New Forest, Salisbury, and South Devon

New Forest and South Devon

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After London and Windsor, we made our way to the south of England, stopping for the first night at this hotel in Brockenhurst in the heart of the New Forest, greeted by this wild pony and her offspring.

More ponies could be found on the moors just outside Brockenhurst, where Bob stopped to take photos. Brockenhurst itself is a tidy village. It's most unique feature: instead of building a small bridge to carry its main over the local brook, the roadway fords the little stream.

The next day we embarked for the three-hour drive to Devon, but first stopped at Salisbury to see the famed 13th century cathedral. As impressive as the entire structure is, Bob found the cloisters particularly inspiring.

The tiaras may be plastic and paste, but these two ladies wear them stunningly. Sacha and Jean Sue pose in the foyer of the Hubbard's South Devon home, a former parish vicarage.

Ray joins the ladies in the kitchen after Sunday dinner, helping to finish the wine from the night before, when they entertained 23 friends in their Hill House Nursery tea room.

Bob and Ray (no, not the well-known former U.S. radio comedy team) join Sacha. As you can see, Bob helped make a big dent in the plonk leftover from Saturday night's gala.

A highlight of our stay with Ray and Sacha was a trip up the River Dart from Dartmouth (Dart-mouth -- get it?) to Totnes. Along the way, these trees dotted a hillside.

Ray and Sacha's vicarage home is next to the parish church and, of course, its church yard. Among the gravestones is one for a local family whose name Conan Doyle appropriated for his tale of the moor: Baskerville. It's only a few miles from the gravesite to the depths of Dartmoor.

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