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So finally home with no mishaps. We rode our bikes from the storage facility home in a hailstorm and today's weather reminds us of good reasons for fleeing in the winter. Overall a great trip - over 4000 miles at 35mpg. Only one bit of self inflicted damage to the van - a broken plastic window covering due to a moving tree.
We would certainly do this again in winter if only for the weather, comparatively long hours of daylight and lowish cost of living in Spain. Also the brilliant cycle path network. But we would miss England, not just friends and family, but the range of food and drink available over here, the atmosphere of cold nights in warm pubs and simply more to do. If we stayed for a long time in one site we would probably need to hire a car to get out and about: there's a limit to the number of bottles of wine you can carry on a bike! We certainly wouldn't want to live there permanently. So lots to consider.
Many thanks to all who have followed our progress and to Peter and Mary next door for keeping an eye on things, especially the volume of mail.
Because we have had over 550 visits to the blog I will surely do one next time. We hope this will be a trip in late April possibly going to Holland, Denmark and maybe Sweden. We'll let you know.
Adieu, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all (that's the Xmas cards sorted),
love
J&P

A FEW MORE PICTURES

 Rubbish in the river at Guardamal. It is not just the British who drop litter.

 A cormorant drying its wings.

 At Virgen del Mar.

 Ditto.

You'll have to take my word that the mountains in the far background are snow covered.

FINAL JOURNEY

Hi,
So we have taken the easier option and gone for a ferry from Santander to Portsmouth. We spent a few more days last week in Guardamal, had some nice food not involving eels and then made our way north of Madrid where we stayed for a night and saw a few snowflakes. We then continued north through Burgos and some spectacular mountain scenery (we took the wrong road!) more quite heavy snow and finally arrived in Santander. The campsites there were either closed or missing so we drove afew miles west and stayed at avery pretty site - Virgen del Mar. We were the only ones. There were some bracing walks and it was within easy reach of the ferry.
Because the drive through France in Winter would not have been great and the costs of sites and moorway tolls as well as the ferry crossing to Dover would have been quite pricey the overnight crossing to Portsmouth seemed like a good idea. And it was.
We are now in a pub car park just north of Wickham with the promise of a pint of Gales to come.
I will do a final post with a few photos at the weekend when we will be back in Manchester.
Thanks to you all for perservering so far and 1 more post to go.
Cheers
J&P

HOMEWARD BOUND

Hi Everybody,

A full post will appear next week but just to let you all know that after our sojourn in Guardamal we headed up to Madrid and are now near Santander from where we will catch a ferry overnight to Portsmouth and then home at the end of next week.

See you all soon I hope,
J&P

GUARDIMAR

 WILDLIFE AT GUARDIMAL

DITTO

Hola for the (probably) penultimate time.
We stayed a few more days in Roquetas before the lure of the road took over. All the sites we are visiting now have more the feel of a retirement home than a holiday destination and many people are resident for the winter if not all year. At the Roquetas site however we had a Luxembourgeoise accordion player on the next pitch which brought the average age down by quite some way. She was convalescing but regularly toured Spain playing in Irish bands.
She also came in handy with my punctured bike tyre. Having filled the wheel with foam we tried to use our pump to get it to the right pressure only succeeding in taking all the air out. However, our neighbour ever resourceful, adapted her accordion and with a couple of verses of "Danny Boy" the tyre was inflated!
So onwards to Guardimar, about 30km south of Alicante. When we bought our motorhome we were surprisingly advised against the bigger engine as we weren't in a hurry. True as this is, it is incredibly slow going up hills. By the time the second milk float roared passed we thought we should have opted for the 3 litre engine. Anyway, we finally arrived and the new site is one of the best we have stayed at. It has a bar, restaurant, supermarket, indoor swimming pool, jacuzzi and gym. All are open and it only costs 15 Euros a night. The food in the restaurant is top notch. Baby eel salad followed by Arroz Negro, which is like a paella but the rice is cooked in squid ink. It is very tasty.
We are now able to use our bikes again and have been on several longish rides along the river into the town. The weather has generally been excellent but we had our first complete washout of a day with almost continuous heavy rain for 24 hours.
More news next week and Happy Birthdays to Jane and Troy (18!).
Adios
J&P

FINAL PICTURE OF GUARDIMAR WILDLIFE

p.s. just in case men in white coats do come for me, as Pauline has suggested, when we arrive back, I should point out that the accordionist story was true up to the Danny Boy bit. It was of course, When Irish Eyes Are Smiling.

WE'RE STILL HERE!

 OUR CYCLE PATH ALONG THE COAST TOWARDS ALMERIA

 A SUPERB CLOSE UP OF ONE OF THE BIRDS IN THE NATIONAL IS NOT INLUDED ON THIS POST.

REMEMBER YOU'RE A WOMBLE!

We are still in Roquetas de Mar as the site is so well situated. Time is moving quite swiftly now but there has been little drama except a flat (and currently unmendable) bike tyre. We have had many walks and cycles until the puncture but we will be ready to move on early this week.
The last picture shows (or attempts to show) the two mountain ranges protecting us from the elements - the Sierra de Gador and behind, the Sierra Nevada. Unfortunately it only looks like one range which reminded me of a holiday some years ago in Corsica. As we sat on our balcony with the sun setting (and before anybody says a word, before an aperitif) I looked at the mountain and the shadow of the sun and it clearly identified the features of Uncle Bulgaria from the Wombles. Pauline agreed with me (or was trying to humour me) so I took a full 36 reel of film with the hope of making a few bob selling the picture to a publication which printed clouds looking like Jesus or suggestive vegetables.
Of course, once printed the photos just resembled a dark one-dimensional mass which scarcely looked like a mountain let alone a Womble so I should have learnt my lesson.
Time perhaps now for a game of tennis.
We have had over 400 views of this blog so thanks to everybody for persevering.
Birthday greetings today to Roger if you're reading this.
love
J&P

MOVING EAST

 A VIEW OF TORROX COSTA FROM TORROX TOWN

SO YOU THOUGHT OURS WAS BIG!! THIS IS A GERMAN MOTORHOME. THE OPEN BOOT HOLDS A SMART CAR.

Buenos Dias,
In the end we decided to stay another 3 nights in Torrox. After all it had the "best climate in Europe", the campsite was full of Mango and Avocado trees, the walk down to the coast was first along an avenue lined with Seville Orange trees holding enough ripe fruit to keep you in marmalade for years; the avenue led onto an ancient track alongside a clear stream running down from the mountain, alongside the river were a series of allotments and the sight of a shepherd grazing his 6 sheep and a goat.The town had a good market and decent restaurants and the walk back ended at a bar which, if it had served Holts Bitter, would have been the perfect climax. Sadly, San Miguel is practically undrinkable but the red label Mahou at least has a bit of taste.
So on Friday we headed east about 150 miles along the main road towards our latest destination of Roquetas de Mar. We passed snow capped peaks of the Sierra Nevada but the weather here is certainly not snowy. This site is close to the beach and an easy 4km cycle into town. Yesterday the thermometer hit 80 fahrenheit and today is even a little warmer. The town is more of a working town than resort and all the beachside restaurants are typically Spanish and the one we tried was excellent. Three courses, a couple of glasses of wine and two espressos for 24 Euros. The place was jammed and they were queueing outside as we left at 3pm. The Spanish don't even consider starting lunch till 2:30 so we always try and sit down by 2:00 to beat the local rush.
This morning we decided on a game of tennis before it got too warm. Too warm came at midday so a cool shower and a cooler beer followed. We will probably spend the week here as the weather looks set fair. I know winter will arrive soon enough but for so long as we can postpone it the better. We know how lucky we are!
Adios
J & P

DAY BEFORE/MORNING AFTER

DOWN TO THE COSTAS

This week has seen us drive through the mountains to Torrox Costa stopping on the way in the small town of Humilladero.
We have experienced a lot of weather this week as photos (next post) will show. The clocks went back and it is now dark at 6:30! The rain and storms have mostly been overnight but temperatures have dropped during the day as well.
Humilladero is typical small Andalucian town. Not much to see or do but an unhurried and friendly atmosphere. One of the photos below is of what I think must be hand painted pigeons - but nobody could enlighten me and maybe this is more common than I think.
Torrox Costa has "the best climate in Europe" according to the Tourist Office. Now with the warm sun (68f) and clear skies I can quite believe it. It is a tourist resort which seems to be busy even this late in the year. There is a mix of Spanish restaurants interspersed with all day breakfasts and Bratwurst joints. A lunch of calamares and prawns Pil Pil washed down with a glass of the local rosado shows where our tastes lie.
We have decided to make this a fairly brief stop and will head along the coast in a couple of days to wherever our wheels take us.
Buenos Tardes
J & P

ISLA CRISTINA

Hola,

First, thanks to everybody who has managed a comment. It is much appreciated. Looking at where the views have come from I'm not sure that we know anybody in Russia! But anyway - Spasiba.
We are still in the same site as last week and very nice it is too. The weather has been warm enough to sunbathe most days but we have had a couple of storms which have shaken our motorhome and brought down a couple of trees. Makes us glad we are not in a tent. We have enjoyed some nice tapas and racions in the local restaurants and as we both like fish and seafood we are in our element.
The campsite puts on entertainment on occasion and we went to a piano recital from a young music student. It was free and we were cajoled with cheap vino. He was a man of few words (being only on lesson 3, Spanish in 3 months, I am a man of fewer words so I could not translate his introductions) but it was still entertaining.
We have a pitch close to the entrance to the site and have lovely evening sun as nobody can park next to us as the final pitch is apparently reserved for the winter but the tenants rarely show up. However, last night at around midnight there was movement on the gravelly sand next to us as we were going to sleep. Very late for anybody arriving, I lifted the blind and saw a motorhome had parked. A little later I heard the voices of children playing but we drifted off to sleep. In the middle of the night our van started to gently vibrate, not like in the wind, but more up an down like a gentle earth tremor; it lasted seconds. This morning we awoke early and raised the blinds. There was nobody next to us. The pitch was empty. They must have left early we thought. I approached the site manager and remarked that it had been a late arrival last night. 'No' he replied, the gates are locked at 10pm and nobody can get in or out without me seeing them. Nobody arrived late last night.
Happy Halloween to all

and Happy Birthday to Deb and Happy Anniversary to Deb & Mike.
More next week although we don't know where we'll be yet.
Love
J & P

AND SO TO SPAIN

Hola,

We have finally arrived in southern Spain, Isla Cristina on the Costa de la Luz. We spent a few days in Evora in Portugal which was an interesting medieval town despite the less than medieval traffic flowing through the tiny lanes. Our journey then took us south through Mertola towards the Atlantic Ocean. Pauline decided we would take the direct route through Mertola's narrow streets which we just about managed leaving only a line of dangling wing mirrors as evidence of our trip.
Our new camp site is right next to the beach and the sea is pretty warm considering it is the Atlantic. More next week about this location as we are here for 12 nights.
We have so far driven about 3000 miles at around 35 mpg which is a lot better than anticipated. I think this is our ninth camp site and all have been pretty good in their own way although quite a few annoy by shutting the swimming pool, restaurant, bar and shop because it is out of season yet the temperatures are in the 80s, The benefit is that costs reduce to around 15 euros a night or lower and most have free wi-fi.
We have been a bit unhappy about missing friends who have been in Spain at this time but in all 3 instances never quite near enough to meet up. A bit more forward planning next time.
I have done a rough count of the different nationalities of the vans we have seen outside their own countries. From the fewest up: Andorra, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Italy, Guernsey, Sweden, Hungary, Isle of Man, Poland, Ireland, Jersey, Finland, Denmark, Portugal, Spain, Belgium, France, Germany, GB and Holland. Until we reached Spain we saw surprisingly few Germans but now they are dominating. They will surely soon equal GB and we know if there is a penalty shoot-out there can only be one result!

Adios
J & P

A FEW MORE SNAPS

1st snap is of the main square in Porto, 2nd is Evora and 3rd a couple of old crinklies we met on the way.

PORTO

Spent a few days in Porto.  A large city on the banks of the Douro which rises steeply to the North. Lots of old churches and reminders of Portugal's colonial past. Opposite bank is Vila Nova de Gaia where all the old port houses are. Best as far as the ambience and free tastings were concerned is Taylors. Not so good was Sandemans who also charged for the tour. Enjoyed Porto but always less than happy where nearly every church charges an entrance fee even if they haven't got that much to show.
We are now in Nazare, a seaside resort to the south. Very hot yesterday and until about an hour ago today when a sea fret has come in and dropped temperatures by about 14 degrees c!
We've eaten out on good seafood on a couple of occasions. All the young waiters seem to model themselves on Cristiano Ronaldo (haircuts and facial expressions rather than unnecessary diving which would be rather messy in their profession.)
Tomorrow we are off to Evora, more of which plus some photos next week)
Adeus
J & P

PORTUGAL

Bom Dia,
First of all apologies to all those who thought they have added a post. Only Deb has managed it so far and tells me it is not very easy. I know others have tried. If I find out what the problem is I'll let you know (unless Deb can add a post telling us all how she did it!). Many thanks to all those who are reading the updates.
We zoomed across the plains of Spain last week overnighting in Salamanca before entering Portugal on a wonderful, empty mountainous motorway. We stopped for 4 nights at a nature reserve opposite Aveiro. Lagoon to the east and ocean to the west. Had a great meal yesterday at a Pousada. Started with cockle pies (P) and strips of fried cuttlefish (me) followed by Bacalau - cod (P) and grilled tiger prawns (me). Rather expensive but in general Portugal is very cheap compared with France and N Europe. We have just arrived outside Porto right on the Atlantic and hope to sample the eponymous beverages during the week.
All the best

J & P
picture is me trying to learn a bit of Spanish at our latest site.

SOUTH OF FRANCE

Having spent a couple of nights around Bordeaux Lake looking in vain on our bikes for a bar we travelled south towards Urrogne.
I was going to comment on how civilised the French are regarding speed cameras. A large notice prepares you for them; 200 metres later - a reminder of the speed limit and 200 metres after that the camera. Surely only a complete idiot could get caught?
Instead I shall relate that after a longish drive through boring countryside we are now close to the Spanish border. The campsite is well situated with the Pyrennees to the east and the ocean to the west. There is a swimming pool, tennis court on site and the nearby town of St Jean de Luz is a short bus ride by road or a healthy walk along the coast. We have provisions aplenty and next week we head on into Spain and then Portugal.
Adieu
J&P

A FEW PICTURES

FRANCE

Since the border posts came down there is one sure way of knowing you have arrived in France. Check the first layby. If there is an old Peugeot or Citroen with a man standing next to it relieving himself, you are there. Bienvenue en France.
We have had a couple of days in the town of Chalon en Champagne where we found a sensibly priced set lunch for 18 Euros each including wine and coffee. Salade de Thon, paupiette de veau and Paris Brest for those who are interested.
We are now in Cheverny in the Loire Valley. Cycling to a couple of chateaux, Cheverny and Troussay,visit to a vineyard and staying in a nice woodland site which closes tomorrow.
Onwards to Urrugne south of Biarritz from where my next post will come. Good wishes to you all.
J&P

HOLLAND

Having swapped Belgium for Holland we have spent the last 4 days in Maastricht, a lovely old city on the River Maas. Eating out in belgium and Holland have proved a bit pricey & we have not done so save a bag of frites and mayo. The cheapest 3 course set menu is 25 euros and even acroque monsieur, which is merely a jumped up ham and cheese toastie will knock you back 9 euros!
All the people we have met on sites have been Belgian, Dutch or German. The Belgians are a pretty miserable bunch and the Germans will stiffly acknowledge you with a "morgen". The Dutch, however, are very friendly and they all speak good heavily accented English including checkout girls and roadsweepers. In fact I'm inclined to think, in the vein of the Gary Larson "cows" cartoon thet only speak Durch to each other when tourists are near and as soon as our backs are turned they talk to each other in accented English. Whilst I cannot forgive Steve Maclaren's tenure as England Manager I am quite understanding maybe his famous press conference.
More next week.

BELGIUM

One week on and we are in Bredene on the Belgian coast near Ostend. Good opportunities to try out our bikes on fairly flat terrain and loads of cycle paths. Pauline who was not confident on her bike is now zooming off like Mark Cavendish whilst I am holding the "lanterne rouge".
Everything working in the van except the TV which we have given up on at the moment.
A bit of Belgian stereotyping: Belgians smoke a lot of cigars (men & women); they also favour bushy moustaches (mostly men); they drink strong beer at all times of the day and it is a bit incongruous to see the vagrants drinking super strength lager which is about half the strenghth of what the rest of the population drink.
By next Sunday we will be in France having spent a few days in Maastrict.

More then.

COLLECTING VAN

Van collected on 3 August and safely driven back to its storage home in Heaton Norris.
Trial run before the big journey up to Blackpool and then Cartmel in the lakes.
Everything works except the TV/Satellite.
Satellite repaired and European journey prepared. Leave on 31 August and stay overnight near Oxford.
Nice site at Greenhill Farm with walks along the canal and decent pub The Rock of Gibraltar a short walk away.
We must remember our age as loads of sites give discounts for over 55's.
Next day leave for Angmering in West Sussex for 4 nights. Welcome visits from cousin Jo and friends Deb and Mike and goddaughter Catherine from the Isle of Wight. A few glasses shared.
Weather so far great and driving even something 7.5 metres long has been pretty straightforward.
Picture above is on site in Angmering before the rain started today for the first time.
This means time indoors to prepare next couple of weeks. Folkestone for a couple of days, then ferry on Wednesday to Calais and drive to Bredene in Belgium for 7 nights.
Would take advantage of poor weather to look at TV but broken again!
Next post, next week.