2nd Sept 2022 to 15th Sept 2022
This trip we have decided to turn left instead of right and head south down the M6 instead of north – heading to the south west of England
Charmouth
It seemed a long journey down to Dorset. Google said just over 3 hours. It took more than 5 mainly because of the traffic which I wasn’t expecting being a Friday morning. But we did get to stop at the sister service station to Tebay – Gloucester Services. I can heartily recommend if your passing. The food hall is superb, but don’t even consider filling up with fuel there. 24p above my normal for a litre of diesel.
To get the trip started and to give us some focus we had booked 3 nights at Wood Farm Holiday Park.
We picked this site because it was within walking distance of Charmouth and the beach. The site itself was lovely. On a hillside with tiered pitches looking over the valley. The grounds included a dog area and 2 fishing ponds – all superbly maintained, but also an excellent swimming pool with sauna. All free to use. The only minor drawback with the site is its proximity to the main road and it’s noise.
Charmouth and the beach front were within easy walking distance and worth a look around especially if you are interested in fossils, as this is part of the Jurassic Coast.
We took a short drive into Lyme Regis which was just a couple of miles down the coast. In contrast to Charmouth it is a bustling seaside resort town. It has a lovely manicured beach, beachside shops and bars and water sports including some clever hydroplane wind surfing I hadn’t seen before.
Fleet
Our initial plan was to travel east along the south coast, so our next port of call was East Fleet Farm.
This site is located by the lagoon that sits behind Chesil beach. Fortunately it is also close to an industrial estate with a Europarts branch. When we were packing up in Charmouth I noticed a warning that the leisure battery voltage was low. It was in fact only 11.2v which technically was totally discharged even though we have had a long drive, electric hook-up and solar panels. Something was definitely amis. I took it to the local caravan parts retailer in Dorset. They tested it, as well as they could, and pronounced it deceased. So I bought at 110Ah replacement. It didn’t fit in the underfloor compartment!! Turns out I needed an LB variant which has a lower profile and not generally stocked. They didn’t have one, but they did recommend Dorset Auto Parts. We drove there, and whilst they didn’t have one in stock they could get one later that day. Great. We waited and then drove back. It hadn’t been delivered – sorry. Another Internet search and we found a Europarts store reasonably close to the East Fleet site. Not only did they have one, it was cheaper than the one I had refunded earlier that day. Bacon saved.
We decided to eat at the pub/restaurant on site that evening. Lovely meal with a view over the sea and a spectacular thunder and lightning storm thrown in. Memorable.
The weather forecast was similar for the next day, so we decided to drive over to Durdle Door / Lulworth Cove and Weymouth. Blue skies and 21 degrees almost all day. So much for the BBC forecast.
Weymouth was a very pleasant surprise. Lovely manicured beach on one side and marina fully of very expensive yachts on the other, with some very appealing and attractive cafés bars and shopping in the middle. We spent a lovely few hours walking the prom and eating lunch by the harbour.
We then drove up to Durdle Door/ Lulworth Cove. Stunning natural scenery which is the reason we went, but to park the motorhome for any amount of time was £15. RIDICULOUS !!!
Brixham
From a route perspective we’re making it up from here. Nothing booked. For our next stop, we wanted a site close to the coast and close to somewhere of interest we can walk to. Using Google maps and tracing the coast west we found availability at Wall Park Touring Caravan and Centry Road Camping Site in Brixham. Neither of us have been to Brixham before so all new.
It took couple of hours driving from Fleet, and despite being a little awkward to find and access with a big motorhome, we were all parked up by 1:30pm. The site is basic but all we needed. More importantly, a 20 minute walk takes you to Brixham Town. Brixham has a mixture of traditional fishing harbour with some fairly large boats delivering their catch to the wholesalers on the Quay, and new marina with a collection of £1m plus yachts lined up for you to admire. We liked the place and it reminded us of Whitby without the stream punk.
Porthleven
Out next stop-over selection is an old favourite from many years ago – pre-motorhomes. We found availability at Mill Lane Campsite in Porthleven near Helston, just about as far south as you can get.
Another long drive in some very poor weather, punctuated by an engine warning light. Not serious. Just ad blue running low. Popped into Asda and picked up a 5L container – problem fixed. Then the Calor gas ran out. Swapped to the spare. Problem fixed. Then we heard the news. RIP Elizabeth II – as much as I would like to, I couldn’t fix that. The inevitability of mortality never seems to dull the shock.
After pitching up, we took a walk into Porthleven, past the inner harbour and down to the sea front. It was high tide and the wind was gusting. The swell and the huge waves were awesome. So much so, the inner harbour was closed off from the forces of the Atlantic by a movable wooden barrier. The waves were crashing up over the harbour walls. Spectacular.
The next morning, the tide was low, the sun was out and the feel of the place totally changed. We strolled up the hill to the East of the harbour and along the beach and then back to the harbour for a few beers in the sunshine at The Ship Inn. I must also mention the pasties. PHILPS traditional steak Cornish pasties from the bakery in the harbour, hot from the oven, peppery and huge. Yum.
Its been well over 20 years since we were last here. The last time, we hired a cottage on the sea front with our 3 young daughters and it ruined all week. It hasn’t changed that much in all those years apart from the weather. If anything it’s gone upmarket a little. Cafes, bars and holiday homes now ring the harbour area, but it still hasn’t last its charm. Definitely a place to come back to, and the campsite is in easy walking distance.
Tomorrow we’re heading to Perranporth. We tried to find availability in St Ives, but there is a music festival on this week, and everywhere within walking distance of town is full. There was availability at Godevry in Hayle, but driving into a very busy St Ives and trying to park a 8m motorhome is not my idea of fun.
Perranporth
Perranporth, like most coastal Cornish towns, is perched on the hills and cliffs that overlook the Atlantic. It has a little of the Brixham feel about it, however it’s not as sophisticated. The cafés, shops and bars have seen better days, and there is no pretty harbour. What it does have is an immense sandy beach, washed by the tide twice a day and lined with storm battered cliffs and caves – very scenic and great for the dog.
On the Sunday we happened across a Perranporth Youth Challenge Aquathon affiliated to the beach lifegaurds. A gathering of hundreds of people competing in races through the surf on a cross between a sit-on surf board and canoe. They paddled over the waves and around a series of buoys, before racing back to the beach. The competition went on all day with temporary shelters erected on the beach for changing, snacks and loudspeaker commentary of the action.
The site, Perranporth Camping and Touring Park, was chosen for its location (walking distance of the town and beach) and availability for the 2 nights we needed. The grass pitch with electricity was expensive so expectations regarding the facilities were reasonably high. What a disappointment. One of the shower blocks was out of action which left only 2 male shower cubicles available for the whole site, no motorhome service point and almost all of the pitches were not level, some at a 30 degree incline. To add to the list, the single elsan point was blocked leaving human waste to overflow across the floor, and to fix the situation the management simply locked the door and put a “Not in use” sign up. What were the site supposed to do then with full toilet cassettes. Avoid this site if you can.
On the second day we decided to pay a visit to Newquay. After some research I found a couple of large car parks using Google maps and off we went. It was only at the entrance to these car parks that we found height restrictions. Reversing out of the way of the entrance was not fun. We tried 4 or 5 in and around the beach areas but all were either restricted or too small for a large motorhome. Eventually we drove out of the town and found Tregunnel car park which catered for lorries. Why don’t car parks publish height restrictions on their internet information – very frustrating.
Fistral beach was full of surfers , making their craft look easy. Although the beach itself is now a no alcohol zone, there were some great cafés and bars overlooking the waves. It had a real laid back surfer feel to it- not that I would know much that scene.
Further around the coastline is Newquay harbour which looked busy with numerous working boats. It was surprisingly under developed for tourism. There were no pirate themed bars or coffee shops, just the boats, nets and lobster pots.
Around the coast still further and we came across Newquay beach and the town itself. I prefer Fistral beach myself.
As we had no Internet at Perranporth, we stopped in the car park at Newquay to figure out where to go tomorrow. As with St Ives, we couldn’t find anything in Padstow, Port Isaacs or Tintagel. So we decided to head up into Devon and a site near Ilfracombe.
Enroute to Ilfracombe, we stopped off in Port Isaac (aka Port Wenn) where they film Doc Martin. All the landmarks from the TV series were there. The surgery is actually a holiday rental cottage. The pharmacy is a sweet shop. The school is actually a restaurant. It’s a small pretty seaside village with a lot of charm and character, that is struggling not to be overwhelmed by its celebrity.
Ilfracombe
Hele Valley Holiday Park was another last minute booking we found using Google maps. What a great find it was. A lovely quiet well maintained site with superb facilities and at a reasonable price. We couldn’t ask for more. On top of which it’s within walking distance of Hele Cove and Ilfracombe. Ticked all of our boxes.
We also greatly enjoyed Ilfracombe itself. It has a flourishing harbour alongside some tourist interests like boat trips to Lundy, and of course the Damien Hurst sculpture of Verity.
I think Hele Valley is a must return for us. Highly recommended.
Motorhome Niggles
- The roof still leaks. Water seeps into the top lockers on either side, making them partially unusable. Not good on a 2 week trip when space is at a premium.
- The Leisure battery failed, could not be rejuvenated (cells had failed) and required replacement.
- Ad blue needed a top up.
- Calor bottle ran out.
Route
Round trip distance 730 miles according to google maps.