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| Proof that the camera does lie. The car looks good in this photo! |
This week has been a sparse one hot rod wise and our trip
down to Somerset was in the Astra unfortunately. The purpose of the trip was to
take Paul’s dragster gear box to Zane Llewellyn’s just outside Shepton Mallet
so we thought we’d make a weekend of it but didn’t want to risk an oil leak on
the back seat of the Model A. We took our usual route to the West Country via
Oxford and the M4 and then into Bristol. Once we got past Bristol and into the
beautiful Somerset countryside we wished we were in the Model A.
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| Wookey Hole Caves |
Our first stop I feared may be a bit tacky touristy for us
and it was really. Wookey Hole caves is aimed more at people with young
families with all the extra attractions. It was OK but some of the caves were
closed due to them extending the access to more caves. We’ve been given free
tickets to come back when it’s fully open. Then it was on to our accommodation
which I booked with AirBnB in West Compton, a couple of miles off the A361 near
Pilton. It was a delightful little cabin
called The Love Shack. It was simple, yet had everything we needed, including a
west facing veranda overlooking green fields, masses of trees and you could
just see the top of St Michael’s Tower on top of the Glastonbury Tor in the
distance. The “kitchen” is outside and there was a separate toilet and shower
hut, not primitive as it sounds. It had a nice modern, power shower. We made
full use of the barbeque on the veranda, having kangaroo steaks, Stagsden
burgers and salad on both evenings while we watched the sun slip behind the hills
and a full English on Sunday morning. The peace and quiet there was wonderful,
nothing but the birds singing and even they were quite restrained. No light
pollution other than the sun, no TV or mobile phone signal but it did have Wi-Fi.
It was the perfect retreat to get away from it all.
We drove into Shepton Mallet or S**t and Smellit as my Dad
used to call it and he wasn’t far wrong. Apart from the impressive viaduct, a
nice park and an attractive market square, it didn’t have much to offer and the
High Street looked pretty run down. To be fair it was 5.30pm on a Saturday, after
the traders had gone home and before the evening begins but it wasn’t calling
out for us to hang around. We called in
at the pub in Pilton for a couple of ciders, found the décor tired and the
landlord less than friendly (but Zane later told us he is quite a laugh once
you get to know him and they apparently do great steaks!) We discovered that Glastonbury
festival is actually held just outside Pilton. The organisers keep the locals
happy by giving them free tickets or a cash alternative as well as being
extremely well organised and keeping disruption to a minimum. Many of the
houses are rented out or have posh sheds in their garden for the festival
goers.
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| 14th century- St Michael's Tower, Glastonbury Tor |
Sunday 19th July, our first stop was Glastonbury
Tor, a steep terraced hill possibly created by erosion of
horizontal bands of clay and limestone and is capped with sandstone. (It is believed by
some to be Avalon) This was quite a steep climb of 158 metres but worth it for
the view. Even with the low cloud you could see for miles across the Somerset
levels, Wiltshire and Dorset. We then strolled into town, decided we didn’t
want to pay to see a load of old ruins- Glastonbury Abbey- and so wandered through
the town centre. It is clearly a hippy town full of shops majoring on magic,
flowing dresses, healing and wellbeing and populated by people many of whom had
dreadlocks, smelling of incense and marijuana. There was a fantastic organic
food store and the only busy vegan restaurant I’ve ever seen in my life.
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| Glastonbury |
I don’t like to be negative but have to moan here. It
started to rain so we went to the Abbey Tea Shop for a cup of (caffeine free) tea.
There was only one other table occupied and we waited for at least 5 minutes to
be served but no one came so we left. We try to use independent businesses as
much as we can but so often the level of customer service, attitude and
training is so poor it drives you mad. No wonder the bland, boring franchises
like Starbucks and Wetherspoons are taking over the world.
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| Burnham on Sea, donkey rides optional. |
Moving on, the sun was due to come out, so we set off on the
15 mile journey to Burnham on Sea and it did. It’s an understated resort in the
Bristol Channel but nice enough and even the Tourist Information was open on a
Sunday, a rare event these days. We
enjoyed a nice stroll along the windy esplanade and by now there wasn’t a cloud
in the sky. The inevitable Fish and Chips lunch ensued (from the Esplanade Fish
Bar) and rated 9 out of ten- lovely cod and batter, proper knives and forks
with seating overlooking the beach and only the chips cut the score, being just
average.
Next stop, Cheddar Gorge which was packed with tourists and
was absolutely beautiful. With the clear blue sky and vertical rock face rising by
the roadside, it felt like we were in Colorado. We didn’t go in the caves on
such a sunny day and just enjoyed walking through the town. The parking was a
bit steep at £5 but who can blame them?
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| Cheddar Gorge |
After a lovely drive through the Mendip Hills, officially
named an Area of Outstanding Beauty and wishing we were in the Hot Rod, we
arrived in Wells, the smallest city in England. Feeling tired we got our lawn
chairs out and looked for a spot to sit only to find a place near the cathedral
where the finals of The Rotary Club Boules competition was in progress. A French
sport it may be but it was conducted in a very British manner. After a bit of
shut eye we walked around the edge of the Bishop’s Palace and then to the front
to the cathedral which looked fabulous, particularly with the blue sky back
drop and with the sun starting to go down it made the sandstone a spectacular
colour, highlighting the intricate carving on the façade.
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| Wells Cathedral |
We chose a pub in the High Street called The King’s Head and
once again the landlord was miserable and unsurprisingly it was pretty empty.
After one drink we moved onto Wetherspoons and that was packed. I rest my case
sadly. There won’t be any independent places left at this rate.
Monday morning after dropping off the gearbox at Zane’s we
drove through a few pretty villages and then onto the A303 and A34 home, a
pretty boring but fast route apart from
the stretch through Salisbury Plain (with the ripened crops making it look like
the prairies) and to top off the weekend – Stonehenge!
link: The Shack, West Compton https://www.airbnb.co.uk/rooms/1093607?eluid=0&euid=7bfd9c17-af8f-ba87-6538-0db0ea9dbe08
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