Southern Europe - Day 7

A long rainy day.

We woke up on the banks of the Douro on the edge of Porto. The rains had set in and they were set for the day. Determined to ignore the weather we set off along the banks of the river to the picturesque town of Amarante where we feasted on pastry slices and hot drinks looking at the rain on the river. Amarante was pretty and would no doubt have been lovely in the sunshine. We dropped into the church which was the one building of any note and had a look round then it was back to the van and onwards.

We followed the Douro valley along a very long windy road with some spectacular views across the river valley and all the vineyards where the port grapes are grown. They looked very seasonal in rows of autumn golds and reds.

From there we dropped south into another national park where we camped up for the night.

Its pretty much rained all day today which has been frustrating but being British we're used to it!

Cali thought for the day: the van drives like a car. A big car maybe but basically a car all the same. It was easy to drive the windy roads today with the solid suspension and car like wheel. Add to that the driving height and it is easier to see over the spray on wet roads. I'd rather be driving it than a car or a motorhome. And I can't even imagine towing a caravan some of the places TomTom has taken us this week!
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Southern Europe - Day 6

Day 6 already?

A cracking day today. Weather okay in the morning and glorious by the afternoon. Today has been Porto. Or more accurately Vila Nova de Gaia which is the other side of the Douro river from Porto and where all the big port houses are based.

We stopped at a local campsite and were about to check in when we spoke to an English couple who'd been on tour for the last three and a half years! They pointed us to an ayre on the edge of town which was right by the side of the Rio Douro. We're so glad we took their advice. The spot we're writing this from is stunning.

From our camping spot we biked into Gaia. Gaia is very steep and the port houses are all at the top of the hillside. We biked up three hills before we found Taylors which we were aiming for. Good job by the 4 months pregnant Mrs Blakey. But the effort was rewarded with a free tour of the wine house. Even if it was in Portugese. Anyway they gave us 'Chip Dry Port' to start off which we drank overlooking the city below and then Late Bottled Vintage as we did the tour. That was well worth the bike ride up. Especially as Mrs Blakey isn't drinking so I had four free glasses!

From Taylors we dropped down to the riverside and peddled over the Ponte dom Luis I and into Porto proper. Again its flippin hilly and we couldn't be bothered to try climbing up to the few sights in the upper city so we turned along the riverside to the Ribeira river front and dropped into one of the many cafe bars. I demonstrated excellent Portuguese by ordering a large beer in fluent native tongue but the water was obviously not from round these parts as he asked if I'd like mine with milk and sugar. Fortunately he understood English and my beer was sorted.

From there we took a long leisurely ride back to our base to watch the sunset over the Atlantic. We cooked sausage ragu and ate it alfresco overlooking Porto's lights across the Douro. Pretty perfect end to a top day.

Cali thought: the van is 100% self-contained meaning there's really no difference to camping where we are now, right on the banks of a picturesque river, compared to at an ugly campsite. Only difference is it's €20 cheaper here. Love it.
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Southern Europe - Day 5

We squeezed a lot in today.

First thing it was damp and dreary so we decided against hanging around the national park and headed for Braga. So I never got to take on that trail again on my bike.

Braga is the religious capital of Portugal and the Church of Bom Jesus is apparently the most photographed church in the country. We added to the numbers today. We also climbed the 250+ steps from the bottom to the foot of the church, passing the stations of the cross along the way. Pretty impressive stuff. The park around the outside was also impressive including many pretty trails, a grotto and a boating pond which looked resplendent in autumn colours.

From here we dropped into Braga itself and looked around as the sun came out. A small and pretty city with a cathedral and all manor of churches. It was a nice place to explore and we spent a few hours there.

From here we decided to whiz up to mount Penha over looking Guimaraes and catch the sunset. There are some awesome views from up there which the camera on my phone doesn't do justice.

Then we chased the sun to the sea as it hid away for the night. We're now camped on the beach in Aquila just north of Porto. Looking forward to visiting the city of vihno verdi tomorrow.

Today I noticed both wing mirrors on the Cali were the same size unlike the old T5. This makes driving on the continent much easier as your outside mirror is actually helpful. Yes I'm that sad.
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Southern Europe - Day 4

A really long day today.

We got up to a beautiful sunny morning in coastal Gijon, Spain and ended it in the mountainous Portugese national park listening to the rains lashing down on the van.

First thing I had in mind for this morning was catching a wave. Well Shreddies more truthfully but then a wave. But when we got to the beach the four foot lines of last night had been replaced by one foot slop. 4 people did go out in the 2 hours we kicked around the city but they didn't catch a piddler between them. I didn't waste my cash hiring a board. Very disappointing.

The city was worth a look around though but by midday we needed to get going as we still had a 5 hour drive ahead to get to Portugal and the national park. The surfers still hadn't caught one ride.

The 5 hour drive started badly when TomTom didn't know how to get out of Gijon. So we resorted to the crazy plan of following road signs. Only to discover the Spanish are crap at road signs.

Eventually we found our way into the Picos de Europa - the mountains south of Gijon (Thanks Luke for being our email encyclopedia again!). They were stunning. Snow topped, craggy and sun kissed. It was like being in the Alps again. Beautiful.

We couldn't stop too long though as we had a lot of driving to do so we pushed on for the next five hours of varied terrain across northern Spain. As we headed south the weather turned nastier and as we hit Portugal the rains and fog set in and darkness fell. But we only had 5 miles to go till we reached the campsite according to TomTom.

Sometimes sat nav is brilliant. Sometimes its the spawn of the devil. Tonight it was the latter. As we pulled into a road signposted to our campsite with 4 miles to go we felt we were nearly home. Till we saw the "road" it was taking us down.

This "road" was nothing more than a rutted, pot holed, flooded, van breaking fire trail in a forested mountain side. In the dark. With fog for a side dish. It was to dangerous to get out of 2nd gear so we bounced and span and guessed our way down this track at cycling speeds hoping we didn't fall off the track or bottom out or break down. Some 15 minutes of hell later we found the campsite - just off a main road. Today TomTom was devil spawn.

But tomorrow I'm seriously tempted to ride that 4 mile trail on my mountain bike - I reckon it could prove quite a challenge!

Finishing on a high note as usual: the Cali fridge is superb. We only have it on 3/10 but its as cold as our fridge at home. Our milk we brought from the Uk 4 days ago is still ice cold and fresh. And the top loading nature and height means you can really easily get stuff in and out. Love it.

Tomorrow we'll get to see what this national park looks like. And I might have to ride the road to hell.
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Southern Europe - Day 3

Nobody ever mentions the weather can make or break your day.

Well okay, Oasis did. This morning it was hacking it down - the heaviest rain we've seen this tour so far. We drove from Biarritz into Spain, only really noticing we'd changed countries because the road signs had changed language. The rain was pouring and the roads passed by San Sebastian, Bilbao and Santander; all of which are industrial cities. It was pretty grim.

After lunch we drove on along the coast road and out of the industrial areas into the countryside and the clouds cleared. Beautiful clear skies greeted us as we found Gijon on the north coast. So much nicer than the other cities.

Gijon sports a stunning university which we cycled past to get into town. From there we passed the 'premiere league' stadium of Real Sporting de Gijon. According to google they're being 'real sporting' in defence this season and are lying in 17th place. Not far from there we hit the sea and a big surprise: waves!

I didn't expect anything on the north coast but there it was. A half moon bay, beach break, right in the city. The sun disappearing behind sea front buildings shone down on some really nice lines. Maybe 4' on a set and dead clean. Fabulous. I found a surf shop which hires on the sea front. I'm going to see if I can't add Spain to my list of countries surfed tomorrow! Bonus!

From there we biked back up the hill to our campsite. Its now time to settle down to some grub and the obligatory ale.

Oh, Cali thought for the day: it does sport a serious lack of hooks in the back of the van. This makes hanging washing lines difficult inside the van. The old Kombi had them all over the place - as I'd screwed them into the walls everywhere. Slightly disappointing.
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Southern Europe - Day 2

A driving day.

Left Blois and drove 380 miles down to Biarritz and the border with Spain. The rain has drizzled down again today and its been a bit of a slog really. But we've crossed France in 2 days which was the plan. And the town of Blois last night was a bonus.

Hit a proper campsite tonight so we could have a hot shower and the site in question had an outdoor pool which we felt we just had to use. Just us two, the rain and a big pool. Really excellent way to end the day.

Cali observation of the day: the roof bed is awesome! Its massively more spacious than the Reimo roof bed and much more comfortable. Seems wider as the mattress goes right to the walls. It takes longer to put up because its electric but you're only pushing a button so no big deal. The roof almost hits the bikes when on the bike rack but we have 1cm clearance which is all we need! Had a fantastic nights sleep in there last night.
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Southern Europe - Day 1

A good start to the tour.

We caught the 10.20am Eurotunnel and were in France just before noon local time. A dull, dreary and drizzly day but seeing as all we had to do today was cover some miles that was fine.

We hit Northern France and within minutes were in the Sommes. Very tempting to stop and look around but that will wait for another day.

TomTom routed us south west and before we knew it we were in the middle of Paris. But 30 minutes later we were out the far side. How does that work? Imagine trying to cross central London in that time? We were also rewarded with a panoramic view of the Paris skyline at one stage which was mighty fine.

From there we headed on to the Loire valley where we have now camped up on the banks of the river in the very pretty town of Blois. Had a peek around the town (and a sneaky beer) and its a real find.

This is our first ever night of "wild camping" but it's not as wild as all that - just parked in an aire by the river. Still, we're not in a campsite and we're totally self sufficient with running water, electricity off the leisure battery and the internal heater to come if we need it.

It seems I've made a bit of a boo boo too. I've left the camera at home even after Mrs Blakey reminded me to pack it. Twice. Oops. Just have to hope the blackberry camera does okay.

Thing we noticed was good with the Cali today: because the kitchen is low you can access it all sitting down. Which meant no need to pop the roof at lunchtime. Definitely better than the old kitchen in the last van.

Time for a proper real ale carried from England I think.

Sent from my ZX Spectrum.