Back to Bude and onwards following the Sustrans route towards Barnstaple. Some sections of the Tarka trail were closed because of Foot and Mouth outbreaks, so I eventually got on the Tarka trail by the Puffing Billy Inn. This had all of its signs up advertising that it was open, but alas they were not and the woman owner was very surprised at me opening her front door - I got a very cold response from her - is this the way the Puffing Billy greets all of their customers? However, she was kind enough to correct me when I started cycling away in the wrong direction.
I sped along and had ice cream at a bike rental place near Bideford, very quiet and non-talkative pair of workers here. Barnstaple tourist office was closed when I arrived, but usefully they had maps (if fairly old) in the front window giving information on local B&Bs and campsites. This information led me to head out towards Braunton for a campsite.
I ended up at the Midland campsite located between Braunton and Barnstaple. This was located on a section of fast dual carriageway which was a little scary at the time. There was a moment of complete pandemonium when a police car overtook two or three cars ahead of me and braked sharply to a halt to pick up a bucket which had fallen off the back of a builders truck.
I had a couple of small drinks in the campsite bar and talked about the route ahead with a couple of locals there.
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