Before Christmas I tempted fate with the weather. Since then, the wind and rain have outperformed themselves with the worst set of storms for 20 years. Conclusion – I’m NOT tempting fate EVER again! If I carry on like this I will undoubtedly have to replace a washing machine clogged with mud and explore whether I can grow Gore-Tex as a second skin.

Positively, I completed 95 more miles (700 miles in all so far) and have successfully worn in another pair of boots. The driver support is also coming along nicely (though there are still plenty of gaps to fill…hint hint) and I am rediscovering friends I haven’t spoken to for many years. I am also delightfully surprised by the generosity and kindness of complete strangers. Having scoured the internet for a suitable motorhome I think I may have found one and the seller (you know who you are – Ian) is proving extremely helpful and generous.  All things being equal,  my Blunder Bus is on its way, especially if someone can help finance it for me. Which brings me neatly to…. my hunt for sponsors, which is now becoming a priority.

I am acutely aware that this project and the accompanying logistics could prove very expensive and seriously damaging to my personal finances. So, I am hoping – and not expecting – to attract some business sponsors to help me with some of the costs, be it a motorhome, fuel, gas, insurance, provisions, kit,  stopovers or even – he said with a vague hope – the lot. I’m more than happy to help any sponsor get a return, be it in the form of decals on a bus touring the entire coast, thanks and prominence in this website (1400 hits already) and talks or presentations when available. I am also aware that the charities want to do numerous press releases on the way round, though I am resisting this in the early days as I fear tempting fate along with the accompanying utter embarrassment if I were to break my leg ten minutes after setting off.

I know it’s not easy. I too have been on the other end of begging phone calls and emails. It was only a few months ago that I had control of a chunky budget. Though if the truth be known, my former bosses would probably say that my methods of obtaining (blagging) capital money were a tad sporting and that I was well versed at finding legitimate reasons for an operating budget overspend. However, if I had a call or email from a worthy cause or project, I’d like to think that I at least replied even if I couldn’t find a hole in my budget.

I also hope you don’t mind if I also bore you with a little addendum today.  In my wandering muses I have to admit that I’m a little dismayed at the sounds of the countryside at this time of year. Apart from the occasional far-carrying pheasant crow and the distant plaintive mewing of a buzzard, the only other sounds not drowned out by the incessant wind are the regular paired cracks of shotgun fire.

Now I don’t see myself as a born again eco-warrier. I accept killing to eat, be it fish or game and I also accept that sometimes animals need to be controlled, particularly when they are a genuine threat to livestock. But I do find it a little disturbing in this modern age to see and hear killing purely for the fun of it. When I asked one fatigues clad loner unloading his shotgun from the rear of his 4×4 pick-up the other day what he was hunting the reply was “squirrels”.  When asked a simple “Why?” he responded with a clueless shrug and I just walked on.   Later the same day another 4×4 drove past me on a bridleway and the two occupants barely acknowledged my existence. As I peeked into the back of their truck I spotted the carcass of a freshly shot fallow deer. I’d only ever spotted one fallow deer locally and it was becoming almost tame with familiarity. I’ve not seen it since.