Toads in England

Here we are in England, not so much Merry Old England as Very Wet England, unfortunately.

The Airstream is back on the driveway in Canada and we're here in the rain, albeit that it's a trip to see family and friends, and we're kind of missing Towed Haul. I had occasion to head up one of the motorways here yesterday and was amazed at the number of Caravans (Travel Trailers to you North American types) on the road. When I lived here I had little or no interest in caravans/trailers except when they blocked my way on one of the many winding lanes that make up the bulk of the road network in Britain. Now I look at them with a practiced eye, checking size and construction, hitches and, of course, tow vehicles. Yes I am a complete NERD!

Anyway, the caravans/trailers here are smaller and lighter, mostly single axle and have (it seems to me) a different proportion. They look quite wide but are probably not, but being shorter tend to look that way. They're quite aerodynamic in design but then they have to be when you see what's towing them; essentially four cylinder cars or small SUVs. I don't think the cars lack power because Europeans get way more oomph from their engines than North Americans do, but the cars are narrow with a short wheelbase and, of course, don't employ the weight distrubtion techniques that are widespead across the water. But they work and, judging by the numbers on the road, are very popular.

One trend here is to have a panel van (known generically as a 'Transit Van', after Ford's groundbreaking utility van) as a tow vehicle. They equate in size to a full size van in North America although the engines are quite a bit smaller, if not the power output. What they do have, of course, is a much better wheelbase and it's those 'Transits' that are towing the bigger two axle caravans/trailers. I had the good fortune to be following one of these 'Transits' towing a double axle caravan/trailer down a very steep and narrow road on the edge of the beautiful city of Bath. Given that trailers here rely on surge brakes, the driver (from the Netherlands if his licence plate was anything to go by) was taking it VERY steadily, but at least I had time to observe his teqnique. He seemed confident but as a visitor to the UK from the flat lands of Holland, I wondered waht he was actually thinking as he headed down the side of the cliff!

I haven't been in one of these British caravans/trailers, not yet anyway, but I'm guessing that their onboard toys are limited. Most don't have air conditioning (not required!), probably don't have things like built-in TVs and their fridges and cookers are going to be small and compact in comparison to the things that we have in our Airstreams. But what they do have, which I envy, is a wheel on the tongue jack and handles fitted to the coach so they can be hauled about by hand for perfect positioning and easy hitching. Wouldn't that be fun on our 7000lb baby?

My task for my remaining time here is to see if I can get inside one of these caravans/trailers to compare and contrast. I could also take a few photographs, something which is sadly lacking from this entry in my blog. To make up fro this deficiency I am posting a picture of the tadpoles enjoying a wet and windy afternoon on the pier at Paignton in Devon. Rain? I guess it's good for Toads.