Austin Healey Rally in North Cornwall

Somehow my husband got to hear about an Austin Healey Rally in Perranporth taking place this weekend. And as he has a love all things motor racing, he decided we should all go down to Perranporth and take a look.

Donald Healey was born in Perranporth, and it was for this reason that the Austin Healey Owners Club had decided to make this the venue for their rally. It was a cold and sometimes wet day, but Austin Healey Owners had come from all parts of the globe. Even from as far afield as Australia.



Just two of the Healey's that attended the Rally

 

 

After leaving the Rally we travelled north up the Cornish Coast and made our way home.

Dartmouth and South Devon

 Dartmouth from Kingswear

For the Bank Holiday Weekend at the beginning of May we took the Caravan down to South Devon and stayed on the Caravan Club Site 'Hillhead'. We love this site, we have stayed here quite a few times now. The staff are very friendly, the site is well maintained, the toilets and shower blocks are kept immaculate, and it has a club with entertainment. There is a small shop, the Bar serves food and a very popular Carvery on a Sunday. And there is an outdoor Swimming Pool.

This time our visit had a purpose - I wanted to visit 'Greenway' the holiday home of Agatha Christie. I have read alot of her books and was really keen to visit the house. You can reach the house by boat down the River Dart from Dartmouth or you can get there by an old bus. But there is no parking! so don't take the car.

We left our car at Kingswear and got the passenger ferry to Dartmouth, from here we got a river cruise down to Greenway. Greenway is now run by the National Trust so it is a good idea to look into membership before you go, if you are not a member already. The boat fare is not covered by National trust.

The Boathouse at Greenway

 

The boathouse at Greenway lies on the river just before you reach Greenway Quay. For anyone that has read Agatha Christie Books you will remember that her story 'Dead Man's Folly' featured a murder in a boathouse. Which I always imagined to be just like this one.

 

When you leave the boat it is just a short walk through the woods to reach Greenway. The house stands in its own grounds, which are beautiful. I could imagine Agatha Christie entertaining friends and family here, but to me it would have just been an inspirational place to write.

 





 

Greenway from the River Dart

 

From Kingswear it is also possible to take a trip on the Dart Valley Steam Railway to Paignton. This is a short journey, but quite picturesque. The train cosses over a viaduct on its journey which also passes Broadsands beach with its colourful beach huts.

 

The Colourful Beach Huts at Broadsands

 

During our stay at Hillhead, Brixham was holding it annual Pirate Festival, which was great fun. The whole town appeared to be involved.

It has to be said that I have never seen so many Johhny Depp lookalikes in one day !

Brixham's replica of the Golden Hind.







An Introduction

I have to admit that back in 2011 when my husband suggested we should get a caravan, I was very sceptical. I was the one who had to sit next to him in the car when he moaned and groaned about the caravan in front of him. I had to listen to the snorting and heavy sighs that were expelled when we met one in the narrow country lanes, in  our native South West, England.

So we made a deal, we would buy a second hand caravan. And if it was not being used by the end of the season 2011, we would sell it in the Spring of 2012.

You have probably already worked it out already, here we are in May 2013 and we still have the caravan. And whats more in the Winter months when we don't use it, I actually miss my weekends away.

Because that is the truth of it, our Caravan use is mainly weekends away. We are very lucky to live in the area we do. Within an hour we can be at the South Devon Coast, or the North Cornwall Coast. And within two hours we can be at the North Devon Coast. And we have found some lovely sites within the boundaries of Devon and Cornwall. But we have also found some that we could not recommend.

But this Blog is not just about our excursions with the Caravan. It is a means for me to record the things we have done, both with and without the Caravan. Hence the title. Maybe it will shed some light on some of the places we have been, and help the reader to decide if it is somewhere they would like to visit. But hopefully it will just be enough, to bring to the fore, in the years to come, the memories we are making today!

After all we have all used the phrase "Do you remember the time......."

And if no one but me reads this Blog, it will still have served it's purpose and recorded the things I want to remember.