When we planned this trip last November I was expecting to be relatively quiet with work. However, a number of interesting assignments have come along which can be managed from a distance. It does mean that I have to be disciplined and do some work in the morning before walking after lunch.
Whilst I do my work Lynnie undertakes the daily chores around the Coachman. There is still cleaning and hoovering to be done, dogs need brushing and of course there is a need to do some washing.
During our travels in 2014 we purchased a special camping washing machine. At the time we were pleased to find one, but within a couple of weeks Lynnie decided that it was a glorified salad spinner and that hand washing was just as effective. So we ended up carrying the thing around for a number of months. It is soon to be made available on eBay!
In the process of hand washing I have a role to play. I am the wringer, as opposed to the ringer, a role I used to play on the pool tables in West London back in the early eighties. It was surprising how much a boy with a Wiltshire accent could get away with, “not sure I know how to play, I usually play bar billiards, can you explain the rules?”
Anyway I digress, after I have wrung the washing it goes on the airer to dry. Unfortunately, one of us has forgotten the airer this trip, I am not sure if this was by accident or design. So today we are going to purchase a specialist rotary clothesline so the washing will dry quicker. I am a bit miffed, if Lynnie had mentioned this before Christmas I would not have hesitated, in April it is still months to her birthday. I think she is sneaking in an extra present!
I could write a whole blog on the art of buying presents for one’s spouse. In brief you just have to listen for clues and then you can’t go far wrong. For example “I am fed up of burning my fingers ” translates to “I would like a pair of oven gloves for Christmas”, and “It is hard crushing beer cans for re-cycling” I hear as “please buy me a can crusher for Christmas this year”.
Over the years Lynnie has been properly spoilt, personally I think my best Christmas present for her was a new ironing board with de-lux cover! As I remind her everyday, she is a lucky woman.
To purchase the sought after rotary dryer we need to make a trip to Barnstaple and whilst we are over that side of the water avail ourselves of the finest Chinese take-away we have come across anywhere in the UK (not that we visit many). But first we need to go for a walk.
Our starting point is Fremington Quay and we head off along the Tarka Trail, I have previously written in detail about this walk. We march off at speed, there is rain forecast. It is a straightforward route along a tarmac path that used to be a railway line. As we approach Instow we take a footpath on the right just before the cricket ground. This leads us across the edge of Instow Barton Marsh and onto the coastal path.
Again our route is easy to follow and soon passes the site of the old Yelland power station that I wrote about on a previous trip. Next we skirt around the edge of East Yelland Marsh, at this point the footpath re-joins the Tarka Trail so we turn left and head back to the car.
My Suunto Traverse shows that we have covered just over six miles. I decide to keep the map running so that it shows the way to Han Court in Fremington; this is a cracking Chinese restaurant and takeaway. It is a busy Friday evening so we have a wait. We opt to pop across the road to the New Inn for a pint of Otter. We have been visiting this pub, intermittently, for the best part of twenty-five years and it appears to be the same as on our first visit.
To view this walk on OS Maps Click Here
To follow this walk you will need Ordnance Survey Explorer Map 139 – Bideford, Ilfracombe and Barnstaple.
8th April 2016
© Two Dogs and an Awning (2016)