After having our air con re gassed in Chichester we headed to Orpington in Kent to order our new batteries and solar panels. (There will be a separate post coming about this)
It was Wednesday and they would be ready for us to collect on Friday. We opted to collect on Monday instead as the weather was still very hot and getting even hotter!!
Time to head for the coast. Made sense to stay in Kent so we headed to Margate as it is the furthest point and we had heard lots of things about how it has been regenerated over the years.
We found an excellent park up, just outside Margate in a place called Walpole Bay, Cliftonville, literally right next to the beach AND with a tidal pool. Perfect for swimming even when tide was right out .
The tidal pool was great to swim in as when the tide goes out it went right out and loads of rocks, so it made swimming possible at all times .
It also made a fabulous setting for some great sunsets.
I hadn’t actually been to Margate for years. I remember coming as a child and staying in Cliftonville which was quieter and maybe more ‘upmarket’ than Margate.
When we arrived in Walpole Bay it actually sparked a memory of ‘The Walpole Bay Hotel’ . I wondered if there was such a place as it was only a vague memory. And sure enough just round the corner there it was, Walpole Bay Hotel, and yes I did again have a vague memory of it when I saw it.
I also remember going for an early morning walk along the seafront pre breakfast with my Dad. I used to love walking along the seafront at that time, even then.
So Walpole Bay is actually part of Cliftonville. Cliftonville has a High Street which was sadly very run down. I don’t actually remember if that was always the case .
Margate itself had all the usual seaside attractions that some people like, amusements, the pier and Dreamland which I think may still have some rides but as we didn’t actually go in, it is hard to be sure.
Had it been regenerated? Well there was The Turner Gallery of modern contemporary art on the road from Cliftonville into Margate, and yes that was a great place to visit. Then in Margate Old Town there was a very small area with some nice cafes, bars and a few shops, but it was a very small area.
We stayed for 4 nights in our nice park up. Mainly because it was very hot and it was best to just stay where we were. On our last day it was actually our wedding anniversary and also Margate Pride.
We had a lovely day. We cycled into Broadstairs a bit further along the coast. I didn’t actually get any photos in Broadstairs but it was quite a busy place with lots of shops and cafes and a nice feel to it.
We had some lunch at Broadstairs before heading back to Margate .
We sat in the cafes in the nice bit of town and drank Pimms! Happy Anniversary to us!
This year Margate decided not to have any floats for Pride in order to help the environment. This made it more of a Parade. It was going to end up in Dreamland for a paid event. Here’s a photo of the Parade.
It was very tame compared to Brighton Pride but I think that was inevitable and it was great that Margate has a Pride festival.
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Our Life on the Road 