Hop, skip and a jump

When we left our camping dome, we didn’t move far. My brother, Stuart, lives less than an hour away and we were going to stay with him for a long weekend. Arriving late morning, we unloaded the car, put some washing on, had lunch with him, then went out for the afternoon.

The bees were buzzing at the Quince Honey Farm where we spent a very sensory few hours. We learnt about bee keeping and honey harvesting, tasted some honey and made a beeswax candle. We made time for a visit to the cafe, a wander in the gardens and Racheal had a close encounter with a stick insect! The staff were friendly and helpful, making sure Racheal got to experience everything. She was really concentrating on all the activities, and made a clear choice about her favourite honey - the local, multi-floral honey.

On the Saturday, Stuart was able to join us for a day out. He packed a delicious picnic and we set off for Okehampton, on the edge of Dartmoor. Our picnic spot was in the castle. There were 3 blue badge parking spaces next to the castle, but at first glance getting into the grounds would be impossible. However, a seemingly locked gate turned out just to have an ineffective padlock and a bungee was all that was holding it closed. This gate lead to a grassy path which avoided all the steps to entrance.

We had booked to visit Finch Foundry, a National Trust property nearby. It is a 19th-century water-powered forge originally used to produce agricultural and mining hand tools, now open to the public on selected dates for guided tours. Restored to working order, at least two of the three water wheels turn to power the machinery in the forge where bespoke ironwork objects are still made. Above the forge was a carpenters shop, which made shafts for the tools, and the grind stone. They also relied on the water wheel to power them.

Our last activity of our full day out was a little walk on Dartmoor. Stuart knew a good place to park with an easy track for us to follow, but still with the sense of being on the moor.

Lynmouth was our first port of call on Sunday, taking a scenic route along Hoarsoak Water and East Lyn River. We had hoped to stop at Watersmeet Café, but couldn’t find the road up to it. Lynmouth provided us with parking, lunch in a café looking out to sea, a walk on the quay and some nice little shops. Best of all, we were able to ride on the cliff railway up to Lynton and back. It is only wheelchair accessible from Lynmouth by travelling on the footplate outside the carriage with the driver. At Lynton there are steps to get off and up to the town, but we stayed on and descended the steep incline back to Lynmouth.

We continued our drive westwards, following the coast, along some interestingly steep and narrow, twisting lanes. The views were incredible but there was rarely anywhere to stop safely. Back at Stuart’s, Racheal and Summer caught up on their scrapbook of the trip.

Monday arrived! This was repair day for Racheal’s Treki after two weeks of managing with one brake. We drove to Exeter and found ‘Unique Mobility’ fairly easily. The engineer, Mike, was ready and waiting to get on with it, so after a few formalities, we left him to it and caught a bus into the city. First stop was the cathedral, where we had lunch and spent some time looking around.

From there we walked down to the quay to look at the small craft shops and another café. By the time we came out, the rain which had threatened all day, started to fall. Summer and I got very wet on the way back to the bus stop, but Racheal stayed dry under her waterproof poncho.

With the Treki mended, we were ready for the next leg of our trip. Tuesday morning we loaded the car, said good bye to Stuart and headed for Wales.