Holiday part 2

Glastonbury, Paddington Farm

First of all a few images from our time at Paddington farm and a walk up to Glastonbury Tor. All shot on a Sony Compact camera but with no means to upload them I couldn’t share until now.

I would like to take a moment to recommend Paddington Farm campsite, ran as a charity and ran to ensure its affordable for all, its a truly wonderful site. Quirks like the showers being old milking sheds, with the paraphernalia still present were a source of amusement plus plenty of social fire pits and playgrounds that saw the kids occupied and happy from sunrise to sunset. If you go have a go on the witches hat, something rare and special and amazing fun.  http://www.paddingtonfarm.co.uk.

Our walk up to the Tor was hot indeed, the temperatures in the past week have touched 30 degrees C and as is always the case in the UK when its this hot, it gets humid. The Tor itself is an impressive site, visible from our pitch and only 30 minutes walk. The climb is made easier by steps but is very hefty. take plenty of water, and if you take dogs, please take some water for them. I saw so many people dragging unhappy looking dogs upto the top. Thankfully the shelter of the building is cool thanks to the stone and was a welcome break from the pounding sun.

Sunset walk at Paddington Farm

Glastonbury Tor steps

Glastonbury Tor

Paddington Farm Trust Campsite

Paddington Farm Trust Campsite

Glastonbury Tor

Glastonbury Tor

Glastonbury from the Tor

Glastonbury from the Tor

 

Glastonbury Tor View

Glastonbury Tor View

Seatown, Golden Cap Campsite.

So I think we last left off at Golden Cap, we loved this little spot so much we paid the rather hefty £32 a night for the sea view. A cheaper camp spot was available for under £20 for the two of us, but we were so taken with the view we couldn’t resist and promised ourselves we would wild camp to claw the money back later in the holiday. The site was well equipped, a shop open from 7 until 7 that was surprisingly well stocked and decent shower and laundry facilities. The beaches like many on the jurassic coast, are stone not sand and not great for sunbathing, but amazing if you want to fish or kayak. You can also find fossils on the beach and we managed to find a few without too much difficulty. We also found a lone flip flip which really made me wonder how you can lose one flip flop, oddly we saw several during our holiday week…

Camper at Golden Cap

Camper at Golden Cap

Following pics shot on my iPhone.

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Golden Cap at Seatown

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Fossil find on the beach

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Lone Flip flop

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Seatown at Sunset

Five Bells Inn, in Whitchurch Canonicorum

After Golden Cap we were feeling we had overspent on our budget a little so opted for the Five Bells Inn, in Whitchurch Canonicorum. This site was one found via the Club 80-90 forums and we turned up without booking (as we did everywhere on this holiday), The site is basic at best, but was very cheap at £12.50 a night. No options for hookup,  only two toilets and a single shower, one water tap for the whole site which is right by the pub. A new shower block was a work in progress but what was unavailable on our visit. The toilet and shower were  rather cobweb filled and not very welcoming to be honest, the shower was hot and the pressure good. Although there were a few caravans on site, they appeared to all be empty so it was a peaceful if lonely stay .

If you run a gas fridge in your camper or caravan, its likely it will not work here without some serious efforts to level the van. There isn’t a single level spot on the main field that we could see and our fridge was ineffective because of this. The staff were friendly and helpful when you could find someone (i.e. when the pub was open which was rather limited), thankfully on the morning we left I managed to find someone to fix the broken shower. The site doesn’t advertise and isn’t pretending to be fancy, but it has a very nice view and is a hidden spot. As long as you don’t mind lots of farm vehicles constantly driving around you will find it a pleasant and borderline wildcamp stay. http://www.thefivebellsinn.co.uk

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Five Bells Inn Campsite, Whitchurch Canonicorum

Will do my best to update a post for the remainder of our trip, hitting Charmouth, Lyme Regis, Minehead (via a flying visit to Brean Sands and Weston Super-mere) and then stopping in Bristol. There may even be a brief video if time permits.

 
 

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Posted on July 14, 2013 in Road trips

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Matt loves campervans, the outdoors and photography. Combining the 3 is a recipe for happiness.

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