With high summer fast approaching this part of the world, we left Oslo and drove west over the border into Sweden to what was instantly a much softer landscape. Endless forests still covered the horizon but it no longer felt quite so raw. The mountains had changed to rolling hills and the wider roads meant that we could enjoy more of the scenery; no longer the intense concentration that Norway demanded. Whilst in Denmark, we had chatted with a Dutchman who gave us loads of information about free overnight parking stops in Sweden, so we hoped that Sweden would be the [View Full Entry]

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Catching the ferry from Hirtshals on the northern coast of Jutland, we left a hot and sunny Denmark behind and began the eighteen hour crossing to Bergen in Norway. The vehicle deck was closed off during the crossing so after checking out our pre-booked “sleeperette” seats (similar to airplane seats), we bagged ourselves a sunny position out on deck and tried to while away the hours. The first part of the journey was endless sea views but the scenery started to get exciting as we made the first port of call at Stavanger in Norway. Even here just before midnight, it [View Full Entry]

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Its been a few months since our last blog and we have managed to put a few thousand kilometres on the clock in between updates. Whilst we don’t have an exact travel plan, we had a vague notion of heading towards Eastern Europe before heading up to Scandinavia for the summer. However, our extended visit to Portugal combined with our vehicle battery problems made us alter this rough route. We decided to head directly north with a quick detour back to the UK to pick up new batteries, stock up on a few favourites and a new supply of books. Heading [View Full Entry]

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The torrential rain continued for our first few days back as we left Algeciras for Cadiz on the west coast of Spain. Adjusting back to the European way of life, we spent a week re-acclimatising. It seemed quiet without the call to prayer every few hours and the hustle and bustle of everyday Moroccan life with nobody accosting you to sell you something. To escape the continuing rain, we decided to head for Portugal and arrived to brilliant sunshine and warmth. We first visited Portugal two years ago and wanted to return to spend more time here. We entered the eastern [View Full Entry]

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Making an early exit from Mergouza to avoid the Bonbon posse who greeted us on arrival, we bumped out over the rough roads and north towards Meski, our next destination. We drove through the lush Ziz Valley with its extensive palmeries and oasis and arrived at Meski to stay at the Source Bleu, a natural spring named after the ultra blue shade of the water. Parked at the source, we were immediately initiated into the carpet selling world by the stall holders who gathered at this tourist spot. Given a plastic outdoor carpet to “try out” during our stay there (forcibly [View Full Entry]

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Heading back in the general direction of Agadir to try and sort out the Van’s import paperwork (again), we made a couple of detours after leaving Fort Bou Jerif. We first headed east to the Oasis at Ait-Bekkou. Having got lost in the confusing roads of Guelmin with its lack of signage, we finally found the right road and arrived at the Oasis. This is one of the last remaining Oasis in the area and is lush with Palm trees and waterways. We explored the oasis on bike and got chatting to a local boy who was eager to try out [View Full Entry]

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Next stop Morocco - After buying our tickets from the legendary Carlos and stocking up on pork, booze and cheese at Lidl, we left at 8 o’clock the next morning, heading for the port at Algeciras for our ferry to Tangier. As we drove into the Port entrance, we got our first taste of what was to come. The snaking queue of vehicles waiting to enter the check-in area started amicably enough but soon descended into a free-for-all when three lanes of traffic tried to merge into one and we all ground to a halt. When our tickets were finally inspected [View Full Entry]

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After an extended sojourn at Mimizan Plage, we had to move on before we lost all momentum, so we headed for Biarritz. Free parking and electricity at the camperstop if you successfully avoided the police on their irregular rounds to collect the fees. Last stop in France at St.Pee sur Neville at the lakeside and then into Spain. First Stop - Burgos - looking for somewhere to Park we pulled up by the Monastery, followed by another English couple who were also looking for somewhere to stay. We walked around town to see if there was anywhere better and decided to [View Full Entry]

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With the Inverter safely installed we left the campsite fully working again and headed for Mont St Michel. With no high tide due, we were able to park just below the Abbey. We looked around the Abbey and lanes during the day, and then wandered back up at night to discover a much more atmospheric place, without the tourists and the gift shops closed; you could really imagine what it would have been like in medieval times. Following the Brittany coastline, next stop was Brest to go to the Oceanopolis, we both agreed that it wasn't as good as the Aquarium [View Full Entry]

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Despite a last minute panic getting the insurance documents and tax for the motorbikes, we did get away as planned on Sunday 12th October. After a very calm evening crossing, we drove off the ferry and into a deserted Cite Europe carpark to overnight before stocking up at Carrefour the next day. Driving down to Bologne on Monday afternoon, we stopped at the camperstop on the Quay front overnight and had a look around the old town. Eager to watch Corrie on Monday night, we tried to put the Satellite dish up only to encounter a sparking inverter. Switched it off [View Full Entry]

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