op for a couple of things and then walked up to the bakery for  a couple of pasties for lunch. Unfortunately they only had one left but there was another batch due out of the oven in ten minutes. We walked on a bit further and then returned to the bakery where we paid for the pasties and waited until they were ready.

 

After checking the hardware shop for glasses we decided to go through the woods back to the van and try to find a seat where we could sit down to eat the very hot pasties. After the snack we continued through the wood , I took a picture of some ivy that was 4' thick and another tree with knobbly growths. 

We headed for The Petwood Hotel , while here we needed to take a picture with Grace Bear to show where we had taken her on this trip. We settled on a new gazebo that has been built to replace the original that had long since fallen down.

We followed the new path around the perimeter of the wood where we found some Rhododendrons and came out at the main lawn where we made our way back to Iona.

The rest of the afternoon was spent reading and people watching, the rain stayed away but the wind steadily grew stronger. Tea tonight was mussels and fries with crusty bread that we bought earlier. Tomorrow we pack up and head home, but without the awning it does not take long to get ready.

Day 4:

Time to pack. The things that take the time is wrapping everything to stop rattles but Sue has it down to a tee, however after being on the road for half a mile we had to stop because there was a banging every time I braked. I thought it was coat hangers hitting the wardrobe door so I removed them and set off again. However the noise was still there and we came to the conclusion that it was a cupboard door that was not closed properly. Sue waited until we stopped at a junction and nipped back to check and sure enough the small cupboard door in the bedroom was not locked shut. Once that was sorted we had no further issues and the trip home went well. 

Trip 5: 61.9 miles, av speed 28mph, 25.1 mpg, 2.12 hrs