One summer I parked in a lane in the Newlands Valley in the Lake District. There was a stream in the trees and I kept the window open all night listening to the restful sound of running water.
I awoke very early and went up Maiden Moor to watch the sunrise over the mountains.
This was by the side of Loch Lomond on the way up to visit GB in the Outer Hebrides. Again, I woke early and was on the road before almost anyone else was awake. I picked up a hitch-hiker, a rather scruffy Scot. It was the first time I realised that there really were some Scots who put ’Jimmi’ at the end of every sentence. “Yor rite Jimmi”. Since neither of us could really understand each other it became a fairly quiet journey until I dropped him off in the absolute middle of nowhere – his choice, not mine!
Another Lochside overnight stop on the way to the Hebrides another year. When I came through with Jo a year later I noticed this picnic site had ‘No Overnight Parking’ notices all over it. I expect camper vans had found it an attractive spot and begun to flood the place.
