Grottos, war & s**t weather.

As we pulled away from the delightful and totally unexpected grotto with the inevitable, but none the less beautiful and spiritual, statues of Mary, who was both on her own and, a little further on, comforting her dying/dead son Jesus, I looked towards Mary and said. 

"You are some lady you are. Right there with it too. fancy you knowing about and messing with my sat nav again and bringing me here."

We were on our way from a pleasant visit to the very touristy, dull and misty, but good all the same, 'Mont st Michel' to our next destination at 'Arromanches les Bains' and the still visible sections of the massive Mulberry harbour.  A good place, I figured, to start a few days of visits to the 'Plages de Debarquement' of Normandy. These are the beaches where on June 6th 1944 Allied troops landed and fought their way over the following 12 weeks to Paris. 37,0000 Allied service personnel and 55,000 Germans gave of their lives in the combat. Plus the civilian loss of life, property and way of life.

I am one of the beneficiaries of all that suffering. I have enjoyed a life of peace, wealth and health which, had that dreadful but eventually successful day not have occurred, may have been very different. 

The Mulberry harbour's huge semi circle of floating concrete pontoons were towed over the English channel in sections and anchored in place. This amazing feat of human inventiveness and ingenuity enabled thousands of tons of equipment to be disembarked from over 7000 ships. Sections of it can still clearly be seen poking out from where they now lie on the seabed tilted and askew. Some are still in position and showing the size of the semi circle. Others, ravaged by the stormy seas during the previous 69 years lie scattered closer in to the beach.

Now; and here we go back to my visit to 'Mont st Michel'  and in particular the excellent €12.50 camping car Aire at 'Beauvoir' which is a straight, dead level, and easy peasy bike ride from the Mont itself. We had done our usual and walked as much of the Mont as we could. Not unusually the best bit, the tour of the Abbey itself which surmounts the Mont, was 'No Dogs'. All the same a must visit and very picturesque, impressive etc. Back at the Aire we were snug and settled for the evening with goodish internet access.

"Great," thinks I, "lets update things." Things like the maps on Mrs Sat Nav.

"Good idea" says I.

Uh-ho!!  This statement was quickly followed by a string of expletives as Mrs Sat Nav blithely informed me she had very efficiently deleted all my maps and would now download the new updated ones. Maps, by there very existence, contain a lot of information. This was a huge download. OK; so I had a 'goodish' internet connection but not a fast internet connection. A download such as I was about to embark upon can be likened to Londons rush hour traffic having to all divert down a narrow country lane. Not good! Indeed it was not good at all. 2am passed before all was restored and Steveyboy hit the pillow.

Mrs Sat Nav was of course forgiven and programmed next morning to take us to 'Arromanches' using main roads. This to facilitate a reasonably speedy trip. Indeed off we went on the main road away from the Mont. About an hour later I noticed we were certainly not on anything remotely resembling a main road. Mrs Sat Nav with, I am convinced, spiritual or whatever you want to call it, intervention, had re set herself to toddle down the wee back roads. And the first place to stop and investigate? Yup! You've guessed. The delightful little Grotto on a cross roads just outside the village of 'Torigny sur Vire'. The sun was shining too.

If you remember the beginning of this story you will remember I said 'again' indicating this is not the first time Mrs Sat Nav has been 'meddled' with. My re-visiting 'Eymet' was down to the same thing only in a subtle manner where the mistake was recognized equa distance from returning to my intended route or continuing to 'Eymet'. Very clever. Very subtle. Very 'the Universe knows'.

So here We were at a beautiful Grotto dedicated to the feminine and in particular to Motherhood. And here was I, noticing as I sat peacefully in the sunshine in this beautiful place, that at this precise moment I had three Mothers to be appearing in my mind, Emily my stepdaughter, Justine my daughter in law and Ruth my niece. A time of reflection which was enjoyed before a gift of Euros was donated in exchange for a lighted candle dedicated to the health and well being of the three new Mums to be and safe arrival of the legendary Stork with its lively, noisy and kicking package.

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How things change. Friday today and the plan was to visit 'Pegassus bridge'  and possibly 'Caen'. However; the weather is the pits! Relentless and heavy rain and no let up in sight. On top of that Sadie is developing leaks. This is not good news for motorhomes. Consequently mood is rather on the low side at present. Ho hum. Never mind ferry to UK next week and hopefully we can get all sorted then.

Sequel; Sadie is under cover tonight, surrupticiously!  Last night we parked outside a farmers barn amid the grain fields. He was there when we arrived and indicated no problem. The barn is on the edge of a prosperous small village called 'Fontaine Henri.' We left amid the pouring rain this morning but after a desultory and wet visit to 'Ouistrehan' I decided to return, be cheeky and park in the virtually empty but dry barn to investigate the main leak and put some extra sealant around a couple of suspect points. Mr Farmer has not been back. We have done a walk around the village and it's mainly comprised of three farmsteads but I cannot identify which one the barn belongs too. I'll stay here overnight to let the sealant dry. Fingers crossed he wont be back or if he does, that he wont be too upset.

If you read about a British motorhomer being arrested in Normandy for squatting in a farmers barn ......... well I guess that'll be me then!!

Eymet & Northward bound.

"Well Tanya. This is the exact spot where all the trauma of last year began. This is where I ran you over."

I hadn't planned to return but a missed turn and a re-route by Mrs Sat Nav plus Universe  herself made the decision for me. I have a large blue mug in Sadie which I use daily for my tea and coffee. It was a going away present given to me by a dear friend and former work colleague. On the one side it reads; 'Trust the Process'. Turn it around and you read; 'The Universe knows'. So true on so many occasions.

This return visit to Plum Village Buddhist centre, with the circumstances leading up to it, and the actual happenings and energy upon arrival once again left me in no doubt whatsoever as to the profound and wonderful truth of those words circling my favourite drinking mug.

Later we slowly meandered down from 'Thenac' and 'Plum Village' toward the town of ' Eymet' and in particular the crossroads by the reservoir at 'St Sulpice' where I wildcamped last year while Tanya recovered from her dislocated hip operation. A beautiful spot and very different this year with the reservoir full to the brim.

I really like the area around 'Eymet' (pronounced 'Amy') and the town itself. It helps that there are a lot of Brits in the area which made the return visit to 'Kismet cafe' very pleasant with a lovely meal and lots of conversation in English. I was so stuffed afterwards it took a good two or three kilometres on the bike for 'things' (like muscles!) to start functioning again. In total it was about seven or eight Kilometres back to Sadie via the back roads and scenic walk/bike route round the reservoir. All in all a very pleasant day.

Tonight we are in 'Vezins' which is way North of 'Eymet' Sadie has been carrying us via the smaller roads slowly toward 'Cherbourg' and a ferry to the UK at the end of this month. 'Vezins' is nothing special but has the advantage of being 'en-route' while having a very pleasant 'Complexe de Sportiff'. All French towns and villages have these good, well maintained and well used facilities which have bags of parking space where no one seems to mind the odd motorhome stopping the night. They also usually butt onto the village or town park which Tanya especially enjoys as they are doggy walking zones with of course doggy-sniff stories every couple of paces.

This one had a good lake too where Tanya did her usual by mistaking green algae weed on the surface for solid ground. 

OH! What a laugh! 

She was running at quite a lick and went careering into and under the green slimy looking water with such a splash as to frighten the ducks at the other end of the lake who immediately took flight upon noisily flapping wings. She climbed back out, shook herself off vigorously and carried on running and sniffing around as though nothing unusual or humorous had happened at all. I, on the other hand, am still laughing now. One of those funny moments which really make a day as they continually regurgitate hilarious laughter.

'Mayenne' was also en-route enough to warrant a visit. Why? 'Mayenne' is the home and manufacturing base of 'Rapido' Motorhomes. Impressive site it is too with row upon row of new motorhomes, some under different names, lined up in the finished area which was right next to an equally large area containing all the different manufacturers base units awaiting their turn to have a spanking new Rapido home bolted to their chassis.

I did attempt to get a look around the factory but accepted the fact they only allowed visits for pre arranged groups via their dealer network. All the same quite impressed. Tonight we are wildcamped not far from the factory and right on the edge of the Mayenne river.

Walkin boots on!

Definitely an unfamiliar feeling as I pulled on socks and walking boots ready for a walk high up in the Picos Mountains. I have not worn socks for months with my day to day footwear mainly being sandals. I often hike/walk in sandals too but this was mountain terrain with rough tracks, snakes and lizards. Never saw any of them but the walking boots did turn out to be the right choice of footwear.

'Oviedo' was our last cosmopolitan visit and I am afraid it was a quick one as parking within sensible range of the city centre was not to be had. We did enjoy a good walk around a huge park in the suburbs where Tanya was in her element with doggy stories to sniff out at every tree and post. There were amazing views too of the 'Cordilera' with snow covered peaks. Very Alpine.

We motored on after locating a supermercado and topping up the larder. A stop for the night at 'La Isla' where a pleasant evening was spent entertaining two young 'surfers' from Portland, UK. They had just come off the ferry at Santander and were hungry for knowledge of good surfing beaches in Portugal. I was able to give them some detailed info of the area south of Lisbon down to Sagres. They were eager to get down there but also very typical young men. At ten thirty the next morning as I left there they stood bleary eyed by their cramped van full of surfing/windsurfing/kite surfing gear with bowls of cornflakes in hand. I stopped to say cheerio and handed each of them a huge juicy Portugese orange to go with their breakfast. Good luck to them. They were two nice lads.

I headed up into the hills of the 'Reserva nacional de Sueve'. In particular the 'Mirador del Fito' directly above our wildcamp spot on the beach. What a fantastic viewpoint it was too. We got there quite quickly, which was good. Not until evening did I realise we were at a different 'Mirador' than the one I had planned to visit. What a place though. Fantastic views, good parking for Sadie and a detailed information board showing a five K walk to 'Pienzo' an 1160m high peak. We were soon on our way and soon stripping down as it was hot and musical. The music being provided by the many grazing cattle and horses all with their individual bells. As they munched away the bells dingled and dongled with at times a tuneful bell melody ringing out from a group of head down munching herbivores.

We did not quite make the peak. The last half a kilometre was extremely steep and rocky. After talking it through in detail with Tanya we decided for a 65 yr old man and a 75 yr old dog that was quite far enough in this heat thank you very much! Especially as we had to walk back. We trudged a few more metres and surmounted a lower ridge which again gave breathtaking views. Lunch was very much enjoyed and so was the total strip down and wash of self, Tanya and clothes at the nearby cattle watering trough. Huge it was and spring fed. Gorgeous! Walking in wet shirt and shorts kept me cool for a while.

I have to say we were both glad to see Sadie at the Mirador appear below us once more. I have not done serious mountain walking for some time and had forgotten how tough it can be. Ten years ago Kate and I would have loved it. We would have reached the peak and we would have done it a lot quicker. Guess I am aging eh!

We're in 'Bermeo' tonight. Right on the dockside. The weather, as forcasted is overcast with some rain so we are using the opportunity to travel. A milestone day too. A full circle day with our starting point back in January of 'Bilbao' being crossed and then left behind.

I had picked Bermeo purely as a sensible distance to travel in one day. What a find though. A busy little port with of course no central parking available and in fact no place to turn except on the actual dockside just by the ice making plant for the fishing boats.

"Caravanar unos noche camping OK senor?" I said tongue in cheek to the guy manning the ice making plant. Usually port areas are 'Prohibido' for overnight camping. To my suprise though he answered;

"Si si senor. No problemo. Sleep no problemo."

I did not hesitate but stopped right where I was. The 'Policia Locale' came round later and I stopped them also and asked them if it was OK.

A big shrug and a stream of amiable Spanish amply signified to me that it was fine by them, it was 'no problemo', and have a good night!

A great spot with all the goings on of a reasonably busy port plus all the locals promenading the exceptionally long sea wall.

The rain arrived overnight, with a vengeance, and has not stopped since. Today we slowly meandered along the beautiful coastline toward France. We did not see much; it could just as easily have been Scotland or Ireland where sea level mist and driving rain is the norm for much of the time. Agreed: this was warmer, a bonus, but in all other aspects .... miserable!

It got worse too as 'Donostia San Sebastion' hove into view. Lovely though such a town may be in the sunshine today it was decidedly wet, crowded and giving out a strong message saying; "You can forget your wildcamping ideas around here sonny. This is serious built up, wealthy, and not for the likes of you coastline!"

"Hmmmph" says I as I re set Mrs Sat Nav for an Aire (Motorhome parking area.) not too far away and out in the country. Well. Either Mrs Sat Nav got it wrong or I misheard/misread her cos all of a sudden we were headed up the tiniest and steepest of concrete roadways with water rushing down it like it was a river bed.

"This is no right Tanya. In fact it is looking decidedly dodgy. Thinks I'll just turn round between these two gates and get the hell outa here."

It had been a long day. I was tired. There was a sickening lurch to the left as Sadies back wheel slipped off the steep narrow concrete strip and there we were, well and truly stuck with Sadies back end firmly wedged in the grassy bank and no way she could pull herself out. It was also still raining cats and dogs by the way. I was not happy. In fact I was pretty close to shedding tears of despair and frustration at this mess of my own making.

Suddenly the electric gate at the end of the long posh looking driveway where we were stuck started to open and a car duly appeared. Luckily we were not blocking the road, just narrowing it a touch. I approached the male driver to offer apologies and to see if he knew where I could get someone to tow me out.

He turned out to be a very genuine guy. Two hours later his father appeared with his big 4x4. We were very quickly roped up (I always carry some) towed out and back on solid ground plus they gave me assistance to safely turn around. They then gave me the correct directions (miming and gesticulating left or right is really very effective in times of no verbal mutuality!) to the solid and wide tarmac'd Aire I had been seeking. They would not accept a thing for their invaluable help.

Sadie has a rather muddy and dirty looking offside rear end but miraculously no damage. I'll clean her up tomorrow morning. For now....well I'm just glad we're safe and sound and on solid ground. It could have been a lot worse. It is still raining cats and dogs by the way. 'Ho Hum!!'
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I am pleased to report today has been a very different and better day. For a start the sun has been out. We have also crossed over into France which inexplicably felt like coming home. A pleasant feeling though and very welcome after yesterdays trauma. Finally; we hit Biarritz and daringly drove Sadie right into the thick of it. Good fun but not to be recommended except for old and rather crazy pensioners who like sitting up high and creeping up the narrow, cafe lined boulevards slowly, very slowly in fact when you're in a bloody great motorhome and the car in front is having a job to squeeze through. The bonus? ..... plenty of time to admire the gorgeous women who seem to inhabit this city and make it their own. Honest! I've never seen so many classic expensive looking beauties in one place. I probably could not afford one side of the top half of their, not much left to the imagination, bikini's. Thankfully on our later bike walk around the place we were treated by all and sundry exactly as expected. Totally ignored and viewed, quite correctly too, as a rather scruffy old tourist with an equally scruffy looking dog. There is something rather comforting in now being old enough to no longer get even sidelong glances from females eying you up, or males sizing you up in order to warn you off.

Biarritz is a beautiful resort though. Humming and lively with a big surfing crowd who were all out today catching the huge waves rolling in off the Atlantic.

With the trauma of the day before still haunting me we are now headed to a campsite at 'Mayotte', near 'Biscarrosse'. A couple nights luxury and catch up with the washing etc is, I feel, what we need for the moment.

Colder, travellin, now hotter.

I guess its out with the winter woolly's again. After the last weeks of gorgeous hot weather in the Algarve it is a shock to the system to suddenly wake up to 10degrees Centigrade and a north wind blowing strong enough to severely rock Sadie about. Kinda depressing too.

At least it gives a chance to travel and that is what we have done arriving at 'Salir do Porto' In order I may see where my Sister and family holiday'd last year. We had spent the previous night away from the coast and its wicked winds tucked snugly in a forest.

Unfortunately a very short time was spent in 'Salir do Porto' as the wind was gale force with a sandblasting effect which would have rendered Sadies  plastic windows opaque in no time at all. There is not a huge great sand dune there for nothing!!

We moved. Round the bay to 'San Martino' where there was a flea market going on which, and this is where I say the Portuguese just don't seem to get it, was sighted all along the front where again the wind was horrendous. Some stallholders could not even get stuff out of their vans. Further down, or indeed on the opposite and shop fronted side of the street was emptiness and shelter from the wind. I enjoyed lunch and coffee at the grassy corner of the esplanade where out of the wind it was pleasant and warm. Quite deserted too. Strange!

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"OMG I'm really very sorry about this Tanya." This was said way after Tanya's normal suppertime. It was said through gritted teeth as the b'jesus was being vibrated out of Sadie by yet another narrow, uneven and badly potholed cobblestone road.

I had driven for too long and was tired. Pulling onto a side road I expected to find, as usual, plenty of space to park Sadie up for the night.

Bad mistake!

This particular area of Portugal was well populated, very agricultural and with every bit of land in use and separated from said excuse for a road by stone walls. In the end I had to re set Mrs sat-nav for the coast where I figured there would be empty seafront car parks. That thinking was correct. Unfortunately it was 14km of cobblestone roads to get there. Not funny! I was bordering on insanity by the time we reached a very nice, flat, totally empty, beautiful smooth tarmac covered seafront car park. It was at a remote, ghostly and nameless resort near 'Mindelo', North of 'Porto'.

My advice? Don't, whatever you do buy a car from this area. They drive insanely spitting out cobblestones behind them as they go. Twice I heard one bouncing and banging the underside of Sadie. Thankfully no damage as far as I can see.

Resolution number 976 was made there and then: -  'Do not drive for so long!'

The result?

Tonight we are at a lovely little resort in Galicia, Spain called 'Boria'. We arrived, parked up and had time to unload bike and go exploring the many totally rural and unspoilt little coves abounding in this area. I even managed to find a spot sheltered from the keen North wind where it was warm enough to don trunks, goggles and snorkel and go exploring among the undersea rocks. Not for long though. The Atlantic, as we move further north, is noticeably cooler.

One local fisherman was on the beach doing something to his boat. He was fully clothed in wet gear and hat. One crazy motorhome driving tourist was also on the beach donned only in trunks, goggles and snorkel. He was entering the sea. Crazy tourist noticed fisherman stop, stare and shake head in dis-belief and in unison with old man who was sat just above on the sheltering sea wall.

Crazy tourist emerges from sea fifteen minutes later smiling mightily but also very grateful for  the sheltering sea wall and beautiful warm sun. Crazy tourist sat in sun for some time with small black dog laid out in sun next to him. Old mans eyes nearly popped out their sockets a little later as tourist passed him by with small black dog in green plastic bucket on back of bicycle!

Tomorrow it's 'Santiago de Compostella.' Only an hour away.
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I am afraid I prefer arriving in Santiago in Sadie as opposed to on foot complete with obligatory Pilgrims staff and Clam shell. Not that I do not admire the steady stream of Pilgrims/Walkers I passed by on the busy main roads. I just do not fancy a pilgrim route where you are pitched against articulated lorries, motorbikes and cars with only a white line as boundary between you and the traffic.

The old city and magnificent Cathedral are all as per the Rough guide and very touristy but with that added realism of being surrounded by the many pilgrims who had completed their trek. Quietly moving. The inside of the Cathedral was well worth the effort of discretely carrying Tanya and surrupticiously avoiding the vergers and security guards.

We left mid afternoon on the road to 'Lugo' with Mrs Sat nav set to divert us down to 'Embaise de Portodemouros', a large reservoir. And here we are  perched at the waters edge down a wee lane. It was hot when we arrived so it was out with trunks and goggles and in for a swim. A freshwater swim for a change. I thought the water level looked high and this proved to be the case as ten metres out I could see below me a road sign with the 'no swimming', 'no boating' and 'no fishing' logos clearly visible through the greenish but clear water. I was literally swimming around amid tree tops and shrubbery. I guess it shows how low and for how long the reservoir has been half empty. This year, according to a family of locals who turned up to fish (there is a sign you know!!)  the water is higher than they have ever seen it.
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Today, Sunday May 5th it is another wild, hidden in the forest, not a soul to be seen, beautiful edge of reservoir stop. We arrived yesterday afternoon as we travelled the road from 'Lugo' where we walked round the well preserved Roman wall before enjoying lunch and people watching in the main square. All very pleasant and civilized.

We're headed for 'Oviedo' which is not a fast trip with the excellent road twisting its way up and down and around this green, hilly, bordering on mountainous, landscape.

'Do not drive too far!'

Remember, resolution 976?  Well I did, hence here we are stopped, indeed hidden, on a forest track with directly below us 'Embalse de Grandas de Salime'. A long narrow man made lake between steep forested hills. The sun is out, it's hot, we've not moved today but instead biked down the amazingly smooth windy minor road to a simply magic little spot where the road disappears into the lake. Needless to say swim, rest and enjoy were the order of the day before we commenced the slow and steady 'Bike-walk' back up to Sadie's lonely forest track pitch.

We are just so fortunate to be enjoying, to be gifted if you like, such wonderfully benign, peaceful and beautiful moments/spots. Time for reflection/contemplation is always made in such places. Usually there is a bit of praying too. This time it was for the strength to Bike-walk/slog/trudge up the long steep incline to the welcome Sadie sanctuary.

Never fails! We made it and we Had a cooling shower too, half way up in one of the wee waterfalls tumbling its way down the hillside and splashing onto the road. It was so hot even Tanya was glad to be given a soaking.