We left Winchester and headed for Devon. Our annual visit to what used to be home. Nice easy drive, A34, 303, M5, and the A361. The roads were surprisingly quiet which was nice. Not a journey to do on a Friday.

With the heating still not working it was time to get the motherboard out from the boiler and get it sent off. This was speeded up when we woke up and it was only four degrees and that was inside the camper. The motherboard is a printed circuit board with fifteen differant connections. I don’t like electrics at all. A three pin plug will confuse me with three wires.

But needs must so get prepared. Glasses, phone, torch, screwdriver, torx bit driver, yoga book and a big hammer on standby. Glasses because I can’t see anything without them doing stuff like that. Phone to take photos of all the wires so I remember where they all go when putting it all back together. Torch to see, it’s dark in that area. Screwdrivers to undo the three screws, one which was in the most awkward place. Yoga book to see how to bend in certain positions to get to the part. Big hammer in case it all got too much.

With a lot of swearing, a bad back and shoulder and a bump on the head I got the part out. Job done. Nikki packed it up and got it posted off and tracked. Checking the tracker the next day it had gone to the wrong sorting office but was being rerouted. In the meantime we ordered a small electric heater and picked it up so we had some warmth.

In contact with Alde heating and they confirmed they had got the part after its travels, the part was broken and under warranty so they would replace it and a new one was in the post. Yippeeee.

I fitted the new part and can confirm that it all went back together and is now working as it should. Not too many swear words were said, but am pleased I did the job myself.

So we’re down in Devon. We see Nikki’s mum while here. We get the camper serviced and mot and the same with the car, we see the dentist and visit friends. The site we stay on has a club house which is very good for food and beer but a bit too close, even though we are on a pitch the furthest point away from it. Again you have to support local business. So a few beers was had with some friends for me. Unfortunately Nikki came down with a bug so stayed at home. Camper in for mot and service for the day so we go out for the day. We decided on going to Woolacombe and having some lunch and looking at the sea.

The dentist was first after dropping the camper off for a check up and I had a tooth which was giving me a bit of pain now and then. Check ups done but I needed a big filling and had to come back the next day. Lucky me.

The place I chose for lunch was called the porthole on marine drive and was very good with a great view. Not many people about which was nice.

After lunch we had a stroll around Woolacombe and as we had time to spare we found a nice spot to park up and watch the sea crashing onto the beach. It is a wonderful spot woolacombe but gets so busy in the summer and expensive.

Time to head back to get the camper and the not so good news. I have had an engine management light on so asked them to investigate. The problem part is the throttle body which they ordered but that was faulty. They could get one the next day and fit it so the camper would be ready for lunchtime. That’s ok but we live in the camper so we had to book in a hotel for the night. Nikki loved that part especially as we had to go to the pub for food and drink to drown our sorrows.

After our meal and one or two drinks we walked back to the hotel the long way. Passing through the streets of the town and just seeing how it had changed. The old pannier market has been renovated and looked really nice at night. A lot of different shops and a lot had gone.

The next morning we went back to the garage only to be told they could not do the job because it looked like the bolts holding the part were going to snap. If that happened most of the front end would need to come off and that’s a couple of days work. We left it to think about. We have it back and it drives like normal but just has this annoying light on the dash. They are giving me a price and timescale. Decisions decisions.

We went back to the campsite and then I had to drive back to go to the dentist for my big filling and big bill.

Up early the next morning to take the car for mot and service. Nikki stayed at home while I left at 7am, dropped the car off and walked into Barnstaple along the Tarka trail which used to be the old railway line from Barnstaple to Braunton. As soon as I got on the Tarka trail a big smile came across my face. The sunrise was spectacular.

Facing east as I walked along and taking photos as quick as I could. These moments don’t last long. The tide on the river taw was high and still so the refections were also fantastic. Hope you like the photos.

After going and getting some breakfast I wandered back to the river Taw to eat my bacon and sausage roll and admire the scenery. There are some new flats the other side of the estuary and this morning they looked fantastic reflecting in the river. So in between bites of my roll more photos were taken. I could not put the roll down because the seagulls would have taken it and no one wants to see a grown man cry.

I continued to wander around along the river bank and through the town doing about seven miles of walking in total. I visited the Barnstaple museum which was really interesting. Then it was time to go and get the car, pay the bill and then drive up to the garage where the camper was done and pay them. All in all a very expensive couple of days. And there’s more to come.

Some facts about this trip. After leaving our site in the middle of September I have driven 931 miles to get to Devon and used £194 worth of fuel. It will be less miles on the way back up north because it’s more of a direct route. Nikki has done more miles because she keeps getting lost but luckily her car uses less fuel.

We are leaving here on Monday and heading for Cirencester. Another site we have been to many times and actually worked on six years ago. But for now we are ready for some bad weather coming in. Winds gusting up to 75 miles per hour have been mentioned and of course lots of rain. Good job the heatings on but the camper will be rocking. Life in a tin can. Sunday roast with friends on Sunday so looking forward to that.