Although the reason for heading south was to enjoy some warmer temperatures, Joe had a hankering to cross back into France via the Pyrenees rather than the coast. We needed to be prepared for snow and were also mindful of the new ‘Loi Montagne’ that came into force in France last year requiring vehicles to have winter tyres or chains fitted in many departments between November and March. The roll-out of the new law apparently hasn’t gone entirely smoothly as there was a last minute rush by the French to get the appropriate tyres resulting in a shortage. So for this winter the requirement is ‘advisable’ but won’t be enforced. We had all-terrain tyres fitted on the van before we left and they have the required symbols that mean they conform to winter tyre requirements so we were good to go. We spent a couple of nights in the village of Queixans near the Spanish border before crossing back into France. Queixans is apparently popular with people from Barcelona who have second homes there for winter and summer. It was strange to see people in winter gear with skis on their car roof when we have not long ago been on the coast. We crossed the border at Puigcerda with snow on the ground on either side of us an snow falling although any mountain views were hiding themselves behind clouds. The tyres saw us safely over the mountains, down into the gorges of the River Aude and back to Bram to collect the trailer and motorbike.
We really enjoyed our quick dip into Spain and definitely appreciated the inland mountain scenery more than the coastal areas but enjoyed the areas where the coastline was more rugged and less built up. We prefer the French type campsites which give you a bit more individual space rather than the Spanish sites that seem a bit more like parking lots so it was the right decision not to take the trailer and motorbike with us on this trip. It’s definitely whetted our appetites to explore other areas of Spain – perhaps the northern coastline before we head back to the UK later in the year. However before we do that we definitely need to buy a more up to date map of Spain. We grabbed a map from the loft before leaving and only spotted once we were underway that it was over 30 years old and a lot of new roads have been built in that time. At least towns and cities stay in the same place and sat nav does the rest!
The last few weeks have also given us a really good opportunity to get acquainted with our new van and to reflect on some first impressions
– Our last three years experience in a smaller van have prepared us well for this latest trip so we’ve only had to get to grips with the new systems of the van rather than the whole camping lark.
⁃ We both love driving the new van and it has the nimbleness we hoped for. We love the additional space and being ready to go when we arrive at an overnight stop. The van seems to have the capability to give us at least 3-4 nights off-grid, and probably more where aires have basic disposal facilities.
⁃ We need to get better at our pre-departure checks – there always seems to be a drawer, door, locker or similar not fully secured which we only discover as we go round the first corner. And on arrival, just like they say on an airplane, be careful when opening the overhead lockers as items may have moved in transit and fall out when opening!
⁃ We need to master the new sat nav system. As they told us when we did our day with the donkey in the Lot, you need to show it who is boss before you get to the first corner…
Our general plan now is to head to the south coast of France and work our way east, dipping inland as the mood takes us.
Look forward to your trip around the south coast – for some years we had an apartment in Eze Village, Alpes Maritime, on the Moyenne Corniche. I sometimese wonder if we had been better to have moved there permanently, instead of Portugal – certainly I would have coped better with the language! But Ray thought it wouldn’t be warm enough during the winter. I believe we made the right decision – 20 years ago next month!!
Wow 20 years! – where did that time go? I remember you mentioned about Eze and I have it on our list. It might take us a little while yet to get there but hopefully will be lovely weather by then. Love to you both xx
Give my regards to Antibes. I think you’ll enjoy the market and the old town. If you feel like an art injection, Renoir’s house at Cagnes sur Mer (between Antibes and Nice) is worth a visit but bear in mind they take their 12 – 2 very seriously and start preparing for it about 30 mins ahead of time!!
Will do and it’s on the list for when we get further east. I remember many years ago going to a small Rodin museum out of the way near Juan Les Pins – closed for lunch and the lady curator followed us around every room and turned the lights off behind us!