28th Nov – 10th Dec
2015
Rugby, cycle rides, and country walks
For two weeks we were house sitting John
and Di Skidmore’s home in Surrey while they were in Barbados. More accurately, we were Percy sitting –
Their Maine Coon cat which, needless to say, rules the house ! Luckily he is extremely friendly, especially
to people who feed him !
After only a couple of days, we set Percy’s
automatic feeders and drove down to Exeter for one night, to join up with some
college friends from 1965 – 1968. Matt,
Huw, and Chris and I were all at St Luke’s college in Exeter together, and
since this was now 50 years since we had started college, we decided it needed
to be celebrated suitably.
So we met up at the old Pub, the Clifton
Inn, located close to the college buildings, where we used to have a pint or
three when we were students. The bar has
been extended over the years, but is still recognizable – In fact I think a
couple of the old guys who were there drinking scrumpy in 1965 were still there
now ! Once we had had a bit for lunch,
we headed off to our next engagement – A rugby match between Exeter and
Harlequins. Rain was forecast, but
fortunately it was still fine as we walked the mile or two to the grounds.
Exeter Chiefs are doing really well in the
English Premier League this year, so there were big crowds at the ground for
this eagerly awaited clash. Once we
found our seats, and Janet had posed with the billboards as well as with the
Team Mascot (!), the match soon got underway, and suffice it to say it was a
thriller – With Exeter eventually holding off Harlequins for the last 20
minutes to win by one point. By the time
we left the rain had started, so we got a bit wet heading back to the cars, and
then headed back to our hotel to change to go out for dinner.
Together with our wives, Dilly, Ros, Penny
and Janet, as well as Huw and Dilly’s daughter Bethan, we had an excellent meal
at Bill’s Restaurant, and finally made it back to our hotel after a long
day. Next morning we said our farewells
and headed back to Surrey to resume our Percy-sitting detail !
A couple of days later we had the most
magnificent English winter’s day – Clear blue skies and a cold but windless day
– So Janet and I set of to Godalming for a walk. I knew of a walk along the tow path beside
the Wey and it was just a perfect day.
We had swans on the canal, WW II defensive pill boxes from the past, and
Canada geese taking a rest during their migration flight. A very pleasant afternoon, even if it was a
bit muddy in places.
The following weekend, a good friend from
the Australian Lotus Elise group came down to stay over night. Winno is working in London for a year or two,
and being on his own he was easily persuaded to come down to join us for a pub
meal one evening, and then we rented him a bicycle the next day and he and I
went down and cycled part of the Downs Link, again on a perfect winter’s
day. This cycle path is on an old
railway line that was decommissioned in the austerity measures of the British
Government in the late 1960’s,, and is now a delightful traffic free cycle and
walk way through the English countryside – In this case going all the way down
to Brighton on the south coast. We only
went as far as Cranleigh where we had a cup of coffee before heading back to
Godalming before it got dark. Winno and
I also spent some time at the local Lotus dealer in Surrey, checking on their
stock for any interesting cars !
Shortly afterwards, the Skidmores returned
from their holiday – Probably much to Percy’s relief ! A few days later we went for a walk up Leith
Hill, 7 km south west of Dorking, and, by virtue of the19.4 metre tower built
at the top in 1776, the highest point in south east England at 294 (plus 19.4)
metres. Our walk also circled around
Leigh Hill Place, an old mansion house built in 1760, and inhabited by Josiah
Wedgwood’s family (of pottery fame) from 1847.
The composer Vaughan Williams also lived there, and donated it to the
National Trust in 1944, after which it served as a school boarding house until it was opened to the public in
2013. Once again, a wonderful walk
through some beautiful English countryside, which always takes a lot of beating
when the weather is right.
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