Holiday, Stoke Gabriel, Devon

Dorothy’s 2008 05 16 to 2008 05 22

Friday 16th May 2008

Left home and stopped at Melling’s, just up the road, to fill up with petrol.  Left garage at 1500 hours.

Good run to Hilton Park then got delayed in traffic for twenty minutes between there and Junction 8.

Stopped at Frankley services to change drivers and relieve ourselves. 

Clear road again until we crossed the Avon bridge, when we had to stop start for a little way until the four lanes had got down to three again.

Stopped again at Taunton Dean Services to change drivers and relieve ourselves.  Sue had her ‘packed salad, bought from John, before we stopped and I had mine when we set off again.

We then had a clear run to Dorothy’s arriving at approximately 2030 hours.

Lots of hugs.  We unloaded most stuff and then had a lovely walk down to the quay.  The wisteria on the large wall near the quay was beautiful.

This photo was taken a few days later, Sunday.

Saturday 17th May

Got up to rain and it rained all day, yes all day without a break, just harder sometimes than others.

We half watched the football match after showing Dorothy pictures of our painting and garden.

After lots of biscuits, honey tea, scones, jam and cream, decided I must go for a walk despite the rain.  Dorothy and Sue not interested.  Sue had been down to the grocers to get me some honey earlier in the day.  I walked down to the quay, the tide was going out.  Walked round the Mill Pool and on to the road.  Decided to go for a longer walk so carried on down Byker Mill Lane.  Saw the heron and two little egrets at the top end of the pool.  Carried on past the bat lady’s (Sylvia) house and down into the village to see what time the post office was open, for postcards.  Monday next time.

Got home in time for ‘Nancys’, Dorothy’s favourite programme.

Watched ‘Have I got news for you’ and went to bed to read.

Sunday 18th May

0800 hours, been typing up painting notes, it’s not raining!

After breakfast lifted pump out of pond and cleaned it.  Fixed a piece of rope to it to make it possible for Dorothy to lift the pump out without having to put her hand in the muddy bottom of the pond.

We relaxed in the sun for a while.

Sue texting the family

Dorothy and Sue went to Sainsbury’s for provisions, while I went to Focus for wire and chord.

After lunch Dorothy mowed the back lawn and Sue did the edges.  Then they set about weeding and tidying up the beds.

Meanwhile I walked down to the quay to photograph the wisteria to show to Chris.  Walked out to the point and nosed round the boathouse. 

Looking back to the village from Mill Point, where the Stoke Gabriel Boating Association boat house is.

Spoke to Mr Deacon, who was working on his Enterprise and asked him when was a good time to sail.  He said it was best when the tide was coming in then you could always get back.  He showed me were the deep water was and where to launch.  To go up stream was a bit unpredictable because the trees shielded the river from the wind.

Walked back round the Mill Pool and up the road.  Saw the heron again.  Sue and Dorothy were still busy in the garden.

As they were busy I walked down to Duncannon quay.  Took lots of photographs.

View of the boats moored on the river just above the quay.

Decide to help and cut the front lawn when I came back, Sue did the edges.

 Monday 19th May

Today we had to go to Totnes to take something for Melanie.  It was another nice day.

Started work on transferring the front door bell push from the old front door, now in porch to the outside of the new front door.  Got the bell push fixed in place but it still needed sealing.

We went to Melanie’s warehouse to deliver the package; it turned out to be a top for wearing when Melanie and Tony went to Germany for their trade fair.

We parked the car in Totnes town centre and shopped for the junction box that I forgot to get on Sunday, we also got a spare fuse for Dorothy’s up and over garage door mechanism. 

We had lunch at a nice little café, similar to the Blue House in Chorley that we sometimes go to.  We had homity pie and salad.  It was a sort of butter pie with a cheese crust?

We looked for a hard-backed Roget’s Thesaurus but couldn’t find one.  Dorothy wanted to buy me an art book for my seventieth birthday so we went across the road to the art shop and found one on perspective.  We also got a few paints and a soft backed book on seascapes and one on figure drawing.  I walked on ahead and got a tube of sealant from the hardware shop higher up.

We drove round to the Steamer Quay and enquired about the steamer sailings, I’ve always wanted to sail up and down the Dart on one of the cruisers.

This is the Cardiff Castle coming up to Totnes.  Would we sail to Dartmouth and back on her?

We walked along the river downstream from Totnes for a while, strolling leisurely and the ladies patting the many dogs we saw.

Lovely sunshine but still very cool in the wind.

Home for a cup of tea and currant bread toast.

I continued working on the bell push and got it all wired up and the wire fixed in place with p-clips and sealer.  The sealer takes twenty-four hours to dry so I left it until tomorrow to finish off.  The clip nails wouldn’t go into the concrete so I wanted to replace them with a covering of sealer to hide the wire.

After tea we walked down to the quay and back.

Tuesday 20th May

Didn’t sleep very well.  Got up and washed before breakfast so that I would be ready to take Dorothy’s car in for service, which I managed to do for 0905 hours.  Walked back via Post Office where I got the papers and some post cards.  It promised to be another sunny day, not very warm though.

Wrote out the cards, I did Chris’ and Therese’s and Sue did the childrens’.

We all, the four of us, went into Torquay for lunch, Dorothy’s treat for my seventieth birthday,  It was at the Willows carvery.  Good meal, all you could eat for £3.50.
 
From the pub we went straight to Marks & Spencers so that Dorothy could buy Sue a birthday present.   After some considerable time and various tryings on she bought Sue a navy blue top.  Sue also bought a thick white cardigan, a small white top and I got a dark blue polo shirt.

Afterwards we drove along the front and stopped at Paignton to watch the kite surfer. 

I rolled my tracksuit up and paddled in my sandals.  Great I’d actually been in the sea.

Alex texted that David had had another good morning at school.  Great.

Drove home and dropped Dorothy off at the garage to pick her car up.

We had a cup of tea and scone with jam and cream.  Then we walked up Duncannon Lane to feed the horses 

And walk the dog.  We entered the fields to give Dudley a free run

Dudley, the dog.

Sue and Dorothy went home to make the tea.  I carried on down to the river and sat on the seat for a while. 

Duncannon from the seat.  The earlier boats were taken from a position just above the house on the right of the picture.

Walked along the shore and joined the permissive path, couldn’t find the right place to join it, missed the opening but scrambled up the cliff to find it.  Saw two shell ducks.  Back down to the shore and the quay.

The dinghies/tenders on the pontoon.

 I walked back up the hill for tea.

Watched the BBC1 news and then walked down to the quay again to see the tide come over the dam but was too late the tide was already in.  A gentleman there, obviously a keen birdwatcher, showed us, through his telescope, a peregrine falcon perched in a tree eating it’s tea. 

Sue feeding the ducks and ducklings.

We also saw a swift and lots of swallows.  There was a cormorant fishing and I saw it swallowing one out in the creek.

Walked back home to finish filling in the bell wiring and then watch the Chelsea flower show.  Tried to watch Waking the Dead but fell asleep again!

Wednesday 21st May

Cold cloudy morning, looked like rain but the TV news said there would be sunny periods?

Reluctantly got washed and dressed before breakfast.  We decided to go anyway, Dorothy and Sue keen to go.

We set off about 0940 hours.  The traffic into Totnes was very light and we arrived on the quay in good time without incident.

The boat, the Cardiff Castle, arrived and we left on time at 1030 hours.  It was still overcast and the wind was cold.  We sat at the front of the boat so had the full force of the wind and wind due to the boat’s speed.  Otherwise it was very pleasant.  The boat was nearly empty?  It’s a big boat.

We saw scullers, birds and were given a commentary of all the features on the way to Dartmouth.

We arrived in Dartmouth at approximately 1145 hours.  We disembarked and walked round the town a little and found a café for lunch.  Fortunately, we’d made a good choice.

After lunch in a nice little café, we walked to the castle.

This building caused quite a bit of interest to Dorothy and Sue.  Was it new or an old one being restored?

Sue bought ice creams at the castle and we walked back to the boat.  We were horrified to see a long queue waiting to board and our first thoughts were: will there be room for us?  There was plenty of room.  The extra passengers were the ones who had come to Dartmouth via bus and train on the round robin ticket.

We saw more birds and a seal but had the same commentary!

After tea we walked down to the quay to watch the water come over the dam, talked to a gentleman from York.

Thursday 22nd May

Another lovely morning.  We had decided to go home after lunch but it was after tea when we actually set off, just before 1800 hours. 

Sue and Dorothy worked in the garden, Sue encouraging Dorothy to plant out all the pots she had accumulated over the months but had not got round to putting in. 

About mid afternoon I felt like going for a walk so having got permission I set off.  I walked down to the quay meaning to go out to Mill Point but felt the urge to cross the dam and walk through the woods, which I did.  I walked as far as the end of the path where it emerged into fields with a farm in the distance and farm people visible.  I decide not to go on.  It turned out that I’d gone too far anyway, on to forbidden territory.   I scrambled on a path down to the shore and walked back along the shore to the dam.  Reaching the dam, I determined to walk the other way through the woods alongside the mill pool.  After a while, I came to a gate and went through it until I came to a tarmaced road.  I decide to turn back.   All in all when I got back to Dorothy’s I had been walking for an hour or so.

We had an incredible run home, no hold ups.  I drove first to Michael Wood Services where we changed drivers and then Sue drove to Keele Services where I took over again.  We arrived home at 2250 hours, under five hours journey with two stops.

A lovely holiday.