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The next blog is for our annual winter getaway. Click here.

Sunday 18 June 2017

Up early to see the hang glider people already getting airborne - although thankfully they took off the other way so very little noise. Breakfast then round to Eurotunnel, get Jamie's Pet Passport checked, then we were allocated a slightly earlier train which meant we only stopped at the Customs and Police checkpoints before getting onto the train. In fact it was so quiet they amalgamated two departures - obviously not a popular time!

Usual smooth crossing and then out onto a reasonably quiet M20 for the long haul home in nice sunny weather, occasionally using the aircon to help keep the dog cool. Won't go into any detail, suffice it to say we enjoyed lunch with Mum at Navenby trhen an uneventful, fast run up the A1, home by about 7.20pm.

Bertie has now been cleaned and washed and put away; we've a few jobs to see to but for the moment we'll get sorted at home first.

IN SUMMARY

We're a bit disappointed that it was too hot to do what we'd planned, which kind of left us a bit "at sea" and not sure what we wanted to do. The very hot weather didn't help so it was probably inevitable we came home early. But we did see lots of new places and generally enjoyed the trip. We'll probably try again next year, but travel a little earlier.

Saturday 17 June 2017

Le Touquet to Hardinghen (via Wissant) - 40 miles

Jamie got Terry up at 5.30 wanting to go out, probably the tablet yesterday, but then wouldn't settle until he was curled up in Terry's lap, then promptly went to sleep! It was thus a bit later start than usual but we're in no rush today, and it was already turning out to be another scorcher.

Away by 11.30 ish we made our way steadily up the coast to the Auchan just outside Boulogne for a few cases of beer for our stash plus a baguette then topped off the fuel tank, although we struggled to get 10 litres in. Still it means we should get home without having to refuel again.

After that we headed for our usual overnight stop at Wissant but, not really to our surprise as it is Saturday, it was full at 1.30 pm.The next nearest was backtracking a little to Tardinghen where we found a farm aire with lots of room and already a lot of vans parked up – it's actually a really nice place to stay for the weekend. Awning and chairs out, a late lunch then relax quietly for the afternoon.

It turns out that the farm also hosts a powered hang-glider club and we were entertained for a couple of hours, although Jamie went nuts and eventually we had to take him inside to calm down. He was the same at Interlaken where we saw hang gliders jumping off the mountain and landing quite close to us; obviously he thinks they are giant birds.

It's now just on 9.00 pm and still very warm; we're packing everything away now and waiting for someone to come and collect the fees as we're planning to leave quite early in the morning. We're planning to call in at Mums in Navenby for lunch but then head straight for home so the final posting will be from home and maybe a day or two.

Where We Stayed

Ferme de l'Horlage, Tardinghen N50º51.771' E01º38.995'

40 unmarked pitches well spread out on firm grass. Service point and 6 hookups, extra cost. Local brewery and brasserie nearby (not checked). Farm also hosts a powered hang-glider club so occasionally some light aircraft noise.

€6.00

Friday 16 June 2017

Le Crotoy to Le Touqet - 28 miles

We've decided to head home so after breakfast and a mini-service (queue for the service point) we drove the few kilometres north to Rue and the vet we've used before for Jamies Pet Passport stamp. Again, happily, they could see us straightaway and a friendly young English speaking male vet administered a worming tablet, not without some fuss as Jamie decided he didn't want to swallow it. However, take it he did (although we're probably going to have more fun next time) so we paid the lady their €35.30 then crossed over the road for a baguette from Lidl.

Whilst there we telephoned Eurotunnel who changed our booking to Sunday morning (we have to wait at least 24 hrs after the treatment) with, for a change, no extra charge.We knew the fare was less than we had originally paid, but, though they'll charge any extra, they don't do refunds..... So we carried on up the coast with no real idea of where to stop then thought the equestrian centre aire at Le Touquet might be nice.

Quite a large open space with only a few vans on it, although it was still before lunchtime, we had a brief chat with a Brit who turned out to be a Funster and had also just arrived. Then we finished off the van service, found a nice semi-shaded spot and settled down for an al fresco lunch. Afterwards Bren, who hadn't slept very well, stretched out for a nap while Terry sat in the sun until the breeze got a little too cool. In fact, despite the brilliant sunshine, the breeze was keeping the temperature down and it wasn't long before he retired inside. Think we chose the wrong place to park – again!

Latish tea and a quick phone call to Mum, sad news another elderly relative has passed away – seems to happen every time we go on a long trip. Quite a few motorhomes arrived during the afternoon and evening but there is still stacks of room. Why, then, do the French insist on parking just a few feet away?

Where We Stayed

Parc Internationale du Canche, Bvd du Canche, Le Touquet-Paris-Plage N50º31.585' E01º35.907'

100+ spaces on hardstanding, some shaded. Service point (€2). Beach 400m, town 800m. Adjacent to National Equestrian Centre, so may not be available during events. Alternative closer to town adjacent to the marina but smaller, more expensive and usually fills up early.

€10 – pay at machine, cards/cash

Thursday 15 June 2017

Chateaudun to Le Crotoy - 192 miles

As soon as the sun touched the van it warmed up very quickly to what promised to be another scorcher. After breakfast a chat with a Brit couple who came in last night and turned out to be on their first ever motorhome trip – we'd had a brief chat last night when they couldn't get their wifi to work. Eventually got under way about 11.20 after dumping the toilet and waste water and, as we have now decided to head for home, joined our familiar route around Chartres, Dreux and Evreux.

Called in at Pont de l'Arche aire for a lunch stop then on to Rouen and up the motorway to Abbeville – this section is toll free and the countryside is not very interesting so we made the most of it. Interestingly, although it was still bright sunshine, a strong breeze had got up out of the west which started to cool things down. We had decided to head for Le Crotoy, a place we've stayed several times with plenty of parking so should be okay, even late in the afternoon. It is also close to Rue and the vet we've used a couple of times for Jamie's Pet Passport. A quick side trip to St Valerie for fuel as we were getting low, then to Le Crotoy.

All the usual pitches round the edges were taken but there were only a few vans forming a new line in the middle so we joined on the end, next to another Brit couple. Obligatory chat of course; they'd just crossed from UK and were heading south. The wind was kicking the dust up so quickly retired inside for welcome refreshment. Our usual late tea before an hour or so reading, blogging etc.

We've more or less decided to head home so tomorrow we'll get the Pet Passport sorted then call Eurotunnel to change our booking. After that we'll see.

Where We Stayed

Aire de Bassin, Ave. des Ecluses, Le Crotoy N50º13.094' E01º37.992'

90+ on unmarked hardstanding. Service point (€2). Shops etc 100m. Market Friday.

€7 /24hrs pay at machine

Wednesday 14 June 2017

Lere to Chateauden - 95 miles

Up early with a poorly doggy but it was already very warm and sultry so an early start was a good thing. Breakfast, service and say bye bye to the neighbours, Brit and Dutch couples before heading north again towards Orleans, looking for a supermarket. Gien was the next biggish town along the way and had an Auchan so we turned in there for a fairly large restock – including two very nice cakes meant for our afternoon tea!

Chateauneuf-sur-Loire

Once it was all packed away we continued and decided Chateauneuf-sur-Loire looked nice with an aire apparently on the riverside. Well it wasn't but we found some very acceptable parking which was and had lunch. Perusing the maps it looked like our old friend Chateaudun was about the right distance so programmed TomTom whilst Bren tried to keep us by the river, rather than using the main road. Eventually we had to abandon this idea, having already breached several 3.5 tonne weight limit restrictions (we're nearly 4t) so let the satnav direct us. Turned us almost back the way we had come before joining a very busy by-pass around the city but then safely onto the much quieter road to Chateaudun.

Approaching from a different direction, we ended up creeping through the very narrow streets of the town centre, but managed, and arrived at the aire just on 4.00 pm, with 4 out of 7 spaces left. By 4.10 pm it was full; this happens quite regulary which is why we plan to get parked up by 4.00 pm.

Squeezed in with a couple of other Brits it was now very hot and humid so all we could do was relax – Jamie doesn't like this one bit and keeps asking to go out. Well tough luck puppy!

Where We Stayed

Aire de Camping Car, (beneath chateau walls) N48º04.303' E01º19.453'

7 hardstanding bays adjacent to river/canoe school. Service point €2 for water. Toilet.

Town centre up several hundred steps opposite or steepish road around chateau walls.

Free

Tuesday 13 June 2017

A reasonable start to a pleasant day, bright but not too hot and as we were finishing breakfast a Brit van pulled in with Moroccan paintings so went and had a mooch and a chat. Two hours later we decided that it was too late to go anywhere else today so we would stay here at Lėrė. The day got progressively warmer, not uncomfortably so, but we both caught the sun, just by being out in it. So a day doing what we've come away to do, relax.

We'll move on further north west tomorrow, no particular destination in mind. Forecast is for very warm again so we'll bear that in mind too.

Monday 12 June 2017

Autun to Lere

A cloudy and much cooler start to the day, just nice for driving, and we got away promptly for a change. Bren navigated us back around Autun and onto the road for Nevers, our plan to join the River Loire there then sort of follow it downstream for a while and see where we end up.

Paused at Nevers to refill the LPG, first station we've seen in France strangely enough, then tried to follow the river. According to the map there is a road but we seemed unable to find it, finally using the non-toll motorway for a junction or two before trying again. This time the road was blocked and the diversion had a low bridge on a narrow road in a town centre we were unwilling to risk, so went back to the motorway, found a rest area and had lunch. Clouds now cleared and it's warming up.

Cosne-Cours sur Loire

River Loire from Chateau Sancerre

A perusal of the books showed us a good number of aires as far as Orleans so we once again left the motorway heading for Sancerre. A bit of faffing around found us heading for the Chateau Sancerre, famous for it's wines, but not on the road we wanted so a bit more backtracking and we found ourselves following the Canal Lateral de la Loire, a quiet waterway paralleling the river itself.

Now in brilliant warm sunshine we started considering our nightstop and although it was still only mid-afternoon we thought we'd stop early to ensure we got a space somewhere. The small town/village of Lėrė had what looked like a nice aire so we called in to find 2 spaces left (out of 4) just 100m from the town centre. We settled into a pitch that was perfect for us – on the end with the door over a nice grassy area, facing slightly uphill (the van usually has a nose down stance) and overlooking the canal. Chairs out, cold drinks and relax in the sunshine.

Later we took Jamie for a walk around the town, very pretty but not a lot going on and only one of everything; pharmacy, boulangerie, bank, la Poste, florist, hairdresser, restaurant, the usual impressive church and of course the mairie (local government building, every village & town has one). And none of it open! So back to Bertie for a quick chat with the (Dutch) neighbours and a cuppa then a late tea.

It's a lot cooler in the evening though still very comfortable. We'll check the weather forecast before deciding what to do next.


Where We Stayed
Aire de Camping Car, Rue du Champ de Noyers, Lere  N47 28.485'  E2 52.486'
4 hardstanding bays overlooking canal moorings. Water, waste disposal and 1 electric point. Local commerce 100m. Large grass area behind marked "P" with no restrictions but apparently unused.
Free.

Sunday 11 June 2017

Bacon and eggs for breakfast as it's Sunday but not a lot else done; as forecast it was somewhat warmer than yesterday so apart from occasional sojourns to walk Jamie, we didn't move. As I write at just past 9.00 pm, it's still around 30º.

Jamie is becoming a bit of a problem, jumping up and barking at the least provocation, not helped by the public footpath on the other side of the hedge we're parked against. We've had to resort to keeping him inside to avoid annoying the neighbours which doesn't go down well. But we're moving on tomorrow so when we pitch up we must try and avoid having passers by too close.

Saturday 10 June 2017

Up earlyish as we wanted to go into town for the market and have a looksee before it got too warm so after breakfast collected a few bits for the dog in a backpack and set off – the receptionist said it was 5 mins but that was only to the edge and the centre was nearer 20mins. No bother we're not rushing and we wandered into a fairly typical French town, finding the town hall easily enough and plenty of shops – but of the market no sign. We knew we were in the right place at the right time, one of the info booklets we'd been given confirmed it, but it looked like it had been cancelled.

Impressive Hotel de Ville

University

 So we bought a baguette then paused for a while at a cafe for a cold drink before heading back in the direction of the site, taking a detour to view another of the Roman remains, this time the Temple of Janus. Not a lot of information available and nothing to confirm it was anything religious, the name having been given to it long after the Romans had left.

Temple de Janus

Back at Bertie we had lunch then settled down to an afternoon of, well, nothing really. The temperature was now around 30ºC in the shade and the sun too hot to sit out in it. Thankfully with the awning out we encouraged a light breeze so we were quite comfortable. Later ice creams then a very late tea when it had cooled down somewhat.

Forecast is for warmer tomorrow. Hmmmm.

Friday 9 June 2017

Rain overnight but dry by getting up time although still mostly cloudy. Morning spent on domestic chores, two loads of washing plus a full service and cleanup. Very few people left on the site so it's quiet – later a couple of (separate) Brit vans arrived and we had a chat.

A lazy afternoon sat outside enjoying increasing amounts of warm sunshine which was drying the washing nicely so by teatime all was done.

The forecast is for further improvements tomorrow and hot on Sunday although the humidity is nothing like as high as Italy so hopefully it'll be nice.

Thursday 8 June 2017

Bourg-en-Bresse to Autun - 86 miles

Awoke to another lovely day and took our time getting ready. No facilities here, but then it's cost us nothing either so took the time to give Jamie a proper run in the park before getting on our way. We have no particular destination in mind, just head north-west and see what we find, so first place of note, Challons-sur-Saone. On the way there we stopped at Tournus for fuel and a bit of shopping as well as an early lunch before passing through an attractive but busy town on one of Frances larger rivers.

From there it looked like Autun had a selection of aires and campsites either there or around so followed our noses and ended up on a good, though not main, road which took us through the lovely Bourgogne (Burgundy) countryside with acres and acres of vinyards and dozens of vintners inviting passersby to a “degustation” (sampling). Not being wine people we resisted.

Solar generator

Along the way we often spot unusual sights, usually as “roundabout art”, and the contraption above caught our attention. Lucky enough to be driving slowly past it, we identified it as a solar generator, the panels opening like a circular fan and the whole thing powered to track the sun. Solar energy is starting to become a big thing in France and we've seen buildings with roofs totally covered in panels. However we wouldn't have thought this example was particularly efficient.

On the way to Autin, we thought we'd have a look at the aire but on approaching noted it was full however the book told us of another which we discovered, mostly by chance, with plenty of room so stopped for a cold drink and make some plans. It was now very warm and we'd been using the aircon for a while so we thought we'd take a break for a few days and found an ACSI campsite just on the edge of town which looked nice and turned out to be almost empty. The office was closed but a sign on the door said settle yourselves wherever you like and come back at 5.30 pm, so after a wander round we chose an enclosed pitch in a corner that provided some shade but also good sunshine as well. Given Jamie's current fractious behaviour we thought an enclosed pitch would help to keep him quiet. The only drawback, as we found later, is that it is close to the road but we'll see what it's like overnight; when reception opened the very friendly young lady told us we could move later if we wanted although it doesn't seem much quieter elsewhere. We booked in for 4 nights, get some laundry done and maybe have an explore.

Seems Autin was a Roman town, known as Augustodunum, and there are numerous Roman buildings and remains to see – a couple of which we've already spotted. Reception gave us several informative leaflets.

Largest known surviving Roman amphitheatre

Porte Saint-Andre

Where We Stayed

Camping de la Porte d'Arroux, rue du Traité d'Anvers, Autun N46 57'53” E4 17'34”

79 level pitches on grass, some enclosed by hedges, others open with varying shade. All usual facilities, m/h service point. Shop for basics in reception. Some road noise. Roman town 500m.

ACSI (No. 1962) €15 per night otherwise starting from €17.10.

Wednesday 7 June 2017

Yvoire to Bourg-en-Bresse - 94 miles

We know we said we'd get up early, but 6.30 am? That's when a roadsweeper decided to start work right outside our door, so we got up, got dressed and got away, no breakfast. We've done it before, just a matter of looking out for somewhere to park for an hour. Unfortunately we were just a little too close to Geneva and we found ourselves caught up in the morning rush hour, but this actually turned out to be fine because we then had time to look at the city as we wandered straight through the middle! But we did have a target – Bren had found a service point t'other side of the city so we set TomTom and enjoyed the passing scenery.

Geneva is a very modern city, though it does have an old quarter, which we had to by-pass, and appears to be in Switzerland; although we didn't see any border France/Switzerland, we did “cross back” into France as we departed. TomTom took us out into the country and to the little village of Thoire where we found one parking bay next to a working service point and a nice little picnic area, none of which appeared to have been used for ages. No bother, that'll do us so got the kettle on and “started the day” again, now in glorious warm sunshine.

Memorial to the Marquis - French Resistance

That over with and the van serviced, we set off with the town/city of Bourg-en-Bresse in mind where we noted two aires in our book, with others close by. Staying off the toll autoroute we enjoyed a lovely drive through the forests and valleys of the Haute Savoie before making a sharp descent into the town. Following TomTom, we suddenly found ourselves faced with a 2.5m bridge (we're 3m!), our destination on the other side. It took us a while to extract ourselves, going round and round a carpark a couple of times before Bren worked out an exit, taking us through an industrial estate, round some back roads and then safely to the aire – which was full!

Well, the marked motorhome bays were, but it was an unrestricted carpark for the old monastery, which happened to be closed, so there was plenty of room and we settled into an ordinary bay, joining several others doing the same. Almost immediately we were approached by an English lady, who turned out to be a Funster too, and who hadn't met any English for ages, so a bit chat was called for while her husband was playing round the city on his motorbike. Then, it being that time, we had lunch and settled in to a nice quiet afternoon, enjoying the now hot sunshine, relaxing after our very early start.

We'll probably only stay one night here and have sort of agreed that we'll take a gentle slow run sort of north, stopping off wherever we feel like it.

Oh yes, as we ought by now to be in range, tried to put up the satellite dish, only to have it fail and jam again, fortunately in the down position with the dish over the centre of the roof where it isn't in the way of anything. Got the ladders out and had a quick look but it's going to have to wait until we get home now. We never watch TV anyway.

Where We Stayed

Blvd. De Brou, Bourg-en-Bresse N46º11.906' E5º14.297' (All the Aires South P282)

5 marked bays in unrestricted carpark. No facilities, town short distance. Adjacent to small park and old monastery. Service point outside closed campsite N46º12.531' E5º14.416'

Free