Our first major tour in Dave, exploring France, Spain, and Portugal
Our inaugural autumn tour in our motorhome Dave! This was our first major adventure, taking us through the beautiful regions of France, into the Basque Country of Spain, and down through Portugal.
September to November 2018 (approximately 3 months)
This tour marked the beginning of our motorhome adventures and set the pattern for our future travels. We learned so much about life on the road and discovered countless beautiful places that we would return to in future years.
Although the weather was deteriorating during the evening Condor Ferries sailed on time from St Malo to take us home to Guernsey. Apart from a few moments around Corbiere in Jersey the voyage was pretty good considering. Drove Dave home in the dark for the first time, but now safely parked up in t
Long lie in this morning as the rain was coming down. Our thoughts were there at 1100 as most of Europe were. Had a walk around the quarry just behind the Aire. Decided to have a Sunday drive to Dol this afternoon as the sun was out for a while.
Decided on Fougères for today to do some sightseeing. Had a walk around the town before the castle opened for the afternoon. Well worth the €8.50 entrance with lots of video and audio to educate us about the history.
A lovely drive along the Loire to Leclerc at Saumur for food and presents. We were going to a small Aire described as having the best river view in France, only to be thwarted by roadworks just a 100m from our destination across a bridge. Ended up at Daon, further up said river.
No rain today, hurrah. Tintin drove 2 1/2 hours to Chouzé-sur-Loire, quiet little village close to the banks of the Loire. Chilly bike ride on lanes and muddy tracks for some exercise. Lots of animals to see along the way.
Well, it rained all night and it rained nearly all the day! Kay drove up the dual carriageway for about one and a half hours to Chaunay. Highlight of the day, free electric. So Dave’s batteries are getting a good charge, the inside is a lovely 20° with electric heating and the fridge is on electri
It rained all night and it rained all day. Afternoon entertainment at Roullet-Saint-Estephe was provided by a 2 hour visit to the motorhome dealer opposite.
Kay drove up the A10 motorway, free for most of it, to a small Aire just off the motorway. Bike ride around the area down to the Dordogne river. Most exciting event was a French Moho arriving with a black cat in the windscreen.
From 1° in the hills of Spain to 20° in Dax, France, quite a difference. 4 hours of driving and 1 hour of walking around Dax, that’s our day.
Kay drove for about 3 hours from the plains up into the hills of the Basque region to Oñati. Sat and read our books in the sunshine watching the paragliders landing close by. Had a walk around the closed town and played a game of smile at the locals, nobody responded!
Tried to get up a bit earlier to get on the in search of the 50amp fuse. By luck we found the said fuse at a closed motorhome dealer, he opened the door just for me! Had a good wander around Burgos with its huge cathedral and castle.
All Saints Day, aka everything closed. Luckily the fuel station was open otherwise we would have been staying put. Kay drove down the busy dual carriageway for nearly 2 hours to Dueñas, a small town compared with the big cities we’ve visited the last couple of days. Researching where we might find
40 minute walk on a cold morning to see the sights of Salamanca. So many buildings and plazas to see.
A day of rain, light and heavy. We stopped in a place just off the motorway for lunch before continuing on to Salamanca. Spent the rest of the day trying to use Kay’s data on her phone before it runs out on the 31st.
Kay drove along the scenic A road to Cáceres, very straight in sections. 3 hour walk around the historic old town and some of the modern city.
Had a fast scenic drive along the A road to Badajoz in Spain, bye bye Portugal. Tarmaced clean Aire right by the river and the foot bridge across the river. Walked around the historic town in sunshine, definitely autumnal weather now. Lots of history with information boards in English, well done B
Day didn’t start well, we made a mistake going onto the toll road and failed to get a ticket. Went off at the next exit and was fined nearly 86€. Finally made it to Évora late afternoon. All the sites cost money so we didn’t see much. Back in time for rum!
Visited the National Palace of Mafra. Nearly 3 hours of culture without the normal tourist crowds. Pays to be here out of season.
Spent a fantastic 4 hours at Buddha Eden, unbelievable amount of works of art. Drove onto Mafra.
Cycled around the Peniche peninsular in the morning, stunning coastline. Spent the rest of the day laying on the beach watching the surfers.
Busy day, Alcobaça for GPL and InterMarche for washing and some provisions. On to Óbidos, a hilltop walled town, lovely. Ended up at Peniche next to the surfing beach for the night.
Drove down the motorway at great expense to Nazaré to see if there were any surfers to watch. Calm day so a walk along the very long beach and back in time for tea.
Decided not to let Colin Co-Pilot navigate today and took the small roads down coast, one word, bumpy. At Lavos Praia where the motorhomes look like they are taking root. The recent storm certainly has left its mark on the landscape.
Had a scenic drive through the hills down to Aveiro. Parked under the motorway and had a lunchtime wander through Aveiro’s canal network. Sunny day so we drove to the beach at Praia da Costa Nova.
Only drove about 40 minutes to the spa town of Sao Pedro Do Sul. Had a good wander around the spa centre with lots of old people waiting for something. Cycled into Pedro town in the afternoon until it looked like rain.
30 mile ride on an old railway track starting just behind where we’re parked. Got back about about 2pm and Kay decided she was going to brave the hairdresser!
Decided to take the Electronic Toll Road today, £3 added to my credit card in an instant. Big shop at Lidl but we’re now full. Had a wander around Viseu before the rain started again.
Drove to S Salvador do Mundo for a fantastic view over the Douro River but not the weather for great photos. Then all the way down the hill to Celorico Da Beira, a hilltop town with a castle.
Delayed our departure due to the rain. Once we got going, very scenic drive along the Douro river then up into the clouds towards S J Da Pesqueira. There were some beautiful views to see but not today. Waited for the drizzle to ease off and had a 2 hour walk to town and back.
Survived tropical storm Leslie last night although not much sleep was had. We stayed another day to go on the vineyard tour at Quinta Da Pacheca.
Drove for about 2 hours up and down the hills alongside the Douro river. Best drive of the trip. Parked up alongside the river and went for a ride. Kay’s nose sniffed out a vineyard and we’re booked on a tour for tomorrow. No tours today as a wedding was taking place while we were there.
Drove an InterMarche to wash the bedding and then on to Castelo De Paiva following the Douro river some of the time.
Metro into Porto after the heavy rain overnight. 6 hours of walking around Porto seeing the fantastic architecture.
Tried to fix the sliding cupboard catch, after an hour, failed. Filled up with LPG, diesel and food and drove to the outskirts of Porto.
Had a very scenic drive through the National Park with spectacular views down to the reservoir and the deep gorges. We ended up parking close to the beach after checking it out on our bikes.
Drove across the border into Portugal and up into the Penada-Geres National Park. Parked up at Montalegre with its imposing castle.
We left cat city and drove to Xinzo, the Aire is a piece of land that was going to have flats but never got built. We’re the only Moho here so we did 2 loads of washing and cleaned the van. Quiet day doing chores.
Cloudy and cold this morning. Had a walk into the town and bought a few things. Drove to Amoeiro in the rain and parked up on the side of the road next to a garden full of cats and kittens.
Started getting the bikes out of the garage about 9 this morning and came in for my fleece immediately, it was 7°C! Rode up to the steep hill to the walled city and found the place almost deserted at 10 o’clock. It’s an 8 day festival at the moment called San Froilan. Kay drove to Chantada after
Watched a lovely sunrise from our bedroom window this morning. Drove to Lugo along the scenic route through the hills, very good road surface for Dave as well. With our 3rd attempt we found the Aire only to see a funfair being erected, aagghhh! We programmed co pilot to take us to the next locati
Got the bikes out and rode to Gijon old town, had a look around and decided that was enough. Kay drove to the cliff top location at Ortiguero. Very windy from the East and we’re getting buffeted. The wind is meant to die down tonight hopefully. Had a walk down to the old fishing port, no boats,
Decided we had enough of the Basque country and we would start making our way to Portugal. Gijon was about 3 hours drive down the motorway. Stopped off at San Vicente de la Barquea for fuel and decided it was such a nice place we stayed for lunch and managed to buy a Spanish sim card to get some d
Went in search of gas and found it plus a Lidl, bonus. Went Sopela Aire after Co Pilot, once again tried to take us down ridiculous roads. Got there in the end. Nothing much doing here and the weather is decidedly rainy.
As we were next to the service station we upped left early and headed for Bermeo. Windy road again but a bit more room today. Had a walk about town during the afternoon. Saturday and Sunday are definitely social days here in north Spain.
Once the Spanish had decided to stop chatting alongside our van we finally got to sleep. Drove along the coast road to Lekeitio, windy and narrow at times but interesting. Lunch out today and swim after to try and sober up.
Drove the 20 minutes along the coast to Zumaia. Rode our bikes through the town and onto the Itzurun beach with it’s fantastic cliffs. The rock formations are called the Flysch here and show about 50 million years of the earths geological history.
We left our very windy forest in search of the big smoke, San Sebastián. Arrived at the Aire and it’s closed, so where to now. Zarautz was plucked from the Aires book and off we went. Had a good day playing in the surf, walking and riding taking in the sights. Quick supermarket shop and we final
Decided it was time to hit Spain. There was a free Aire just inside Spain in the hills and we thought we would start there. Didn’t bank on Co Pilot taking us up steep, single track concrete roads to a dead end. Found the right way in the end!
Had the best drive to Biarritz through the hills with wonderful countryside. Ride to Biarritz and walked round all afternoon. Sunny but with a good chill in the air today.
Picked this place as it was a bit closer to Biarritz which is our next go to destination. The town must be on the Camino de Santiago walk as we’ve seen a few walkers. There are various French routes to join the the Spanish walk and this is part of the GR65. The picture is tree bark!
A bike ride through very small villages, all with large churches and that’s it, no shops.
Had a wonder around the market at Nerac and then drove to Labastide d’Armagnac. Bit of washing and a good read with feet up.
Left Andy and Maggie about 1430 and drove the 20 minutes to Nerac. Had a wonder around the new and old town.
Drove to Andy and Maggie Way’s barge at Buzet sur Baise. Had a pleasant afternoon chatting and then a good meal at the Le Vigneron restaurant.
Rode 41 miles today in total, mainly to the abbey at La Sauve-Majeure along a cycle route. The grape harvest is in full swing at the moment. There’s tractors towing trailers full of grapes everywhere with grape juice flowing onto the road, makes for tricky cycling.
Decided to leave Dizant due to too many mosquitos and drove to Sauveterre de Guyenne. Tried to get fuel but Euro card decline at 2 machines. 30°C again today so just a walk around the town.
Blue sky and hot. Took about 1 1/2 hours to drive here and very nice it is, a big field with only a few mohos. Chatted to 2 English couples and played with their dogs. More washing but such a good day for it.
Started our ‘Couch to 5k’ this morning. Shock, we are running! Drove to Muron, village ESE of La Rochelle. Washing done and dried, exciting stuff. On our own tonight apart from the church bells.
No police knocking on our door last night, bonus! Rode our bikes around the place for 24 miles. Had lunch out and a quick swim.
Drove to Sable d’Olonne via Challan in the morning. No space in the Aire we had selected so we parked on the side of the road and went to the beach. Still no space when we got back so parked up in the Vendee Globe carpark for the night, illegal but it’s big and it’s empty. A couple of other moho’
Quick shop at Lidl and over the St Nazaire bridge to Bouin. We’re actually at the little port where all the oyster boats work from. The sea disappears at low tide and about 2 hours before high water the boats all come back and the spectator sport starts.
Stayed at the Aire at St Marc sur Mer. Had a walk along the coastal path to Pornichet and back. Beach in the afternoon and that’s about it.
Drove St Marc Aire about 30 minutes bike ride from St Nazaire. Visited Escal’Atlantic, Sous-Marin Espadon and Ecomusee in St Nazaire. Translated as a history of French ocean liners in the submarine pens, tour of the French post war submarine, Espadon and finally a museum of the port.
On the way to Herbignac went food shopping at Intermarche and topped up with GPL (gas). The Aire at Herbignac was very sloping so we parked up at the end of a track all on our own. Walked round the lake and into town which was mostly closed Mondays.
Two days in Elven as the Aire turned out to be an Aire with a camping section in summer, all free. So we took the opportunity to relax, do some washing and read. Sunday we visited the Chateau de Langeot for a few hours.
Left Carnac to try for a spot in the Aire at Locmariaquer but there was no space at the inn. Parked up a bit further on and had some lunch. Decided to go inland for the weekend and ended up at St Nolff not far from Vannes. Could Kay be an entrant for wildlife photographer of the year?
Decided we needed some beach time and drove to Carnac where we had a holiday with the kids years ago. Rode our bikes and found the best beach for a lovely swim. Quick visit to the 3000 standing stones from 5000BC and rounded off the day watching the locals dancing in the square.
Stayed in Josselin. Had a long ride to Malestroit and back along the canal tow path, nice and flat. Assisted in one lock with a lovely lady and her cat.
Drive from Dol de Bretagne to Josselin. Stroll around Josselin with a heart busting climb up the cathedral tower, 150 steps. Tintin wanted to hire a little electric boat!
Condor to France and drive to Dol de Bretagne