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Soggy but beautiful

9-17AUG2004 Harwich is not the most beautiful part of England.  But I soon cleared the port and headed inland.  I found a campground and pitched my faithful tent (5£).  I decided to skirt London and head into the south of England.  

I was tempted by the road signs to visit the Luffington Roman Villa.  There I purchased the English Heritage overseas visitor pass and began my tour of the plentiful ruins scattered around England.  Most of the sites offered an audio tour and some were very well done.

I visted the site of the Battle of Hastings and thought it strange that such an ordinary little field shoud occupy such a major place in English history.  The story was fascinating and seeing the terrain really helped bring history alive.

Traveling along the coast, I stopped in Brighton and marveled that people actually seemed to enjoy the pebbly beach.  Even on an overcast day there were tons of tourists.  I began a house to house search for an internet connection.  Common everywhere else I've visited they were really scarce in England.  I reasoned that a touristy spot like Brighton would have several...wrong.  It took half an hour and several inquiries to find a spot and when I did it was expensive (about $4/hour).  

After a comfortable night in a room above a pub is a small village west of Brighton, I visited Portsmouth.  There I toured Portchester Castle.  It was interesting because it was built on the original site of a Roman fort and still used the original Roman walls.

Lullworth Castle is a bit off the beaten track and located in the middle of a military reservation where armored manoevers take place.  I had to grin when I saw a tank going down the road with a big L on it.  The L stands for learner and I guess even tank drivers have to get a license.  

I found a free camping spot on a back road near the castle and settled down for the night.  The castle had a well done exhibit and also included a jousting tournament.  

I went through the wilds of Dartmoor.  The high meadows and the blooming heather made a beautiful sight. I stopped in an outdoor shop and bought a repair kit for my Thermarest air mattress which had developed a slow leak.  I was no longer amused when I woke up in the middle of the night and had to re-inflate it.  The patch was successful and I was happy.  It's curious how small things make such a difference.

I stopped in Launceston to see the castle mainly because of my fond memories of the Launceston located in Tasmania and the fond memories of Jasmine and family.  When I get the photo on my website I'll send her and email.

Tintagel castle in on the coast in West Cornwall and is very atmospheric.  Legends of King Arthur and Merlin abound.  The setting is stunning.  I stayed in the side yard of a pub.  I've discovered that country pubs will let you camp, especially if you buy a few pints and dinner.  It's a great arrangement for me because I'd rather spend a few pounds on a good dinner and some beer than on a campsite surrounded by yelling children.

Within three days after I left a cloudburst and a flood wreaked great havoc in a community right down the road from where I camped.  So far, I had avoided most of the rain.  When riding I would choose my route by where the sky was brightest and if it started to rain too hard, I would stop for a cup of  coffee.  I led a charmed life camping, too.  It often rained during the night but in the morning I'd get enough sun to dry my tent before packing it up.  I heard on the BBC that this was the wettest August on record.  Just my luck.

When I ride and rain threatens, I bundle up like an Eskimo:  leather pants, fleece jacket, motorcycle jacket with liner, rain pants, balaclava, etc.  Believe it or not, I'm comfortable.  Cruising down the road listening to my music, I'm able to ignore the rain and enjoy the sights.

Turning north I headed through Amesbury and made my obligatory stop at Stonehenge.  Yep, it's amazing and has a mood about it but as ruins go, my vote is still for Tah Phrom temple at Angkor Wat.  

Oxford seemed like a good place to find some new reading material so, I selected a few titles and also found the all Europe road atlas that I was searching for.  Oxford reminded me of Sewanee.  Perhaps Sewanee was a copy, hmmm.

Hello, Shakespeare; nice house.  

The Lake District has been the subject of poem and painting for years.  Naturally when I looked at the paintings I assumed they were fixed up a little.  Truth is the real thing was even more beautiful than the paintings.  Hi, Wordsworth; nice cottage.  

I think the best castle I visited was Bolsover near Chester.  The story was great and the castle was preserved well enough to get a real feel for life at the time.  And, the audio tour was one of the best.  

The English countryside exceeded my expectations.  The side roads that I took wandered through picturesque villages with great names.  There were beautiful manor houses and pastures that were so green it almost hurt my eyes to look at them.  

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