And the final part, to the relief of many no doubt! Yes, our Easter holidays getaway has come to an end. The washing machine can just be heard in-between frequent exasperated sighs as I chase letters around the keyboard in an attempt to bring you up to date with what’s been happening.
Well, in sightseeing terms - not a lot. However it’s been an eventful week or so, so here goes.
Saturday and Sunday were near total washouts weather wise. I caught up on some blog stuff while Trev did a bit of ‘house’ work. Sunday afternoon, with nothing in - well there was but neither of us was about to cook it - we ventured out for a late lunch. We lucked out at our first choice - the Kings Arms - as everyone else seemed to have the same idea. We missed out by ten minutes at our ‘local’ the Delaval Arms so ended up at the Melton Constable - which turned out to be a very very good third choice and better than our previous visit during the week.
Monday saw us drag Patsy through the Tyne Tunnel and down the A1 to Yorkshire. The weather improved a little as we went but it was nigh on freezing packing up and my hands felt like blocks of ice as I attended to the water, waste and so on.
Around midday we arrived at Naburn Locks Caravan Park just a few miles south of York. Easy to find, a friendly welcome and an attractive looking park with nice big pitches. We got sorted then later had a meal at the local The Blacksmith Arms in the village. My Cajun Chicken with rice and garlic bread was awesome. Trev’s burger sadly not.
Whatpub.com had listed another pub very close by so we thought we’d have a trundle to have a look. Close it was - if had a boat or fancied a swim - as it was the other side of the Ouse and entailed a long trip around to cross the river. After what seemed like a lifetime - or one of our Sunday Night Natters at least we found it - the car park being across the road and adjacent a dangerously high Ouse river. It was nice enough but turned pump clips suggested it had been a busy day on the real ale and the only one left tasted like it was on the turn too.
Tuesday saw the arrival of friend and fellow caravanner David who would be joining us for a couple of days. After Trev sated us with some delicious bacon baps we had a wander down to the Naburn Locks - just a few minutes walk through the site. Blimey, I knew there'd been some rain but just how much clearly evident as we surveyed the scene in front of us. The lock gates were hardly visible and I would estimate that the water was around 7-8 feet higher than normal. This should have rang some alarm bells - but it didn't!
Wednesday saw us in Bradford - we’d been invited to the Pro-tec factory to have a look around, chew the cud and devour some sandwiches. For the uninitiated Pro-tec make covers for caravans - all over for storage and front covers to protect your ‘van when towing. They’d launched anew product at the February NEC show which had generated a lot of interest, it’s unique selling point being that it zipped up the middle, could be quickly fitted by one person and was competitively priced. We got so see their team in action - including some very skilled seamstresses - and also a scout around the new factory which they would be shortly moving into.
We’d put out a call on social media for questions we could put to Paul the MD about his products, the new towing jacket in particular and caravan covers in general. Paul agreed to go on camera and Trev in his best Paxman voice asked the questions. It was informative, entertaining and the video will be out real soon. A big thanks to Pro-tec for inviting us over, for showing us around and of course the sandwiches!
Back at the site things weren't good. Some of the pitches were now under water and we we urged to move onto the higher area as soon as we could - with the rain still failing and water levels rising it was the only sensible thing to. We didn’t contemplate any further grief and made it to the pub for dinner and back without having to resort to the breast stroke.
In the morning however the water had risen further and the main road through the site - and to the exit was now well under water - along with our original pitch. With an lunchtime appointment at our next site in Cambridgeshire we wondered how on earth we were going to get out.
Fortunately the site owner had a wide er, back passage and soon after eight we trundled gently out and were soon on our way down the dear old A1.
Our final destination was Stroud Hill Park - an adults only site under the Tranquil Parks umbrella situated in the village of Pidley. Out three nights here would give us time to catch up with friends and family and do some sorting out before Patsy goes back in storage for a few weeks. We were also due to meet with Cover 4 Caravans boss Richard for a catch up. As many will know we provide both written and video content for their website in the form of exclusive Site Reviews and a series of videos on caravanning for beginners.
Catch up we did, first in Patsy where Trev served up more delicious bacon baps then over in the on-site bar - now you know why we chose this site! With plans for further collaborative projects hatched we said our goodbyes under a rare but extremely welcome blue sky.
Friday was catch up day with friends and family then Friday evening dined at the on site restaurant - and what a meal it was. A special occasion too as it was our twelfth anniversary. Good food and good company made for a very enjoyable evening.
Our last full day in the ‘van for a while saw a brief incursion into Huntingdon for fuel. This trip has been a tough one for old Rosie, dragging a tonne and half of Patsy around in all weathers. She is starting to show her age - and mileage - but still performed well, if a little thirstily at times.
With packing up nearly complete we headed to the bar to record the latest Sunday Night Natters. Came back, went over for dinner the recorded it again after discovering the lapel microphones were on the blink, much to the amusement of our fellow diners.
Sunday saw, as usual an early start for the 3 hours or so back to the south coast. Our visit to Stroud Hill Park had been brief - too brief in fact. It is a lovely site - generously sized full serviced pitches, pristine and spacious ensuite facilities and the ever welcome on site bar and restaurant which served up some mighty good food too. There will be a Site Arrival Video and Site Tour out at some point and we hope to be able to squeeze in another visit in the summer. It’s a handy stopping off point for our trips up north.
Right, that’s it. The New Forest is next at the end of May which we’re really looking forward to - along with - I hope some better weather too! So, until then,
Thanks as always
Rich & Trev