On another wet, windy, miserable Saturday morning our tenants arrived and we handed our keys over then it was off to Dover via Julie's mum & dads to do a few last minute jobs and emails and say an emotional farewell, including to Millie the cat!
It was nice to get parked up in Dover but the wind & rain was still relentless so we were both worried what the crossing was going to bring Sunday morning as we hadn't been on one for years but when we arrived it was clear blue skies and fairly calm.
Our first port of call on our epic journey was to be the famous Mont St Michel which apparently is to the French what the pyramids are the the Egyptians. We choose to follow the national roads and avoid the toll roads as for once in our lives we were no longer in a rush, would save money and it would be more scenic. In one of our many books onboard there were 2 aires here (overnight parking area for motorhomes with water and some with electric etc etc) so we were confident we had somewhere to stay for our first night, how wrong could we be! It was a little further than we wanted to do on our first day and upon arrival just as it was getting dark and with the Mont lit spectacularly every road leading to the aires were barried and we ended in a huge park & ride bus area which we knew couldn't be right!! After a couple of laps we saw another sign for an aire 1km up the road for €9.90 a night so that's where we headed. We pulled up at the barrier which asked for a code? We scratched our heads but then spotted a little machine under a little purpose built shelter - you just put your card in and hey presto you get an entry code so we drove in, connected our electric and settled for the night. The moment we went to bed to get a decent nights sleep the wind whipped up and must have been 50mph for most of the night so we didn't get much sleep!! In the morning over our breakfast we decided that the 2 aires that we had been looking for had been flattened to make way for the park & ride bus station and we were in the brand new aire they had built to replace them!
As we awoke the wind had dropped slightly and from the aire there was a 3km cycle/footpath direct to the Mont alongside a canal. We opted to walk as it was a lovely sunny but windy day. As you turn the corner onto the path there is the Mont directly in front of you an amazing sight. On entering the Mont via a small stone entrance arch over a drawbridge you are immediately confronted by a narrow cobbled street lined with restaurants, a few shops and hotels which then ascends up to the ramparts and the abbey perched high on top. We opted for a beer each rather than paying €9 each to enter the abbey - as we needed to replace lost fluids....
When we left we again walked but this time head on into the wind so we were glad to get back to the van and decide where we were moving onto.
Mont St Michel is must see place but it must get absolutely rammed during the summer months.
We are now heading to a place called Quiberon, then La Palmyre in the Cote Sauvage before arriving at mum's by Friday.
J&J XX
I'm looking forward to following your travels - what a fab thing to do xxxx
ReplyDeletewe been to.quiberon and la palmyere...great surfing.down.that coastline.:)
ReplyDeleteCan't decide if Mont St Michel looks like disneyland or Alcatraz. Good job you are midgets (Kentish ones of course) otherwise you would never have accessed your first overnight aire. Say Hi and big hug to Mum.....xxxxx
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