Wissant to Walsall Monday 11 09.
Embry to Wissant. Sunday 10 09.
Brimeaux to Embry. Saturday 09 09.
Val de Saane to Brimeaux. Friday 08 09
Time to head North. It's raining heavily while we get breakfast. A couple of other moto homers get going before us. A Britishvan reverses quickly over the guArd protecting the grey water drain and there is an almighty crack.
He had hit the steel bar so hard it had a huge hole and had torn out of it's screws. No idea how his mh had fared. Not the best start to their day.
Eventually we get going and thankfully have a remarkable journey North.
It's shopping day so we find a Super U. Alastair finally find a wine from Maury which is where one of our favourite wines Cabalie hails from. We treat ourselves, well we have been so frugal all month.
Then we carry on to our planned overnight. Initially we had headed North so early because we were planing a couple of chilled nights in Embry but then we decided to sneak another couple of free nights. Bad planning. Today is Friday and the aire is full of British vans that we assume are catching a weekend train/ferry, we should have forseen that. We could squeeze onto the overspill car park but Hamish really doesn't want 2 nights of being crammed in amongst other mh's.
We identify another spot about 15 minutes away. We pull up between 2 lakes and park beside a picnic table, no other mhs in sight.
Alastair immediately needs to nip for a cheeky kip. Lisa is listening to TMS and Swanny states that according to the weather forecast the biblical rain that had been predicted is instead passing across 'our friends in Northern France'. As the rain beat down on Hamish Lisa acknowledged that he was indeed correct. The ducks and coots needed respite and snuggled down on the road.
Val de Saane all day. Thursday 07 09
One of the things we have learnt about ourselves this trip is that we are capable of chilling, staying in one place for more than one night and the benefits that provides. So we have given ourselves enough time to have a second night here.
We walk into the village so Alastair can pick up a croissant and pain au chocolate for breakfast, only the second time in a month.
Then we have an incredibly lazy morning!!! It's worth noting because we don't do this.
Most importantly it is Blowers last Test so we listen until after lunch when he is given the opportunity to share his TMS highlights.
After lunch we are ready for a challenge. We head out on the yellow walk determined to crack it.
We get to the point that we went wrong last time, Lisa points out that we would be repeating our mistake if we follow Alastair's suggested route and she backtracks to find a different option.
As she gets back to Alastair he has his map out looking confused and she can see a minibus of French ramblers approaching him, she holds back and watches.
Alastair does NOT ask for directions but uninvited this lovely group of French walkers see a fellow in distress and descend upon him.
A flummoxed Alastair and a highly amused Lisa follow the direction we were sent in. And they were right! Sorry, Alastair knew this was the right way.
So despite us thinking we have walked every path around here we find a whole new route with new attractions. Most startlingly we saw a bull 'attending' on 3 occasions to a female cow, 'it's not even dark' was Alastair's prudish response.
Saint Romaine de Colbosc To Val de Saane. Wednesday 06 09 All Day
Oh joy, for the first time we have an electric hook up (free) so Lisa can dig her hairdryer out, the luxury.
An uneventful day. After shopping we head back to Val de Sane. We pull up in our little spot and Alastair's walking stick is still in the hedge where we left it.
This aire is not only a convenient hop on our way home but it has been the only place we have found Le Clappe, a red wine that we found on our last trip and the best rec we have found on this one. We walk to the little shop and Lisa panics 'they have sold out!', thankfully Alastair is less anxious and finds it. We buy 6 bottles to take home.
It's gettingto that point in our travels, we have a night of reflecting on what we have learnt from this month away. The wonderful thing about travelling is that there is always something to learn, usually about ourselves.
Quillbeuf sur Seine via Le Havre to Saint Romaine de Colbosc, Tuesday 05 09.
Lisa slept like a baby and is ready for the day, Alastair less so but we stick to our plan.
So just before 10am Hamish is on a little car ferry which is free to cross the Seine, how very exciting. On the other side we head for Le Have. Destroyed in WWII the town is supposed to be a beacon of modern architecture, our reason for coming here is art.
We find a parking spot on the side of a busy road, Lisa is worried about getting blocked in but as the bikes are half way into the parking spot behind us Alastair reassure Lisa that we will be fine.
We get on our bikes and cycle along the front to the Musee Malraux, according to or guide books the entrance fee is €5 which we can easily afford this week and it houses the biggest collection of impressionist art outside Paris.
When we arrive we were initially worried it was closed as there seemed to be a lot of building work taking place but it turns out that a new exhibition is being installed on the ground floor so the charge is only €3 as only the first floor is accessible. Bloody typical, we come to see some of the Monet we didn’t see in the Musee D’Orsay but we can’t.
To be fair there what we do see is an impressive wall of art by Boudin, the father of impressionism who was from The Havre, a couple of Renoirs, work by Pissario, a Degas, one Monet and some ship paintings which intrigue Alastair. According to the posters it looks like they will have ‘Impressionism, Sunrise’ on display and we contort ourselves over the balcony but can’t see it although we do spot a waterlilies painting.
Back outside we cycle further along the front before heading back to H for lunch. Impressively a car had squeezed itself between Hamish and the car infront, his tow bar gave us 2 inches of space but that didn’t matter because of the space at the back.....famous last words. A car had parked in the half of our bay and half of the one behind, taking up more space than us and giving us very little room to manoeuvre. We get lunch and at some point the car behind leaves, another one parks more appropriately and we get out while we can.
We head inland to an aire that we wouldn’t normally choose but has plenty of space, is described as quiet and calm and after yesterday isn’t too far which is exactly what we need.
We arrive around 3pm and get the last space! !?? We seem to be surrounded by a ring road so hardly quiet and calm either.
The previous day has taken its toll on Alastair and as soon as we arrive he announces he needs to lie down and is immediately asleep.
Once he wakes we go gor a walk and amongst the fieldsculptures that surround us there are some offices, a huge creche, paths, a Chateau that can be hired and the most amazing yew trees. Someone clearly has time to potter around these gardens putting up sculptures and generally tending an ancient space.
Alastair reflects on how France as a Republic seems to benefit from the money that is spent on making people's lives more pleasant.
Back at H we have a lovely evening planning our priorities for the next few days and, reflecting on The Archers and poor Oliver, we end up deciding that we need to plan our funerals. Obviously too much whisky!
Longues sur Mer German Battery to Quillebeef sur Seine. Monday 04 09.
Shopping is next before heading to an aire we have picked free water up from in the past, this time we are successful in filling up but worringly, the aire, which is inland, is busier than last time we were here.
We find a little spot for lunch where 30 royal Marines lost their lives in 1944.
We arrive in Deauville around 2pm. A Victorian seaside resort with beautifully ornate buildings. Unfortunately the parking restrictions have changed, there is a free bit but it’s not until October and we never spot it so we can’t stay here, or rather we choose not too. About 3 hours in an city is enough for us.
So we have to move on. Although grey the weather is humid, not ideal for a long days drive which was never the plan.
As we have said before there is a dearth of overnight stops around here but we head to the next one that sounds pretty.
We soon find ourselves on a single track lane and after a lapse in navigation concentration by Lisa H is then bouncing along a farm track complete with pot holes. Alastair is really sweating now.
We arrive at the identified parking spot, if it ever was one it isn’t now, it’s private land, after all that!
We find a spot to regroup and replan. About 20 minutes further on is another spot so we head there. When we arrive there is a beautiful house surrounded by a high wall with CCTV, the ‘parking spot’ is on the grass verge on the opposite side of the lane from the house. We parked up but none of us felt comfortable.
By now we had had enough and studied the map again. We decided to cut our losses and head for somewhere we knew, in just under an hour we could be in Quillebeuf on the Seine, by far from our favourite place but we knew it and could relax.
We put on an episode of The Archers, (we are trying so hard to catch up but we have only just discovered that Caroline is dead!) grit our teeth and get going.
As we arrive there is only one space left, it is busier than before!? As Alastair switches off the engine Lisa flicks the fridge to gas, grabs 2 beers from the fridge and within 2 minutes we are on a bench drying out.
Refreshed we head to the bench outside the library for free wifi then snuggle down to watch passing container ships and plan tomorrow. Lisa is knackered and wants a day off but Alastair comes up with a good plan so we get to bed early.
St Germain du Pert to Longues sur Mer German Battery. Sunday 03 09.
After showers we head off. First stop is Omaha beach the D Day landing beach where about a 1000 US soldiers lost their lives. On that day in June 1944 a huge storm caused chaos and the men were blown off course, they were like cannon fodder attacked from the German batteries that remain as concrete shells; one containing a gun that was eventually captured on that day, the troops then made it over the cliffs and the rest is history.
Second stop is slightly further along where a beautiful memorial has been erected on the beach. Black and white photos show the huge number of battleships and gear the US army bought into this bay. Poignantly there is a photo of a French Father in his swimming costume with his picnic basket enjoying a bottle of wine, his 3 daughters sat close by, all of them resting against half sunk US boats.
Next stop is the American military cemetery. We decide to go into the visitors centre first but when Lisa spots the G4S security guards, bag scanners and X ray machines we nip back to H to drop off her handbag which of course contains her penknife.
Back in the queue we are at the front ready to be called forward and searched when a guy in a wheelchair with his companion is called forward. Some intense conversation appears to be taking place then the guy in the wheelchair is stood up! And his bag removed. The G4S guard turns to Lisa and says ‘strange reaction’. Lisa replies ‘I am not surprised’, but didn’t add, like should he even be forced to stand up? Then the G4S guy turns to Lisa and says ‘something not right here’ and puts his glasses on and adopts a legs apart hands by his side stance. Mr wheelchair ‘obviously a terrorist in disguise’ man and his mate clear the checks and are through. Sneaky, obviously we need to watch them!!!
The visitors centre is a mixture of photographs, film and effects that tell the story of Eisenhowers decision to launch Operation Overlord, the details of the day and some of the people who paid the ultimate sacrifice. A very good exhibition for free.
Then we walk into the Cemetery. It is breathtaking and heartbreaking in its scale, there are 33 sets of brothers here and was filmed at the start of Band of Brothers. The rain seems apt as we wander around. There are several graves of unknown soldiers, their name is on a huge memorial as you enter the cemetery and each of their graves is adopted by a different Norman family who visit once a year to place flowers.
Hauntingly at one point the American anthem breaks out across the cemetery followed by the Last Post.
Next stop is for lunch with views across Omaha bay before stopping at an aire for services and moving onto our planned overnight stop.
We arrive at another Day Day site, Longues Sur Mer
We pull up in the main car park which is a field and head out into the ceaseless rain to check out another possible howff overlooking the bay. In the bay off Arromanches there remains an impressive number of structures from the Mulberry Harbours created by the Allies. The ground is sloping though and due to the rain there is a constant stream of cars coming to look at the harbour before racing off again, we decide to stay where we are.
We walk back up the track to 4, now listed, German gun batteries. In the first the gun had been blown apart with the barrel in bits embedded in the ground. The second guns barrel is intact.
although the machine part is blown apart and a plaque gives the date it was taken by the Devonshire regiment. The third and fourth are largely intact, very scary, these guys could hit targets 12 miles away.
Sodden we splash back to Hamish carrying rain, mud and grass in with us.
Most campers have left so we carefully choose a flat part of the field with views across the fields both sides. Within 5 minutes our left side hoes dark as a motorhome pulls in next to us, never mind we still have a view on one side. Then a MH parks behind us. Finally a mh races in, drives around the other 2 and parks on our right completely blocking our view, unbelievable.
The Dad and his daughter in the last MH seem in a hurry so we imagine they will be off after seeing the guns so we wait. They return and we imagine they will want go get dry so we wait. Eventually we concede they are staying so we move H to the other side of the field. We know this doesn’t help our campaign to convince the French we are not all Brexshitters but it’s worth it for a pleasant night.
Lingreville to near St Germain du Pert. Saturday 02 09
This has been a brilliant spot for 2 nights but we don’t like to outstay our welcome so sadly we head off. First stop is the little aire from a couple of nights ago to get shower, water etc then food shop and onwards .
Effectively we are beginning our journey home now so we head to the North coast of Normandy. En route we notice an alarming increase in the numbers of MH’s and indeed when we get to our first choice for an overnight on the coast it is packed so H hightails it out of there.
We find a church car park to get lunch and reconsider. Its Saturday so maybe the French have come out to play for the weekend? We decide to head inland again.
We arrive at a charming roadside aire with what initially looks like a climbing frame and a couple of picnic tables. As we pull up a kestrel flies above Hamish’s rooftop window, a good sign.
The wooden climbing frame turns out to be a viewing platform explaining how the valley below us is a flood plain, which in winter is flooded to form a big shallow lake. There is a walk, green arrows this time, as we are professionals at this game now we set off.
Information boards tell us to look for heron nests and indeed Alastair spots one as soon as we are in the valley. Some dead trees are chopped off and an artificial platform added to the top on which herons can add big bunches of branches to create a massive untidy nest. There is a bird of prey sitting in the nest. Obviously worried we are after his lunch he picks up his mouse and takes it underneath the nest to eat. Lisa thinks it is another kestrel, Alastair later checks our bird book and believes we have seen our first ‘Hobby’.
We continue our walk past a very handsome donkey and startle a buzzard.
As we cross a rather rickety bridge we see a sparrow hawk bobbing around in the fields. This is amazing, every field hosts a bird of prey! Even the sun has come out and we have a gorgeous walk waving at the neighbours driving around in their 30 year old Renault 4.
Back at Hamish we enjoyed the last of the sunshine with a g and t. Wine tonight, there is a new idea. Alastair said a box of French red will be delicious and cheap enabling us to spend a couple more quid on a couple of bottles to take home and try. After the first glass of box vin rouge Alastair wants to go back to Lisa’s idea.
Lingreville All Day Friday 01 09
After a far too late night playing music and dancing we are up far too early. As we lie in bed preparing to face the day one of those heavy rain showers thunders down on H.
Today should be shopping day but we have plenty of supplies and are reluctant to leave our little spot with our beautiful view so we decide to stay another day.
After breakfast we set off along the beach heading the other way. The tide is out and we can see a mussel farm and a dumping ground for unwanted mussels which is keeping all of the gulls fed.
Back at H for lunch we expect today to be busier because it's Friday but it is MUCH quieter, we don't understand, maybe they have all gone to a supermarket? Ever the white dog doesn't make an appearance. However cars don't disappoint us and continue to charge onto the slipway and reverse providing us with endless entertainment throughout the day, small things.
The weather is grey and gloomy and threatening rain. As we have no signal in H we take our chairs onto the beach to get wifi to enable us to plan tomorrow. The sea is aquamarine, in one direction the sky is blue, in another it is grey and heavy.
After a few minutes the wind increases and we give up heading back into H to hide from the coming rain. The grey cloud skirts along the sea and we don't get rain.
As blue sky appears we grab our chairs and go back on the beach. Within half an hour we are back in H, this time the rain buckets down. And that's how we spend our afternoon, backwards and forwards between showers.
As we were setting off for our second sunset we met a woman who worked in London but had a housing the village,she congratulated us on our musical taste the previous evening, oops. To be fair she had been walking past H, she didnt hear us from her house.
Tonight was a more magical sunset followed by an early night, no music.
Cerences to Lingreville. Thursday 31 08
The day begins with a heavy rain shower which batters down on H so loudly we cant hear the radio. Then it clears and we get going.
We head back to the coast but try slightly further North where we find a lovely little car park between the dunes with a slip road running through the middle of it meaning our view of the sea is not blocked by sandy or grassy banks. Finally on this trip H has a sea view!
We head off for a walk along the beach, picking up shells and playing. Apart from the tractors that tow boats down the slip road and into the sea we see about 2 other people on the vast expanse of beach.
Back at Hamish for lunch we watch as a car races past us onto the slip road then obviously has to reverse. A couple of minutes later another car does the same thing, can they not see it's a slip road? Then more cars do the same thing. Alastair is incredulous and everytime a car drives onto the slip road asks 'why are they doing that?" By the time this happens for the 40th time it's getting boring so we start to cheer instead everytime a car appears and follows the predictable route . Some cars don't even wait until the car infront is out of the way before launching onto the slip route.
Reversing is the most 'interesting' bit as some of the drivers ribbon from side to side and we watch the front of H anxiously.
Reversing is the most 'interesting' bit as some of the drivers ribbon from side to side and we watch the front of H anxiously.
Dodging the cars we take the kite onto the beach, well 2 kites as we realise we have lost a connector for one of them.
As school finishes the beach begins to get a little busier. Although it has been dry all day it has been grey and chilly but the sun now makes an appearance. Mostly it feels like locals on the beach as they all stop for a chat as they walk their dogs. We are beginning to recognise some already, a big wti dog is bought down twice.
We take our chairs onto the sand and watch as people arrive, go for a dip then leave again. It is raining on both ends of the beach but amazingly we stay dry.
Tonights wine is very special. We chose it following a degustation at Soave and have been waiting for a special enough occasion, tonight with our sea view feels special.
Around 8 pm most people have wandered off and we take our chairs and wine and park them next to the slipway. Once- last tractor has taken the last boat home, giving us a wave, we sit on the slipway and suddenly this beach, this sea, this sunset belong to us.
After wine we continue to celebrate with whisky and as it becomes dark we retreat back to H and enjoy the unusual opportunity to play our music loudly without upsetting anyone and continue to drink for too much whisky.
Abbey de La Lucerne d'Outremer to Cerences. Wednesday 30 08
During breakfast the rain arrives and as we are feeling shattered after yesterday we decide to have a quiet day.
After a supermarket and collecting LP.G. we head back to the coast. Further North and in the rain we find a spot where we are alone, the sea just behind the grass bank.
Unfortunately we can't stay as we need services so after 20 minutes back inland we find a lovely aire in a little village. As the rain continues to fall we snuggle down with books, tea and hot chocolate.
Regneville sur Merville to Abbey de La Lucerne d'Outremer. Tuesday 29 08
A full on day today, planned with military precision.
We set the alarm for 7 am although Alastair has a slightly rude awakening as shortly after going to sleep Lisa sits bolt upright waving at Alastair saying 'hi, hi, hi '.
We are both properly awake by 6am and just waiting for the alarm to sound, and the church bells which finish with a flourish at 7pm and start again at 7 am. We are getting good at sleeping through them now though. It's the start of another scorching day with the orange light of sunrise bathing the sky.
We are showered and heading off by 8:30am as we have a 90 minute journey.
We need supplies for the day but supermarkets don't open until 9an so just crack on. After 9am Lisa is given the great honour of using google maps to find a supermarket and direct us to it. She does such a good job she is promoted to Assistant Navigator.
By 10am we are arriving at the tourist melee that will enable us to reach Mont St. Michel. This is the farthest South and West we will come on this trip and we have left it as long as possible in the hope that the crowds will be smaller.
We are only the third vehicle on our planned car park spot so our plan seems to be working. Bikes off, lunch packed we are soon on the cycle path as our car park fills up.
The view of the Mont is magical in the shimmering heat. At the dam that now protects the Mont we are instructed to leave our bikes and we complete our journey on the causeway by foot.
Free buses drive past us every minute or so and horse pulled carriages which are completely unnecessary and cruel especially in this heat.
Eventually we arrive at the gates of the Mont guarded by a few very bored looking Gendarmerie. The Mont looks like the template of a Disney castle. A walled fortress built around a hill with the Abbey sitting at the peak of the hill.
We were immediatly hit by the vulgar consumerism of tacky tourist shops, the cost of tickets for the Abbey, the cost of a map, the cost of the loo. Slightly shell shocked we wander through the mediaeval gates and begin to climb the steps and wander through the alleys.
It is very beautiful and unique although without paying to see the Abbey you are restricted in the streets you can visit.
It is SO hot we find a welcome breeze through a crenelation and dry out our t-shirts. We are surrounded by sweaty bodies, it's disgusting.
We wander along the beach that surrounds the Mont. Apparently the tide here comes in faster than a galloping horse. Back at the entrance to the Mont we find a spot overlooking the sea to eat our lunch before we start the long walk back.
The tide has come in and there is an interesting whiff of dog shit.
Back at the car park it is chaos with motor homes pulling on without waiting for others to leave. Our original plan had been to stay here but no chance. We quickly develop a new plan, squeeze out of the car park and get going.
After about an hour we arrive at the coast. Unfortunaly we haven't left it long enough or maybe people are enjoying the last of the sun, either way there are far too many mh's and we need some quiet.
We pull up to make a plan C next to a mh with 8 husky dogs.
We set off again this time inland. We arrive at the location but it looks nothing like it does on the photo so we wander around then realise sat nav has bought us to the wrong place. By now we are over heating and over tierd but have no choice but to get going again.
Eventually we arrive in the car park of an Abbey. We sit at the picnic table drying out, recovering and watching a kestrel hunting as the car park emptys.
A couple of days ago Alastair spotted an ' interesting ' creature in H that he didn't manage to remove. A large, green insect had appeared on the window net in H, thankfully it was on the right side of the net so after journeying with us for a couple of days the creature was returned to a similar ecosystem.
Before bed we sit at the picnic table supping whisky. Another mh arrives as we are snuggling down.
Cerisy la Foret to Regneville sur Merville, Monday 28 08
It's time to leave our perfect little spot and more on. French schools go back this week so we must have ridden out most of the holiday crowd.
Alastair finds a laundrette in X which is on our route so we head there. It's amazingly straightforward. Not the best wash over but better than we could manage in our box and within an hour for €15 we have two fresh lots of bedding and a bunch of clean towels, parts etc.
Very pleased with ourselves we head towards our overnight stop planning to stop for lunch en route but we do so well we arrive at our overnight.
We are parked on a grassed car park a few metres away from the sea although we can't see it as the 14th century remains of a castle is our view. To our- a beautiful church that has lost it's spire and a wall behind us, very beautiful.
The temperature has risen to a sticky 28 degrees and our newly washed clothes are soon dripping . We had a cheeky beer with lunch to cool us down.
After lunch we meander to the ruins. While it is being restored there is an exhibition space. Inside, the mediaeval walls keep the space cool.
There is a retrospective of X. The Curator begins to explain the exhibition to us in French then very helpfully switches to English.
We walk into town, one road that runs around the coast. It is incredibly quiet as people are trying to hide from the heat. There is a municipal campsite with no more than a dozen tents and caravans, a good sign! We wander on. The sea is out and boats lie sleepily in the mud.
With nothing else to see we wander back. The church by Hamish is cool and lovely with original paint and stone work left exposed.
Tea tonight is a veggie chilli from home. For the first time in a very, vey long time we eat outside at our table. The Le Clappe wine Lisa spotted at a little supermarket in Val de Saane is a complete hit and is in the bag.
We have our little area to ourselves as other mh's left during the day.
Cerisy-la-Foret Sun 27 08
We love our little spot so much we decide to stay another day. Hiding away for the weekend has worked well for us so far, it's costing us nothing and we are not using petrol so why move on?
We start by doing a few jobs. We need water so for €2 we fill up, we walk into the little village to do our recycling and that's about it for Lisa. Alastair has a bit of a cleaning spree as we have the time, the water and we are halfway through our break. Hamish is soon looking spick and span.
Otherwise we have another lazy day, delicious.
The Sculpture Park is quiet with a few people wandering around until about 4 pm when a trickle becomes more of a torrent, don't they know this is our sculpture park!
While cooking the risotto Lisa gets a text from the woman who came to collect the cats. Mommy cat has been reserved so once she is spayed.she has a new home. Lisa burst into tears, poor Alastair thought someone had died and tried to console her as she was racked by sobs. Such a huge relief.
Another quiet night, apart from the owls.
Cerisy-la-Foret Sat 26 08
Hazy sunshine but it looks like it will be another lovely day. We treat ourselves to veggie sausage sarnies for breakfast; our first on this trip. The MH leaves early so we are alone again until the first coach load arrives for their 10am Abbey tour.
After breakfast we get our walking boots and gamely decide to follow a circular walk for 8km marked by yellow dots! Yeah we know!
Our prior experience paid off. If there is a yellow arrow directing us in one direction we ignore it and choose the other path. A few trees down we would spot a yellow stripe painted on the bark. We now know what we are doing. Consequently the route is fairly straight forward. It takes us through the forest and along little paths, covered by foilage so you feel like you are walking along a green tunnel.
We spend the rest of the afternoon enjoying the sunshine, listening to TMS and reading. Alastair replaces Lisa's inner tube with a new one we bought in L'Eden and it seems fine now.
Last time we were in France we took home a couple of bottles of wine that for us were expensive (€10 and 12) and we new found a special enough occasion to drink it so we bought it back with us. Tonight in the grounds of our Abbey, with our my own private sculpture park feels like a very special occasion so we cork it.
It's been quiet today and as we eat the last stragglers leave. So we go and play in amongst the sculptures. Alastair poses in various positions to 'enhance'the natural beauty of the shapes. We titter our way around the statues.
As we close the blinds another mh quietly arrives, brilliant timing. Then a rain shower arrives, even better timing.
Around 1am a cow is mooing loudly and insistently and sounds in huge distress, after about an hour she quietens... or dies.
The owls arrive about 4am. The joys of the countyside.
Bayeux to Cerisy-la-Foret, Friday 25 08.
We wake to cloudy skies and drive 5 minutes to the local L' Eclerc. The car park is largely empty and we get into a bay out of the way and get showers. By the time we are finished and ready to go shopping the car park is full, attendents are directing people to empty spaces. Alastair insists it must be a bank holiday here aswell but Lisa checks all of the sites and it is not. Alastair refuses to believe it, it must be a Saints Day. Lisa checks the internet, it is not. Alastair refuses to believe it. lt's just Friday.
As always shopping takes an age as we try to find lovely things to eat that are vegan; not the easiest in France. We also try to find one of the wines we have enjoyed, Saumer. No chance.
Eventually we escape. Next petrol and onto the next supermarket to loose grey water etc.
By now its 12pm and we haven't done anything.
We head to our planned overnight stop. We arrive at a cidre farm with MH parking. There is a tiny shed welcoming members of Passion France. This is a scheme whose membership enobles you to stay at a variety of farms across France however we are not members, so can we still stay? We walk to the Cave, it is deserted. No people, no cars, nothing. We are scardey cats. We arent sure how this works, we don't know if we can stay and they dont seem to do Calvados. We deliberate, do we wait only to be told we can't stay? Do we just stay anyway? Do we leave and try this again not at lunchtime?
We decide to leave finding a little countryside spot for lunch.
We head on to our proposed overnight stop but there are only spaces for 2 MHs. We arrive and are incredibly lucky, no other MHs.
The aire is set in the grounds of an Abbey's remains and a huge beautiful church. Next to Hamish is a sculpture park with amazing sculptures carved from stone, across the lane is a lake complete with ducks and we are surrounded by fields with 2 very healthy donkeys. Does it sound idyllic? It is!
We spend a lazy afternoon by the lake with a couple of beers listening to TMS. The sun has got his hat on now. Alastair sits in the shade.
When we saunter back H. has company. A German MH who has thoughtfully parked away from us so we still have our beautiful view.
The time we invested in the supermarket paid off and we have a delicious tea with lots of different flavours. Alastair's choice of wine tonight and it wont make the bag. It is a new grape Folle Blanc. I think usually reserved for armagnac.
We crack on listening to our audio tape (Stuart McBride) as Alastair loaned it from the library and it runs out in 3 days.
The bells of the church stop peeling during the evening and we settle down for a quiet night.
Around 1am there was a distant and gentle 'twoooo'; atmospheric. Then, directly above H., there was an incredibly loud and screechy 'TWEEET' and again 'TWEET' and again . This tawny owl screeched around H for about on hour and a half. Well it beats traffic noise.
Merville Franceville Plage to Bayeux. Thursday 24 08.
Around 1am a motor home arrived and parked in the bay behind us. Arriving at that time you would Imagine they would be considerate of their neighbours but no they drove up and down waking Alastair up and keeping him awake for the next hour. Then at 3 am a couple were walking their dog, as you do, the dog was playing 'chase me' around H. so they woke us both up for another hour. Then 2 cats started scrapping, not the best nights sleep.
We woke to a beautiful day and for the first time we put some washing in the boot. It's been hard to predict which day is going to be warm enough to dry the washing although most days and up dry and warm. We get going early as we planned a busy day.
First stop was to the museum of the Pegasus Bridge, we didn't pay to go in but read the information in the foyer. The bridge was a key target for the allies immediately after landing in Normandy and was secured by a paratroop regiment Reading the dedications was enough for Lisa and she soon had to go and wait outside while she pulled herself together.
The original bridge is on display outside the museum and our route took us over the replacement, almost identical but larger. Very excitingly as we approached the traffic was stopped as the bridge had to do it's thing and rotate upwards to allow 2 yachts to pass.
Then onto a air with free services so we can rinse the washing and top up with water.
Our next stop was Bayeux. The aire was free during the day so we parked upg made ourselves some salad and got on our bikes. Slight problem, Lisa has a flat tyre. A lifetime of repairing bikes under his belt Alastair soon had the tyre off, found the problem and patched it up. Tyre was soon back on ssssssss. Lisa's inner tube is so old it has deteriorated around the valve and patching up wasn't going to help. We put the bikes back on the rack and walked.
We walked through the park into town. The allies arrived here within a day of landing on the beaches which seems incredible and shortly afterwards De Gualle was bought here from the U.K. to address the crowds and declare liberation.
Bayeux survived the war intact and is a pretty town with watermills complete with wheels and medieval buildings. We bought a baguette and ate our lunch in the courtyard of the cathedral at the centre of which stood a magnificent tree over 200 years old.
We headed to the tapestry museum. We are so tight we are rarely prepared to pay entrance fees but this felt like a lifer. €19 for 2.
We were each given a handheld phone type thing with audio commentary that started as soon as you entered the darkened space that ran alongside the tapestry, it couldn't be paused or reset. The commentary whizzed along at a pace and ours seemed to be going faster than everyone elses as we needed to be at the next number before other people had moved on. Obviously you focus on the tapestry not where you are going so consequently Alastair nicked one bloke...twice . At the end instead of leaving we just walked back through the darkness to the beginning and finding spaces between people who were slaves to the commentary we studied the tapestry.
It is incredible, one of those things you feel you have known all of your life, part of your heritage but it still blows you away. It's incredibly long and very, very beautiful. The commentary didn't do justice to the intricacy of the detail and even after going back we missed so much.
After the tapestry there is a little museum giving some further detail and suddenly the world felt so much smaller. Viking boats that bought them to Normandy and then a statue of the Tower of London built by William the Conqueror and a copy of the Doomsday Book.
Back out in daylight we decided to stay in Bayeux for the night as we had had enough for one day. We moved H about 2 streets to a free car park and listened to the 60th anniversary TMS match.
Lisa's wine tonight, it's in the bag! A full house for Lisa's choices so far.
It's the end of our budget week and we are €32.25 in credit , despite going to a museum. That will help hugely for petrol on the journey home.
La Riviere Saint Sauveur to Merville Franceville Plage, Wednesday 23 08
We are up early and head straight to the supermarket for 8 pm, unfortunately it doesn't open until 9am. We drive around the corner to get L.P.G., the first we have seen since we arrived, then back in the supermarket carpark we get showers and are ready for 9am.
Stocked up we head towards our overnight and find another supermarket with wifi. Advised that a' text chat' is faster than a call Alastair sends in an initial request. A message appears saying a spare operator will respond within 4.58 seconds.- - - . he waits, 2.20 seconds. . . 58 seconds ... 19 seconds ... 58 seconds?? We hang up and head to Cabourg.
This is our first foray to the coast, the aire is for 6mh's who are only allowed to stay for 48 hours, the aire is full and everyone looks far more comfortable than a 2 day stopover would suggest.
On the road that led to the aire there are a number of parking bays and we snuggled Hamish into one. We had a few of trees and no motor homes so a much better view than in aire squashed between other mh's. We get our bikes off and check both ends of the road for parking restrictions, we are just on the border of the length of vehicle that risks being towed, we risk it.
We check out the beach and cycle on to the end of this bit of land. From there West we can effectively see the length of the coast which is where the D-Day landings took place.
Dropping the bikes back at H. we head onto our beach. We are sandblasted as we fail to find anything other than a few tufts of grass to hide behind the wind is lethal. Alastair heads off to watch the kite surfing lesson,. Lisa dithers in her waterproof pretending to enjoy herself.
After an hour we give in and head back to H. for the rest of the evening.
While we were at home we were in the garden when a stray cat walked past a carrying a very new ginger kitten in her mouth. Within a day we realised she had taken it into our little brick outhouse. Lisa started leaving food and a fleece lined box on the floor to save her balancing on the shelves between our gardening tools. Within 24 hours 2 kittens and Mommy cat were in the box, Lisa fed them 4 times a day.
After 2 weeks Mommy cat built up a trusting relationship with Lisa and because this situation was untenable we contacted a rescue who were brilliant and came to collect the family that evening with the plan that they hopefully would be rehomed.
Tonight a text came to say the kittens had gone to their new home. We went for a walk along the beach and Lisa cried all the way. Mommy cat was beautiful and it knowing the kittens would be fine it was her Lisa worried about.
Tonights choice of wine tonight and he has one in the bag!
Quillebeuf sur Seine to La Riviere Saint Sauveur, Tuesday 22 08
After a great night sleep only, slightly disrupted by a flashing light, which Alastair eventually realises is the lighthouse, we wake to thick fog. We can hardly see the Seine just a few metres from H.
We are planning an expedition today so have our usual breakfast of meusli and banana and get on the road. Within an hour we are at the aire at La Riviere, a practical aire for 20 MHs underneath a motorway flyover. Not ideal but necessary and free.
We have a chat with a lovely couple from the Gower. We have already spoken to more Brits in in a week than we did in 4 months last year.
We get the bikes off and are soon cycling the 4km into Honfleur: a picturesque, historic town set around the old harbour with taper thin houses covered in grey slate. Some of the buildings date to 15th + 16th century, a bit like Quillebeuf . However, unlike Quillebeuf, this town has been cared for and it is absolutely rammed with tourists. We see coaches from Slovenia, Latvia and the UK amongst others. Having avoided people for as long as possible this is an assault on the senses for us. Restaurants line the harbour and are packed.
We wander around the tourist bit then find a supermarket for lunch. We find houmous, (for €3), bread, crisps and half a bottle of wine (we are doing well on our budget so far this week).
Grabbing our bikes we head out to the park and find a bench overlooking the Seine to enjoy our picnic. The skies had cleared but are now threatening rain so we get going.
The park has created 'boats' from hedges and within each is a bust of a person famous to Honfleur with a narrative. Alastair was just explaining a significant person to Lisa when a rabbit ran past her hell for leather, a few seconds later the pursuing terrier appeared. Thankfully the terrier Iost valuable time by going the wrong way but it was soon back and Lisa was up, trying to recall her hunt sab tactics to divert the dog. The owner was nowhere to be seen, probably gone shooting something . As far as we could tell the rabbit ran free.
At the end of the park we found a stretch of beach packed with bodies. We cycled back to H.
By now, 3pm, the sun had appeared and it was heating up everything to an unbearable 33°C. We dropped the bikes and walked into La Riviere collecting a bottle of Normandy farm cider.
The rest of the evening was spent trying to keep as cool as possible as the sun baked down. Tonight's wine a Touraine, probably not coming home with us (Alastair's choice).
Val de Saane to Quillebeuf sur Seine, Monday 21 08
Thankfully no histrionics from Lisa overnight.
We chose a good day to move on, it started raining about 9pm last night and the morning is grey and mizzly.
Even worse our quiet little aire has suddenly become full, the 6th MH arriving just before midnight. We use the services with the jeton we purchased at the Mairie. Three nights in a great little aire has cost us €2, Fabalass.
Alastair wants to be near water but we still don't want to risk the coast so we head to the Seine.
We arrive at a free aire in Quillebeuf sur Seine in just over an hour. Hamish no longer has a pretty view. Don't think romantic walks along the river, imagine heavy industry, the smell of an oil refinery, the only saving grace an automatic lighthouse. It'll be ok for a night so we park up and walk into town.
As before many of the shops are closed during August so the only activity is around the car ferry which regularly makes the short hop across the Seine. Outside the library there is 45 minutes of free wifi. Oh joy! ln the UK Alastair invests days uploading information to make our lives easier only to get here and find we can't access any of it because we can't get data on his phone! So much for better data roaming in the EU.
We walk along the street parallel to the front and make a startling discovery. The lane is lined with houses that the information signs tell us were built in the 15th and 16th century. Beautiful, detailed wood carvings, tiny wooden doors, stunning. Sadly though some are 'condemned', others have smashed glass and almost all are neglected. It doesn't make sense, with some care this street would resemble the Shambles in York, instead it is, not a shambles but more completely neglected elegance. A sign of France's economic woes maybe? Or a town that once thrived due to its maritime position now forgotten?
We wander along the Seine but with completely uninspiring views we find ourselves back at H. planning tomorrow. The sky is leaden but it's sticky and humid.
Val de Saane, Normandy. All Day. Sunday 20 08
It was still dark, Lisa was waking up to Alastair stood beside the bed looking very bemused, she heard herself shouting at him to 'get out'! Realising she had disgraced herself Lisa snuggled back down, Alastair, realising there was no emergency and he didnt really have to 'get out, get OUT!' crawled back into bed.
We had both hoped the drugs would have sorted this out.
We had an unusually lazy start to the day. We have decided to stay in our little bolthole until Monday to give the French chance to go home after the weekend and more people time to head back North to the U.K. The sky was blue but as we made our sandwiches and put on our walking boots it clouded over and we could feel the rain in the air.
We headed off on a new walking route, to be fair we would have been hard pressed to do the same one twice, these walks feel like the stairs in Hogwarts, a moveable feast.
Immediately on the wrong track we pass an interesting looking building and take a closer look. A quick check on Google translate confirms its the local headquarters of the hunting brigade. So no hares today then, or anything else that fIys, walks or breathes.
As we continue along the road we notice a French road nuance. When a side road comes onto a main road both drivers are faced with a stop sign and a stop line in the road. So who has priority? From observation we think it's the driver leaving the side road, interesting. We make a note to check for ST0P signs along the main road.
We are soon back into woodland and have a lovely
We get back to Hamish feeling refreshed by Val de Saane and ready to plan the next part of our gentle adventure.
Tonight the wine choice is a sparkling white, this one is going home. (Not that its a competition or anything but this is Lisa's choice so l-0).
Val de Saane all day. Saturday 19 08
Lisa is relieved to hear she slept soundly last night.
Luxury, no driving to day. We walk into town to the Marie to purchase a token for drinking water. Emptying the loo is free and most French seem to use the water linked to the loo as drinking water. As this is such a quiet aire we risk grabbing some free water but only for the shower and only after disinfecting the tap. When we later see 2 French lads drinking directly from that tap we assume the French think us over cautious.
During breakfast heavy showers sweep over H so we wait until 11am before setting off on a walk. This area of the Seine-Mariteme in Normandy has many marked walks and cycle paths. The local Marie has tourist maps.
Alastair gets his map out and we set off. Within 5 minutes Alastair is frustrated again and everytime the map appears Lisa whispers 'que chuntering! It is hopeless, the map in no way corresponds to the paths and roads, we spot some yellow stops with clear direction arrows then at other decision points we have to search posts and trees for the faded yellow dot and at others there is nothing. Further on we may find a yellow dot so if you knew where you were supposed to go you could find your way back. Crazy.
Ignoring how easy it is for the marked route to disappear then the walk is lovely. We ramble through: pretty woodland, around fields, past half timbered houses, beautiful huge houses. It suggests wealth around here and Chateau lmbevilIe.
The walk is dotted with information boards telling us to look out for little le chevreuil (a cross between a goat and a roe deer) and hares. We spot a red squirrel scurrying along the path infront of us, his tail glowing red in the reflection of the sun.
Then we come to a curious bank surrounding a field, helpfully there is an information board. It's for hare coursing!
Not only is it legal here, they are SO proud of it they provide an information board with photos of dogs ripping hares to pieces, gruesome. Unsurprisingly we didn't spot any hares. They are probably caged ready to run in terror until they are ripped apart.
Despite the map-writers very best attempts, Alastair did an amazing job of finding a planned picnic spot for lunch.
This is the only point in the day a shower arrives. Lisa picks up everything she can grab, finds the nearest shelter, sits on the floor and carrys on munching. Alastair is prissying around. He doesn't want to get his shorts dirty. Herein lies our difference of approach to packing. Alastair sees it as an ongoing challenge to himself, that he chooses to accept, to pack as few clothes as is humanly possible for travelling (washing being a part of travelling) and consequently he can fit all his clothes for 4 weeks in a sock bag. Lisa's philosophy is that the less washing the better and we have the space so she has packed 4 months of travelling clothes for 4 weeks, which is why she is now quite happy to get dirty on the floor.
We arrive home having walked 23,000 steps, or about 11 miles in old money, it makes a lovely change to be using calories rather than consuming them. Alastair takes his book to the stream and dangles his feet in the icy water for as long as he can stand it to minimise the inevitable pain of his plantar fascitis.
A bottle of French Languedoc red, called Cecilia, with tea. Lisa has proposed that everytime we choose a bottle we buy two the same. If we like it we take the second bottle home and we at least have a chance of knowing what we enjoy so have a slim chance of buying more (France is so regional we rarely see the same bottles in supermarkets in different areas). If we aren't bothered we drink the second bottle on this trip. This bottle isn't making it home.
We stay up till after IOpm listening to England bowl out the West Indies on TMS. Unfortunately we are unable to tear ourselves away from listening to the parlous state of Windies cricket, losing 19 wickets in just one day.
Nicolas-d 'Aliermont to Val de Saane, Normandy. Friday 18 08
In the early hours Lisa wakes to find herself standing up in H. shouting that she needs her jacket. A bemused looking Alastair is in a seat. As she wakes up a horrified Lisa recognises the scene. She scuttles back to bed as Alastair explains this was the second 'occurrence' of the night. About 15 minutes after falling asleep Lisa had sat bolt upright. Being familar with these symptoms Alastair trys to encourage her to lie down again but no, she needs her jacket, because 'people' may see her. It's reassuring to know that even fast asleep Lisa retains her dignity. It is not so reassuring that the night traumas have returned.
For breakfast Alastair heads to the local artisan boulangerie and returns to devour a pain au chocolate and a croissant; the butter dripping down his chin. He needs it to recover from the night time activity.
It's Friday so new budget day, we are €28 under budget, hooray!
We head back to the lntermarche and stock up on food (local unpasteurised cheese from Neufchatel), wine, local beer and petrol and set off again.
Some challenges remain familiar: Alastair can't get wifi on his Samsung phone! Thankfully Lisa's Huaweii phone is picking up enough to enable us to get by.
We only drive for 45 minutes to Val de Saane. The free aire is in a pretty spot next to the river surrounded by greenery. It's quiet and Hamish is alone. We immediately decide that we will stay here for a couple of nights.
We wander around town dodging into shelter when the heavy showers sweep in. We pick up a map of walks around the local countryside and head back to H.
As we have been walking around we realise that a lot of shops are closed in July and August as the owners have gone away, presumably on holiday. Its ideal for us, a little village where half the villagers are away and the tourists haven't discovered it!
We have had a few soporific days and as the showers ease we decide to go for a walk.
At the top of the road Alastair is already frustrated by the map and lack of signage as we cross the bridge 3 times trying to find our starting point.
We soon find ourselves in pretty woodland, alongside streams, bucolic. Alastair spots a kingfisher but as he turns to tell Lisa he trips over a tree root and cries out in pain and anguish so by the time Lisa finds out what the commotion is about the bird has gone.
We find the source of the Saane marked by a statue of Saint Sulpice. Saane's answer to Lourdes. In the excitement we lost the yellow spots on trees and soon realised we were in completely the wrong place.
An hour and half later we arrived back at H having walked 18,000 steps which makes a lovely change from driving around.
As we enjoyed beer and tea and dusk fell the ducks waddled out of the stream and snuggled up on the river bank .
Embry to St Nicolas-d'Aliermont, Normandy, Thursday 17 08
We decide to tear ourselves away from our comfy little aire and be a little more adventurous. For €7 a night this has been excellent value for money and we are already complaining that we don't have anything similar in the U.K.
We drive for about 2 hours heading south west into Normandy.
We stop for lunch in a pretty layby and head towards St. Nicolas.
As the rain pours down we entertain ourselves by inspecting French produce in an Intermarche.
Our overnight is in a free aire in a small town carpark, not the prettiest spot but fairly quiet, free and functional. We wander round but are reluctant to pay for the clock museum. There isn't much to see and we retreat to Harish to listen to T.M.S. and the first day /night test at Edgbaston v the West Indies. A consequence of Hamish's theft is that we have had new electronics and a digital radio increasing our chances of receiving T.M.S. across Europe.
Embry to Embry Wednesday 16 08
We are loving this little aire and don't yet feel ready to more on but do feel ready to explore a little farther afield so we save Hamish a spot and head out.
First stop is a supermarket, this all feels so much more familiar and easy than it did on our first travels.
Then we head to Azincourt, home of the famous battle of 1415.
En route Alastair gives Lisa a brief history of the 100 years war. Lisa reads the full speech 'once more unto the breach'. So by the time we arrive we have tears rolling down our cheeks. While the the french haven't exactly buried this battle they basically ignored it for 100's of years.
In 1963 a less than impressive monument was erected at the head of the battlefield. Alastair grumbled that the 'interpretation' had a very French perspective, failing to mention the British won with a much smaller contingent of men. Lisa was horrified that 6,000 French were buried here but apparently she was missing the point. It was a reminder that the whole of Northern France seems saturated by the blood of young men. Meanwhile Alastair practised his archery pose, the infamous double finger salute towards passing lorry drivers and motorists undermining our attempts at positive Anglo French relations in the shadow of Brexshit.
Enough excitement for today. We head home to enjoy the emerging sunshine.
Embry All Day. Tuesday 15 08
5am we are woken by the deep rumble and load cracks of an electric storm overhead. We get up and watch the sky light up around us, magical!
Eventually we drift off again and slumber hearing our companions of the night before leaving. By 11am Hamish only has one other MH for company.
We have a lazy day. Whilst at home this time Lisa has been diagnosed with an overactive thyroid. Alastair feels justified that his complaints last year about being dragged around numerous Italian cities so fast he could feel the G-force on his face, were not completely unreasonable.
Now Lisa is taking the tablets and knowing we only have 4 weeks on this trip we are determined to experiment with a more leisurely pace.
Around 5pm we manage a saunter along the villages main road. Sadly a hailstorm in July caused significant damage to a number of buildings and especially their rooves.
Walsall to Embry Monday 14 08
Now where were we at the end of November? Oh yes, looking forward to our next trip. Sadly things didn't quite go to plan and for a multitude of reasons it has taken us until now to head off again. We nearly lost Hamish in the interim as he was stolen but we outwitted Thomas the Tealeaf, recovered our beloved boy and are VERY excited to be heading off again.
Packing is relatively easy as most things have been in a box for 8 long months waiting to go. We even have travel sweets that were bought as Christmas presents that we can finally pack.
We are so excited we set off early which was fortunate, the less said about the journey on the M1 the better. As we glimpse the white cliffs we spot the impressive Banksy with a guy chipping away at one of the E. U. stars. Our views on Brexshit have only hardened as our economy has continued to freefall.
The ferry is only costing £60 one way through C + C club and is a painless experience especially as they squeeze us onto the 3:40pm, an earlier crossing.
We are soon driving though pretty French countryside to our planned stop. We arrive at a pretty little aire in the village of Embry around 7:30pm.
The aire is populated by English vans heading home. Unluckily for them Alastair picks on a particular couple to entertain us. They were very gracious and proved lovely hosts helping us to celebrate our arrival in France. Exhausted by our excitement and the prospect of a very long journey home the next day they eventually managed to get rid of us and we retreated to Hamish for a night cap.
