We venture to South Devon!

We managed to fit a second week-long visit to Parkham at the end of June and again had some lovely weather whilst our friends back in the Midlands experienced  heavy rain.
Our first task on arrival was to complete the decorating begun on our last visit by painting the woodwork in the lounge.  Once completed the lounge was looking much improved and without the constant smell of  damp where water had leaked into the roof insulation.

We took a trip into South Devon to visit a cousin of my late father.  We last spoke to him eighteen months ago when he was living independently but now, at the age of 99 he is in a care home in Sidmouth.   The journey was not that far but seemed to take for ever as our sat-nav took us across the lanes of rural Devon.  After almost 2 hours we arrived at the care home and were very well received and spent an hour reminiscing with the 99 year old as he looked at photographs we showed him.
We then drove in to the town itself for some lunch and were amazed to immediately bump into  a couple of friends from the Midlands who were holidaying in the town.  Whilst  Sidmouth is a pleasant town the journey around Exeter made us realise why we love North Devon so much.
On our return journey we stopped at Castle Drogo which is still undercover for restoration work but this was not a problem as we just wanted a walk in the grounds where there are some magnificent views.

The rest of a our week was spent walking or visiting friends.  We had a very enjoyable afternoon eating a cream tea in our friends' garden in Northway, such a peaceful spot with amazing views of the coast.

By the time we set off home on Thursday a heatwave was forecast for most of the UK and we were pleased to be back before an expected very busy weekend on the roads.

A little decorating and plenty of relaxing

In addition to our usual luggage this trip to Parkham included a few DIY tools not duplicated in the cottage as well as supplies of emulsion paint.  Our plan was to work on the lounge walls and ceiling not decorated since we moved in 5 years ago and damaged in some places by water from the previously leaky roof.  In a small cottage there is nowhere to put furniture when decorating so the option is to be paint around it or to put it in the garden.  With some sunny weather the latter option was the best although visitors to The Bell might have been surprised to see a strange collection of items adorning the patio area.
We did get all the emulsion painting completed and there is now just a small amount of woodwork to paint on our visit later in the month.
The decorating was done over a few days so that we still had the opportunity to get out for walks and see friends each day.
It was also the Beer Festival at The Bell on 1st June so we were able to sample a few of the brews on offer.
I celebrated my birthday whilst at Parkham and one present received was a new bird feeder and planters which fitted well along the garden fence.

On one of our walks we watched a ship being lead by the pilot boat over the bar, through the channels close to Appledore quay then up the Taw estuary towards Yelland.  Back at the cottage by using a shipping app we were able to identify the ship as a dredger.

Longstanding friends were caravaning in Bude and our plan was to visit then for a day, however with a forecast of wet weather we decided that 2 dogs and 4 people in a caravan was a bit much so they came to us.  In fact the weather brightened up and we enjoyed a great lunch at The Pig on the Hill, our first visit despite recommendations from friends and family .  We then walked  along the beach at the Skern before returning to Appledore for a cup of tea at Market St Kitchen, one of our favourite cafes.

We were able to spend a full two weeks in Parkham without family commitments in the MIdlands but decided to leave for Stourbridge before Storm Miguel hit the South West as motorway travelling would be no fun in heavy rain.