Saturday:
Another early start. The car was all packed last weekend, so that made matters a lot easier. We’d managed to get everything in the car and tied down with bungee cords, apart from the wardrobe and clothes airer, which went in the ‘van. All that was left was to put Frodo in and away we went. We picked up the ‘van and headed South. First pit-stop was Wetherby, which we duly pulled into. Lo-and-behold we bumped into the daughter there. What were the chances? She was heading to Liverpool for the weekend and head decided to pit-stop there as well! From here we did Grantham (quickly) and then ran into the joys of the A1 being closed and all traffic siphoned off onto the A14. This caused a massive tailback. We fought through it with a few lane changes and eventually got onto the A14. At this point I decided it was pointless trying to get back onto the A1 and decided to continue on the A14 through to the M11 and Birchanger. Had things there changed at all, would it be quieter, would the caravan bays be empty of cars and vans? No, nothing has changed. I didn’t even attempt to get to the caravan bays, opting for the HGV parking where I knew I’d get a spot. We didn’t stay long, pleased to leave I tell you. We then got to the tunnel without any further delays. Things were looking quiet here, indeed we were ushered through onto an earlier train even though we’d opted for our booked one. Through to France and we soon found ourselves settling down for the night at our favourite Aire. This was quiet too, not the usual amount of traffic coming and going.
Sunday:
We left at 5.00am and made our way South. The journey went smoothly and following a number of hours, we found ourselves at the campsite. We were warmly greeted and quickly thrown onto a buggy where we were shown the option of three pitches to chose from. The first one was big but a little enclosed, the second was good but had long grass, the third was like a cave, no sunshine at all! We opted for the first one, booked in accordingly and paid the balance. We then drove to the pitch but made a wrong turn. We ended up passing the pitch with the long grass, which was now being cut! This was a game changer, we headed back to reception and requested this pitch instead. Once finalised, we headed back and began setting up. It didn’t take long and we were soon enjoying our first evening in France, albeit a little tired!
Monday:
Time to wash the ‘van and erect the awning. This we did without any problems and then headed off to the supermarket. We picked up our usual ingredients for the meals we’d be enjoying in the sunshine and then paid for them. Or at least tried to, the card terminal was a little awkward asking many questions, and if you selected the wrong option, card retirez! After four attempts we sussed it and paid! Back at camp we enjoyed some al fresco delights of the remaining food used for the journey down, a few drinks and then decided it was time to see whether or not the Astra birds can be seen from this far down South! I’m pleased to report that I got a signal, not the strongest, but enough to get most channels. Importantly, it was good enough to watch England play in the World Cup! We watched this and then enjoyed some more TV for the rest of the evening.
Tuesday:
A day spent on camp, nothing but relaxing. Weather is glorious (a little too hot at 30!). The best news to report is that there are cicadas on site, yeah :). Spent last night listening to one sing away…
Wednesday:
The hottest day so far, reaching 32! Despite this we decided to have a walk into the town of La Romieu, which is literally just down the road. We wandered about a little, executed some excellent French and bought our thimble! We then decided to take a tour of the church there, the ‘Collegiate Church Saint Pierre’, and hopefully unravel the mystery of the ‘cats’.
When you enter, you first watch a film which explains the history of the church and town and also explains why the town is cat mad! Following this you are free to explore the church and indeed climb the towers to the top, which we did, and also wander the gardens surrounding. The building is quite stunning and well worth a visit, just mind the steps, they are a little on the small side. Following this we headed back to camp and hid from the sun.
Thursday:
A trip out today, to the local town of Condom (pronounced without the ‘m’). This is one of many medieval villages in the area, steeped in history and containing beautiful churches/cathedrals along with may quaint houses and shops. The cathedral here is quite stunning, not steps or towers in this one, but still magnificent. We managed to purchase another thimble and our glass from a shop here as well. One thing we didn’t know was that the Gers is the home region of D’Artagnan, from the infamous musketeers. Indeed our glass reflects this, along with a statue of the four musketeers just outside the cathedral. We enjoyed a little wander about and then returned to the site via the supermarket. Here we restocked and refuelled and then headed back. Weather not quite so hot today so a BBQ is in order! The air cleared later with a brief thunderstorm as we relaxed indoors for the rest of the evening.
Friday:
First things first, I booked the tickets for Les Miserables at the Theatre Royal, which is showing next year. Bookings have just opened and already it was nearly fully booked. Following this, we stayed on the campsite all day and enjoyed (hid from) the superb weather!
Saturday:
The shower was on the agenda today, to fix or not to fix. I managed to get into the pipework but alas, the pipes were cable tied and would not move. I couldn’t thread any additional pipework through either, so it’s up to the service center to fix that one now. Following this we had a bite to eat and then headed for the bar, to enjoy a drink in the small buzz of it all. We decided also, that tomorrow we would have an excursion out to the town of Lourdes, to have a mini pilgrimage of our own!
Sunday:
An early start, or at least 8am, as that is when the barriers open! We headed for Lourdes, our epic Christian pilgrimage to the place where Bernadette Soubirous had 18 visions of the Virgin Mary in 1858. The journey there is hard work, no autoroutes, just the N21 and various D roads to keep you happy. It didn’t help that part of the N21 was closed on our way down, meaning more D roads! We got there eventually and wormed our way through the streets of shops looking for somewhere to park. We eventually found the parking areas, parked up and then headed for the tourist spots. We took the walk up in the hills around the church, which has large statues depicting the stations of the cross. Then we took a stroll inside the church itself, the ‘Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes’. Following this was headed for the spring water from the grotto, which you can still see and touch. We filled our bottles, which we had just bought, from one of the many taps which feed from the spring and then returned back to the car following a bite to eat from the sandwiches we had brought. A stunning place to visit, I didn’t quite expect it to be so popular. There were masses of people around and the amount of shops that were selling gifts was quite unbelievable. There is also the one-hundred-year-old funicular, ‘Funiculaire du Pic du Jer’. This links the pilgrimage town of Lourdes with the summit of the nearby Pic du Jer. We didn’t have time to explore this, but it looks good. You could easily spend a whole day hear if you had the time. Well worth a visit. Upon returning back to camp, I hear that England have won their next round (6-1), so that’s good. But for the rest of the evening we need to relax, as it’s been quite a day.
Monday:
We stayed on site all day, taking things easy after yesterday’s outing. Weather still glorious (too hot).
Tuesday:
We did an outing today which consisted of visiting the various villages in the area. First up was Larressingle, a very pretty fortified village, the smallest in France, consisting of a church and various shops/cafes within. Following this we headed for Montreal, not much here I have to say, other than another impressive church. From here we weaved our way into Lagraulet-du-Gers, nothing really here either. Our final destination was Eauze, this is a much larger town, with a church (ex cathedral) centered on the square, to which everything else surrounds. Plenty of shops and cafes to pass some time here. We stopped for a final top-up at the supermarket and filled with fuel, ready for our departure on Friday. The Gers region is very beautiful, this little journey today felt and was very rural. The buildings are rustic, the roads are sometimes nothing but tracks and the people are very relaxed. And the sun just keeps on shining…
Wednesday:
Stayed on-site all day.
Thursday:
We started packing the awning away in the morning, before the sun became too fierce. The car and caravan were packed by the afternoon, we watched some DVD’s for the rest of the evening, as the dish was packed away too!
Friday:
Left the campsite at 8.00am, as this is when the barriers open. We made our way North without any problems. Arrived at our Aire and settled down for the night.
Saturday:
Another early start and we made our way to the tunnel. The queues weren’t too bad this year, we got through check-in fairly swiftly. Although security has beefed up again. They now have soldiers there with rifles and indeed our ‘van was checked! Strangely, we weren’t offered any alternative times for the train other than the one we booked, that was a first. So we parked up and headed for the duty free. The parking was quite full at this stage, again never seen this on previous journeys. When our time came, we headed for the train. From here it was trucking time North through England. We did use Baldock services this time, although it is undergoing some development, it still provides a good stop. From here we did Grantham and then Weatherby and then finally home. It’s been a long journey, but worth it, despite the weather being too hot.
- Date: 16th June 2018
- Nights: 12
- Pitch #: P73
- GPS: 43.982805, 0.501851
- M20 > Eurotunnel
- A62 > D931 > D36 > D166 > D41
- A16 > Eurotunnel