Tuesday 22nd May 2018

Today we travelled south down the Wye Valley on small roads stopping to take in this view from high above the river.

We stopped briefly at Ross on Wye to take on LPG and then travelled south into the Forest of Dean. After touring around the Forest for a while we stopped for the day at Lydney Harbour on the banks of the Severn Estuary.

The Estuary is extremely tidal having one of the largest variations between high and low tide anywhere in the world.

Our parking place is next to locks allowing boats access from the river into the estuary.

There are views across the estuary to Berkeley Nuclear Power Station which stopped producing electricity (and Plutonium for nuclear bombs) in 1989. Nobody knows what to do with these former bomb factories - I imagine all they can do is keep an eye on them for 1000 years or so and hope they eventually become less radioactive enough not to have to worry about!

Nearby are some recently erected "menhirs".

There is a small yacht harbour behind the locks separating the river from the estuary.

When we got back from our walk around the harbour we found a 1960s Lotus Elan parked next to our van. This has always been my dream car since I was a young person. I never owned one because I am too tall to fit in comfortably and could not have afforded one.

In a short while the couple who own the Elan returned. We chatted to them for a long while. He has cancer which has spread to his bones and he has not too long to live he reckons. He and I both have the same boyhood hero - the great Jim Clark - who must have driven a car just like this when he was off  (and on) duty.

Today we travelled 47 miles (76 kilometres). We are at N51.71031 W2.50865

Lydney Harbour