Mini Road Trip.

[Richard (OldStager)]

I feel a bit of a fraud in posting this, given the superb trips of late around the Alps. However I intend to document my trip to the Wirral where I will be staying in just one property for the duration, and hopefully get to meet up with the Wirral section of the club and also if I can re-trace some old haunts around North Wales. I will be visting friends most of which have classic cars. This really is the first time in 25 years I have left my area without having to worry about pets. Just waiting for the temps to drop before departure, car is being slowly loaded and I can't wait to go.

 

More to follow.

[Benrobson2999 - Kent AO]

I will be following. Any adventure big or small is an adventure and I am sure you will have a great trip

[Richard (OldStager)]

Packed and ready to go. Boot is full as is passenger footwell, just got one more bag to go .

 

[Nic Chase (NICO) - Shropshire & Mid-Wales AO]

Enjoy. Some cracking roads lie ahead. 
You will be in good hands with the Wirral lads. 

[Richard (OldStager)]

I forgot to mention, the speedo cable never arrived, so I will give them a ring first thing and see if they can send to the Wirral instead ( as long as it hasn't been posted today !), darn nusiance that.

[Richard (OldStager)]

Day 1.

Left home at 9.30am, deceided to use motorways all the way again. As usual all had roadworks on them and at one point on the M6 we got down to 35mph...  Got to destination around 11.15am. You will have seen a very similar photo back in February ( except the skip is gone this time 😄)

 

Unloaded car and then spent all of the day either on the phone or messaging folks , ending up with one old friend calling round at 6pm and leaving at 12.30 ish am. Some Gin was drunk, and so am I....

 

Organised some meets earlier in the day, hopefully all will work out as one has a whole host of old motorbikes and cars.

 

Miles done on day 1 - 92.

 

Helping another mate move house tomorrow, hope my back holds out.

 

More soon.

[Richard (OldStager)]

Day 2

What a busy day, took the car for a run this morning just to get used to the roads around here again, predictably ended up at Parkgate, but the front was too busy so stopped at the Boathouse Pub end for a photo.

Flint and North Wales in the background.

 

The rest of the day was spent helping one of my oldest friends move house , 2 Transits and 2 Lutons later we had all his gear in the new house ( never want to see another cardboard box again 😄)

 

I am sorry I can't show you the foods you are used to seeing on this forum, but after 9 hours of box humping this was ideal.

 

I think tomorrow is a lazy day - give my back a rest...

 

More soon.

[Richard (OldStager)]

Day 3

 

Yes a lazy (ish) day was had. The weather was bit rubbish with drizzle on and off all day. The car wasn't even started today. I made a start at trying to get the driveway looking more like a driveway than a lawn, such were the weeds on it, got half of it done by dusk - so much for giving my back a rest...

A Whatsapp message to the Wirral group told me the next Club night is 2nd Aug, so as not to show up the Lancs area , I gave the old girl a good scrub down in the garage, motorways don't do much for the bodywork I notice given the recent new additions in stone chips 😏, oh well battle scars is what I will call them 😁.

 

Hoping to get to the local AbaKan fabric shop, as I want to match the seat colour with a leatherette type fabric for future projects, here is hoping they have a closer match than the Woolies sample I was kindly sent.

 

More soon

 

[Richard (OldStager)]

Day 4

 

Same as day 3, was going to venture out but the drizzle just kept coming on and off, unlike most road trips / holidays I am not tied into being at a certain hotel or location at a given time, this means I can pick and choose when to go on a run. I did a bit more in the garden inbetween the rain and got that bit finished. Tomorrows forecast says it will be dry all day, we will see. Got a mate calling round shortly, where some beers may be drunk...

 

More soon.

[Richard (OldStager)]

Day 5

Great day, this morning was dry so went for a short run, called into the local craft centre but no leatherette was found. Need to go into town for that. Took a pic anyway

I then took a run to see an old house my gran once owned, by chance the owner was watering his garden, and as I was parked up, the chap looked at me ,I looked at the chap - this went on for some seconds… Not wishing to appear a weirdo. I got out of the car and explained who I was and my attachment  to the house. Once i gave him enough info on the house he very kindly showed me the house both inside and out. Some great memories came flooding back. 
On the way home called into the Cottage Loaf pub, another old haunt from my Triumph car club days

I didnt photograph my lunch, pub was too busy and it felt weird taking a pic of a sandwich…

Busy day tomorrow with a family gathering, next week i plan on doing North Wales for a day or so

 

More soon

 

[boris g]

12 hours ago, Richard (OldStager) said:

Day 5

Great day, this morning was dry so went for a short run, called into the local craft centre but no leatherette was found. Need to go into town for that. Took a pic anyway

I then took a run to see an old house my gran once owned, by chance the owner was watering his garden, and as I was parked up, the chap looked at me ,I looked at the chap - this went on for some seconds… Not wishing to appear a weirdo. I got out of the car and explained who I was and my attachment  to the house. Once i gave him enough info on the house he very kindly showed me the house both inside and out. Some great memories came flooding back. 
On the way home called into the Cottage Loaf pub, another old haunt from my Triumph car club days

I didnt photograph my lunch, pub was too busy and it felt weird taking a pic of a sandwich…

Busy day tomorrow with a family gathering, next week i plan on doing North Wales for a day or so

 

More soon

 

great color scheme love it

cheers chris

[Richard (OldStager)]

Day 6

 

Without going into detail, a family gathering was attended today, to finally put my late uncle to rest in the plot of ground he requested next to his wife. Words were said and a few tears but we have now drawn a line under that chapter.

 After that , we went to a lovely little eatery, called the Red Fox in Thornton Hough ( which having seen it again, I had been to about 20 years ago for a Christmas do).

 

 

Much food was consumed, here is my main meal, and very nice it was too...

 

After that we went back to a family members house who lives on Parkgate front, with stunning views of coastal North Wales. THe weather was dreadful to be fair and it legged it down about 15 mins after taking this pic.

 

Tomorrow some more old friends to catch up on.

 

More soon.

 

 

[Richard (OldStager)]

Day 7

 Visited some old friends not seen for 20 years, and had a great catch up, turns out they sold the Triumph and got a Morris Minor instead, this car needs a few jobs doing to it, so I said I would call back and see what I could do - most likely next week.

 

I think going forward ( because I could be staying here for many weeks to come) , I wont post everyday as I have been doing, as its turning into what the kids do on faceache , so I will post whenever I think a run out or collection of cars warrants a post. I still havent been into North Wales yet, so that's to do as is meeting fellow Westy owners at the club meet.

 

I am bound to lose what day I am up to as well, so will just post as and when.

 

More soon.

 

[Richard (OldStager)]

Day 8

 

Despite me saying I won't post everyday, you never know how the day will go...

 

This evening yet another old friend called with this

 

 

Stunning soundtrack from the exhaust though being a V8, he got the car just before the first lockdown apparently.

 

Then he blew me away with some old newspaper articles that I either have never seen or ( more likely) forgotten about. This was the local rag from around 96/98.

 

And this one when I went all Gulf coloured

 

I wonder if Darren is still about or still has the Westy, perhaps someone here owns it now?.

 

More soon

[Onliest Smeg David]

On 18/07/2022 at 16:01, Richard (OldStager) said:

I feel a bit of a fraud in posting this, given the superb.....

Any 'trip' is 'superb' !

So no fraudulence 🙂