Moving a step further south from the Loire to La Rochelle

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Packed up the motorhome and manoevred it round so we could attach the trailer onto the back and then load the Smart Car on that. Slowest part is attaching the straps round each wheel but now we have good set of straps again we did that with more confidence.

Another gorgeous day when we woke and the forecast is for pretty amazingly hot for at least the next week. We did pass under a rain cloud a few miles further south but nothing much and the sky soon turned bright blue again. This area of the country is very flat. Green or golden fields and now plenty of vineyards and not much opportunity for photos which need height when taken on the move. We have driven along the route before. I could tell this as I keep a road atlas in the door pocket in case Tomtom misbehaves and sends us on shortcut / ratruns. Several of the small towns we passed through are already circled on the map in pencil.

Realised that in fact we did stay at the last campsite in June 2016 on the way to the Ile de Re. A single night stop which I discovered when checking my blog on here for that June holiday to find out when we went to La Rochelle.

A pretty straightforward dirve. We avoided Angers and drove through the suburbs then over the Loire and on our way south.Took a couple of detours when the roads were unclearly marked and that usually means driving along narrower roads than we prefer but all was well and we arrived at the campsite on the outskirts of La Rochelle mid afternoon. Being Sunday the traffic was light as trucks not allowed on the roads.

Easy check in to campsite. No problem bringing the car in as well. We do have to get the number plate registered usually so we can drive it in and out through number plate recognition barriers. Pitch is pretty ideal for us. Plenty of space for all the wheeled things,,, motorhome, trailer and car. Awning out in the shade as we know it is going to be hot so need a shady spot to sit. There is a lovely shady tree above the motorhome sun side and we were pleasantly surprised to find that everything stayed reasonably cool even when the temperature was up at 30 degrees. Cooking is a trial usually when it's hot inside but so far so good. Not needed the fan trained on my face as I cook yet.

Absolutely had to try the pool and it was lovely. Proper deep water for the first time 1.7m so couldn't stand up and had to swim. Just what was needed. Then a dry in the sun on a sunbed. I will be repeating that tomorrow . Settled here happily for 5 nights in all.

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