Being tired and a few glasses of wine doesn’t make it easy to start this. It’s been a busy day.
Our first stop was Coleridge Cottage, the home, for a few years, of Samuel Taylor Coleridge, the poet, preacher, writer and many other things. He left the cottage in 1799. The National Trust now owns the property and has restored much of it.
We then set off to find Stembridge Tower Mill, built in 1822, and is the last surviving thatched windmill in England. What started as a short drive turned into a long drive as we followed the road closed diversions. There are not many through roads, not even very narrow ones. We eventually got there to realise we hadn’t read the info telling us that, while the grounds were open, the mill itself was not.
On the way to the mill, we came across Burrow Mump, both words meaning hill, so it is hill hill. The remains of a medieval church sits at the top.
After the Stembridge Tower Mill, we drove through the Cheddar Gorge. It’s about 400 feet deep and 3 miles long with some impressive views.
This sign seems to be beware of Stags. What about MGs, Jags etc? Or are Stags allowed to do 50, and what can other cars do?
Back on to some very narrow roads again to Portishead, just outside Bristol, for 2 nights in the basic Travelodge. We went for a walk around the marina, visible from Gary & Jan’s room and watched the very deep lock in action, letting boats out to the sea from the mooring basin and vice versa.
We bought a selection of nice bits & pieces to eat and went back to the hotel and ate in Rick & Gill’s room, which was a large one for 3 people. We were going to meet Laura, R&G’s daughter, here but things changed and we didn’t.
R&G brought their Samsung tablet with them and it is turning out to be even more useful than expected. There is no data plan attached to the tablet and the National Trust app works with the GPS (which we didn’t realise was built into the tablet), to let us search the area we are in for NT properties and links to the mapping system to guide us.
There are a number of things we want to see in and around Bristol, especially the Clifton suspension bridge.
Maybe the sign suggests that Stags should drive through while other cars can stop and enjoy the village.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds as though you are enjoying the challenge of negotiating the tiny roads of England. we hope there are frequent pubs/coffee shops to enjoy as well.
its still cold in Melbourne but no rain. we will soon be warm in Vanuatu.
Marilyn and John