Standing stones and the people that fell from the sky…

Leaving our vintage caravan site behind us as we headed south west towards the megalithic monuments at Carnac in the Golfe du Morbihan, an air of quiet anxiety settled over us as we had flash-backs of our last adventure in Menhir-land on Corsica…

There, the ‘imposing megaliths’ turned out to be not that tall, and not that imposing, and whilst we enjoyed our trundle around the site at Filitosa on Corsica, it would be fair to say that we left a little underwhelmed. Having now embarked on a trip specifically to see fields full of standing stones, we hoped that what we may not find imposing in height, we may at least make up imposing in numbers.

The ancient site at Carnac is reckoned to be the most important prehistoric centre in Europe, and may have been continuously inhabited longer than anywhere else in the world, perhaps since 5700 BCE. With over 2000 stones making up various ‘alignments,’ there are certainly a lot of menhirs to marvel at...

Parking up at the free area for camping cars near the Maison des Mégalithes, we found ourselves free to wander around the fenced off stones, or, wait for a French language tour that would allow us into the fenced area. Our French leaving a lot to be desired, we decided that getting up reasonably close would do, and so we spent a good 90 minutes taking a leisurely stroll around the perimeter of the different alignments, with very few other visitors to be seen.

The stones were certainly impressive in quantity (including one with what we think might be a resident sparrowhawk), and whilst the experts are not agreed on their purpose, they do deliver an imposing experience of the scale of human endeavour. Particularly when you take into account that the people who started the trend only lived to the age of 30ish – that’s a lot of time, for a lot of your life focussed on stones, whatever their purpose. And, as we were reflecting on the visit over lunch, we were hard pressed to think of what from our own times might still be around in almost 6000 years times – other than plastic in the oceans…

We’d plumped for a trip to the Presqu’île de Quiberon for our camp up in this area, jutting out into the Atlantic as it does, marking the western end of the gulf area. It was a bit of a gamble, as once we’d started onto the peninsula, the only way to go was right to the end, and if we didn’t like it, turn around and retrace our steps.

With the weather brightening but windy, we opted for camping Les Joncs du Roch on the tip of the peninsula near the town of Quiberon, on the lee shore and adjacent to the local aerodrome where, we had read, much entertainment could be had as a variety of light aircraft took off and landed! The site’s location also delivered on being close to a number of beaches and cycle paths – in the unlikely event that it got hot enough to go to the beach of course!

Strangely, the day after we arrived was warm enough for us to spend a few hours at the beach, giving us an unexpected northerly intro to what we hoped would become a regular pattern later in the trip!

Sufficiently sunned by late afternoon, we returned to the van and debated overly long about whether to take a dip in the large and covered pool – it had closed by the time we’d decided it might be fun! The sea was certainly still too cold, for us anyway, this far north and cooled by Atlantic breezes (aka moderate to strong winds) for us not to try more than a swift dip of the toes!

The next day started cloudy – an ideal opportunity to get those bikes out and explore the nearby cycle paths. With the port of Santa Maria just around the corner on the côte sauvage, we ventured out with no clear plan, other than to see what the port area had to deliver. Luckily, we had chanced upon market day, and whilst the prices were all too reminiscent of the ‘70s when exchange rates were also not in favour of the UK, it was fun to wander around and marvel at the prices of fruit and veg, as well as admire the local cuisine, with its galletes and crêpes vying for savoury or sweet customers. Leaving just enough time to make a visit to the local sardine factory outlet/museum, and wonder at French planning permission laws as we spotted a Disney-esque château on a nearby promontory, we made our way back to the site via the other port on the west coast, Port Haliguen, arriving at the van in time for afternoon tea.

It was whilst we were enjoying our cuppas that we heard an eerie noise overhead, and strange shadows were cast across our pitch… And as we looked up, more than a little warily, we were treated to the site of a series of parachutists coming in to land at the aerodrome across the road!

It was only later when we wandered over to the aerodrome that we discovered that there was a local parachute club that offered tandem rides – so of course we stayed to watch the next batch of pretty terrified folk go through their landing drills, before they were whisked off to the north in the jump plane, only to return in short order from on high, attached to the front of their instructors!

We really enjoyed our stay on Quiberon and, had the winds abated enough to tempt us back to the beaches, we could have stayed a little longer. As it was, the pull of the south was getting stronger and after completing our visit with a drive back along the wild, western coast, we plotted our course for our first stop in the neighbouring region of Loire-Atlantique; the salt flats town of Batz-sur-mer, coincidentally twinned with Salies-de-Bearn, the home of Chris and Sue who we have visited on a couple of our trips to and from Spain, without spotting the twinned town we were about to visit!

S&J

A taste of Brittany

As we set off from Bayeux in the direction of neighbouring Brittany, apart from a plan to visit the ancient megalithic site of Carnac in the Golfe du Morbihan (where we had read of structures older than the pyramids, and one that was even pyramid-like), we were happy to let the road dictate the pace and any stops before the gulf.

And what a serendipitous find Mrs B spotted as we realised that we were unlikely to make Carnac before midnight – a fabulous little ACSI site at Le Roc-Saint-André just off the N166 road to Vannes. Situated alongside the Nantes-Brest canal and home to a collection of vintage caravans, Camping Domaine du Roc turned out to be a real gem. The caravans range from the 1930s to the 1960s and are available to rent!

With only 28 touring pitches we were pleased to be able to park up alongside the canal, where the cycle path on the ‘chemin de halage’ ran north and south to neighbouring villages and towns, with a ‘voie verte’ also tracing the path of a disused tramway starting just outside the campsite.

Mr B was beside himself with so many opportunities to get the bikes out the next day, and as darkness fell, a calm of rural tranquillity settled over the happy campers…

Until, that is, the clanking of the galvanizing factory across the river, which was (we discovered) working nights because of extra orders, and could be heard because the wind was (unusually) from the north… woke us from our Calvados inspired dreams! Luckily, we got used to it after a while and woke only marginally less rested than we might have expected. In fact, we decided that this little site is definitely a keeper for a return visit sometime. There’s so much to see in the area and it’s beautifully tranquil.

Spoilt for choice with a panoply of cycle routes, we mounted up and headed south to the picturesque village of Malestroit five miles or so away and with the promise of lunch to gird our loins…

The canal is interesting in that it makes use of a river for parts of its route, and so we meandered and straightened until we reached Malestroit where we spotted an enormous (and free) Aire that must have had a good 50+ campervans on it!

Feeling peckish, but not hungry enough for a full-on feast, we chanced upon an Artisan Boulangerie that was, strangely for a village bakery, open at lunch time. And we soon discovered why, as a seemingly never ending stream of vehicles pulled up nearby and disgorged people into the shop, returning laden with what was clearly some high-demand take-away tucker along with their daily bread.

And so it was that we sampled Fougasse for the first time; a doughy delicacy, originating in Provence but made in Brittany with great aplomb, stuffed full of melting cheese and lardons, and it was delicious! We happily munched our way through one in a nearby park and, not wanting to tackle the return ride too quickly, set off to explore the sleepy village.

With a range of half timbered buildings typical of the region, and set alongside the canal and river, there were plenty of picturesque vistas that called out for our best photo-clichés, before it was time to head back to camp.

As we headed back we paused at one of the locks to marvel at the tight fit of some of the pleasure boats; the French approach to lock gates (fully automated and hydraulically operated by the lock keeper); and the well-oiled state of some of the crews!

Arriving back at the van, and noting a light shift in wind direction, we kept our fingers crossed for a quieter night, at least industrially, as Mrs B heard the plaintive cry of a Scop’s owl not far away, and our experience on other trips is that a night-long serenading is not unusual…

Luckily, the night turned out to be both lovely and dark (thanks to the site’s very good use of low-level lighting), and quiet, as the wind had indeed shifted, the owl slept (or found a friend), and so we woke refreshed, and ready to continue our journey to Carnac and those imposing megaliths…

S&J

Go West young man (and woman)!

As is usual with our trips, detailed planning is left until the last moments before departure, and sometimes, as with this trip, until we are actually on the boat. And so it was that we came to the decision to head towards Brittany, somewhere we’d not travelled together yet. And, as we were headed there first, why not take in the Bayeux tapestry en-route?

So with Bayeux as our first planned destination, we headed off from Dieppe towards Rouen for our first overnighter at the (now familiar) Aire at Montville, a usually reliable stop for a late night arrival. Arriving not long before midnight, we were able to choose from three pitches that had been thoughtfully left for latecomers (or maybe because they were all at slightly odd, sloping angles)?

This Aire is popular as it’s not far off the main route south from Dieppe, it’s free, and the adjacent town has the usual range of bakery delights to tempt travellers newly arrived on the mainland! Montville also has the unusual distinction of being one of only about 30 towns in France where the relationship between church and state is vividly captured with some post-hoc embellishments on the outside of the church showing the authority of the Republic!

The drive over to Bayeux the next day was uneventful and the weather delivered on its now customary ‘welcome to northern France’ reproduction of the weather back home – cloudy with a promise of sun just around the corner…

Our second overnight stop was north of Bayeux at Arromanches-les-Bains on the coast, overlooking the remains of the Mulberry harbour from the D-day landings all along this stretch of coast. Perched at the top of the same cliffs that Allied service personnel had fought and died to capture after storming the beaches, the atmosphere was enhanced by the calm and misty sea just beneath us.

With time before settling in for the night to wander along the beaches that we had seen in so many grainy black and white Pathe newsreels of the Normandy landings, it was quite something to realise we were walking across the killing zone that had seen so many casualties. 75 years on, the beach is still peppered with bits of harbour that have washed ashore, adding to the atmosphere.

And to add to the sense of occasion, just as we were turning in for the night, the air suddenly started throbbing with the sound of heavy vehicles approaching, and a convoy of WW2 American vehicles rumbled past us in the dead of night…

Morning brought a change in the weather with bright sun and clear skies, and by the time we had surfaced, all of our immediate neighbours had left on their travels, leaving us in splendid isolation to enjoy the views.

Before we left Arromanches, it seemed appropriate to take in one of the memorials to the events of 6^th June 1944, and so it was we ended up in the nearby 360 degree cinema with its 19 minute film about the first 100 days of the liberation. The film, skilfully put together from original footage, is free from jingoism and very strong on the impact on the local civilian population; a moving tribute to the endeavours of so many people from more nations than you may be aware of, and a must if you are in the area.

As we headed south to Bayeux we just assumed we’d be able to park up near the museum that houses the tapestry…

We should of course have figured that the reason Bayeux has two Aires, is that camping cars are banned from all the other car parks, and many of the roads in the old town, as we found to our embarrassment as we tried to navigate our way back to the ring road to start again!

As it turned out, one Aire (free in the day) was a short walk to the museum and so we parked up and had our second historical adventure of the trip. Mrs B had seen the big carpet before, when it was housed in the amazing Cathedral, but the recent conversion of the nearby seminary to house the tapestry and its super modern multi lingual and automatic audio guide made it an amazing and informative experience.

Unfortunately no photos can be taken, and given the understandable high level of security in public places in France, we decided to include our own short version…

After wandering briefly around the picturesque town, we headed back to the van to go and seek provisions for our next leg of the journey; into Brittany and the ancient pyramids of Carnac…

S&J

Summer 2019 - an adventure in France - at last!

After 26 years of traveling together in one of our campervans, and almost always starting and ending our trips in France, we've decided to do something we talk about every year - dedicate a trip to exploring as much as France as we can! And, hard to believe, but we've seen 9 editions of the French Rough Guide come and go whilst we've been prevaricating!

It's a massive country and there are bound to be some bits we miss, so if you do have any favourites, please let us know via the blog or email.

As usual, we will be posting updates as often as we can, depending on access to the internet and some downtime to get the pics sorted and the commentary written!

Please do add comments if the fancy takes you - or email us if you'd rather. And, if you are also traveling and would like us to link to your blog or whatever, let us know!

À bientôt!

Steve and Julie 😃

Data summary - to be added

The final leg of this trip – From the Loire to the coast at Dieppe- and the ferry home!

Waking to another hot and sunny day at our bargain campsite on the Loire, we had a leisurely breakfast, safe in the knowledge that Google Maps had given the journey time at about four hours – so we reckoned about five for us, as our driving style might be described as ‘leisurely’ at best!

As it turned out, it was nearer six with some roadworks, but still with plenty of time to take an afternoon tea stop at Montville, our very first overnight stop when we started almost ten weeks ago. We’d done some of the ‘home’ shopping in the Loire to benefit from some of the local wines there, and someone had sneaked in a very lush fruit tart – just right for tea in the park!

The Aire was undergoing an upgrade with a new layer of gravel being added by a team who were very patiently working around vans as they came and went! This reduced the amount of spaces, but we were OK – so we could have stayed, with about an hour’s drive left to get to Dieppe. Unfortunately, Mr B missed Mrs B’s cues that this might be better than a noisy night at Dieppe, as he was (uncharacteristically!) maybe a bit focussed on the ‘last supper’ of the usually excellent Normandy cuisine around Dieppe harbour…

So after the customary shop at the nearby Auchan (but without diesel this time as it was still more expensive than the UK) we pulled up to the harbour-side Aire on the seafront with still a few places left. This Aire is not cheap (€12) but it is literally within sight of the Ferry – and walking distance of a number of pretty good restaurants. We’d noticed a motley assortment of vans and old campers in the gravelled area next to the Aire, but didn’t think much of it as we scampered into the port to have that last supper…

Walking from the Aire, pretty much the first proper French restaurant you come to is ‘Le Juquin’, one we’d been to before and with a very good value fixed price menu we were straight in! Proper moules et frites at last!

With time to catch the last bit of daylight as we walked the short distance back to the Aire, we could hear quite a commotion from the occupants of the vans we’d seen earlier, and as we rounded the corner we could see that the Aire had become a playground for a raggle taggle bunch of kids tearing around on scooters and bikes, weaving in and out of the campers and making a lot of noise. Imagining our night was going to be banjaxed until the Ferry woke us at 0400 anyway, we were pretty surprised to a) see the local Police turn up and b) start enforcing the law so that within 45 minutes, all the vans and occupants had been moved on – there were a few raised voices from the group, but all in all, a relatively measured departure and impressive calm professionalism from the French police.

And so indeed we did get some shut-eye until the 0400 ferry arrived and disgorged its cargo of trucks, vans and cars… And Mr B had forgotten that once it’s in port, its engines keep running… Oops – Montville or similar it will be next time!

Dawn broke with our hopes high of a sunny day to buck the trend of most of our ‘final day’ photos over the last few years, however…

Luckily, as we queued at the ferry, the sun came out and stayed with us all the way back to England! And we were very lucky to benefit from a fascinating talk by the on-board wildlife expert working for the ORCA charity, who have extended their partnership with DFDS to include the channel crossing! We’d never heard of them, but they have been offering interactive talks and wildlife spotting on boats all over the world, including 12 years with DFDS. We learnt loads of things, so if you are interested in what and where ORCA do their stuff, look here.

As we neared the English coast and Newhaven hove into view (still in sunshine!) we reflected on our trip and both were of the same view that we’d certainly go back to both the islands of Corsica and Sardinia – as well as plan some extended and structured time in France itself!

And on our way back to the van as we disembarked, we saw this very quirky and unusual trailer made from an old Land Rover – pretty cool we thought!

So – thanks for reading and we hope you’ve enjoyed the blog – we’ll certainly be dipping in when we try and remember in a few weeks where we’ve been!

The next and final entry will be a brief data summary of costs, distances etc (which hopefully we’ll actually get round to doing this time!)

S&J

Cuisery, Apremont, Chateauneuf-sur-Loire – (and more of M. Perdu and his barge, Lulu)

As we descended from the Haute-Loire and headed in a north-easterly direction towards Cuisery, we realised that we’d be able to continue our homage to see another of M. Perdu’s moorings by taking a ‘small detour’ when we left the town – more of which later!

As we left the hills behind us, and the temperatures settled back into their now normal low 30s, we benefitted from a stretch of free autoroute (A77) that meant we arrived at Cuisery with enough time to pitch up and then explore the town. Having both enjoyed a wander around Hay-on-Wye and its bookshops many years ago in England, we were aware that we’d need sufficient time to wander and do it justice…

The site was an interesting one (another Campercontact find), sited right alongside the river Seille, with a short run of public moorings where M. Perdu would have tied up. No sign of any Dutch barges or Lulu lookalikes though, just a selection of leisure boats enjoying the evening sun as we nabbed a pitch right by the tow-path.

The site, whilst small, had a little pool to cool off in (of course we did) and a small bistro that specialised in frogs’ legs (we didn’t!)  It also hosted a charming older Frenchman, who dropped by to offer his compliments to Mrs B, whilst Mr B was in the van getting ready, putting a smile on her face and a spring in her step as we headed into the village!

The town (a short walk up the hill) turned out to be a little bit smaller than we had expected – and the ‘book town’ epithet turned out to be more of a 1990s local authority attempt at marketing to try and keep the high street alive! Had we arrived on one of the days that the book shops were actually open, we’d probably have enjoyed it a bit more – but it made a pleasant enough wander as the skies filled in.

We had thought we might find somewhere to have dinner, but along with the closed bookshops, the town had clearly closed early to watch France play Belgium in the World Cup. So, what better place to have dinner and listen to the excitement of France win, than back on our pitch! Compared to other times we have been on French campsites during a major football tournament, the evening passed relatively quietly and before long we were tucked up, with a starry sky replacing the earlier cloud.

As we left the next morning, we spotted an info board that explained that the campsite and moorings had benefitted from recent updating, funded by the local authority and the EU, with public access to the water and riverside – which explained the pool, bistro and pretty swish ablution block!

With the temperatures set to rise (again!) we made an early start for our ‘small detour’ to another place of significance for M. Perdu; the little village of Apremont-sur-Allier, where Lulu had been tied up for the night on a bend in the river.

Well, this all seemed straightforward as followed the route on our (so far) reliable 2013 AA road atlas of France. We were heading north past Nevers so it looked to be a short hop across from the N7.

Except, as we got to the bit where the road crosses the regional boundary line (purple on the map) the road just stopped in a dead end L. Maybe a result of some inter-regional disagreement, or just poor mapping by the AA – either way in meant we had to back track and head north and then south to get to our destination!

By the time we arrived, the clouds had as well – and to add insult to injury, no vehicles were allowed into the village unless you were a resident! So, taking advantage of the nicely manicured grass just outside the boundary line of the village, we parked up and had a picnic before joining the many tourists who were also here to admire the village (more for its choclolate-box-tweeness than the antics of M. Perdu we guessed!).

As if prompted by the historic outdoor laundry opposite, Mr B went into cleaning mode, taking advantage of the cloud cover to get our telescopic ladder out to get up on the roof and clean the solar panels. He’d noticed they’d acquired a lovely brown patina over the course of the trip, and that solar output was lower than normal in bright sun, and sure enough, after two washes and rinses, output was back to normal – a useful reminder of the importance of solar panel maintenance when you need to rely on them!

The village was more interesting for us for the location of the fictional berthing, even if currently home to a slightly smaller boat than Lulu…

…than the assortment of mediaeval buildings, now owned by a dwindling population of under 100. It must be an odd place to live – beautiful homes and surroundings – but with lots of tourists wandering around for much of the year. Still, we enjoyed it and it was easy to see why it was one of the ‘most beautiful villages in France.’

After our less than successful route planning to get us to the village, we were pleased that we would benefit from rejoining the free bit of the A77 until we headed off towards Orleans and the banks of the Loire.

We could see on the Campercontact app that there were not only loads of campsites en-route, but that many of them were on, or close to, the river itself. And so, with the clever knack that Mrs B has developed of choosing the ‘right site for the night’ we drove into the municipal camping ground of Châteauneuf-sur-Loire, with a free choice of pitch enabling us to park up along the river bank and enjoy the evening sun that had greeted us as we started to track the Loire westwards.

The site is lovely, with modern amenities and a very relaxed vibe and when we’re back in this area (as we’re sure we will be) it would make a good base to explore, or just unwind for a while. Especially as the first night has an ‘introductory’ price of jut €9 for a camper and two people!

Proximity to the river meant we enjoyed a coolish night after we’d had dinner (and England went out of the World Cup to Croatia without a peep from our fellow campers!) and we set to the task of planning the final leg of this trip up to Dieppe the next day – an easy drive with plenty of time to do the obligatory goodies-shop of food and wine. And it even looked as if we might buck the trend of recent years and arrive into Dieppe in sunshine!

S&J