A taste of Gloucestershire

Good Morning. Let's go back to the beginning. On Sunday I set off about ten ish, called in to see my sister one the way down south. She was babysitting her new grand daughter at Bedworth near Coventry. Stayed a couple of hours, this was the first time I had seen little Eadie, she is a cutie. 

Arrived at the campsite at Slimbridge at 5.15pm and found a quiet pitch on the edge of the second field. Not many campers in tents but quite a few motorhomes and caravans, the weekenders had gone home. Inspected the washing facilities and found a very clean toilet and shower block, looks quite new. After putting the tent up we went a walk. Rocky enjoyed walking along the canal tow path, and I followed with the buggy just in case he needed a ride. He can walk further if there are lots of interesting doggy smells. Back onto the road, it was too early to turn in for the night so we went to have a look at the Slimbridge Wetland Centre, to check out opening times and prices. Sadly visiting is not an option for us, it's £8.91 entrance for oap's, too much, and dogs are not allowed. Never mind we will find something else to do. 

Monday morning and I have to start the day with a mug of coffee, kitchen is in the back of the car. It's mizzley weather, see vid in previous post. 

My makeshift awning, a piece of tarp tied over the open tailgate and onto the barbed wire fence.

Rocky gets his breakfast in bed, ha ha, lazy beggar.

I saw a sign for Dursley on the way in, so I thought that would make a good starting point. There is a large Sainsbury's store which has a three hour limit on it. I checked with a man that is was ok to park there. He says they very rarely check how long people are there for, it's pretty laid back. Here we are next to the Market House which is standing on pillars, with the Parish Church of St James the Great in the background. 

They are raising money to install a lift so that people can easily access the upper floor. At the moment the only way up is a narrow stone staircase.

I found a beautiful tapestry in the church, it's a really big one, I have photographed the detail of the impressive centre section.

After a couple of hours bimbling round Dursley, looking at charity shops in the main shopping street, buying Rocky a new teddy, and spending time chatting to people, it was time to move on.
I quite like the name Wotton under Edge, so lets go there. Finding a parking place was not easy. It's a confusing place with narrow streets, lots of traffic squeezing their way past parked cars, and narrow footpaths with uneven surfaces. A nightmare to push a buggy around. I drove around looking for a car park and eventually found one, but the bays were that narrow it was difficult to get in and out of the car. I now know why mums with toddlers need the extra width of a designated mother and baby space.

One thing I did notice when I arrived in the town was the abundance of hanging baskets. They are everywhere.

Beautiful floral displays enhance the traditional olde worlde buildings.

Steps down a narrow alley way to a private cottage. 

There is a little oasis of quiet behind the chaotic noisy High Street. Tucked away through a stone archway, a sign says you are welcome to come in and sit for a while. It opens into a courtyard. In the middle of the Almshouses is a beautiful tiny 17th century chapel.

The Electric Picture House is one of the oldest in the country. It started life as The Star Inn, and was bought in 1911 and turned into a picture house. In 1960, due to the popularity of television, it closed. In 1963 it reopened, then it closed and was turned into a Bingo Hall. In 1993 it was closed and reopened as a cinema. It once again closed in 2002. A dedicated group of enthusiasts set about fundraising and restoring it. In April 2015 the management of the cinema was passed to a new company, The Electric Picture House Cinema Ltd.. If you want to read more about this fascinating building, look here. 

I didn't spend long in Wotton, too cramped for my liking, and busy with people and cars. A car had parked that close to mine I had to get in on the passenger side and climb over to drive it out onto the road so I could load Rocky and pushchair in.

It was a bit too early to go back to base, so I headed back towards the A38 and took a ride to Frampton on Severn, then carried on to Arlington and the waters edge. The Severn is a tidal river, like the Humber, though I have never seen a tidal bore. There is a full 2015 timetable here.
I've found this three minute vid on yooootoooob, the bore looks amazing.



After a busy day it was back to the campsite and noodles with left over sprouts and carrots for dinner. The pooch crashed out on a full tummy of doggy nosh. Aaah, bless.

More to follow. Toodle pip.