Thursday 31 March 2011

Lost in fog.

34.2 Miles. Now at at Black Horse Farm near Folkestone.

After quite a lengthy stay at Sarre Windmill it was time to be moving on. Cool temperatures and distant mist were what we set off with but this was nothing to what we were about to encounter around Dover.

No, it's not something you eat!

No, it's not something you eat!

Narrow one way streets of Sandwich.

Narrow one way streets of Sandwich.

Our first port of call was Sandwich which looked to be quite an interesting sort of place but the usual problem of where to park was our bug bear. On to Deal and this time we were more successful with free parking on the sea front near Deal Castle. An hours walkabout for some pictures was all we needed here. The beach is very steep and all pebbles unlike Margate, not a child friendly place. The Time Ball tower and the fishing boats were about the most interesting features around here.

Deal Pier, a mecca for fishermen.

Deal Pier, a mecca for fishermen.

Fishing boats and Crab pots adorn Deal beach.

Fishing boats and Crab pots adorn Deal beach.

Each fishing boat has it's own winch to drag it up the beach for safe haven. Heath Robinson affairs but they work.

Each fishing boat has it's own winch to drag it up the beach for safe haven. Heath Robinson affairs but they work.

Old clinker built fishing boats at Deal.

Old clinker built fishing boats at Deal.

From Deal we set the Garmin to our next stop over at Black Horse Farm Caravan Club site near Folkestone. As we approached Dover the fog started to roll in and was getting quite dense. At one point we could barely see 100 yards ahead and due to some road works at the intersection we were supposed to turn off at we missed the turning. It was a this point that I reverted to the old fashioned map reading and made the final leg of the journey, visually reading road signs.

Deal Time Ball originally connected to Greenwich but now operates hourly, more for amusement than anything.

Deal Time Ball originally connected to Greenwich but now operates hourly, more for amusement than anything.

Sea front boarding houses along Deal Marine Parade..

Sea front boarding houses along Deal Marine Parade.

Deal's pier and pebble beach. No sand here I'm afraid.

Deal's pier and pebble beach. No sand here I'm afraid.

Deal castle.

Deal Castle.

We had no sooner set ourselves up on site at the camp when the rain arrived and has been getting steadily worse. Still can’t complain this is the first decent rain fall we have had for quite a while. It gave us the opportunity to make use of the laundry and catch up with the washing. Hopefully things will improve tomorrow.

 

Gypsy Rover MkIV at Black Horse Caravan Club site 30/03/2011.

Gypsy Rover Mk IV at Black Horse Caravan Club site

A total of 897 miles, since 5 March 2011

3 comments:

Bill Rodgers said...

Since I live in Taunton, Bristol County, Massachusetts, USA, I enjoy seeing the original cities and towns whos namesakes are close to me: Bridgewater, Somerset, Sandwich, Plymouth, Tiverton, Dartmouth, Swansea, Gloucester, Worcester and even Boston to the north of us in both cases. (I know there are more.) It creates a strange feeling when one is unfamiliar with the map, while all the names are well known. I enjoy the blog, the writing is good and the pictures are great.

Derek and Dot said...

Hi Bill
Thanks for those great comments. Its the small towns that we enjoy visiting. The travel logs only mention the well known ones. We love getting off the beaten track wherever possible.

Dave Elcome said...

Hi.

I should have said the other day. If you want to find the best CL I have ever come across, the look on the CC Site for Counter Farm under Appledore. It's paradise!!