Dear me, no posts in April! I've never missed a month before. But then there was little to write about. I've been in a sort of limbo, waiting for my car and caravan to be repaired, both of them insurance jobs.
I had a hitching accident back in February. Being unfamiliar with the AL-KO hitch that connects car and caravan for towing - I'd used a Winterhof hitch for twenty years on my old caravan, which worked differently - I'd messed up when getting away from a short break at Winchester. The caravan looked properly hitched for the return journey, but it wasn't. It was merely gripping the car's towball, not locked onto it, and within yards of moving off my pitch, car and caravan parted company.
I stopped the car at once, but the caravan didn't stop and crunched into the rear of my car. Sophie came out of it with a dented rear end. The Swift caravan fared worse, one corner of its fibreglass front panel splintering. It was a heart-lurching sight. I almost cried. The Winchester trip had been a kind of maiden voyage for the Swift, its first outing in my hands, and it had come to this.
After immediate assistance from astonished onlookers on the Winchester club site, I got going and came home without further trouble. Car and caravan were still completely roadworthy. On the way I stopped off at the caravan dealer, to get a damage assessment and to set the insurance claim procedure in motion. The car also. I wanted both restored to pristine condition, and if doing so doubled my premiums for the next couple of years (which it has) then so be it.
Now, as I write, the Swift is finally being fixed. And my car Sophie goes in for new rear end panels next week. Then I'll feel happy again. Both will look brand new in the areas that were damaged. In the case of the caravan, fitting a new front panel and sealing it against the weather will actually forestall any water-ingress and dampness problems in the years ahead (which are costly to fix). Psychologically it will feel like a fresh start with the Swift.
You might well ask, if the accident happened in February and it's now May, then why has this taken so long to deal with?
Well, in truth the work needed could have gone ahead in early April, a month ago, but I wanted first to go on a three-week trip to the West Country, spending Easter in Cornwall. I didn't mind doing it in a wounded caravan that brazenly flaunted a taped-up front corner, towed by a wounded car that had a bent rear bumper. Getting away in good weather seemed more important. Nobody objected. The insurance companies had agreed that the work could go ahead when convenient to all parties.
The combined estimates for car and caravan came to over £9,000, well beyond my current cash resources, so all the damage repair has had to be done on insurance. It lets me off the hook as regards that £9,000, but the excesses I must pay are still no joke. £200 on the caravan and £650 on the car. To cover that, I've cancelled a Welsh tour that I'd booked. That's a pity, but £850 is a lot to find.
So my next long trip is another West Country jaunt, a three-weeker to North Devon and the Cotswolds. But it's nearly three months away, a long time to wait. So in between now and then I'm going back to Winchester club site for five nights, a mini-trip that won't break the bank. Hampshire in the late spring can be delightful. Besides, I need to overcome the negative feelings left by February's accident at the Winchester site. I need to hitch up correctly when I depart for home, and prove to myself that I've learned how to do it right. And of course I will. Considering the dire consequences of not connecting car and caravan properly, I've become paranoid about checking that all is good before driving away!
I haven't decided where to travel in the second half of 2026, but I've already decided that I'll revisit Orkney in spring 2027, which entails making my way in stages from mid Sussex to Scrabster harbour, where the ferry to Stromness departs from, and then coming all the way home again, seeing friends on the return leg. I haven't booked anything yet, but I have chosen the sites I'll need to stay at, and the dates. This will be a 55-night trip, not far short of two months away. But I now have the kind of caravan to make a holiday of that length not only feasible but enjoyable. While on Orkney I intend to do as much as possible. A week won't be enough: it'll be two weeks this time. I may not have the opportunity to return. There are other places that need exploration - Ireland, for instance.
The question now arises, does next spring's blockbuster caravan holiday warrant buying a new camera? I've been using my ever-faithful Leica D-Lux 4 (of 2009 vintage) full-time since June last year, and (assisted by my phone) it would certainly be up to the job. But I may buy a new camera - or a nearly new one - to get extra-nice pictures. Unless ambushed by some big unforeseen household expense, I ought to have built up the cash to do this by early next year. What would I consider? A used Leica Q2 or Q3 might be within reach. Or any new high-end compact camera from another maker.
I don't want to lug around a mirrorless camera body plus two or three lenses. Too much bulk and weight. So I'm rather hoping that several new and appealing compact cameras for serious photographers will come to the market in the next ten months. This kind of camera is back in fashion, so I have reason to think that my wish will be granted.
