France - Day 32

A long drive today. First we went to Morrisons in High Wycombe to use their toilets, then headed north, setting off about 9.

For lunch we stopped at a service station at Lancaster on the M6 and had some Greggs pastries.

We had a further stop at Killington Lake services.

At Beattock over the border the M74 was closed because of an accident, but we luckily managed to get off at the junction before the closure without too much queueing.

After about a 12 mile diversion we got back on, and the rest of the journey was uneventful.

We arrive home about 5pm.

France - Day 31

Our ferry was at 5pm today, so we packed up the campervan and went for a last stroll round the site.

It's a big activity area, with watersports, treetop trail, beach, sports hall etc.

We then drove to Dieppe, stopping at a large shopping centre to buy wine etc.

We also had lunch in a restaurant there, Scott had an all-you-can-eat salad, and Shirley had steak Charolais.

We then drove to the seafront and parked and went for a walk.

At about 3 we headed for the ferry terminal and joined the queue.

We were loaded on to the ferry on time, and left Oscar in the van as before. On the ferry we had sandwiches which we'd taken on board.

The ferry docked in Newhaven on time, and we disembarked pretty quickly. Oscar still seemed fairly settled so we carried on driving for a bit, finally stopping at a car park on the outskirts of High Wycombe just before midnight.

The car park was a bit noisy with cars of locals but we did get a few hours sleep.

France - Day 30

We walked from the site today, first down to the lake and along a road separating 2 lakes. In the other lake there was gravel dredging going on.

We went round the circumference of the lake, then up through a picturesque hamlet to a forest.

After a long walk through the forest, we came upon a tiny chapel.

We then went to the bank of the Seine via the village of Jumieges.

We watched the free car ferry for a bit while we had our lunch.

We then slowly made our way back to the site. At one point we had to backtrack as we'd walked down a dead end track.

Later for dinner we had our last barbecue, chicken thighs, onions, red pepper new potatoes and beetroot salad.

France - Day 29

 A day of admin and travelling today.

First we took Oscar to the vet for his worming tablet. Despite our pessimism, Oscar swallowed his tablet no problem, and we got the Animal Health Certificate signed.

We drove on, stopping for a brie baguette for lunch, until we reached a supermarket at Rouen, having negotiated rush hour traffic. We got groceries and diesel.

We then headed to the bank of the river Seine, and checked in to Camping du Lac for 2 nights. From here it's only and hour to Dieppe so no worries for the final day on Thursday.

We had a stroll down to the lake.

For dinner we had pasta with local sausage and tomato sauce.

France - Day 28

We decided to start heading north today. We packed up and left the site, stopping at a supermarket just outside Moulins for provisions. We then drove on to the town of Bonny-sur-Loire where we'd identified a potential vet for Oscar's required worming tablet. We were able to make an appointment for 11am the next day.

We checked in to a campsite just up the road at Châtillon-sur-Loire, Camping municipal des Combles.

We went for a walk across the Loire into the village, had a look round and headed back via the Old Port.

On the way back there was a little plage on the Loire where Oscar could have a dip.

For dinner we had a barbecue of beef skewers, mushrooms, tomatoes, beetroot salad and new potatoes.

France - Day 27

We walked from the site today, first into Ferrières village where there's a historic wash house on the river.

We passed an old waterwheel and a little chateau in the village.

We walked along country tracks to the ruined Montgilbert chateau. It was interesting wandering around it.

We completed the circular walk. It was very hot today, up to 35 degrees, so it was good when we had shaded bits in the forest, and also a river so Oscar could have a dip.

We had a barbecue later - pork, mushrooms, courgette, peppers and new potatoes.

We had a stroll round the fishing lake just next to the camp site.

France - Day 26

We left the site and drove east, stopping on the way at E LeClerc for provisions and diesel. We were heading for the Montagne Bourbonnaise area of the Auvergne, a much quieter area away from the congestion of the Tour de France.

At the village of Lavoine we parked near the town hall. There was a quirky water clock in the square, but it seemed to be under repair.

We walked from the village towards a rocky outcrop called Rocher Saint Vincent.

Once we got there we stopped for lunch, and had a wander round the various viewpoints and statues.

We then circled back on forestry tracks. It was very hot today, and we were glad to get back to Lavoine where we had an ice cream at the café.

We drove to Ferrières-sur-Sichon and set ourselves up in the campsite Le Galizan. It was near a river so we took Oscar for a dip.

The office didn't open till later, when we paid for 2 nights at the very reasonable price (just over 10 euros per night including electricity).

For dinner we had salad with chicken and walnuts.

Later we had a spectacular moth in the campervan. Turns out it's a white plume moth.