A big decision to make

 Lots have happened since our return to FS last Tuesday. The park at Presteigne ticked all the boxes, and we came away thinking this must be the right park for us. Feeling excited, we phoned the family. Our daughter was all for it, even though we said they would have at least 2.5 hours to drive from their house. Our son Colin, on the other hand, was very much against it. Their drive would be nearer 3 hours and his argument was that if anything happened to us, he wouldn't be able to get to us in a hurry. By now, feeling very deflated, we gave up on that park, feeling that we needed to take both our children's thoughts into consideration. 

On Wednesday, 17th we drove to Grantham. Another park called Lakeside, with three fishing lakes, had also been on our list to see. This is a very new park, having only been open for two years. About 10 homes have already arrived and been occupied, and several plots are being developed. So the place looked a bit like a builders' site, but with imagination, you could see what it could be.

view from one of the show homes window. Building work can be seen on the left.

The developing plots above and below

 

4 mobile homes purely for fishermen who want to stay for short periods

All the lakes hold specimen fish (catfish, very large carp and coarse fish)

pizza oven

4 more plots for development

We spent nearly 4 hours at this park, not just talking to the owners but to the residents as well and without the owners present. Everything pointed to a well-run park site. So, a lot of decisions to make, our children are all for it, the drive for both is about 90 minutes. We have chosen the mobile home and picked a possible site to put it on. Again, not developed yet, but will eventually overlook one of the lakes. All I can say is watch this space.

Back at FS, one of the first things we did was to order a fridge for the motorhome. That took some finding, and unfortunately, the same model of fridge was no longer available. The one we did get has a smaller capacity but fits in the space like a glove. Yesterday we both went to the motorhome at the storage yard. My 'man that can' removed the old fridge, we both manhandled it out of the door, and the new fridge was carefully taken in. We didn’t want that damaged, considering how much it cost! It has to stand for 48 hours because laying it down in the car boot was the only way to transport it. Ian assures me that the gases will have settled after that, and it can be switched on.

 

No more plans for a motorhome getaway at present. Family commitments keep us tied to Langley Mill, although we will be 'teenage sitting' for two weeks starting next week at Milton Keynes. Toffee will also be coming to stay in August for three weeks. We do so love having her to stay. Every now and then, we need our doggy fix.

Park home and Leisure Show

 Near the Stoneleigh show ground was a CC site. It happened to be at the Rugby Club, and electric hook-up, as well as drinking water, grey water disposal and Elsan were all on hand. It was the ideal place to stay for three nights because on Friday and Saturday, we planned to visit the showground to see what was on offer in the way of new and used mobile homes.

Our allocated pitch was under a tree, and it wasn't the rain that kept us awake but the high winds
 

Two days of wandering around the show ground looking at mobile homes of all shapes and sizes, chatting to various manufacturers, we found one we both liked. The manufacturer is Pathfinders, and the 50ft X 22ft mobile home feels like the right size for us. It has 2 bedrooms, one with an en suite, a guest bathroom, a kitchen-diner, a separate lounge, and an added bonus of a small study. 

 The price is within our budget, and can be taken to any location of our choice. The biggest problem is finding the right park home in the area we want, and that could take some time. Of course, we still have to give our tenant notice and then sell the bungalow, so nothing will happen in the immediate future, but at least we have some sort of plan now.

June 14th. Unplanned journey

Leaving the Rugby ground for Powys, it was a touch of deja vu as we almost followed the same route back to Wales. This wasn't planned, we were going back to the boat but talking to a site owner at the show, and being shown photos of the park, and the fact we were only a couple of hours from the Welsh border, it was too good an opportunity not to go and see it. So we found a pub stopover, The Bateman Arms, at Shobdon. It's literally about 20 minutes from Presteigne, where Norton Manor Estate park home is situated. This photo from the leaflet

 A meal was booked for 5.30pm, Ian chose steak and ale pie, and I had the lasagna. Wow is all I can say. Never have I had such a flavoursome lasagna; it was delicious, and Ian's handmade pie was full to the brim with tender succulent beef. We both highly recommend this pub! I suppose the only fly in the ointment was the red wine. They only had Malbec or Merlot, no Shiraz, but that was a small price to pay for such a good meal and excellent service. 

 So, I wonder what tomorrow will bring. 

Issues with the fridge and we visit Raglan Castle

 June 9th

Arrrggghhhh....the smell hit us suddenly just before dinner.  A very strong smell of ammonia, strong enough to catch at the back of our throats and make our eyes water. But where was it coming from? We immediately went outside, and although there was a faint smell, as soon as we re-entered the motorhome, it became apparent that the source was from inside. After looking at the batteries and electrics, Ian opened the fridge and OMG....now we knew where the smell was coming from. It was a leak from the refrigeration circuit that was the obvious cause. The fridge was switched off immediately, all windows and doors opened for ventilation, and even overnight, with the temperature dropping to a cool 5-6 degrees, we still left the roof vents open. Extra blankets it was for us both, then. I was very relieved to wake up this morning with the smell gone.

June 10th 

Without a working fridge, this morning I cooked everything I could that had started to defrost. The sausages and bacon we had for breakfast and tonight’s dinner will be the breaded chicken, defrosted chips, now very soft, and a handful of peas. Thrown out were the rest of the peas; I had bought a large bag that would now just go soggy and nasty if left, and although I had thought of soup, we couldn't keep it cool, and we certainly couldn’t eat a massive pan full! Ian looked at the cost of a new fridge...we were shocked at the price! It's not an option, though, if we want to keep the motorhome; we just have to open the wallet and fork out!

We were the last van to leave the site this morning, the loo emptied first, and water tank filled. The only plan we had for today was to visit Raglan Castle, so we took our time leaving.

With nothing on TV these days worth watching  (football is not our thing), we have revisited the series Merlin, first filmed in March 2008. It's on Amazon Prime, and we only recently found out where some of the scenes were filmed. Raglan Castle was one such place, especially in the courtyard, where Morgana sacrifices her sister, Morgause, to tear a veil between two worlds, releasing the deadly shadow creatures.   So of course, we had to have a look.

 

We think it was filmed here.

The castle itself was pretty spectacular; built in the 15th century by a Welsh nobleman, Sir William ap Thomas, and finished by his son William Thomas. Much of what remains at Raglan dates during the period of the Wars of the Roses and the rise of the Tudor dynasty. The castle was besieged for ten weeks in 1646 by parliamentarian troops and ultimately destroyed. In the years that followed, Raglan was abandoned and left to decay. Click HERE to read more of its history. 

j

 Exploring the ruins, we came across plenty of steps leading down into the cellars. Some had small exhibits in them, and others our eyes had to adjust to the light before we could see anything. 

Snack Heating Engine

Key Xylophone

Beer Dispensing Engine

There was a grand staircase that led us up and onto the castle roof.  

Near the top of the circular stairs was a pigeon! The stupid bird had built its nest on the step, and how it wasn't trodden on by folk climbing up was a miracle. Although we did have a warning notice when we first entered the stairs, it didn't tell us how far up. Thankfully, it wasn't in one of the really dark places!

Having made the climb (I'm so unfit at the moment), the views at the top were neat. A board with a photo of what the view would have looked like during the 15th and 16th centuries showed a landscape more like the manor house gardens you see today. 

 Unfortunately, the cafe wasn't open today, so we had to make do with a drink back at the motorhome. It was now about mid-afternoon, and we hadn't even decided where to stop tonight. Ian has loads of CC apps on his phone, and a site was found at Merryland village, called Heatherdene, lovely and rural, with one shower, toilet and a basin for washing up. The first thing I did when we arrived was to try the shower. Clean and one of those electric ones with instant hot water. The only trouble was that the water never got hot. I ended up having a cold shower. Certainly woke me up! Ian abandoned the idea, saying he would have one tomorrow at the site near Stoneleigh. Yep, we have booked the Rugby club site for 3 nights to be near the show ground. Will we find our forever location and home amongst the park home displays? To be decided after the weekend.

And a few more photos,

 

Red Poll?

Big Pit National Museum

 June 6, 7th and 8th

A lovely weekend was spent with Alan and Angela; it went ever so quickly. During our stay we spent time at a massive garden centre, walked to Upton upon Severn Marina where coffee was had, looked at a park home site to get more ideas of what we may end up with when we come off the water, and had a really fabulous Sunday Lunch at a nearby pub. All too soon, it was time for us to head off, and we decided, instead of heading back toward the midlands, to take a longish excursion to Wales to see the Big Pit National Mine Museum at Blaenavon.

Our plan was to wild camp at Llandegfedd Reservoir near Pontypool, and it would have been ideal except for one thing, the car park gates were closed at 5 pm, with no overnight parking permitted. The lay-bys leading to the car park could have been an option, but Ian checked the Park4night site, which mentioned boy and girl racers tearing along the causeway during the evening. Not for us then, so a look at a CC website showed one about 5 minutes drive away on the other side of the reservoir. £12 a night was a bargain, although no electric hookup or toilets. But it had water and an Elsan disposal, so what more did we need? We booked for 2 nights.

 

June 9th

In a mix of sunshine and showers, we headed off toward the museum. Cost to enter was free, and a tour underground was also available for the exorbitant sum of £3 each! 

 

We booked on the 11.30 am, had high hopes of taking photos of mine workings underground, but it was not to be. The rule was that no batteries were to be allowed in the mine; it was all to do with the dangers of gas. This is from their website,

Standard batteries and electronic devices are prohibited as "contraband" because the tunnels are legally classified as a working coal mine. This subjects the site to strict coal mine regulations, banning any unapproved electrical equipment that could spark and ignite dangerous methane gas in the air. 

The ban extends to all dry-cell batteries, including Mobile phones, cameras, watches, car keys and fobs, calculators and radios.

Having been given a bag to place our phones and my camera, we were then kitted out with specialised certified safety lamps and heavy-duty sealed battery packs to keep explosive gases out. With 18 people on the tour, I did wonder how we would all fit into the cage taking us 90 meters down. A can of Sardines came to mind as we were pushed and shoved until everyone was in! Claustrophobic people beware! Anyway, the tour took about an hour. Peter, our guide, was informative, having worked in a mine himself, and very funny. He didn't hold back from speaking his mind to any of us if he felt we weren't listening, and many were the butt of his jokes. It was brilliant and had us all in stitches!

One of the cages

 The exhibits were very good, and reading stories of those who worked down the mine, especially the conditions, was harrowing. For me, the pit ponies' plight was especially sad. From the age of 4 until the end of their working life, they were kept underground, never seeing daylight until they were taken above to be slaughtered. Thank God that will never happen again in the UK. I found this on Dr. M.F.Khan's website. Please click on the link to see what he said about the working conditions of the pit ponies. HERE

One very interesting historic building was the Pit Baths. It was installed at the mine in 1939, meaning miners no longer had to trudge home to their families caked in dirt, which risked illness and required the time-consuming manual filling of baths at home.

We managed to dodge the showers by ducking into the cafe and the winding hall. Gosh, that was noisy, the wheels making an awful screeching noise. Showers or no, I couldn't stand it and had to get out quick! Anyway, here are a few more photos of today's outing.

Medical centre

Canaries are still at the mine as a reminder of their importance in detecting gas. 

One of the modern coal face drills