Wales and southern england

The trip down from Edinburgh was pretty uneventful once we got out of the city. We missed one turn because I had decided that the GPS was making TOO much noise.
The weather didn't look to good once again. So on we go. We thought we had programmed in A roads into th GPS but it decided to take us down the motorway instead.
As it was raining we chose to stay on the motorway and cruise on down to Wales.
Bron did quite a bit of the ride down to Wales which was fantastic as I felt like I needed a rest. Wales and southern england

The trip down from Edinburgh was pretty uneventful once we got out of the city. We missed one turn because I had decided that the GPS was making TOO much noise.
From Uk

The weather didn't look to good once again. So on we go. We thought we had programmed in A roads into th GPS but it decided to take us down the motorway instead.
As it was raining we chose to stay on the motorway and cruise on down to Wales.
Bron did quite a bit of the ride down to Wales which was fantastic as I felt like I needed a rest.

The scenery in Wales is fantastic. The stone houses and countryside are beautiful. We came across an interesting village that was virtually surrounded by hills of slate ( and Quarry). The roads are first class and we ( or should I say I ) had heaps of fun on them. The countryside is really changeable but all really lovely. The villages are mostly quite small with their narrow streets and lovely churchs and pubs. Our campsites have been really lovely, the settings where the campsites are are mostly well sheltered with lots of grass and sometimes a nice little river running alongside.
From Wales we head to Bath.
Bath is another treasure of beautiful architecture and lovely streetscapes. The Abbey is one of the most impressive pieces of architecture I have seen. And as always a local connection, Governor Philip from first fleet fame has a plaque on the wall in the abbey and is buried nearby.

From Uk

Blenheim palace, Woodstock and Oxford.

From Uk

A 2 hour ride to Blenheim Palace was well worth the trip. Although not very ornate from the outside, it is a very beautiful place to look around with its connections to Winston Churchill and the Spencer side of my family. I did not want to mention my connections at the gate at Blenheim because they would only make a fuss and I didn't want that. We spent a few hours there looking around the gardens and helping a local fix his broken throttle cable on his bike.
After Blenheim palace we went to Salisbury cathedral.

We were not going to go inside but it was so amazing that we were drawn to find a way in without paying. After achieving that we found a wonderful interior with some fantastic architectural highlights.

From Uk

That night we found it difficult to get a campsite so we free camped for the first time. We stayed in a forest just outside Portsmouth. A so so spot that was a bit loud with traffic noise.
We spent our last day in England looking around Portsmouth. HMS Victory everywhere but it was good to have a look around and see a bit of Hornblower country. We caught a ferry from Portsmouth to Caen. This being an overnighter it didn't cost us for accommodation for the night.

The Bike Bron and I.
all going. well.
I am glad that Gunny advised me on going over the bike with spanners every so often. It is good advice. Found a couple of loose nuts and bolts after a week and 3000kms. Only minor but could become a bit of a problem if left too long.
Bron and I are getting into a nice groove. We have camped and cooked most nights and only stayed 2 nights at Edinburgh otherwise we have moved every night and only b&b one night when we were cold wet and late to get accommodation. Bron has settled in really well to living on the road. We both have taken on jobs setting up and packing up and cooking. It is nice to share the load when you travel and I feel we do that well. I am slowly settling in to travelling, I love that I really appreciate the gift of being so fortunate to have the opportunity to live this dream. Everyday when I am riding along I feel that feeling of bliss at the realization that I have this opportunity to enjoy being where I am right now.

The bike is going really well. On the motorway when lots of cars are screaming past at 120-130kmh and we are doing 110-120 I wonder whether we would be better of on a more powerful bike but it is also nice to be going at the pace that we want to do rather than what everyone else is doing. Also on some of the country roads when you get stuck behind a stream of vehicles doing 20kms below the speed limit it would be good to have a bit more power to squirt past. But in reality I am glad to be on the Vstrom because it is lighter and a bit slower it makes me lighten up and slow down, two things that are good for me to do in my life.