I seem to remember some-one saying that it was possible to park by the beach in Minehead, so I thought I would check it out. I therefore cut off the main road and headed straight for the seafront. I was a little sceptical as I followed the promenade. Undeterred, I continued to the end. I was surprised to see a large car park that is raised above the road. It was covered in a dusting of windswept sand. There is an on ramp which I decided to take a chance on. I could see that if no go, there is enough room to turn around. The inland side of the road is entirely taken up by a well-known holiday camp. Towards the end, I pulled up close to the beach. So close, in fact, that I could step out of my door straight onto the sandy beach! It was something new for the cats, too. I quickly sussed that the off ramp ahead, though tight for my combo is doable with room to spare. I was surprised as to how quiet it was. No-one bothered me. It was a lovely spot.
(For some unfathomable reason, I seem to have neglected to take any photos of this part of my journey.)
It was now mid August and I knew that there was a Whirl-y-Fayre (www.whirl-y-fayre.co.uk) party on at the weekend. As I knew there would be friends there, I decided to head straight for it. So, I headed back out to the main road and continued eastbound over the Quantock Hills, through Bridgwater and onto the Somerset Levels. The festival site is close to the Roman Fosse Way. In fact, there are Roman remains on the site; a wall, at least, is visible. On site, I soon found Mary who helped to site me. The cats disappeared for the whole day! I was really starting to get worried. But, of course, I needn’t. They reappeared in the evening, having had a major explore of the hedges.
The next day, Robbie (www.psychedelic-art.com) turned up, followed a bit later by Matt. Martin’s crew had already set up the marquee,* so all that needed doing was to decorate. Along with the usual procrastinating and lots of tea and bifters, we set up. It was quite a chilled gig compared to some. It was great to see so many friends that I had not seen for some time.
Come Monday, we tacked down and said our farewells. Matt suggested that I should visit his place at some point. I stayed on site for a couple of extra days. Martin had everything under control dismantling the marquee with his team. We bade each other farewell. The next day, I found Mary, said farewell and got back on the road. I needed supplies, so headed for Glastonbury. I parked in the supermarket car park, did some shopping, then wandered into town. I met up with a few friends, had a coffee, then wandered back to head on.
*see entry Festivals, part 2 ...
**photograph courtesy of www.whirl-y-fayre.co.uk
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