Larry La Strada, my motorhome ..

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Larry Goes to Fuengirola. (21) Sunday 29 May 2022

May 29, 2022

After a leisurely breakfast I set off for about a 5 hour drive to my next destination, a few km south of Rouen, Les 3 Etangs. It is basically a restaurant, with a fishing lake and some spaces around it for camper vans. Not a campsite in the traditional way, no facilities but it does have electricity. I really enjoyed the meal and the location, highly recommended, .. and now am all set for a return to Calais tomorrow, about another three hour drive or so except that I may take the time to wander along the coast road from Boulogne, as there should be no great hurry. A fine meal at Les 3 Etangs, this is the starter, bone marrow with snails .. a brave choice for me, but it was very tasty The Etang at les 3 Etangs .. presumably there are two others, but I never saw them. Not sure you can see it but there is more mistletoe in those trees than I have ever seen in one place The restaurant from across the lake, Larry is there on the right

Larry Goes to Fuengirola. (20) Saturday 28 May 2022

May 29, 2022

Not a great deal to report today ... I left Chateau Feely, weighed down with wine and spent about 3 hrs driving to Tim & Kaja in Cheronnac, that I stayed with on the way down. We had a very pleasant afternoon and then walked to the bar in Cheronnac, La Source. The patron, Jean, apparently wants to sell up and I fear for its future. It is a little bit of traditional rural France; everyone who goes in shakes hands with everyone else.. if it goes, Cheronnac will have precious little left, there are no shops at all now. Then back home for a fine meal and a little glass of wine.. they tell me I had a wonderful evening :-) The only thing to add is that no-one, no-one at all, should come to or pass through this part of F rance without staying at Chambres d'Hotes Bachellerie ..

Larry Goes to Fuengirola. (19) Friday 27 May 2022

May 27, 2022

Today was spent at Ch Feely, and in the most agreeable way. Caro was doing a tour of the vineyard in the morning, with guests, which I was able to join; and very instructive it was. When it comes to farming generally, not just winegrowing, it seems to me that nature is always there, and moreover is powerful and unpredictable. It seems so much more logical to treat nature as a partner and try to work with her (it is surely a her) rather than to attempt to beat her into submission with chemicals. It also feels like a much more successful strategy for the long term. And that is what Feely is doing, harnessing natural forces and working with them. It is an attractive approach but it comes at a cost. What they do results in far lower yields than a more commercial approach, and is quite labour-intensive. You may get a better, indeed healthier result but you will pay for it. Caro would argue that much of the cost of buying conventional wine is hidden, and comes later on in dealing with the

Larry Goes to Fuengirola. (18) Thursday 26 May 2022

May 27, 2022

18 is my birthdate, and therefore my lucky number. Can it be a coincidence then, that I have arrived at Chateau Feely on the 18th day of my tour? I don't think so... Domaine Grand Mayne yesterday, and Ch Feely today are both vineyards, only a few miles apart, and they have some things in common .. they are both very professionally run, by people who clearly know what they are about, and are neat and well kept. But beyond that they are not the same. Grand Mayne is a typical Duras vineyard, about 37Ha, 100,000 vines and potentially 250,000 bottles of wine although I suspect output is a bit less at present. The wine they produce is of decent quality and sells for about €6/bot for the everyday wines, €9 or €10 for the reserve wines and as such, represents good value. I suspect they return a healthy income for their owners, and they seem happy to carry on, much as they are. Ch. Feely is a fair bit smaller at 14Ha of which only about 7Ha are under vines. Annual output is abut 14,000 bot

Larry Goes to Fuengirola. (17) Wednesday 25 May 2022

May 26, 2022

Grand Mayne is a very neat, tidy, well-managed and professional sort of vineyard. All the vines look healthy and well cared for. It looks prosperous, but also businesslike. Wandering about, it is hard to find any fault with the place at all. I asked them about organic farming and biodynamics. Mathieu felt it was probable they would convert to organic at some point, though they seem to have done nothing about it so far. He thought biodynamics was basically not practical for a vineyard their size (35Ha) .. he said that he would need to employ 30 people, and he did not fancy getting them harvesting at 3am because the Moon happened to be aligned with Mercury. This morning I went for a walk to Villeneuve-de-Duras and beyond. It has a church, it has a boulangerie, and nowadays, that is all. The Bonne Etape restaurant is apartments now, and there is no bar, cafe or other shop. Off to Saussignac tomorrow, and Chateau Feely, another day another (rather different) vineyard .. Merlot vines, nea

Larry Goes to Fuengirola. (16) Tuesday 24 May 2022

May 24, 2022

Another very pleasant day, much of it spent driving through the South West of France, which is no hardship at all. From the Plateau de Lhers to Villeneuve de Duras is about 4 1/2 hrs according to Mrs Google Maps, but of course that takes no account of stopping at Intermarche or Leclerc (I did both) or taking a wrong turn (did that too). I arrived at my next stop, Domaine du Grand Mayne, about 3pm. I always ask Google maps to show me the quickest route, and then I tell it to avoid toll roads, and see if it makes it much slower. Usually it makes very little difference and anyway, Larry is just as happy on a long straight D road as he is on an autoroute. You see more of rural France that way, as well. I haven't had to pay a single toll yet on this trip.. not many photographs today, as I've been driving, but that is rather a shame because it has been quite scenic. There are some impressive rivers hereabouts, such as the Garonne, but French drivers really don't like it if you s

Larry Goes to Fuengirola. (15) Monday 23 May 2022

May 24, 2022

Well, I have walked 10 or 11 miles today, but this still counts as a bit of a lazy day ... after brekkie I set off to visit Lescun. It was about five miles, I confess when I booked the site i thought it was a bit nearer the village, but never mind. It was a fine walk through lovely countryside, see below. Unfortunately, Lescun was totally dead on a Monday morning ... I should have known, by now. The Hotel Pic d'Anie was closed, the Epicerie was closed, La Poste was closed .. the Bar des Bergers was open, but nobody was there. Ah well, as I said it was a nice walk. It was only on the way back that I realised that the path I had been following was the GR10, the Grand Randonnee that follows the Pyrenees all the way from Hendaye to Banyuls, being careful to stay in La France.. I had done most of that walk in 2010, so I have been along that path before.. but sadly I could not recall it. I have photos from that trip but not very many, as the weather was so appalling. Now, the weather i

Larry Goes to Fuengirola. (14) Sunday 22 May 2022

May 22, 2022

Another reasonably relaxed day today. I set off from Iraty about 10am and wound my way up to the col. The vague plan was to have that garbure I mentioned yesterday, and if it was not on offer until later, to go for a walk meantime. Unfortunately that didn't work out because a portly, aggressive lady came and tapped on the window and told me in no uncertain terms to go away. Apparently the Iraty restaurant was complet, fully booked for both lunch and dinner and they didn't want suspicious looking foreigners clogging up their car park. In her defence, not that she needed it, it is Sunday and that is a big eating-out day in France. I gave her a contemptuous look and strolled over to the restaurant itself, but it was not open and all of the tables were laid for a meal. No chance of a coffee or a garbure. So I sniffed, and drove on. And a very pleasant hour and a half drive it was too, meandering through the pleasant Pyrenees foothills until nearer to Lescun, some serious climbing

Larry Goes to Fuengirola. (13) Saturday 21 May 2022

May 21, 2022

A lazy day today. I checked out about 10am and cruised along to Carrefour to pick up some essentials - wine, beer, yogurt etc. Then set off for Iraty, only about 40 minutes away but along quite narrow and steep roads. The Col d'Iraty at 1347m is much higher up than St Jean. I have been to Iraty before. The first time, I went to a well-known restaurant called Chalet Pedro, which I did not like. The second time, I went to a smaller place called Le Kayolar, and had a wonderful time. Le Patron let me put up my tent for the night next to the restaurant, and the next morning cooked me a lovely "full English" breakfast , just about the only one I have ever had in France. Near the restaurant there is an "Aire de Camping car," which I parked up in. There were perhaps a dozen others there, mostly French. It is a very picturesque spot, with a stream and plenty of space. Then I walked over to Le Kayolar, which was just as I remembered it. I had a nice lunch, but I did not

Larry Goes to Fuengirola. (12) Friday 20 May 2022

May 20, 2022

So.. having paid for two nights, I thought I would stick around for today. Maybe I still can get to see a bit of the High Pyrenees... People aiming to walk the Camino de Santiago to Santiago de Compostella start from all over the place; the network of paths stretches all over Europe. Years ago I met a charming Japanese lady who was doing the walk for the third time, and this time had started in Geneva. So when I met her in St Jean, she had been walking for a month or more already. Still, more people begin their pilgrimage in St Jean than any other place. And they are in for a difficult, hard day. They have to climb up from a starting point of about 110m above sea level to first, the Col de Bentarte (1326m) and then the Col de Lepoeder, at 1426m, before starting to descend 300m to Roncesvalles. So a 1300m climb, not to be sneezed at. It is about 4,265ft, which will get you from the sea to the top of almost every mountain in Britain, bar one or two Scottish ones. It is about a 100m cl

Larry Goes to Fuengirola. (11) Thursday 19 May 2022

May 20, 2022

Before I left Camper Sierra I went for a short walk in the country around, which turned out to be surprisingly green and pleasant. Lots of wild flowers.. Nice, unspoilt countryside Banks of these attractive purple flowers everywhere.. A bit surprised to see these growing there, though. Apparently it is a satellite communications centre, no longer in use .. After that I left, fully watered and powered up, and headed towards Soria, Pamplona, Roncevalles (of dreaded memory! Camino de Santiago: 500 farting/snoring pilgrims and me, all in the one room ) and back into La France. And frankly, it is nice to be here, back in the land of Auchan and Carrefour. And don't believe what they tell you, diesel is cheaper here in France too. €1,80 at carrefour, about £1.65/l. So here I am now in St Jean-Pied-de-Port, snug in the municipal campervan park. €11 per night, all facilities included. I have booked up for two nights, but I am thinking I may prefer to head up into the Pyrenees proper tomo

Larry Goes to Fuengirola. (10) Wednesday 18 May 2022

May 18, 2022

This was the day I was supposed to be in Fuengirola, no chance of getting there now. To my Throg Club colleagues I say "Salut!" and will raise a glass in their honour. The good news is though, that the part has finally arrived, and Larry is now fixed. Talleres Gomez seemed very professional and were patient with me and Google Translate. Unusually, the bill came to a little bit less than they originally said. Larry disgraced himself while being worked on.. the slope of the floor meant some washing up water came out of the drain.. Now I have headed back up through Madrid to Gascones, a three hour drive back to CamperSierra, where I stayed last Saturday night. There is one other vehicle here, a young English couple, friendly enough but not chatty. I shall spend some time now plotting a route from here to St Jean Pied-de-port and Lescun, and then around that part of the Pyrenees until I need to get back up to the Duras, Bergerac and on to Limoges and then home. I need to do a

Larry Goes to Fuengirola. (9) Tuesday 17 May 2022

May 17, 2022

Another bright, sunny day, my but they do get the weather here. It is too hot for me, if anything. The part required to mend Larry is still awaited. I seem to be in one of those classic situations where the answer to any question is a shrug, and "manana!" I just have to be patient, never my strongest suit; and in the meantime, my chances of getting to Fuengirola seem to be slipping away. At lunchtime I went to my second home, Bar Cacheras. I have learnt that the barman is called Gabie and we greet each other like old friends. I have the usual, a glass of white wine and two tapas, but I think maybe have been through their tapas menu now. Several of the ingredients looked quite familiar. Still the price is the same, €3,80. On the way I discovered that there was a market, and quite a big one at that. I wandered around it, and bought a pollo asado, a spitroast chicken, which should provide a meal or two. If and when the part arrives and Larry is fixed, I will set off but I thin

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