Saturday:
Picking up the ‘van from the new site, in the dark! Everything went smoothly, there is a floodlight at the site, but the head-torch is still required. We hitched up and pulled the ‘van out of the bay, much better than having to manhandle or motor mover it out and then hitch, so another bonus. We were soon out of the site and on the road.
We did the usual stop of Wetherby on the A1, then M18 and M1 and then on-towards Oxford. We missed a designated stop at Donington, due to massive road redevelopment going on, but managed a quick stop a bit further South at Leicester Forest. We soon found ourselves at the site following this, in glorious sunshine! We pitched up and relaxed for the rest of the day.
Sunday:
Rain, rain … rain. We stayed in as a result, only managing a quick visit to the local supermarket and garage to fill up. The sat-nav route took us along Hen N Chick Lane, this was a small lane which took us through the small village of Shilton. This is a most beautiful place, very narrow, very twisty but very attractive. I’m thinking of going back to actually visit, rather than pass through. It was like something out of a movie set for some remote picturesque village.
Monday:
Rain, rain … more rain. Despite this, we headed for Oxford to explore. We made use of the park and ride (Pear Tree). This was easily accessed off the A40 and with reasonable parking and bus fares totalling approx £7. We did our best trudging around the city, it’s bigger than I expected but full of culture and interesting buildings to view. When we felt we were a little too wet, we headed back, picked up the 300 bus and picked up the car. Back on site, there were some more new arrivals, seems a popular site, had fun watching the squirrels again.
Tuesday:
Drizzle, drizzle … well it’s getting there. I had planned to visit a couple of the local towns today, but the weather dictates that we stay indoors today. We did pass through Shilton again though, doing the supermarket run, still impressed!
Wednesday:
The big trip to the NEC for the caravan show. It’s approximately 1.5 hours drive from the site, so we set off at 9am and had a good run, apart from the accident on the M42, which held us up for an hour. We spent all day there, only leaving at closing time (6pm) – but the good news is that we’ve purchased a new ‘van! 8 years ago we purchased our Lunar Clubman ES, which started a touring passion for us and many superb holidays. This time we’ve gone for a dealer special on the Compass Casita 840, namely the Compass Kensington 840. It’s a twin axle and has a fixed bed, quite different from our current ‘van. Delivery time will be around March again, so we look forward to that whilst we enjoy the final trips in our current ‘van.
Thursday:
A nice sunny day, at last. We made a small trip to the village of Burford, very pretty but not much there. although the church is quite impressive for such a small village.
Friday:
Back to the NEC! We wanted to visit again in order to check out some of the accessory stalls, which we didn’t have time to do on Wednesday. We picked up a new kettle, sorted Phantom Tracking out and concluded a trip to Kimberly’s was in order, to look at bedding options and some new plates, maybe! Glorious weather today. The roads in this area and Birmingham are … busy, we have to conclude. Fish and chips tonight from the visiting catering van.
Saturday:
Time to go home. A relaxed start and pleasant journey pursued. We stopped at Leicester Forest again on the return, as to avoid Donington. Then Wetherby and then back at storage. All was going well until we reached Chester-le-Street, where an accident had the road closed for a while. Still, time to reflect on the new ‘van!
Site Report:
Very nice site, easy access, pleasant wardens and a nice mix of pitches well laid out. Toilet block is fine as you’d expect. Plenty of service points. An oval of fully serviced pitches as well. Small shop at reception. Barrier access, with swipe card, no deposit required. Trees about with plenty of wildlife. Takeaway vans appear a couple of times a week. Useful site for Oxford, the Cotswolds and of course – the NEC!
- Date: 13th October 2018
- Nights: 7
- Pitch #: 115
- GPS: 51.777100, -1.649023
- A40 > A361 > Lane