Photo credit: Bruce Fingerhood
What’s the best thing about getting out in the country?
For me, it is seeing my daughter pointing at the cows and making mooing noises and then stopping for a picnic and feeling a fresh country breeze on my brow.
The worst thing is probably my unerring ability to stand in cowpats or rip my jackets on barbed wire fences but let’s try and stick with the positive stuff for a bit longer.
Another great thing is the mere act of driving. I can’t believe that any driver with a pulse doesn’t get a fantastic feeling from putting their foot down and watching the green fields roll past them. A week of boring work and rubbish TV programmes can be forgotten in a few minutes as you soak up the feeling.
Top Roads and Plenty of Signs
I have driven in the countryside in a few different places but it is hard to beat the UK. The quality of rural roads is – believe me or not – very high compared to most other places I have visited. The roads are all clearly signposted and just about everyone you pass is likely to be as relaxed and care free as you are.
Perhaps it is now going to be an even better idea to get out and smell some country air (just stay away from my shoes), as the Government plans to bring the speed limit on a number of roads down to 40mph.
I am not normally too keen on lowering speed limits but for me bringing down country road limits from 60mph to 40mph is fine, as I only ever use them for leisure purposes. However, I have a friend who lives in a village which is located where our Australian cousins would call the back of Bourke. His local shop only sells about 3 different products and he needs to travel a good few miles to buy anything which comes in a tin or hermetically sealed bag. I wonder whether people like him will be so happy about having to take longer to go to work, to the shops or to anywhere really.