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Hi -- On our way to the Scilly Islands, Bill and I landed at Gatwick
(from Baltimore) in the early a.m., picked up our hired Fiat Panda
(tiny!), and drove all the way to Mousehole, in southern Cornwall that
first day--got there in time for dinner! Boy, were we tired--wouldn't
recommend that, but, because of a day's delay on our Transatlantic
flight, we had to get the Land's End the next day to catch our Scilly
flight. We often drive as far as one of our favorite small Devon
hotels, Bickleigh Cottage Country Hotel on the River Exe in Bickleigh,
near Tiverton (there are two Bickleigh's in Devon). Bickleigh Cottage
is not fancy, but a gorgeous old 17th century thatched roof inn that
has been in the Cochrane family for generations; you will find it as the
centerfold of many British picture books, on pictorial calendars, and
on souvenir mugs and plates. Pauline Cochrane maintains a breathtaking
garden along the river. As they are winding down to retirement, the
Cochranes now serve only breakfast, but it definitely is a
separate-tables hotel, not a b and b. There is a small bar plus, if you
are a fly fisherman, Stuart Cochrane owns the fishing rights on the Exe
along his property and catches some wonderful salmon and trout---guests
may fish. There are two places for dinner within a very short walk.
Nearby is Bickleigh Castle and the wonderful Knightshayes Gardens.
Enjoy England's SW! Cheers, Pat in Baltimore
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