Great Haywood to the Isle of Skye

Cley, Norfolk

We have mentioned this and apologised before, but we need to mention it and apologise again. We frequently fail to blog at the end of our trips. The start and most of the journey is fairly well documented, but the final chapter is nearly always missing. And although there are no excuses, there are explanations: It is the busyness at the end of the trip, and on the last occassion, it was busier than ever as we met up with family and collected our vehicle from the previous marina.

But we did arrive at Great Haywood (on the 10th June) where we put the boat on sale with Great Haywood Boat Sales. Captain had been studying the monthly sales (percentage sold of the boats on offer) for various brokers, and Great Haywood came out at the top of his list.

Glen Coe

The boat is now gone to to a happy and excited Bill and Kate who will be taking her down to the River Avon.You could say that first mate has sold her first painting since they wanted the pictures leaving on board. They are all prints in order to preserve the originals so this flattering request was easy to accommodate.

We are trying our hand at the motorhome thing. We have used our experience of boating and done a skills transfer thing about living smart. The fundamental differences seem to be, getting used to a cassette toilet having had a large holding tank (not a problem) and sussing out the joys of campsites (which are completely new). There are so many options here. Small sites with only 5 pitches called certified locations; large sites with a mix of vehicles and tents which bring kids to play bat and ball at 7 in the morning; adult only sites which suggest the company of intolerant old gits who only want to be with people who look like them. That said, we have had good experiences in campsites on the North Norfolk coast and in Wigton, Cumbria - famous for being the birth place of Melvyn Bragg. In truth, the campsites are just places to take on water and empty the cassette. We are totally uninterested in the showers or laundry facilities. Wild camping is a misnoma since it just means finding a scenic overnight parking spot but it works better for us.

Loch Carron

This our first big road trip to the Highlands of Scotland and it's been grand so far. We have wild camped in the peace of Glen Coe and stayed at a small marina campsite in the historic harbour town of Maryport and are now in a cottage on the shores of Loch Carron.

We have taken our motorhome out for days to Skye and Ullapool. It all seems to work. This blog may continue about another mode of transport but the spirit of adventure will continue.