Hello all
I was up early this morning and soon on the bus to Sidmouth.
But first I had to come to terms with a great disappointment. I have enjoyed buying my daily sandwich from any Co-op that I find along the way. There is a fairly large Co-op just around the corner from where I am staying in Seaton, and I walked jauntily around the corner this morning thinking of egg mayonnaise and cress, or smoked ham and cheddar. Which one to have? Or maybe I could push the boat out and get something exotic like a coronation chicken.
I was greeted by a cheery "hello dear", as I entered the shop.
I headed for the sandwiches.
What??????????
No sandwiches.
Not one single sandwich.
Gutted!
Dejected, I walked out of the Co-op and headed for the bus stop.
At the bus stop there was a lady who was fussing over the contents of her shopping bag and was clearly a little confused and agitated. She got on the same bus as me and she sat near to the front; she was clearly still agitated.
When we reached the outskirts of Seaton, she pressed the button for the bus to stop, which it did at the next stopping place.
"Oh dear, this isn't my stop" she said.
"Never mind dear" said the driver, "where do you want me to stop?"
"I don't know, I've forgotten where I live".
"What about if I drive on slowly and you shout out when you recognise the place that you usually get off".
We set off slowly and a few seconds later she pressed the button again.
"Is this it?"
"Yes".
"What definitely, I don't want you getting out at the wrong place".
"No, no, this is definitely it".
She got off the bus.
"You be careful now", said the driver.
We drove off.
I have mentioned the bus drivers in previous blogs and this is yet another good story about how they go beyond what is expected of them.
In the words of Bart and Lisa Simpson -"Hail to the bus driver".
Witnessing this had very nearly made me forget my sandwich disappointment, but not quite.
As I walked up and down, up and down on the path today I encountered about a hundred school children in groups of 4 to 8. They were all wearing bright red tee shirts with "Jurassic Challenge 2019" printed on them. I was pleasantly surprised by how polite they were. I don't think I have had so many "good mornings" as I have had today. I often find myself saying, "alright?" to people as I pass them. Today I received answers to this throwaway question.
"Yes thank-you, and how are you?"
When I got to Branscombe I found a group of teachers who were dishing out drinks and food to the kids and checking on their state of fitness. I decided to go and tell them how much I was impressed by the children.
"I have been walking from Sidmouth to here, this morning and have passed a lot of your children".
The woman I was talking to looked worried.
"I have to say, what a good mannered and delightful group of children they are".
"Thank-you very much, it's really nice to get some positive feedback for a change".
I have no idea what other people have been saying.
www.justgiving.com/fundraising/RobSetter
I was up early this morning and soon on the bus to Sidmouth.
But first I had to come to terms with a great disappointment. I have enjoyed buying my daily sandwich from any Co-op that I find along the way. There is a fairly large Co-op just around the corner from where I am staying in Seaton, and I walked jauntily around the corner this morning thinking of egg mayonnaise and cress, or smoked ham and cheddar. Which one to have? Or maybe I could push the boat out and get something exotic like a coronation chicken.
I was greeted by a cheery "hello dear", as I entered the shop.
I headed for the sandwiches.
What??????????
No sandwiches.
Not one single sandwich.
Gutted!
Dejected, I walked out of the Co-op and headed for the bus stop.
At the bus stop there was a lady who was fussing over the contents of her shopping bag and was clearly a little confused and agitated. She got on the same bus as me and she sat near to the front; she was clearly still agitated.
When we reached the outskirts of Seaton, she pressed the button for the bus to stop, which it did at the next stopping place.
"Oh dear, this isn't my stop" she said.
"Never mind dear" said the driver, "where do you want me to stop?"
"I don't know, I've forgotten where I live".
"What about if I drive on slowly and you shout out when you recognise the place that you usually get off".
We set off slowly and a few seconds later she pressed the button again.
"Is this it?"
"Yes".
"What definitely, I don't want you getting out at the wrong place".
"No, no, this is definitely it".
She got off the bus.
"You be careful now", said the driver.
We drove off.
I have mentioned the bus drivers in previous blogs and this is yet another good story about how they go beyond what is expected of them.
In the words of Bart and Lisa Simpson -"Hail to the bus driver".
Witnessing this had very nearly made me forget my sandwich disappointment, but not quite.
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| Sidmouth Beach in the early morning |
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| The view back along the coast to yesterday's walk. |
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| Quite possibly, the best bench on the whole coast path. And it was mine for about 30 minutes. |
"Yes thank-you, and how are you?"
When I got to Branscombe I found a group of teachers who were dishing out drinks and food to the kids and checking on their state of fitness. I decided to go and tell them how much I was impressed by the children.
"I have been walking from Sidmouth to here, this morning and have passed a lot of your children".
The woman I was talking to looked worried.
"I have to say, what a good mannered and delightful group of children they are".
"Thank-you very much, it's really nice to get some positive feedback for a change".
I have no idea what other people have been saying.
_____________________________
Jennie and I have holidayed in a chalet on the cliffs at Branscombe. I fact we stayed there about 4 years in a row during the cheaper Autumn times.
One day we were walking up the extremely steep climb from the beach to the top of the cliffs on the way to Beer. We were in our forties then. The climb was a struggle for us and as we stopped to look back down the slope we saw an older man and a child catching up with us. Determined not to be overtaken we climbed on. It was no use, they soon overtook us and we noticed that the man was probably in his sixties and the child was a in fact a teenager. I know that we were disappointed in our lack of fitness at the time.
Today, I powered from the bottom of the hill to the top, passing many people along the way.
Now I am the old chap approaching my Sixty-Fifth Birthday.
I am extremely pleased with myself.
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Tonight I am dining out on fish and chips with 4 members of the same family.
Jill is the great-grandmother, Caroline is the grandmother, Cassie is the mother and Minnie is their respective - great-granddaughter, granddaughter and daughter. And then there is me - their friend.
Take it easy
Rob
Hi Rob, it's Ian posting: we shadowed each other from Porlock and I last saw you about to tuck into a bowl of soup at Sennen Cove. I've been reading your blog (as has Helen) since I got back from the path. I enjoyed the chats we had whilst walking together in North Cornwall. The Babbacombe-Shaldon stretch is a tough one, made worse (I think) by the fact that it's not possible to see what's ahead. I rushed the Dawlish Warren-Starcross stretch, having seen a ferry timetable at Dawlish Warren Station. I got to Starcross 5 minutes after the ferry departure time, only to discover that the ferries were cancelled that day due to lack of passengers!
ReplyDeleteIf you are looking for a campsite near Portwrinkle, then have a look at the St. John Inn (in the village of St. John). A bus can be caught from the beach at Portwrinkle to Antony and then it's about a mile walk. You can also get a bus from Antony to Cremyl. The pub has a campsite for 10 tents. The campsite is open all week, but the pub only opens Thursday-Sunday. I had a nice couple of nights camping there.
Do you fancy company on one of your remaining days? I'm busy next week, but could come down and do one of the Dorset stretches with you.
Ian (the biologist)
Hello Ian. How lovely to hear from you. I'm guessing two things - 1. You have now finished the walk, and
ReplyDelete2. You have read my up-to-date itinerary.
It would be great to walk a stretch of the Dorset coast with you. I have just arrived home to celebrate my 65th Birthday with my family and I'll get back to you when I have looked at the Dorset stretches again.
All the very best. Rob
Hi Rob - belated birthday greetings from Ambleside. We have also been reading and enjoying your blog, reminiscing about our own hike from Minehead to Padstow - and planning the next instalment as we really miss it. We’re glad you’ve built in some more time, indeed we regretted not taking a couple of rest days as there is so much to see and do. We’ve just had a couple of weeks in Brittany and you might be interested to know that the Brittany coastal path is one of the most popular long distance paths in France - and it’s even longer than the SWCP. So there’s another challenge!
ReplyDeleteAnyway, enjoy the rest of the walk and don’t overdo it! We’ll be especially thinking of you on the leg between Weymouth and Lulworth as we had our honeymoon in a tiny cottage in Ringstead and we go there regularly (lots of up and down!). You will also pass a tiny church at Holworth on that walk - Jan’s dad has a memorial on the lawn overlooking the sea - it’s a beautiful spot. Worth the very short detour. Best wishes to you and Jennie.
Andy and Jan