Skip to main content

Homeward bound

Days 22 & 23   Tue 6.8.19
A cooler day today, for only the second time in 3 weeks.  What a relief!
Still warm enough to sit out in shorts and a t-shirt.  Left our campsite, Les Patures, Checy at about 11 am, then decided to head north to Chartres.
We pulled in to a Leclerc that was about the size of Bluewater (or so it seemed), and had lunch there.
Whilst having lunch, the heavens opened and torrential rain fell out of the sky.  So we stayed, used their internet, and loos, before looking for a campsite for the night.
It wasn't long before I found one, - St Val, Les Ilots, north of Chartres by about 30 minutes.
We drove there but found that it was a very large campsite that appeared to be like a ghost-town campsite!
Caravans, tents, mobile homes, etc.  But no one about.
We drove in, looked over the washblocks, and drove out again.
No one on reception.
No one in the washblock.
No one by their tents.
Weird.  A further search of Google revealed a site near Dreux. St Remy sur Avre, camping municipal Du Pres De L’Eglise.
We pulled in.
What a difference!
A friendly woman greeted us at the gate, told us to pitch wherever we liked and then come back to pay.  Paying was easy, but cash only. 15-60 Euros per night!
A wonderful find at this campsite.  Stayed for 2 nights



It was so nice there, and we didn't have a massive journey to complete to get to Calais, so we decided to stay for 2 nights.
We chilled all day, only going to Netto to find something for lunch.  

With only about 200 miles to get to Calais, and all day to do it, there was no rush.
We left the municipal campsite in St Remy Sur Avre at 9.30 am, and were on our way home.
By 11.30 am we were at Neufchatel en Bray and shopping for our last bits before coming home.
There was no cafe in Leclerc’s there, but the McD was next door to it, so we went in there.  Got given a couple of free Coke glasses too!
Then we ambled our way slowly up to Le Touquet.

Kids crowd round police bikes at Le Touquet
Had a drive round there, then Ruth went to sleep while I drove the rest of the way to Calais.
We got to Calais at 4.30 pm and went through the customs and check-in.
They wouldn’t let us on the next sailing, but told us to come back in an hour and we would be allowed on the ferry after that.
So, we were 90 minutes early getting on the ferry, which meant that we were 90 minutes earlier getting home.
We were home at 9 pm, English time, instead of 10.30 pm.
Nice result.
2500 miles done in 3 weeks 3 days.
Another great holiday!


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Gorges du Tarn

Day 18  1.8.19 Gorges du Tarn!  Wow! After leaving our van step-up behind on the campsite, we drove from Les Vignes up the Gorges du Tarn to St Enimie. Gorges du Tarn What a splendidly spectacular ride it was!  At one point the road went under an overhanging rock which had a viewing platform jutting out even further into the gorge!  Marvellous! We stopped at St Enimie for lunch. Tried to park in the area reserved for “BUS”, but immediately got moved on by the local gendarme.  The other campers who were there before also got the wrath of the gendarmerie! We parked slightly out of town, and went in search of lunch.  The main cafes were on the street overlooking the gorge, so we looked behind at smaller places.  A good idea, because we got the most amazing lunch at a very reasonable price.  It was more than ample, and we tucked in. Waddling back to the van was a bit of a struggle but we made it, and then headed for Ispanac before ...

le Puy de Dome volcanic area

Day 19    Fri 2.8.19 Left our and its over crowded wash block.   We were up and out early to catch the mountain rack-driven train to le Puy de Dome, an extinct volcano!  We tried booking on line to save 10%, but it was such a palaver that in the end we just turned up early and caught the train up to the top.   15 Bucks each.  Well, 14 for me, as I’m old now.   A spectacular 20 minute ride to the top.  A glorious day so the scenery was superb.  It was worth every penny.   Le Puy de Dome (1500 metres) It was possible to walk up, but it would have taken about 2 hours.  The train was the clear winner!   "Life is like a mountain railway" At the top there was a temple to Mercury, which had been re-sited from somewhere else.  Also a telecoms setup that took my attention (obviously).   And there were scores of people queueing up to do paragliding, from the top.  It was great up there. ...

Getting to Gorges du Tarn

Day 17   Wed 31.7.19 On our way to the slow return home.  Our target destination was the Gorges du Tarn. Not a long drive, just over an hour and we were at the southern end of Gorges du Tarn.  The approach was over big, rolling hills.   We passed under the Millau bridge.  A superb bit of engineering. I stopped the van to take a picture of the suspension bridge, and as I walked into a nearby field locusts started jumping all over the place as I walked!    Locust Then the scenery turned more rugged, and we found ourselves on a winding road next to the river Tarn.   Stopped off for lunch at an unknown place right next to the Tarn, before finally stopping at Camping Terrados, Les Vignes on a 3 star campsite, for 20 Euros.   Not posh, but adequate.   Our pitch was right next to the river.  By that I mean 20 metres away.  A short slide down the bank and one could be in the river, -...