The best way to navigate around Birmingham; exploring Cheshire; and the great leap north to Scotland – Days 4-5

Reflecting on our journey west and along the Welsh border as we headed northwards from Oswestry using more of the A49 and aiming to join the M6, we reached the conclusion that this may become our new, preferred route north towards Scotland. Whilst not the most direct by some margin, and certainly not fast, it has proven to be really interesting and well worth the extra time taken to avoid Spaghetti Junction and the inevitable nose-to-tail traffic jams around Birmingham.

 

Mr B spent some of his childhood growing up on an army base (Parkhall) just outside Oswestry (now a mix of housing and industrial estates) and as we bowled along in Evie, he recognised what used to be the family route up to see his Gran on the outskirts of Manchester, and we realised that there’s a lot more worth exploring in this neck of the woods on any subsequent visits.

 

Having already booked the ferry to Arran to see our friends Paul and Sue on the Thursday, we decided to slow the pace as we travelled the Route of the Gran, and settled on a stopover in the Delamere forest in Cheshire. New to both of us, the forest offers a number of opportunities for exploring – and had we more time, we would have, as there are walks from the site (Camping & Caravan Club) that lead to both forest and lake.

 

 

Tucked away in a small dell on the grass only pitches, we had time to have a brief wander towards the lake, admiring the dedicated bike wash en route. Mr B was particularly excited by this, as it’s the first time he has seen one on a campsite anywhere!

 

 

Leaving the next morning in warm sunshine, we made sure we filled up with fuel before we hit the M6 and the long slog north. Having swerved the bulk of the midlands, it wasn’t long before we were pulling in to Tebay services in the Lakes for a brief rest – and more importantly – one of their famous and totally delicious pies. Finding old habits hard to break, we opted, again, for the beef and ale – delicious as always and already on the menu for the return trip should we head back along the western side of Scotland and the north.

 

Mrs B had spotted that there was now just one ACSI site in the whole of Scotland, and, situated conveniently close to the start of Dumfries and Galloway, we decided to head to it as our first stop in Scotland. Although not offering ACSI discounted prices when we visited, it was still cheaper than our last stop at the C&CC site in Delamere, calling into question yet again for us, the value of club sites as opposed to independent operators.

 

With the sun still shining, we had a lovely pitch that looked back onto the castle itself – what a fabulous view!

 

 

With enough daylight for a walk around some of the extensive grounds (including the latitude bonus being much further north) we set out to explore.

 

The castle itself is now derelict, and although not crumbling, only some of the more recent, Victorian era additions are still in use, including Reception, a bar, and the amenities block and hey, it’s not often one gets to shower in a castle! And very nice and warm they were too.

 

 

The walk took us through some fabulous woodland, complete with masses of wild garlic (necessitating a forage of course)…

 

 

…and down to the river and its interesting salmon sculpture…

 

 

 

Returning to the van after a relaxing and refreshing wander (it was sunny but the wind was chilly!), we decided that this is definitely a site we could return to for more exploring next time we are this way – and especially so after a very, very, quiet and dark night!

 

The next day saw more sun and a short hop up to Ardrossan where we had a ferry booked for one of the afternoon sailings. Still notorious for the total shambles that has been made of the replacement ferry service to Brodick on Arran, with older boats plugging the gap and prone to breakdown and cancellation, we were so pleased to see that our crossing was showing as on-time and without drama – phew!

 

Boarding without problem, and almost able to get Evie out on deck in the sunshine, we settled in for a drama free crossing…

 

 

…except, as we neared the halfway mark, we felt the boat slowly stopping and lots of crew running around… followed shortly after by an announcement by the Captain over the tannoy that the ferry had received an SOS from a fishing boat that had sunk, following a collision with a passing tanker – eek! And, as one of the vessels in close enough proximity to offer help, the ferry deployed its Rapid Response Boat (RRB) to offer help.

 

 

 

Watching the drama unfold in front of us, the RRB arrived at the life raft we could see in the distance, along with a couple of lifeboats from Arran and Troon. Fortunately, the three crew of the sunken boat were quickly transferred to the bigger lifeboat from Troon and whisked away for check-ups in hospital, leaving the life-raft for collection by the returning Arran lifeboat. Seeing the lonely life-raft as well as seeing and smelling the diesel slick on the water, it was both a sobering reminder of the perils of the sea, and reassuring to see rescue services so quickly on the scene.

 

 

And, as we eventually pulled into Brodick harbour, we were very grateful to have made it safely, as well as excited to see our friends Paul and Sue who we’ve not seen since last March! All we need now is for the weather gods to be kind to us…

 

 

 

S&J 30.04.24