NYMAN AND OLD MAN

Many people would have thought that driving almost 300 miles from Kent to Cornwall was a big enough task to fill a day, but that's not the way we do things (apparently!), and the National Trust membership needed to be put to good use in spite of the transition we had to make.

So it was that we departed Tonbridge, after gathering a few quick photos and the makings of a picnic lunch from Waitrose. Our first port of call was due to be the gardens at Nymans, and perhaps I should have been a little concerned when Tomtom told me that the 28 mile journey would take an hour, but it took far longer. I wanted one last session with the Kentish lanes, a decision I was going to regret. The journey to Nymans via Eat Grinstead was a real grind, scarcely a stretch of road above 30 or 40mph, several sets of traffic light-controlled road works, and finally a very large tractor crawling along pulling a low loader bearing a JCB.

We paused at East Grinstead for relief and ambled along the pretty main street before finding a lovely cafe where we drunk refreshing tea and delicious lemon curd cake. Juris also purchased cigarettes, which tamed his tiger usefully!

Eventually we arrived at Nymans, once again using our cardboard box inscribed "THIS VEHICLE CARRIES A WHEELCHAIR" in place of the dreadful Blue Badge. But there was a change at Nymans; only two of us had to pay admission which because Juris and I had taken out NT membership meant that we were 'free'. These houses work on the principle that the carer of a 'less able' person is free, and that meant that Juris (or I !!) should have been free at all houses, but because we already had membership we were not given the 'carer' or 'companion' discount. At Nymans, however, they saw the absurdity of this predicament and waved us through - effectively 3 for 2 as it should have been.

The gardens at Nymans are set around the ruins of a manor house which suffered a number of catastrophic fires, the last in 1947. The stark burnt out shell makes a wonderful backdrop to herbaceous borders of colour and variety, with a frame of vivid green topiary at the lower edges of the light stonework. We had a long wander through the arboretum, the wild garden, and surprise surprise the Rose Garden. Having concluded that the sun NEVER shines in Kent, it touched everything with its brightest tentacles and gave us colour and sights of true beauty. I set a target of one hour to "do" Nymans, but needless to say nobody observed my limit.

The journey to Cornwall had to continue, and a route via Guildford and the Hogs Back was chosen in order to stay well south of London and avoid traffic gathering for the first day of Royal Ascot. Once we hit the A31 the tortuous lanes of Kent that had so impeded our earlier journey were quickly forgotten. Then onto the M3 and A303 and a chance to grapple with our huge journey with more determination; even so some cars did overtake us. My Peugeot 208 gave a lot of trouble last year, but now 3 up with a wheelchair and luggage for a week, I cannot complain. We achieved the A303 and later A30 at speeds I will not put in print, the car seeming to relish the extra weight which even improved the handling.

On a late afternoon just prior to the Midsummer Solstice we came across Stonehenge. We had phoned ahead to check on opening times, and having established that 17:00 was last admission the Tomtom ETA of 16:45 looked close, and hence the need to press on down the A303. Arrival at Stonehege was ahead of TomTom and we were quickly at the Ticket counter. Just as at Nymans our NT memberships were accepted and a 'companion' ticket given for free. Then onto a little Land Train driven by a rather struggling Land-Rover that took us all up to the monument.

Bathed in brilliant sunshine the megolithic stones made a majestic end to our sight seeing today. There isn't much you can do at Stonehenge other than amble around the circle covering about 11 hours of the clock face before turning and doing it all again in reverse. But the bright sun warming the stones also warmed our hearts, and we felt no need to rush, even with almost 200 miles still to go. We even sat outside the complex and enjoyed our (late) picnic, but don't tell sister Biddi who was waiting with a meal for us down in Cornwall ! Our picnic was brown rolls already spread with butter, to which each person could add Honey Roast Ham or Smoked Salmon pate which Waitrose had provided in Tonbridge (11 hours ago). We also had apples, fresh tomatoes, cucumber and a flask of Broccoli and Cheese soup. If that wasn't enough we also had bought in the Kentish lanes fresh Cherries and Cherry Tomatoes.

The clock said almost 19:00 when we regained the A303 and TomTom told us that arrival at sister's would be 22:15. It wasn't as simple as that, however, because the petrol meter told me that we would run dry 40 miles from home. I expected to join the M5 prior to Exeter Services, and thereby to resolve the fuel situation, but it wasn't to be because we joined at J29 and then were on the A30 from J30; no fuel. I phoned little brother from the car as he lives at Exminster. "Where is the next fuel on the A30?" He tried to advise us, and then a sign suddenly said "Services". Saved! Moretonhampstead provided us fuel and a little pause for my passengers who were informed that there would be NO MORE STOPS as we were already well behind schedule.

From here on in I could drive the journey wearing a blind fold. I know every inch of it, know when to overtake, when to cut the corners, when to be wary of the white car parked in a lay-by brandishing a speed gun. The only hiccup was just after the sign proclaiming "Welcome to Cornwall". Our welcome consisted of sitting stationary at traffic lights for 5 minutes, and then doing the next 3 miles at 10 mph behind a 'FOLLOW ME' tractor. Pressing on again, I quit the A30 at Boxheater, heading to the coast via Goonhavern and Perranporth through proper Cornish lanes - my favourite way.

22:25 arrival, and if you are exhausted by the account of our passage, consider how these three travellers felt after 12 hours doing it. Enjoyed the frantic drive though on a clear summer evening with little traffic. So to bed and the first sleep on ASDA's finest air mattress on my sister's lounge floor.

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CORNISH COAST

Our first day in Cornwall began with BREAKFAST, now there's a novelty on this trip! My sister's extensive larder provided ANYTHING that anyone wanted, in my case fresh Olive bread, cereal with fresh strawberries. Mama and Juris made their own fresh salad and enjoyed sliced ham on good bread.

Then we set off to show the beauty of Cornwall and there is no finer showcase than the North Cornwall coast. Driving passed the 4 miles of golden sands at Perranporth, then Porth, Watergate Bay, Mawgan Porth and beyond on the coast road that skirts Newquay and reaches the National Trust lands at Carnewas, commonly referred to as 'Bedruthan Steps'. Here we parked up, guided to a disabled parking space where everyone was decanted.

We set off on the clifftop path the wheelchair passing within a foot or so of sheer drops down to still azure blue Atlantic beneath. The colour was vivid, but the surface was too calm, stilled by the high pressure sitting overhead; that same weather system did, however, deliver us the intense sunlight to make everything glow.

My cousin had messaged me: "I trust it is sunny in Cornwall too and that you don’t intend to take Mama on a cliff walk – with or without the wheelchair!" but by the time I read this it was already too late. Mama had been on a cliff walk in and out of the wheelchair. Though we didn't press Mama into going too far, the views were just so vivid that nobody wanted to be short changed of them. We took freshly made Watercress soup in a truly homemade NT cafe served with chunky saffron bread, and I can thoroughly recommend this enterprise.

A short drive across country took us to the 16th century manor house of Trerice, a place that has fond memories for me as both my mother and father would go here at the drop of a hat. Father would march in through the front door and ask to be allowed to cross to the Barn Cafe without having to pay admission; he was always allowed. And so it was with us, Biddi and I negotiated our own free passage to the Barn Cafe, and agreed admission to the house for Juris (as member) and his mum (free as less able). Biddi and I sat at table in the Barn garden supping lovely tea and eating home made Blueberry Victoria sponge cake, whilst the Latvians used up another chunk of the NT membership; that £100 quid has already saved us money.

After that I set the TomTom to take us back to Biddi's house by the shortest route, fully realising just how exciting this might be! True to TomTom's best traditions he found us a long lost ford and then took us down a very narrow lane near St Newlyn East. Now I am used to driving down Cornish lanes so narrow that the wing mirrors get ripped off and all the paint gets scratched from the sides of the car, but this was something else. There was only 3 feet between the foliage on each side of the lane and we needed to proceed slowly and keep the windows shut. Clearly no vehicles had passed down here for a long time, although the cow poo down the centre of this lane told us of bovine traffic.

You can stick your motorways, this is better driving. We cut across to Cubert and then by the back lanes to St Piran's Oratory where St Piran first set up shop in about AD 600 bringing Christianity to Cornwall from Ireland. The remains of the ancient Oratory are still sunk into the Perranporth sand dunes, kept buried because that preserves them better than other means in the shifting dunes.

Thus ended our first Cornish excursion. We will eat a proper meal tonight, the one denied by our non-arrival last night. But tonight we will have Champagne to toast Juris' study success and the imminent start of his research project back in Latvia. Cheers.

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PENWITH PASSAGE

Thursday began again with BREAKFAST; that's two days running. Biddi opened her larder and I ate delicious sour dough bread toasted with butter and Marmite that dripped through my fingers, and after cereals with fresh strawberries and piled high with a dollop of clotted Cornish cream. Mmmm. Mama and Juris made salad and had this with fried leftovers from last night. Everybody had whatever they wanted.

For our final day in Cornwall I chose to go to West Penwith, the very toe of Cornwall. We called in at the Truro Sainsburys arriving there almost on fresh air as the few litres of fuel I had added at Moretonhampstead were running dry; I wanted to be sure to get my double points at Sainsburys on a full tank, and incidentally saved 3pence a litre from what was offered on the A30.

Then via the A394 and Helston to the outskirts of Marazion where we sat in the beach side car park with St Michaels Mount towering above us. A perfect spot for morning tea, and we sat on the beach with our flask and our lemon cake. Mounts Bay showed us its bluest sea and its bluest sky and it was a joy to pause with our tea and cake amidst such marine beauty. Juris and I went for a paddle in the sea, but the shingle beach was uncomfortable on the feet and daunted Mama who had been game to try it.

Then back to the A30, around the back of Penzance, through Sheffield and Leedstown before reaching Lamorna Cove. We parked precipitately above the boulder strewn shore before ambling around the little harbour wall which was thoroughly wrecked by the winter storms. It wasn't as pretty as I might have hoped, but we still had the blue sky and sea, and few other people to spoil our enjoyment of it. A flask of soup with sandwiches provided an excellent picnic at this little cove and we relaxed in the hot sun.

After that I headed to St Just and my favourite road from St Just to St Ives. However my passage was spoiled by German tourists driving cars that were twelve feet wide and they stopped at the approach of anything, even a cyclist. Of course their vehicles were no wider than mine, and whilst it is true that this road is scarcely much more than 12 feet wide and sometimes rather less, it is mostly capable of letting two vehicles drive past each other. The Germans were over cautious and it would be better if they stayed in areas that have bigger roads.

So I quit my favourite road earlier than usual and cut to St Agnes where we could chill out before our evening meal.

Last evening, after our evening meal, Juris and I took a walk from Wheal Coates Mine above Chapel Porth and down to the famous cliffside engine house of Towanroath. This is one of my favourite walks, and only in June can you see the western end of the engine house lit by the sun. Tonight after our meal we took Mama to Wheal Coates Mine for a walk in the evening sun, though NOT down to Towanroath. After that we drove to Chapel Porth beach arriving just moments before the sun crashed into the sea and it was snuffed out. Day ended.

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