Lockdown Number 3

As the country goes into lockdown number 3 I take a look at what difference it makes on a popular Westcountry beach.

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Life under Tier 3

Socialising

Before lockdown number 3 started we were in a tier 2 area, which was moved to tier 3 a few days beforehand. In Tiers 2 and 3, you were allowed to socialise in a group of up to 6 people in some outdoor public spaces, such as parks and beaches.

The rules were more complicated than that, with a long list of exceptions, where larger groups were allowed to meet. But for most of us, it was the rule of 6 which applied.

Holidays

The thing is, it was the Christmas and new year holiday period. Coupled with the fact that many people hadn’t spent much time with their family this year. There was a huge desire among a lot of people to spend some time with loved ones. Fully understandable.

The weather was also kind to us. Yes, it was cold, but for the most part it was dry and sunny. What better place to meet up with people than at the beach? It is open, convenient for parking and at least it is outdoors, so what does it really matter if we break the rule of 6?

Maybe if only a few people had broken the rules it wouldn’t have been a problem. I’m not sure – I’m not an expert. I’m not even sure if it was a problem. What I do know is that many people had the same idea. There were literally hundreds of cars parked on the site with many more coming and going. Dozens of large groups of people meeting up, every single day over the holiday period. Clearly, the rule about being able to mix households only on Christmas Day worked well.

Tier 3

Large groups on the beach during tier 3 restrictions

Large Groups of people meeting up on the beach during the tier 3 restrictions

Lockdown number 3

Outdoor seating cordoned off during lockdown number 3

Lockdown

The rules for National lockdown number 3 say you can exercise in a public outdoor place:

by yourself
with the people you live with
with your support bubble (if you are legally permitted to form one)
in a childcare bubble where providing childcare
or, when on your own, with 1 person from another household

Public outdoor places include:

parks, beaches, countryside accessible to the public, forests
public gardens (whether or not you pay to enter them)
the grounds of a heritage site
playgrounds

Official Government lockdown number 3 rules.

I have got to say, so far so good. There is still a lot of traffic coming to the beach, but by far the majority of people seem to be respecting the rules, They are coming as a household, or as two friends, walking their dog or taking exercise, and then leaving again.

As always there are those that feel they are above the rules. Coming with their picnic or pre-prepared flask of tea and a cake or two to meet up with friends for a natter. But that is a minority, and as I was gently reminded by a friend, there could be a very good reason why they are meeting at an outdoor venue. Maybe one is a carer looking after the mental wellbeing of a client for example. It is not for me to judge. Nor is it for me to police. And without talking to them I will never know, and I’m not about to go prying into everyone’s private business.

Lets' hope it works

By the time we come out of lockdown number 3, whenever that may be, we will have been living with this pandemic for over a year. I hope and pray that the vaccine programme does what we all believe it will and gives us a way out of this. There is light at the end of the tunnel and I for one will be very glad to see things return to something approaching normality.

I am sure everyone has a story about how it has affected their lives. For us, like many others I suspect, it has meant that we have had to put our lives and plans on hold for a year. An unplanned 18 months living in a caravan on the beach.

Still, looking on the bright side it has meant we have been able to save some money. We have also bought our first motorhome – Doris, an old Citroen C25. She has plenty of character but is in need of some TLC. She doesn’t have power steering so is hard to manoeuvre, especially at slow speeds. Top speed 53 mph, downhill with the wind behind her. The pedals are so high its a workout just changing gear. Definitely going to be a challenge for Carol to drive.

According to my brother, we have “found a rare classic caravan brand and an extremely rare motorhome brand. I doubt that you will see another one on the road. “

That’s our project for this lockdown. I have already sealed the roof and repaired the badly cracked shower tray. Currently, she is at the car doctors having the engine overhauled.

Next up is treating the rust underneath – it is only superficial, but I want to make sure it doesn’t become a problem later. There is some water damage to repair inside and I want to update the lighting to LED lights. Then Carol is going to work some magic sprucing up the inside to make it a home. Don’t worry, we will be doing some before and after shots so I’ll let you know how things pan out.