Man flu…

 Well not quite but a horrible night with not a lot of sleep, so a very easy day ahead.

Woke up to this though

Been looking at possibly going to a Barcelona game but partly ticket prices and partly actually getting to the stadium putting me off.  Getting back after the game would be difficult, unless I just stay in Barca at a hostel or similar.

Some of the people on this site have the most amazing ethos, I guess they stay here over winter

Hoping I will get into the sea later, will wait and see how this cold/headache does first though.  Maybe. Walk on the sand would be a better idea.

Im also looking forward to getting out on my bike, tour a bit with that.

Viva la Spania

 ….and onwards to Spain today.  Almost a 7 hour drive from Bordeaux but really straight forward as almost all on excellent French, then Spanish motorway.

First stop off for a rest and some fuel in Spain

Got to the site in Blanes (Costa Brava) just before 3pm which was great.  Got my spot sorted, then went for a little walk, what an amazing place.  Im parked up right over from the beach, which is pretty awesome (postcard stuff).  

After a couple of photos, I headed back to setup the van.  Cue pouring rain 🌧️.  Was fine though, setup inside then a couple of the outer bits (awning and levelling ramps).  Then another walk to take in the amazing views.  

Love it here.  Will explore more tomorrow

Tourist in Bordeaux (28/10)

 Today was pretty good.  I walked into Bordeaux central Bordeaux to see the cathedral (about 5 mile all flat so nice and easy).  Some interesting sights on the way but the cathedral and that area were the target for my visit. It didn’t disappoint. 

On the way I saw a Warhammer shop with a comic book store just across from it, thought that was pretty cool, in a geeky way..

Typical french street

Cathedral at the end of this, the large group of people were a bunch of school kids having an awesome time, not in school I guess!

Then it was up to the cathedral itself, it was pretty impressive and huge. The square it was on was perfectly kept and very clean, also no hassle from street sellers.  Unfortunately it wwas closed when I was there, im sure inside is even more impressive.

Me being arty…..

This reminded me of Orthanc, I wonder if thats Gandalf at the top

After a walk round the upside of the cathedral I had a walk over to an incredibly impressive looking hotel.  This was one of the statues/carving - I have proclaimed it “boobies”.

After all that excitement it was down a side street to a lovely little cafe and a double espresso for me, it was yum.  Then decided it was time to get back to the campsite.  Rather than walking again I decided to try bus and tram. Apple Maps gave me better info than google on this one and within a few minutes I was on a tram (Had downloaded the travel app earlier as you need to buy a ticket before boarding).  The info through the app and onboard was excellent and made it very easy for me to follow when to get off.  

The bus wasnt so easy, stop itself very easy to find, then first bus wasnt cancelled so a 30 minute wait.  Nice park nearby so went over and had a look around.  Bus arrived, excellent - next picture shows a guy who pushed to the front, just before this his face had been pressed against the door, im guessing he was in a hurry.

Onto the bus, it was stinky, but got me to where I wanted to be, only a couple of minute and I was back at my van.

Coffee on and got a really nice call from my youngest son Jason, a great catch up.

Thats pretty much it for my day.  Tomorrow Ive decided to head over to Blanes (Catalonian coast), a day early but no need to stay here another day.

Ill leave you for today with this nice image from inside my van, only negative is ill need to go round clearing all the leaves off the top of the van before putting the roof down tomorrow.

New town, same language (27/10)

Just to make sure you know where you are…

 Up, packed and on my way to Bordeaux by 10am.  A very simple drive as apart from the last two miles it was all motorway.  Turned up to my site, easy check in and an assigned plot.  Parked up, really liking this site, a huge improvement over the last two (It even has toilet paper in the toilets… fancy)

My pitch:

Decided to walk into Bordeaux to buy some food provisions.  On my way I saw a Burger King, put me into the mood for a burger, just not from there.  Within a minutes walk I then saw an independent place.  Ordered a “Burger menu” which meant I got fries, a dip and a drink for only €3 more, bargain.  Burger was excellent, very tasty.

Then in for some shopping.  I was amazed at the choice, especially of fresh produce compared to supermarkets in the UK.  Huge fish and meat counters staffed well (remember when we used to get such things, everything is packaged now 😢), bread and cake/patisserie staffed counters.  It took me forever just to get round the chilled section.  No wonder the french think we are crap with food.  A lot of items were more expensive than the UK which surprised me.

Then it was a walk back to the camp site, an enjoyable almost 8 mile round trip. 

Thats it for today, not a lot but a very good and productive day.

#vanlife #bordeaux #roadtrip

The shops are shut… (26/10)

Wo knew that the supermarkets shut on a Sunday in France, not me, “A day of rest”, just make sure you have your tatties in for the roast or you’re stuffed….

Anyway…

A trip to La Rochelle and Il De Rey island today.  It’s over 20 years since I was last in La Rochelle, a family holiday to I think caravan accommodation, kids were very young and it was great fun.  Driving through parts of t today I had zero recollection of any places I might have visited on that previous occasion.   

So it was on to todays main attraction, parking up and then cycling over a rather large bridge to Il De Rey Quite handy was that they have ample free parking just before the toll section of the bridge.  Parked, changed, checked the bike was all good and off I went.

The trip across the bridge was pretty cool.  The views to the island were great, plus seeing various speed boats and a catamaran on the sea helped get into the holiday mood.

The nasty tolls 💶 

Start of the path for the bridge

The path over was really good, smooth and only for cyclists, other side had a walkers/runners path.  Bit a a climb first half then wheeeeeee down the other side, almost two miles in total.

Then it was onto the island of Il De Rey, scenic, pretty, and i think rather expensive given the size of most homes.  Cycling paths very well marked out and even when using roads drivers were very considerate (which ive found all over France).

I stopped off to take the above photo, to give an idea of the incredible infrastructure that the bridge is, unfortunately my photography skills not quite getting the image across. Hey, it has my bike in it though so thats what counts really 😃 

After a few miles on the island I felt a tweak in my hamstring, nothing bad but decided to take a different route back, fair enough having to go back but at least see other parts of the island while doing it ! The tweak is my own fault, I wasnt cycling much at all before I came on this trip and have cycled 3 out of the last 5 days - oops.  Thankfully a bit of a stretch back at the campsite and all seems fine.

On the way back I saw quite a few fisherman on the beach, fishing on the Atlantic Ocean, living the dream 🎣 

Photo from just above the car park looking over to the island.

Back over the bridge, back to the van, changed and off to the supermarket to get something for food later on…..or not (see above).  Thankfully I have plenty of food in the van, just fancied something different.

Back to the site, shower, food, chat with Louise, listen to the Rangers game (they won, yippee) and start getting ready for my next campsite stop off tomorrow - Bordeaux

#vanlife #vwcampervan #roadtrip

A day of two halves (25/10)

 Got up this morning to pouring rain, bouncing off the ground - yuk.  Got a bit grumpy and thought “stuff this, im off to Spain”.  A second check of the weather forecast showed the rain only lasting till roughly midday (Early morning it showed all day rain).  So spent some time organising the van, relaxed and waited…. (Plus a correction from my moan yesterday)

Roughly 1pm the weather had changed completely, some sun and much lower wind.  Decided to visit a few tourist places on my bike.

It felt great heading out on the bike, and first stop was Plage Des Andes, like a couple of other stops thi is just a nice bit of beach with some great views.  Photos after each section. This was a nice place, good quality and and benches dotted about to take in the lovely views.

Next up, a bit further round the coast was the pretty cool “Carrelets” in Port Des Barques.  Huts and carrelets (Nets) all along the beach, made for some very nice views.  Apparently used by the locals for fishing.

NeXT up and this time a longer cycle was Plage de St Foult.  A huge improvement on the beaches near my campsite and one definitely worth a visit in the summer.  Golden sand and some amazing views, also had a free car park right beside it.

The last stop on my trip was to the Mussel farms, id never seen these before, I guess quite similar to salmon etc farms.  The place was huge with many pools for breeding the mussels.  It also had a little take away with fresh mussels but I gave that a miss (not a big fan of mussels).  I didnt stay long but it was well worth a visit, all very interesting.

Just as I was about to cycle back to the campsite I realised id really enjoyed the cycle I already had, its a very pretty area.  So I decided to try Il Madame again, going back a completely different route to get a different perspective.  My best decision of the day.

If anyone read yesterdays post I had a little rant about the rubbish crossing to the island, hmm, yes, my infamous terrible navigational skills rise again, id gone to the wrong place.  It turns out the actual crossing is…wait for it….right across from my campsite, where I had taken a couple of photos first day I got here.

The tide was low and others were crossing so off I went on my bike.  Unlike the “previous (wrong) crossing this crossing was wide and definitely crossable.  It was incredibly rocky (cant have it all good I suppose) which meant a very interesting ride over on the bike.  Only about a mile or so though so all easy enough.  

Once at the island I was so glad I made it over, it’s very beautiful in parts with some amazing views.  The castle is closed and hard to get close by but still looked pretty impressive.  I found some pretty good overgrown singletrack near the ocean to that was pretty fun to navigate on the gravel bike.  I checked out a few other bits of the island (they have a campsite which I thought would be fun for a night), took in some great views then headed back over the rocky path.

I saw one one taking their motorhome over.  I thought this was rather dodgy, it was SOOO rocky, could easily have damaged the van, they also struggled to get up the sand verge at the other side, an adventure I guess.

Then it was back to the van for a pat on the back, shower and food.

La Rochelle and Il De Rey tomorrow, looking forward to it.

Productive afternoon (24/10)

 After a very relaxing morning I decided to head out for a walk and also have a look at the crossing to Il Madame.  With the sea at low tide everything looked very different to last nights huge waves coming over the walls by the paths.  I was surprised at how muddy/sludge the beach was, parts unwalkable.

I walked along to where you can cross to the island when its low tide.  Again sludge and very slippy.  Im guessing in summer it dries out a lot better, as I saw mention of people driving over (very brave as not very wide and one wrong move - mudfest). For me it looked pretty uninviting, I’ll stick to the man made bridge to Il De Rey from La Rochelle. 

Unfortunately it was very overcast so the hoot isn’t too good, frost one is part of the walkway over to the island

This one was a very dilapidated jetty for when the tide is in, it looked well past a usable state but still very cool

On my walk I thought the whole feel of the area was very run down, seen better days, perhaps it’s better during the peak summer months.  It’s a shame as I think it was very popular a while back.

I continued my walk around the town of Port Des Barques.  After a while I was quite bored though, really nothing to see after he beach area. I did see a cool old boat though, I wonder what adventures it had been on in the past.

On my walk back I saw a hardware store, this place was great, like one of the old stores for the 70s or early 80s.  It seemed to have everything.  I wanted a hacksaw for a bit of adjustment on my bike rack.  After a bit of extremely bad french from me then the use of google translate the guy got what I needed and had a bit of a laugh at my French.🇫🇷 

So… back to the van, got the bike rack, which wasnt letting me open the back door when the rack was attached to the tow bar.  Roughly an hour later and all good, happy Dave as that will save so much hassle.

The wonderful hacksaw that let me sort out the bike rack.

@ Rick - sorry I cant answer comments for some reason.  I much prefer upstairs bed, makes getting up in the morning much easier as no bed to put away.  Ive had to put it down a few times in very strong winds but generally it’s fine.  I guess the main thing would be if it’s cold, so I bought one of those bellows covers which apparently help loads.

Tonight… Mainly relaxing, I am on holiday after all 😉. Might watch some tv that I downloaded before leaving.

Tomorrow - hopefully quite a long bike ride.

#bodgejob #vanlife #roadtrip #life

Resting up 24 October

 Morning update 💤

Phew, I must have been tired, early to bed and then slept in until 10:40am.  The first part of my trip is very much a “end point with stop offs”.  I did a trip to the Algarve last year and put in too much driving over a few weeks that I was away.  This trip im splitting the driving up a lot more, and once I get to Spain intend on staying at sites for much longer, and even when I move on limiting the distance I go.

This trip is mainly about recharging my body, my soul.  Ive not been great for a while and as the Scottish winter was drawing in I started to dread the dark cold experience that is winter in Scotland. My lovely partner encouraged me to do this, just a shame she couldnt come along.

The decision to come was made roughly 3 weeks ago, since then ive prepped for it, bought a few luxury items for the van (a small rug for the living area, what a difference it makes. Cosy underfoot

I have a great wee dog, Sam but unfortunately couldnt get his pet passport in time so he had to stay at home, shame as he would have been great company.  A photo of Sam below just because 😁

I could have waited, but it didnt work out time wise, as I want to be back for Christmas.

Enough about what’s behind the trip for now.  Had my breakfast, got a snack put together so out on a walk to take in some of the sites before I cycle over to the island on a dodgy “bridge” later, photos to follow.

French Roads and tolls - Day 4

 Another day another drive. Overnight Wednesday into Thursday was a very broken sleep, the wind outside was howling and a huge amount of noise going on with it.  Did get to sleep eventually and woke up just before 9am so not all bad.

Up, breakfast of coffee and a ham bagette then get everything together for the next stage of my trip.  A drive from Le Mans to Port Des barques near La Rochelle. 

The drive was pretty straight forward, roughly 4 hours and plus the time I had to stop off for a coffee. The weather was crazy, huge side winds and at times torrential rain.  I just took things very easy though and thankfully most other drivers were doing the same thing.

Arrived at the Campsite, at roughly 4pm, check in very easy then off to find a space.  Pretty easy as the site was quite empty.  Found a large spot away from overhanging trees (Part of the issue the previous night), hooked up the electric and coffee on. Decided against putting the awning out due to high winds.

 After coffee and a snack I headed out for a local acclimatisation walk.  The views at the edge of the site are pretty amazing.  Il Madame is across the sea and im hoping to visit that tomorrow, only accessible (by bike) during low tide (Pretty similar setup to the crossing at Holy Island in the UK.

Due to the high winds it was amazing watching the sea and the large waves coming in. As it was getting later in the day I had a lovely sunset to watch.

Then back to the van, dinner on (a very basic chicken dish, couldnt be bothered getting the proper cooking stuff out), chat with Louise (My poor partner is working while I am away) and listen to my team (Rangers) getting stuffed in Europe.

Why the Title, well, whenever I drive over here I am always amazed by the quality of the roads, such an improvement over UK roads. Since arriving in Calais ive driven roughly 550 miles, ive not had one delay, and especially the motorways have been smoooooth.  Even when roadworks there have been no delays as it’s managed so well.  They do have the toll charges, so far ive mounted up about £40.  I do wonder how something like that would be thought of in the UK, I guess similar to the M6 toll we could perhaps have the option to pay.

Thats probably enough to over today, hopefully have some pics and news about my visit to the island tomorrow, then over the weekend a visit to another island, both will be visited by pedal bike.

#frenchroads #roadtrip #vanlife #tollroads

Some Le Mans cycling

 Day 3

22 October

Sleep last night was good.  I always prefer the top bunk in the Cali and have a comfort sheet over it as well, extra comfy.  Had a very slow start to the day, coffee, croissant and baguette with some ham.  The site  (campsite) just outside Le Mans has an ordering system for breakfast items, both that I ordered were perfect. I was surprised at how empty the campsite was when I got up, everyone onto the next place or a day trip I guess.

Early afternoon it was time to explore.  Went out on my bike - Bike all set to go in pic below.

Decided to cycle over to the Le Mans Circuit and museum.  I always enjoy cycling on French roads, they seem to be setup so much better than in the UK for cyclists.

Unfortunately the museum was closed but luckily the Porsche experience/museum was open so visited that instead. Still got a photo outside the circuit though.

 

So along to the Porsche museum.  This was a great place, and if you book ahead they do guided tours and even track experiences, that would be pretty amazing.  Staff were very friendly and as you walk up the stairs it gives loads of great history.

After that, a cycle through a different part of Le Mans with a short stop at a patisserie to get a well earned apple tart. The ride back to campsite was a lot more enjoyable than the one out, as it was mainly downhill 😃 

Above is a very bad pic of my treat.

Back to van and enjoyed the apple tart (I know thats not what the 🇫🇷 call it but hey ho), also had a coffee which went along with it perfectly.

Shower (I wasnt sure about wearing my “Dryrobe” until I saw a bloke walking back to his van with just his towel around his waist), changed and relax for the evening.  A bit of reading then an early night I think, another big drive tomorrow as heading over to La Rochelle area for a few days.

#france #vanlife #VWCalifornia #roadtrip

Day 2 - Interesting start to day then..Ferry

 Day 2 21 October

Ferry day

Up just before 6am, walked round and had a shower didnt bother with breakfast as I had club lounge on the ferry, easier to wait.

All good, leaving site at 6:10, get to barrier, NOTHING.  Hmm thought I, does it need a code to raise it?  Checked the entry barrier, even when it was putting the code in, nothing.  Then a rather irate lady in her dressing gown came out “They don’t function until 7am, you would have been told when you checked in”, I in as pleasant a voice as I could informed her I was late so didnt get that message.  (Trying very hard to smile at her quite obviously raging face).  IT DOESNT OPEN UNTIL 7AM.  Hmm said me, I have a ferry to catch and didnt realise.   Off she stomped, a blip and the barrier raised (She had a remote thing, personally id have just done that from my bed and save the grief but hey ho.  I did say thanks but she stormed off, im sure with a few choice words - ooops

So off I went, headed to the motorway and down to Dover docks.  This place always puzzles me, I never know I am getting to the right section until I get to the check in, past passport control.  

First up passport control

This all seemed easy enough, passport over, stamp, on you go.  Then I got pulled aside, it seems most Camper/Motorhomes were being searched.  A quick check through, a few questions and I was on my way.  Next up check in, all very easy, P&O are very slick with these things, then along to the Q for my gate.

Got out for a photo and some fresh air, plus to take in the nice morning air.  It wasnt a huge wait and that was me, onto the ferry and up into the Club Lounge.

I always like getting the lounge, £29 but food, drinks and much comfier seats all included.  Got myself a coffee, some breakfast and relaxed with a nice window seat.  Another two coffees, some water and that was me happy.

Then, Calais.  The ferry trip was easy, getting out of port also really simple, then onward bound with my roughly 5 hour (Driving time) trip to Le Mans.

Stopped off for fuel and to get my bearings.  Was lucky as this was by far the cheapest fuel I saw available all day.

I wont bore you with the drive, it was easy, quite a few stops in Aires as I was tired and no hold ups.  Drive took quite long as I was stopping more than planned, it was fine though and got to the site in plenty of time.  A lovely little place 15 mins outside Le Mans.

Van parked after choosing spot, Bagette and croissant ordered for next morning and then food and relax.  I was exhausted so very early bed and crashed out quickly.

#ferry #vanlife #roadtrip #scotland #vwcali 

Day 1, it all starts today….

 Day 1 - Let it begin

 This was the start of what I am hoping will be an epic 6 weeks or so touring the west of Europe.  France - Andorra and Spain.  Solo with my VW Campervan, fully stocked and ready to go.

Left from my cosy wee home at 6:05, heading down to Canterbury for the evening, a roughly 9 hour drive (which ended up taking quite a bit longer).  All was good on the roads, down via Moffat, very picturesque then towards the M6 (missing out the over priced tolls) to M25.  This is where things started to get VERY busy, I was expecting it though and was surprised id got so far without any hold ups.  Thankfully just road works rather than a crash and this continued on and off for the next few hours.

As id not been well was careful at motorway stops, only light things to eat. Felt weird not having my usual sausage roll at Tebay services.  Still had a coffee though, essential fuel 😊

I arrived at the site late (Traffic etc) so was dark and had an envelope left out for me with details of my pitch, all good. Headed to the pitch, was very uneven but hey ho, only cost £12.  Went for a shower after a bite to eat.   Coming back from shower noticed a few (much better) empty pitches.  Moved to one that was nice and flat, bonus. I knew id be fine as leaving early next morning, more of that in my next update.

Couldn’t sleep, but at roughly 1am - sleepy time for Dave.

Overall a nice easy start to my trip away.

No pics from today, today was all about driving

#vanlife #roadtrip #mentalhealth