Keswick weekend. 30th November - 2nd December

All of the political parties were now occupying all of our screens. Brexit was being pushed down our throats. Even though it was only the end of November xmas trees and lights were popping up in peoples windows and already people were coming out with that most ridiculous of questions …"Are you ready for xmas"? Time to get out of here! There was a 3 day window of dry and sunny weather about to arrive on our shores at the weekend, so the van was quickly cleaned and off we went to the C&CC site in Keswick.
It was a glorious time, cloudless blue skies with all day sunshine. We walked all around lake Derwentwater, went up Walla Crag and recovered from these fabulous walks of an evening in the Pheasant Inn with pints of Cumberland and a food from a fantastic wide ranged menu. We even took advantage of the dubious Black Friday offers and both got new walking boots in a genuine offer that saved us £50 on a pair of boots. What a weekend.

Cloyes sur le Loir.

At this time of the year we had few choices with regards to campsites but we went to Parc de Loisirs Le Val Fleuri in Cloyes sur le Loir. It was still open although it was a little muddy in parts, so we pitched up on our skid mats and had a nice cosy evening with the heating on. No problem getting off the pitch the following day and not a bad drive to our next , and final stop the Aire at Wissant. We seem to be fortunate when we stay at Wissant as its always sunny. We got the 07:20 tunnel home on Saturday the 9th November 2019

A damp Parc de Loisirs Le Val Fleuri. 

Up to now we always get a place on the aire at Wissant and the weather is always sunny. Great for walking Jonesy. 

Campsite Chateau de Grange Fort

Another overnight: went to a site further south but was closed this one just off the motorway near Issoire was ok with an excellent view and a fort in the grounds. Spoke to a nice welsh couple who were on Salata at Roses last night when we were there! Ferry from Santander was cancelled with next date 20th November so they are going for ferry at Le Havre. They were also in Javea but thought that Javea was just the Arenal area, never went to the old town or port ! Spent 3 weeks just in the Arenal. Dissapointed when I told them about the complete Javea.

The site has some beautiful views and a 500 metre walk downhill from the site will take you to the river Allier.

Again another positive for this site is the castle and its grounds.

Tuesday in Roses

Just an overnight halt to get Jonesy's passport done. 29 euro cost. Roses was fairly dead but we enjoyed the stay, lovely blue skies and temps around 18c. Not many places open so we just walked. It was bonfire night so I went for a swim in the sea just so I can say that I swam on bonfire night, Woke to beautiful blue skies but have to push on.

Night sky over Miami Beach

Finally we made ourselves leave Javea after an absolutely fabulous time.

One of our best trips to date. We finally left Javea on Sunday 3rd November. It was 28c still and the water was still warm and the reds were still banging in injury time winning goals. We were waved off by neighbours and passed Jim and Jackie's van. We've watched loads of games with Jim and Jackie and because we've won them all we suggested we met up again in May to watch our run in to the title.  We've met loads of great people on the trip but i'm sure as most are 'regulars' we'll meet them all again soon.
So we set off and stayed one night at the camper stop in Alcossebre where the weather was sunny and a hot 26c ….yes its November. The camper stop continues to be developed and now has a restaurant where you can get a 3 course budget meal with one drink for 13e.
This morning we decided to break the journey to Roses up and go somewhere we've never been....Miami Beach, south of Tarragona. Again another good choice...pitch right on the beach. Weather still good and 24c....time for my last Spanish swim.

Barbara's last swim in Javea

Still not moved from Javea!

We should have left Javea about 3 weeks ago but as previously stated the weather keeps looking good. OK we had a couple of days where it went cold with a few showers but faced with the prospect of another drive further south or a return to a cold uk we just keep staying here. The semi final rugby with New Zealand was a great watch down at The  Geographic where there was a fab atmosphere and it was exciting watching the Liverpool v Tottenham game in the same place. The pool is due to close on 31st Oct, in a few days but to be honest its gone too cold to enjoy a swim in it, the sea is a much better option with temps still around 22c. We've had a few beach days lately and some good meals and drinks in the bar. The plan is to leave probably on Friday and start the journey home after stopping at Oropresa and Roses.

Camping Javea Liverpool Supporters Club (Bernie, Sue, Barb, Jim and Jackie.. The final result Liverpool 2 Spurs 1

A good night at the site bar to see Bernie and Sue off.

On Friday we said goodbye to our good neighbours Derek and Beryl. We enjoyed their company and shared a couple of nice meals down the port with them along with several early evening drinks. During one of these sessions Jonesy decided to do a dump on their pitch and fortunately they took this in their stride and will no doubt never forget us for this incident.
Jonesy hasn't been at his best recently and has paid another trip to the vets in Javea for an open sore on his neck and a skin irritation. He's responded well to the treatment but also appeared to have a flare up with his dodgy knee when he started crying during the night. However all in all we continue to have a really lovely time in Javea. The weather continues to be excellent with temps continuing around the 29c mark, however this is all set to change tomorrow when we expect temps to drop to 20c. The big match with Man utd is today and we will be 'up for cup' later when we march into the port to watch it at the Cheers Bar down at the port.

Will we ever leave Javea.

The show continues folks, and so does the excellent weather, however it did get a little cold last night and this morning. We keep saying that we'll stay a little longer especially when we have those little magical moments. For example the other night when we went down to the Arenal beach to catch the last rays of the early evening sun whilst sipping pints of Mahou. Then last night we went down to the harbour area and had yet another meal at Ca Maria where we were served by the ever comedic Darius.  As we were eating, the moon slowly popped its head up over the horizon and slowly rose in the sky casting its silver pathway over the sea. A glorious moment and yet another scrumptious meal.         My rehabilitation back into tennis continues with the help of our neighbours Beryl (borrowed racquet) and Derek (doubles partner). After a half hour knock up the other day I agreed to an organised doubles match with Tony and Richard. The first game was surprisingly terminated at 2-6, 4-1 due to a rain shower, the first in over 5 weeks. However the rematch was today where we won convincingly 6-1, 6-2. A really good competitive game.                                                                                  Since the last post we also went to the Tapas festival last Friday night with Derek and Beryl. The harbour area was buzzing with street entertainers that included jazz and brass bands. People were as Martha sang....'Dancing in the street'. Another fab night and another reason for staying longer.

All I can say it that there was some action.

STILL IN JAVEA.

The excellent weather continues with every day being 29c. The reds keep winning, the sun is shining, the beer and the food is cheap and the sea is warm , so we are staying longer than intended. Jonesy celebrated his 4th birthday yesterday although we are not sure how he did it but he looked happy.

Javea

We've now had nearly 2 weeks in the fantastic Javea. 10 days were spent with Alex and Owen . We went out every night to some great eating places. laughing and joking our way through the 10 days. Unfortunately as we approach the so called golden age we tend  to produce more repeat stories than Dads Army but still we laughed with the occasional heated debates surrounding such delicate and devisive

topics of great national importance....ie whether I should get a new I phone or how important Cilla Black was to popular culture! The holiday was also memorable for two things...first Owen lost his phone and that was met with scorn from Alex despite the fact that I recovered it. Secondly Alex left his phone in the flat as they departed and that was met with scorn from Owen and again I stepped into the breach to recover it. However every picture tells a story so here we go....

Alcossebre to Javea

We spent a total of 5 nights at the Camper Stop in Alcossebre which worked out at 11 euros a night. The weather was comfortably warm apart from a storm one evening when it rained from 8pm until about 4am. We got off lightly as many parts of Spain were devastated by floods. The 4 day festival in Alcossebre culminated in an 11pm firework display on the Sunday night and although we didn't really get too involved in the activities we occasionally peeped into the temporary bull ring that had been build on the large carpark. It was all fun and stupidity as grown men ran out from behind the protective metal bars to tease the bull into chasing them back to their protective areas. One evening the lit the horns on a wooden bull and chased the little kids around the ring with this 'bull' on wheels. The sea was a bit rough and there were times when the lifeguards were not allowing people into the water. We had some meals out and made sure we had our San Miguel Selecta. A really good 5 days . However on the Tuesday(17 Sept) we left for Javea and met up with Alex and Owen on the Thursday.

Camper stop Alcossebre

Beach Alcossebre

Start of the Autumn trip to Spain

Saturday 7th September we boarded the Train at 1:20 and everything was on time so after a quick trip to Lidl we made it to the free Aire at Montreuil sur Mer where we had to use the overspill car park. By 7pm even that was full.
After an uneventful night we slipped off to the free Aire at Bonneval, a good location on a canal that seemed to circle the town like a wide moat.  The toilet is on the Aire and its worth noting that this closes for the evening opening again at 8am. The Aire is also outside the gates of a large medieval working Asylum. That was originally a monastery dating back to the 10th century.

After leaving Bonneval we headed to another of our favourite Aires at Vertuil sur Charente, south of Poitiers. a great aire in a charming village, with toilets and 16amp electricity , all for 2 euros. We visited this some years back and have pictures elsewhere. By early evening the Aire was full.
We then went on a lengthy journey planning to stop in Northern Spain but unfortunately the weather was dismal so we headed for the Rioja region to the famous town of Haro.
On arriving at Haro the temperature was an unseasonal 13c and our plans for a nice evening meal in the sun with a few glasses of Muga were scuppered. People weren't playing out and most of the bars and restaurants failed to open. So after a walk around it was the campsite restaurant that enjoyed our pockets of euros. A basic meal at a budget price then off to bed. The following morning I walked Jonesy around the famous Bodegas, A trip inside one of them especially the Muga owned one would have been nice but we were being drawn to warmer places.

Haro

The 'trouble' with crossing central Spain on this route is that you have few choices of good sites or Aires to stop at so we chose yet again an old favourite....Camping Lake Caspe. Our third time here and every time we come here we like it more. Its full of older people , mainly Germans who stop for months spending their days on their boats fishing. The pitches are spacious and facilities excellent, the entrance and turning places are expansive and I managed to get my first dip of the holiday in the nice big pool.  The temps were into the mid 20's and we enjoyed some nice walks topped off with a pint in the bar (3 euros) and a 3 course meal with a bottle of wine that cost 24 euros for the two of us.  This overnight stop gave us a distance of 113 miles to our next stop Alcossebre. Yes we always stay here because we like it.

Again we used the Camper Stop right in the town and since our last stop a couple of years ago its been further developed.  There are more pitches, most are also take an awning and each pitch has its own tap and powerful light that you control. They've even added a swimming pool. Cost 12 euros a night with elecky. Staying longer is cheaper and if you stay for 30 nights the price drops to  9 euros.  We plan to stay for about 4-5 nights as there is a big festival on in the town.

Alcossebre Camper Stop