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would go during the week. The issues with
people breaking the rules and swarming to
open spaces seemed to be more prevalent at
the weekend. We would avoid the motorways
where possible, though some motorway travel
was bound to be unavoidable. We would take
food and water and then not have to stop at any
shops or service areas. We would start with a
full tank of diesel, which would do the return
journey with some to spare. And there would
be no stopping, the only exception being for a
pee! There is no way we would be able to do
A little bit of van training. the round trip without this, though there were
Not that we could go anywhere! buckets in the back of the van if the worst came
to the worst!
We considered this to be a welfare consideration
We did all of these. And it really was the
(we also considered our gradual slide into
weirdest journey ever.
bankruptcy to be another welfare consideration,
but felt that, perhaps, this shouldn’t be majored One of the very few disadvantages of living
upon). in Devon is that you have to head east to get
anywhere (unless you are going to Cornwall,
So, we made some decisions.
but we don’t talk about that) and, of course,
While it would still be clearly impossible for the realistically, if you are heading anywhere north
boy destined for Germany to be able to travel of Bristol, at some point you are going to need to
anywhere (though we were in constant contact go on the M5.
with his new owners and, again, we were all
And the M5 is usually busy at any time of the
monitoring the rules), the other two could go.
day and any day of the week, generally adding
Both lots of owners were delighted with the at least an hour to every journey.
news, and we put the plans in motion.
Now, having decided to avoid motorways where
We copied every possible piece of paper possible, we knew that the most practical route
we could find that indicated our journey was would be to use the M5 as far as the Severn
necessary, acceptable and legal, so we had crossing and then (though the route planner and
something to waive under the noses of the Satnav etc. had all said carry on up the M5 to
police that we thought were bound to stop us the M6 to the M56) we had decided we should
at some point (one of the pups was going to head back west for a few miles to Newport and
a small village in the heart of the Snowdonia then go off-piste across the middle of Wales.
National Park, a place that had already been It would be the only time this year we would
on the news several times with people blocking actually go through Builth Wells, where the
roads as they ignored lock-down to go walking sheep were happily grazing the empty Royal
and picnicking, so we felt pretty sure that we Welsh Showground!
would pop up on a radar somewhere) and we
To be honest, it was a beautiful journey. The
formulated a plan that would involve attracting
scenery was spectacular, and we were able
the least attention possible.
to enjoy and marvel at it as everything was so
We would take the van and not the car. A van clear. There was absolutely no traffic, and we
(with suitable kennel-related sign-writing) would barely saw a soul. The two police cars we saw
be less likely to be stopped than a Volvo driven parked up in layby’s ignored us (and, yes, I did
by an old couple with a puppy in the back. We keep looking in my mirrors for several miles
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K9 NEWS DIGITAL / OCTOBER 2020
