Lincolnshire again

A day at the races

11 – 18 May

As owners of a new Autotrail, we were automatically entitled to a year’s free membership of the Autotrail Owners’ Club. We had perused the book of rallies at the end of last year and one had particularly caught our eye.  This was the annual factory rally based at Market Rasen racecourse and we thought it would be interesting to see how our new acquisition had been built.

So we were back in Lincolnshire for the second time in six weeks!  This rally is very popular and there were nearly 150 units – with hindsight, it probably wasn’t the best one to choose as a first rally.  However, the organisation was superb.  

 An unexpected bonus on arrival was to find that a company was operating a mobile weighbridge so that those who wished could check out whether they were carrying too much or had capacity to spare.  It was a nice surprise to find we were well within our limit.

At additional cost it had been possible to attend the racing on Friday afternoon.  We hadn’t opted to do that, but sneaked a look at a couple of races from the rally side of the track. We also managed a cycle ride around some of the nearby villages.

On Saturday a fleet of coaches transported us to the Autotrail factory at Grimsby.  We felt very “loved” by Autotrail, who provided everyone with a goody bag, a tombola ticket and a free barbecue.  We chose to follow a factory tour, rather than look around on our own, and it was enlightening – mostly (but not always!) in a good way.  Imagine how thrilled we were when our tombola ticket was a winner, but oh, wait a minute, everyone won something!

Entertainment was provided on Friday and Saturday evenings, but we particularly enjoyed chatting to Jill and David, who have the same Autotrail model as us, and gleaned some useful suggestions from them.

We had decided to spend a few more days in Amelia before heading home and went back to Woodhall Spa, with the bikes this time! En route, we called in at Gunby Hall (NT) but had to restrict our visit to the house as it was a very wet day.  The house had narrowly escaped demolition during WW2 due to the expansion of the nearby airfield.  We had an interesting morning at the Lincolnshire Aviation Centre at East Kirkby, but again it was very wet and although most of the museum is undercover, we did have to dash from building to building and got somewhat damp. The museum is home to “Just Jane”, one of the few surviving WW2 Lancaster bombers. 

Currently restricted to taxying on the airfield, it is hoped to have her airworthy in the not too distant future. There is also a small, but interesting part of the museum devoted to escapes from prisoner of war camps, including the famous “great escape”.   The final outing of the trip, once the weather cheered up, was a cycle ride of about 18 miles along the Water Rail Way, following the River Witham to Bardney.

Woodhall Spa, Lincolnshire

April 1 - 4

Cinema show

Post from John

Each year, our friends Barbara and Clive take their motorhome for its annual service, back to the dealer who supplied it. They usually combine this with a short break at a suitable nearby site. This year they asked us if we would like to join them; we thought it was a great idea, and then more friends, Gordon and Diane, were invited along with their motorhome as well. A mini rally! The chosen venue was the Camping and Caravanning Club site at Woodhall Spa.

We were looking forward to getting away in Amelia after several months of work on the house. However, the aforementioned work gave us a slight problem in preparing to go, as our drive was occupied by a skip full of garden rubble. Ruth then had the bright idea of seeing if we could book the van into a local Caravan Club CL for a couple of nights, to make it easier to load up. We found Hollow Meadow CL just outside Stratford, and moved Amelia there on the Thursday. The CL was very nice; quiet, well-tended, with hook-ups but no other facilities. We may well use it again.

Friday was spent loading up, and we enjoyed a peaceful night in the countryside, setting off for Lincolnshire on the Saturday morning. Arriving at the site a few minutes ahead of Barbara and Clive, we were all soon settled in. Whilst they opted for a walk in the afternoon, we relaxed in the van, trying to remember how everything worked.

Sunday dawned dry and bright; Gordon and Diane arrived and were soon set up; then more friends, Colin and Maureen, joined us for the day, having driven up from Cambridge.

Amelia, Felix and Molly

After a coffee and a chat, we all walked the 40 minutes into Woodhall Spa, where we had an excellent lunch at The Mall to celebrate Maureen’s retirement. The afternoon was spent strolling through the town and the adjacent woods, past the Kinema in the Woods (of which more in a moment), finishing up for tea on the terrace at the Petwood Hotel. During WW2, this elegant building had been the officers’ mess for the nearby airfield; there is a small museum honouring their most celebrated occupants – 617 Squadron, otherwise known as The Dambusters.

We had another lazy day on the Monday, then the six of us headed back to the Kinema in the evening, having booked tickets the day before to see “Beauty and the Beast”.

The Kinema was opened in 1922, and is the only screen in Britain to use back-projection of the film. It is a real throwback – the cinema is small, with splendidly old-fashioned décor and an intermission during the film for ice creams, costing the princely sum of £1.50!   During the intermission, an organ rises up through the stage and an organist entertains the audience (providing sufficient tickets have been sold).

Tuesday saw us heading home, ready to launch into the next round of jobs.

The times they are a changin'

Post from John

The October Caravan and Motorhome show at the NEC (see previous blog entries) is a dangerous place. Whether it’s the heady aroma of wood, leather and GRP, or some kind of low level mass hysteria, visitors seem to open their wallets and spend freely. In previous years, we have come away laden with items for Theodora.

This year was different, however.

We bought a new motorhome….

We had been considering changing vans for some time. Whilst Theodora had been a good and faithful servant for four years, the opportunities for longer trips brought on by retirement meant that a couple of improvements were needed. One, a bigger washroom to allow us to use more limited facility sites (Caravan Club CLs or aires in France) and two, a simpler arrangement for making up the bed, ideally with the option of two singles. We both would have liked another van conversion like Theodora, but the basic laws of physics meant that we would have to look at a coachbuilt motorhome.

My objective for our visit to the show was to come away at the end of the day knowing which van we wanted (Ruth wasn’t optimistic about achieving even that). Now that we live only 40 minutes from the NEC, we were at the doors when they opened at 10.00am – and were still there when they closed at 6.00pm. We spent all day looking at vans, but kept coming back to the Auto Trail stand. Initially we had not considered this range, as it conjured up images of hulking twin rear axle beasties. However, the baby of the range seemed to suit our needs. Only about 1ft longer than Theodora, it would still fit on our drive for loading, and met the washroom/bed criteria.

We were introduced to the local dealer, Edwards Motorhomes of Worcester. Their sales guy, Andy, offered us an attractive deal on a 2016 model they had in stock. After much pondering and a couple of cups of coffee, the deal was done.

So on November 17^th, we became the proud (but slightly apprehensive) owners of an Auto Trail Imala 615. We said a sad farewell to Theodora, and climbed into the new van. Gosh, it felt big! 1 foot longer, but 18” taller, it towered over Theodora.

Three days later we took the van, now christened Amelia, to Cheltenham on a “shakedown cruise”. We stayed at Briarfields Caravan Park, on the outskirts of the city. The site is well maintained, with excellent facilities, and a bus runs from outside the gates to the town. Unfortunately, it poured with rain virtually the entire 48 hrs we were there, confining us to the site.

This allowed us to spend time going through all the manuals and sorting out how to work everything.

Initial impressions? Well, we were pleased with the space inside, the bed(s) are much quicker to get ready, and the big washroom looked fine. Unfortunately we couldn’t test the water systems as we couldn’t remove the water filler cap! As we discovered later, there is a knack to it…

In terms of driving, the 2.3ltr engine in Amelia does not give the same oomph as the 3.0ltr unit in Theodora. Accordingly, our progress is rather more stately, as befits a lady of somewhat larger girth. Having said that, we have hardly pushed the engine, given it only had 100 miles on the clock when we collected her. Otherwise, the difference in size has not been too noticeable so far.

Over winter will see a return to Edwards to resolve the few teething problems that were “shaken down” on our Cheltenham trip, then 2017 awaits!

Europe 2016 - Sites Info

Prices as at 2016

Camping Les Erables, Escalles, France

Lovely rural location 15 minutes drive from Channel Tunnel.  Sloping site but pitches fairly level, overlooking the English Channel.

Facilities: dated but clean

WiFi free across site

Price: Euro 15.90 inc electricity and showers

Stadscamping den Driesch, Valkenburg, Netherlands

Site sits high above the town- 5 minute walk to the centre. Access best from the east.  Site roads narrow and sloping. 

Facilities: excellent inc site shop

Price: Euro 29.00 inc electricity and tourist tax. Showers Euro 0.70

Alternative option is  Camperplaats Valkenburg (aire) which is adjacent.

Camping Vitznau, Vitznau, Switzerland

Beautiful location on Vierwaldstaettersee. Walking distance to Rigi Bahn.

Facilities: excellent; supermarket in town (10 mins walk)

WiFi free, but limited range

Price: SFr 43.70 inc electricity, tourist tax and rubbish tax.  Showers free.

Italy

Camping la Riva, Sorico (Lake Como)

Excellent site with pool and cafe. Footpath / cycle path to village where is mini supermarket, bank, restaurants

Facilities: excellent.

WiFi free, but limited range

Price: Euro 34.00 inc electricity.  Showers Euro 1.00

Camping Parisi, Baveno (Lake Maggiore),

Great location but very crowded.  Ten minute walk into Baveno.  Bus to Stresa.  Ferries operate from Baveno to other lake destinations including the islands

Facilities: excellent

WiFi free, but limited range

Price: Euro 18.00 including electricity and tourist tax (ACSI rate).  Showers free.

Camping Orta, Orta San Giulio. (Lake Orta)

Lovely lakeside location.  One part of site is  next to lake and the other across the road on terraces with tunnel between the two. Steep roads within upper part of the site.  Twenty minute walk (uphill) to Orta San Giulio

Facilities: excellent, including comprehensive site shop

WiFi: Euro 1.00 for 3  hours

Price: Euro 18.00 including electricity and tourist tax (ACSI rate).  Showers free.

France

Camping Tunnel, Etroubles

Located on road towards San Bernardo Pass.  Sloping site but level pitches; narrow site road.  Five minute walk to small town with bank and shop.  Good base for walking.

Facilities: very good.

Free WiFi but have to sign up to an account.  Not tried.

Price: Euro 17.36 including electricity and tourist tax (ACSI rate).  Showers free.

Les Domes de Miage, St Gervais-Les-Bain

Fantastic site with backdrop of mountains.  Site is open and lush; pitches are good size and level.

Facilities: excellent

WiFi free, but limited range

Price: Euro 20.00 including electricity (ACSI rate).  Showers free.

Camping Les Rives du Lac, Sevrier, Near Annecy

Lakeside site located 6 km south of Annecy.  On bus route to Annecy.  Ten minutes walk to either Lidl or Carrefour supermarkets.  Pitches level-ish but needed a bit of tidying.

Excellent facilities

WiFi free, limited range

Price: Euro 23.50 inc electricity and tourist tax.  Showers free

Camp Municipal Les Cent Vignes, Beaune

Site located within walking distance of Beaune.  Pitches vary in size surrounded by hedges with lots of trees; narrow site road.

Good facilities, although a bit jaded at end of season

WiFi free across site

Price: Euro 21.50  inc electricity and tourist tax.  Showers free

Camp Municipal de la Porte d'Arroux, Autun

Located approx 1 km from Autun.  Pitches of average size, surrounded by hedges with lots of trees.

Good facilities

WiFi chargeable (Euro 4 for an hour, Euro 6 for a day)

Price: Euro 17.70 inc electricity and tourist tax.  Showers free

Camping de Vezelay L'Hermitage, Vezelay

Located approx 0.5 km from the edge of Vezelay.  Sloping site but pitches reasonably level. Site divided into small groups of pitches with hedges and trees.  Narrow rough road within site.  Select own pitch and register with reception in evening.

Facilities limited in number

WiFi – none

Price: Euro 14.40 inc electricity and tourist tax.  Showers free

Camping Les Ceriselles, Vincelles

Located next to River Yonne and  Canal du Nivernais with cycle path.  Level, well maintained site with some trees; good road within site.  Pitches of average size, surrounded by hedges.  Reception open 8 am to 8 pm except lunch 12 noon to 2 pm.  Small covered pool.  Infrequent bus service to Auxerrre.

Facilities limited in number and could have been better maintained

WiFi – free across site

Price: Euro 16.30 inc electricity and tourist tax.  Showers free

Camperstop Auxerre, Auxerre

Located by river opposite cathedral.  Large, level parking area used by cars, coaches and motor caravans.  Free of charge.  No facilities.

Aire: Escale de Gurgy, Gurgy

Beautiful location for 33 motorhomes alongside River Yonne.  Close to village centre with bakery and restaurant.  Local wine available to taste and purchase each evening from hut.  Book swap.

Water available morning and evening only, drive-over waste drain, chemical disposal point.

WiFi -  none

Price: Euro 7.60 inc electricity and tourist tax.

Camping de Chalons-en-Champagne

Useful night halt

Facilities: adequate

WiFi – free near reception, otherwise Euro 4 per hour, Euro 6 per day

Price: Euro 16.00 inc electricity and tourist tax (ACSI rate).  Showers free.

Chalons-en-Champagne – Calais

26 – 27 September

Run for Home

After Gurgy there were just two nights left, the first at Camping de Chalons-en-Champagne, where there seemed to be a crowd of grape pickers staying, who left rather noisily at 6 am!  The next night we were near Calais, in readiness for the shuttle home.  It seemed strange to be back at Les Erables, from where the journey had started, after five weeks “on the road”.

And now we are home and shall enjoy reliving the trip as we sort out the photographs.

For the record:

Total number of miles - 2156

Number of nights away -  35 (3 staying with friend in Germany)

Number of sites/aire - 15

Details of sites/aire posted separately for ease of reference

Burgundy (Autun, Vezelay, Auxerre, Gurgy)

23-25 September

The Wanderer(s)

We had decided that this part of the trip would be made up of a few one-night stops and the first was in Autun, which was one of the most important cities in Roman Gaul. But before we found the camp site, we called in at the remains of the Roman Ampitheatre, which is very impressive, and would have held up to 16,000 people.

Camp Municipal de la Porte d'Arroux proved to be a very “relaxed” site, where the reception only opens morning and evening, just find a pitch and make yourselves at home and report to the office later. After a quick lunch, we hopped on our bikes and cycled the 1 km into the town to have a look at the 12^th century Cathedrale Saint-Lazarre, which is famous for its fantastic carvings – on the pillars, depicting Bible Stories and Greek mythology, and a typanum of the Last Judgement.

On the way back through the town, we stopped at a creperie; well, you can't come to France and not eat at least one crepe, can you?

From Autun the next stop was Vezelay, a tiny hilltop village and a Unesco World Heritage Site. The Basilique -Ste-Madeleine sits at the top of the village, overlooking the beautiful countryside. Another impressive typanum shows Jesus seated on a throne, radiating his holy spirit to the Apostles. The relics of St Mary Magdalene are to be found in the crypt, which led to the monastery becoming an important pilgrimage site in the 11^th and 12^th centuries. Today the pilgrims are replaced by hordes of tourists.

A short hop of just 30 miles then took us to Vincelles and Camping Les Ceriselles.

This site is literally yards away from the River Yonne and Canal du Nivernais and there is a 62 km cycle path which follows the water from Auxerres to the north, to Clamecy to the south. We spent two very enjoyable hours cycling here in the sunshine, and being Saturday, there were plenty of other cyclists, walkers and even roller-bladers enjoying it too.

From Vincelles we drove to Auxerre, about 9 miles, hoping it would not be busy on a Sunday and that it would be easy to find somewhere to park. We were right on both counts! There is a large parking area to the east of the river opposite the cathedral, where there were lots of motorhomes parked up (under the trees to the right of the picture).  We assume this was Campertstop Auxerre, although there was no sign to confirm our assumption and coaches and cars were parked there too. But it was free and suited us perfectly.

Abbey

A short walk over the arched footbridge, from which there are lovely views, took us into the town for a wander around the deserted streets, past the cathedral, the abbey and the Tour de l'Horloge.

Clock tower

After a spontaneous lunch stop to sample an ethnic Boeuf Bourgignon we travelled just another 6 miles north to Gurgy, where there is a delightful aire on the banks of the river Yonne.

An unexpected bonus was the arrival of a Frenchman, who sells local wine from a wooden cabin every evening. An impromptu tasting session resulted in Theodora having to accommodate a few more bottles of wine (funny how you can always find space for that sort of thing!) Monsieur was very friendly and although the conversation was in a mixture of French and English it was most enjoyable and instructive.

Burgundy - Beaune

18-22 September

Sisters of Mercy

A journey of 169 miles took us to Beaune, one of the main wine centres in the Burgundy region, where we stayed at Les Cent Vins, a municipal site. The highlight of our stay here was undoubtedly the visit to the Hospices de Beaune (Hotel-Dieu). Commissioned in 1443 by Nicolas Rolin to treat the sick and the poor, the building remained a hospital until 1971, with various modifications throughout the years. For its entire existence the Hotel Dieu was home to an order of nuns, who cared for the patients. The Gothic building has stunning turrets and pitched rooftops, covered in multicoloured tiles. Apparently this type of roof is typical in Burgundy.

Armed with our audio guides we probably spent two hours there, admiring the Grande Salle, where the patients were treated and with a chapel at one end

and taking a look at the pharmacy and kitchens.

There are also tapestries to admire plus the Polyptych of the Last Judgement. This used to be located in the Grande Salle but it is now housed in a separate room, under ideal conditions for its preservation.

While in Beaune we cycled part of the Voie des Vignes (The Vineyard Trail) which runs from Beaune to Santenay.

This is a lovely ride, with vines covering the fields and slopes for miles around, and in every village the wine-producers open their “caves” for visits and tastings. We only got as far as Mersault, which is a beautiful village. Its town hall is crowned with another pretty roof and we sat near the fountain for a while to watch the world go by. We also read that there had been a hospital in Mersault to treat leprosy, which had collaborated with the Hotel Dieu in Beaune in 1760.

While in Beaune we also visited the Wine Museum and walked along the ramparts around the town.

Although this makes for a pleasant stroll, they are not especially stunning, actually being incorporated into the edge of the town, with residences and vehicular access. They certainly don't compare to the likes of Chester or York (mes apologies, Beaune!)