Journey to the Cotswolds

We have our final breakfast with Ross' mum and load up the car. The sky is overcast again and after hugs we drive off in silence as a light drizzle starts to fall. Aberporth is quickly left behind as Google Maps takes us down perilously narrow country roads in rural Carmarthenshire. We pass through some tiny hamlets with gorgeous stone cottages that look like they have been there forever. Mindful that the roads are only wide enough to fit one car comfortably, Ross concentrates hard on the road ahead. We see a large truck barreling down the lane from the opposite direction and as it approaches, realise that the driver is not slowing down at all. Ross pulls over hard left and stops while the manic truck driver passes in a flurry. We are lucky to escape without being sideswiped but the truck driver is not so lucky. As he squeezes past he pulls as far left into the hedgerow as possible and with a loud BANG promptly loses his wing mirror. Karma:) In any case we don't stick around and dart off quickly.

Fortunately it is not long before we rejoin the major highway and settle into a few hours of motorways and dazzling countryside that passes by in a flash.

Trecastle, Brecon Beacons National Park

Brecon Beacons National Park 

Brecon Beacons National Park

We stop for lunch in Ross-on-Wye and before long we're back over the border in England where vowels magically reappear on the road signs. It is a little while longer before we reach the Cotswolds but we know we're getting close to our destination when we start passing through beautiful places like Moreton-in-Marsh and spot the honeyed-hues of Cotswold stone cottages. 

Moreton-in-Marsh

Our home for the next three days is in a tiny village called Salford. We pull up at The Barn, a delightful self-contained property, where we're welcomed by our hosts, Nell and Tim. Ross rests a while after the long drive and then, at our hosts' suggestion, we walk the short distance down the hill to the local pub. It is still early on a Friday evening but the place is already bustling. The pub has recently changed management and Ross gives the new kitchen a go by ordering a fish pie. It's very good. We strike up a conversation with some friendly folk at the next table and on our way out after dinner, bump into Nell and Tim and chat some more. It's a real feel-good close to our first day in the Cotswolds.

Salford near Chipping Norton