Abbey Wood Caravan Club Site, London, Sunday 6^th November.

 

No, the wind didn’t get up – but the rains came and beat upon that cliff-top and the motorhomes that stood thereon. So the hope that THEY might get up and take some lovely photos was not realised. But they did take piccies as it was, through the drizzle.

 

 

The black dots are birds. There were even people in the water, though it was difficult to see which hobby they were being schooled in – there wasn’t much surf:

 

While they were having breakfast, there was a knock on the door and a man in a rather intimidating uniform (DOUANE) asked for the €5.10 for parking on the aire overnight. That’s how it’s done, though HE said he preferred the nice young lady in Coulon last year …

They left the cliff top at about 11 am and we made our way up to the motorway (free) and stopped at L’Epitre, the service area to which they had retreated that windy night a month ago, just for old time’s sake, as it were, …. and some pain au chocolat .

 

We got to Dunkirk in very good time, with no ferry in sight, but they checked in and sat on the quayside having coffee and pastries. The ship did arrive eventually and achieved a very quick turn-around so that we sailed more or less on time.

 

I heard THEY treated themselves to a good lunch during the crossing, then just outside Dover, where the weather was no better than it had been in France, they tried to book into Maidstone Caravan Club Site, but it was full because of a big firework display at Leeds Castle. So we drove on to London and Abbey Wood. Apparently THEY thought they’d been there before, but they hadn’t; they were thinking of Sevenoaks – a mistake anyone could make!

Once installed, HE created goodness-knows-what as a supper, bunging ALL the left-overs he could find into a pan, heating it all through and topping it with some bacon, mushrooms and a fried egg. Hmmm …

 

GARTH VIEW, Sunday evening 6^th November.  Doing without breakfast, in the expectation of a Full English at Thurrock Services got us on the road about an hour earlier than usual. An easy route provided by the site got us to the M25 and eventually we got through the traffic on the roundabouts after the Dartford Tunnel and into the services so that they could have the anticipated breakfast. Next stop, London Colney for fuel before taking the former M10 and the M1 – SHE drove this section through to Corley on the M6. Weather improving steadily so that we had one of the best sunsets of the whole trip! One more stop – Forton / Lancaster for supper from BURGER KING (the joys of British catering!), and but for the fog in the last section, after Shap, we would have arrived at Garth View before 8pm, instead of just after. That was 518 kms (300+ miles) today, and 1798kms since leaving Labenne.  

 

So we’re back home, then?

Yep.

It’s quite a good place to be.

It is – and Cumbria has the best weather in the country tomorrow.

 It’s cold, though.

 It is; it may freeze tonight. They’re going to put me in the garden and leave some heat on.

 So that’s it – bye, then!

 Goodnight, little car!

 Goodnight, big van. Thanks for taking me over there.

 It’s been fun – let’s do it again, soon.

 Yes – tell THEM. Bonsoir!

 Fais de beaux rêves ….