Back on the Road with Irene & Brian | Episode 12: Father's Day Weekend

A new water feature for the garden, a day trip to Plymouth and family drinks in the garden – it’s been a busy Father’s Day weekend for Brian, all thanks to his Brotherwood WAV.

One of Mum and Dad’s favourite trips out in their VW Caddy is Otter Garden Centre. Mum loves to browse the plants and Dad loves the cake, so everyone is happy. During a recent visit, some solar-powered water features caught Dad’s eye. He was particularly taken with one in the shape of whisky barrels, one of his other passions in life!

With Father’s Day just around the corner, it was the perfect present. With plenty of room for the water feature and Dad in the back of the WAV, we brought it home the same day and installed it next to the patio. It was a cloudy evening, but we filled it with water, positioned the solar panel, held our breath and… of course, nothing happened.

The next day, we were off to Plymouth to see Dad’s brother. Last time we went it was a huge success, so we decided to have lunch at the same place – Rockfish on the Barbican – followed by a walk on the Hoe, which always brings back such fond memories for Dad and his brother.

The weather was perfect – sunny but not too hot – so after a delicious lunch, with unlimited chips and clean plates all round, we walked all the way to Smeaton’s Tower and the lido. Plymouth Sound was bustling with activity, from swimmers braving the cold water, to boats of all shapes and sizes.

After an hour or so, we reluctantly tore ourselves away for the drive back to Somerset. Before we set off, I asked my partner if he could work out the cruise control on the VW Caddy – as it turned out it was very easy to do from the steering wheel, which made the motorway leg of the journey much easier for me.

When we got home, Mum was very excited to show us the water feature which, in the bright sunshine, had been bubbling away all day.

The next day was Father’s Day itself, and my sister suggested we all get together at hers for drinks in the garden.

It had been a wonderful weekend of family adventures, all made possible by the Brotherwood WAV.

About this Blog

‘Back on the Road’ follows how a Brotherwood Volkswagen Caddy Wheelchair Accessible Vehicle (WAV) is changing the lives of Somerset residents, Irene and Brian.

Brian is a wheelchair user and the couple are 80-something-young. They have a Golden Retriever, Barnaby, who will sadly never experience the adventures a Brotherwood WAV makes possible, as he refuses to travel by car.

The blog is written by one of their daughters, and will bring regular updates of how they are rediscovering the joys of spontaneous travel thanks to Brotherwood.