After another crappy nights sleep (I just can’t get my knees comfortable) I gave up trying to return to the Land of Nod and took a drive out to the not too distant town of Battle.
There are two Adventure Labs based in Battle and I was intending to do both – ten locations.
I started on Battle (Caldecott Hill) but when it headed out into the countryside and became especially slippery underfoot, and with my dodgy knees, gave upon the more remote locations.
Even excluding these few, I still found eight locations and with a virtual in the town itself wasn’t a bad total and all before breakfast.
Taking a break from trains, today we were going to visit the National Trust property of Bodiam Castle.
Being NT members we saved ourselves four quid at the car park before making our way up to the Castle passing a World War II pillbox en the way.
This pillbox was the first part of a multi-cache which once we’d collected the required information would take us to a lay-by just down the road from the car park.
With our future destination determined, we continued up to the castle and its surrounding moat stocked with a number of Koi Carp. Presumably, in the time of Henry II, the Koi were not there.
Inside the keep, Sue resisted the urge to climb the tower but insisted that I did.
The views from the top, across the countryside were impressive with a view of Sue, looking down.
As well as being an historic site, Bodiam is also home of one of the largest bat roosts in the UK. I did make a video from one of the towers and can just about make out some black shapes moving around accompanied by scratching noises.
Back at ground level, we came across one of those photo-op cutouts where you can poke your head. Well, it had to be done.
With the castle tour completed we grabbed some dinner at the NT tearoom. Unusual for the National Trust catering service, there was no queue which deprived me of the thinking time that I usually have whilst waiting.
Suitably fed, we grabbed a couple of local caches (including the final to the pillbox) before driving to our next location.
On the way out of Bodiam, we drove by the train station which would be tomorrow’s destination. “There’s no parking” sue declared as we passed. We’ll have to have a rethink – maybe start at the next station along the line.
At Rye, through which we’d passed earlier in the week, we parked up to tackle another AdLab and a few ‘proper’ caches.
Unfortunately for Sue’s ankle, Rye is on a steep hill but we took it easy and a spot of retail therapy may have helped take her mind off the pain.
A steady drive got us to Hastings but we choose the other end to that we’d already visited.
We walked around, completing the Old Hastings AdLab with nine locations. This part of the town was in stark contrast to the more holiday stretch near the pier with many interesting shops and dwellings.
We even saw a couple of guys outside of one establishment examining a penny farthing.
Sue excelled by spotting another ‘railway’ that we’d overlooked – Hastings West Hill Funicular. Obviously, we had to have a go.
Oddly, this runs for almost all of it’s five hundred feet in a tunnel so the views are not great until you alight at the top.
After the tour of Old Hastings we made our way to the aforementioned pier and the Italian restaurant that we’d previously visited.
More excellent food was had – Pizza for Sue and a Sea Food Spaghetti for Kev.
