Monday, 1 April 2013

It's cold up north


More motoring northwards means that we’re now on the Opal Coast near to Boulogne and heading towards England after the Easter holidays. Due to the need to sort out property we’re signing off this part of the blog….as we’ll be around and about in the UK for a while (well, we’re anticipating that anyways….).

From the Brenne we returned to Le Cormier campsite run by Welsh Mike and Cath. It’s a lovely site and they do look after their guests well….I think we may become regulars….just like the couple who they were expecting on their way south and return ….to Lordes….we did wonder if the “cure” worked…or why do they keep repeating the same trip? No, mustn’t ask!

From there we stopped off at Montoire sur le Loir…the alternative to La Loire (the bigger well known river)….the aire was at the old railway museum…the place had links back to the second World War as a staging post for transportation and a visitation from Hitler himself!

Fascinatingly within a 60 mile shift northwards the weather changed! Out with the hats and gloves, thermal layers needed. A cold northerly biting wind and well below freezing at night. We put the heating on and made more promises to ourselves that avoiding the winter weather is on the cards for another year!


Then it was on to Pont-de- l’Arche near Rouen…which was an officially signed Aire, but not listed in the allegedly offical book. There was a sign up saying maximum four camping cars, and the Council had built a new feature in the middle of the carpark….It was a lovely spot, literally overlooking the Seine, near to the old town…..and when we stopped there were eleven vans….me thinks they had previously been over-run, had themselves removed from the guidebook and were trying to discourage motorhomers! In the morning before 9am, there were a couple of official looking men trying to move some of the vans which were blocking carparking spaces….thankfully we were occupying the last available of the four official bays…as my French is definitely not up to explaining that I can’t leave until my husband and dogs return from their morning walk!



Northwards, ever northwards to the Normandy coast and Berck. We found an Aire beside the sand dunes and walks along the miles of sandy beaches. We’re definitely in holiday zone/time, as this time there were 28 vans on the Aire….and it seemed many of them unpacking land yachts. Not the smartest place we’d stayed and with a unkempt caravan in the corner with a pack of what looked like feral felines….well, Berck was ok. Brilliant if you like cold windy beach walks, people cockling in the distance, and then more people either walking the dog or tacking up horses for a gallop on the sands…..at least the sun was shining…an unexpected bonus.

Next stop Equihen Plage Aire….bit of a misnomer as there’s no beach….but there are nice sea views from the van….we’re in a bit of a Belgian enclave…surrounded by nine Belgian registered motorhomes. 
One happy tricolour Toller.....just about sums up her views on this long holiday!
 
 

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