March Trip  to a great pub, a stay on a friend's drive and a trip to a favourite site.

March 6^th 2013

We picked the van up from Marquis after a habitation check and the fridge fixing. The locker doors were replaced as damp had got in. It was all dried out.

March 7^th 2013

We slept in the van outside friend Phil’s house as he’d planned a weekend away but the site he wanted was closed so Katie and Stew and us parked on his drive instead.

March 8^th

Another night on Phil and Karen’s drive, with a fabulous meal in the house. It snowed heavily in the afternoon and through the night.

March 14^th

We had a  trip to Brighouse to Northern Commercials for the van engine service. We love going here, leaving the van and going in to Brighouse for a look around the shops and breakfast in Wetherspoons.

March 15^th  World’s End pub, Lowdham, Nottingham

We’d organised a stay at this pub so we could go to a Wishbone Ash concert being held there on Saturday night and to meet up with friends. Just as we were setting off, we heard the concert was cancelled but  we decided to go anyway. The pub is just off the main road in Lowdham and isn’t far from Sherwood Forest and Nottingham.  Andy and Carol parked next to us  in their van on the car park. The owners of the pub are very welcoming and although there is no hook up, there’s no charge either. The food and beer are excellent and it’s a comfy pub. The turn into the lane where the car park is, is tight and wouldn’t be any good for RVs but the dray wagon gets in to deliver the beer. We had a lovely meal and lots to drink and met up with friends living nearby and friends staying in the other pub in the village and now known to us as Fawlty Towers.   

http://www.worldsendinn.co.uk/ 

16^th March  World’s End pub

Friends came round for coffee then we all drove to nearby Southwell Mister. It’s a lovely place to look around and there was a small market there. We went into a pub then drove to Gunthorpe , near to Lowdham and walked along the riverbank and went into the Unicorn pub. We went back to the van before going back into the World’s End for another meal- equally as good as the night before. The fridge decided to give up again.

Southwell Minster

18^th March  Rowntree Park, York

We contacted Marquis about the fridge and they need it for at least four days to chill it down and sort it out again. We got to the site in heavy rain . The fridge worked on electric.  When the rain eased off, we walked round the walls in York. The beauty of this Caravan Club site is it’s proximity to the town centre. We had a drink in the centre then came back to a quiet night.

19^th March Rowntree Park, York

We had a long lie in but then went out again in the bitter cold. We spent a long time in Barnett’s- a wonderful shop that just goes on and on…all little rooms leading into each other with everything you could want for the house . We had a shopping list and managed to get almost everything plus things that weren’t on it too.

20^th March Hawes, North Yorkshire

There was heavy rain in the night and I got up early and popped to a shop where I’d seen a silly camel shaped teapot which I bought for a wedding present. ( they did love it- really!) We set off via Thirsk and stopped there to do some shopping and get fuel. There was still snow on the higher ground but the roads were all clear. We parked up on the Caravan Club site and walked up to Gayle and around to Bainbridge, calling in at the Fountain for a drink.

view from van window

March 23^rd Hawes

We woke to lovely sunshine. The snow made the views picturesque and Pete cooked Whitby kippers outside on the cadac and they were amazing. The sunshine made us feel like a bit of a spring clean so we tidied the van out. We had a beautiful walk up to Hardraw and High Abbotside up to the snowline. It was cold but delightful and when we came back down to the Green Dragon at Hardraw, there was a roaring fire and we had to have a sit next to it. When we got back to the site, our favourite pitch was vacant so we moved the van and the pheasant we’d been feeding followed us. We had hot showers and a stew – a lovely day.

Green Dragon

22^nd March Hawes

There were strong winds and snow in the night which left the ground covered and the campsite roads unuseable. We stayed in though Pete braved the blizzard to get some extra water. We read till late afternoon then we wrapped up warmly and headed for the village. The snow had created drifts over the road. We had burgers and oven wedges and when I looked at the window frame- it had melted again! I was cross because this van is so good for us but also so frustrating. Autotrail and Marquis are very good but this is getting ridiculous.

23^rd March Hawes

There was more snow in the night and the drifts are quite spectacular. There’s also snow at home as friends rang us to tell us. Pete went to get the papers in the morning then we stayed in till early afternoon when we went to get Wensleydale cheese and some other local delicacies to take to friends in Austria.  We went to the Crown  for a super meal of ribs and Whitby fish with a lovely merlot.  The water froze in the van but we managed.

24^th Home

The wardens cleared part of the site road so we dug out and headed for home. It was beautiful driving back through the dales . When we got home, we had to dig a space in the lane to get the van in and dig the front steps so we could get it in the house.  The drifts in the garden were enormous. The next day, we took the van back up the A1 to marquis and exchanged emails with Autotrail. They are going to do tests with someone from Thetford to recreate the conditions  that made the window frame melt.