parkrun #381 event#104
Reason for visit: a weekend in Devon with my grandkids! The promise – a cottage by a lake, hot tub, kayaking on the lake, parkrun, aquarium, maybe a trip to the seaside……..
Access:
My son (and grandkids) live near Salisbury (plane to Southampton, train to Salisbury from the station literally across the road, there are at least 2 an hour, and you get to watch the many many freight trains on this line). Three hour drive to Devon. We were staying in a cottage in north Devon, and on Saturday morning followed the very good sat nav directions from the parkrun page.
Facilities:
Good car parking,with a marshal to direct you, but you do need to pay. Toilets. Cafe during summer hours only.
Course:
It’s a beautiful run round the Tamar lakes, crossing into Cornwall at some point, and in the beautiful autumn colours it was just a glorious way to start a Saturday morning. Pretty flat – there are one or 2 inclines which might challenge a wheelchair or buggy, but wide gravel paths all the way. Big love to the volunteers who had to pick up those spilled finish tokens in the mud!
Crowd:
Stable numbers are around the 100 mark – the weekend we were there was Storm Bert which had resulted in MULTIPLE cancellations across the country, so I thought there may be more attendees, but perhaps folk were avoiding getting stuck in flooded roads. (See later). One of thier regular runners was fundraising for an upcoming marathon, so there was a fundraising bun stand
Many gorjus doggies, including a pointy eared ginger Portuguese hound, and of course our own sprocker, Apollo.
Gear:
It was cold and windy, and I’m not running fast these days. Windproof trousers, Sauconys that I travelled in, warm Michelin jacket, and Cow Bobble..
Time:
I was supposed to be the responsible adult of an under 11, but I was far too slow for him, so I jiggedy jogged around in just over 53 minutes.
Strangely Appropriate Song On Shuffle:
OK. Let me fast forward you to the Sunday, where my return journey was spent in the back of a recovery truck, avoiding the flooded roads, gridlocked town centres, accident blocked tiny roads…..and the song on the radio was “The tide is high, but I’m holding on…”
And the rest:
Storm Bert put the kybosh on any hot tubs, kayaking, or seaside strolls. We had a few splashy puddle walks, an indoor climbing wall session, takeaway fish’n’chips, and then the van was displaying warning signs, so there was no way we were driving back.
Hence the recovery truck return journey, with my son and I exchanging awful Hamilton puns (Look around, look around, how lucky we are to be alive right now!), and us negotiating closed ring roads hence 40 minute stand offs up and down a steep hill, 33 point turns when a road was blocked by an accident, and then 10 miles form home having to take a half hour break, for understandable tachograph safety rules. Truly Unforgettable!
All my parkruns:
NI (and other) parkruns: summary list
Filed under: Parkrun, running, travel | Tagged: parkrun, parkrun tourism, parkrun-uk, running | 1 Comment »
Dancing At Lunacy 