Torquay days 28,29,30 The English Riviera

Brixham, with a reminder of it's fishing past.

 Well dear readers, we have had an extended stay in Torquay due to the salvage operations, which have completed today. Due to the high winds on Tuesday no work could be done, so it has taken yesterday and today to complete the job, which is one day later than was first thought. We had hoped to leave today (Thursday) but it wasn't going to happen.




The remains of Rendezvous has now been loaded onto a barge and the crane, also on a floating barge, has been folded away and is ready to go. (We found out that the crane is charged at £75,000 a day!) So tomorrow (Friday 1 July)  we plan to leave Torquay and go straight to Weymouth, which should be a 11 hour trip. Fingers crossed.

So how have we been spending our time in Torquay.? Well, the day Celia  left (Tuesday) was very windy and rainy, so we didn't leave the boat at all that day. However the next day (Wednesday) was a bit brighter, so we decided to take the ferry across to the other side of the bay to Brixham, where we were greeted by a cheeky seal when we disembarked.


Brixham is the second largest fishing port in the UK, once famous for it's red sailed  trawlers, the fastest in the UK.  Today there are only a few left, but plenty of modern colourful trawlers still by the quayside.



It is still a very busy fishing port with a fish market on the quay, and at the other end of the bay a rather nice marina.

There is a life size replica of the Golden Hind in Brixham harbour , one of only two in existence. This was of course Francis Drake's ship on which he was the first Englishman to circumnavigate the world. It was such a tiny ship, hard to imagine how he did it now. We spent at least an hour on her, it was a very interesting and amusing tour, full of entertaining facts and pirate Dad jokes. Where does pirate dad go to do his shopping....Arghgus..

 We also spotted some real pirates around the town! 

Josh had a pint in the Blue Anchor, while I walked a mile to check out the lido. I hadn't realised there was one so I wasn't prepared for a swim, I will come back tomorrow. 

Brixham harbour from the Golden Hind

We went back on the ferry, with some entertaining commentary from the captain. We hadn't yet visited the local yacht club, so that was on the agenda for this evening. We strolled up to the Royal Torquay Yacht Club, strangely it has the same initials as our home club (Royal Temple Yacht Club), and found another couple waiting outside to get int. Despite ringing the bell no one came, and eventually a member turned up and let us in. It is an impressive club with a bar overlooking the harbour, a wonderful function room, committee room and restaurant. It was founded in 1875, and holds a Royal Regatta every year. However we didn't find it particularly friendly, so we decided to leave after one drink and return to the boat.

Rose Cottage, Cockington

Today, Thursday, and the last day of June, I decided to take the bus to Cockington, supposedly one of the prettiest villages in England. It didn't disappoint; it is a tiny village made up of thatched cottages, and all the trades of village life; a mill, a forge, a weaver's cottage  and a schoolhouse. There is also the manor house, which I didn't have time to see, but I did have a proper Devon cream tea with a cheeky strawberry hiding behind a large scone. 

I had planned to go back to the lido at Brixham, but as luck would have it I checked on the internet, and it was closed for cleaning!

We are looking forward to moving on now, as although Torquay is a well kept town it seems to us to have no real heart or soul. So here's to Weymouth tomorrow, let's hope we have a straightforward trip! I will let you know.








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