Across Exmoor to Chard

Just as we were getting Bertie ready to head off from Appledore we were really pleased to catch sight of MS Oldenburg on her way to Lundy. The ship is Lundy’s connection to the mainland and is the only way to reach the island. The ships sails a couple of times a week and takes 2 hours to make the trip from Bideford to Lundy.

It was a short drive from Appledore to Barnstable where we filled up with LPG. This is our second ever LPG fill up,  our last fill up was in Paisley and since then we have spent 11 nights on Bertie. The bill for the LPG used in that time was under £8 for the 13.3 litres. I think the gas indicator is set a bit pesimistic as that reckoned we were down to a quarter of a tank when in fact we had almost three quarters of tank left. I guess that tank could last us a couple of months.

Our route today was planned to take us right across the middle of Exmoor. It is about 90 miles Chard but that will take us most of the day as these are slow roads. We were passing Arlington Court so we stopped off to visit the National Trust’s National Carriage Museum which was really interesting with more than 50 carraiges on display from all over the country. It would have been good to have spent much of the day there and walked in the park and looked at the house and the fine formal gardens however we have a date with a Bertie carer to keep!

Lunch stop was Winsford Hill which at 428m is one of the highest points on Exmoor with amazing views in all directions. The sun shone and it was a gorgeous location to stop and drink in the view. Exmoor is lovely and we have both been coming here since we were nippers – Eileen to stay with her Uncle and Aunt in Porlock and I with my parents revisiting their old home near Lynton. However scenic the roads they are not really Bertie friendly and progress was quite slow with a number of long, slow descents and an equal number of slow ascents too. We pulled over to let traffic pass as often as we could find a suitable place but the tail quickly grew again. The tightest spot of all was Dulverton which was a real squeeze indeed. If we had been on back roads it would not be so bad but these were A and B roads we were using!

We arrived in Chard just before 4pm and thus had plenty of time to empty the loo and fill up the water tank before the repair shop closed for the night. We had a walk into Chard itself and wander round the old town centre. It looks an interesting place with a lot of history. If time allows it might be good to have a look at the museum.

Mileage reading tonight: 119173 kms
Mileage today: 154kms
Mileage from home: 973kms

38th night on Bertie