Geo: 43.5531, -6.12948On Monday morning we moved on to the next province along the coast to Asturias through some beautiful, lush green landscapes - you can see why they call it the Costa Verde - our destination being the picturesque coastal town of Cudillero, though our base is actually at Aronces a little further beyond. The final approach instructions for arriving at Camping Cudillero state clearly that caravans and motorhomes should not approach through the town itself and on driving through by car later it is clearly evident why due to the steep, narrow, cobbled streets.Our email enquiry about availability of a suitable pitch had gone unanswered but thankfully there was plenty of space as we arrived around midday, to a surprisingly frosty welcome from the young woman at reception. However, we were soon setting up ... read more

Geo: 42.7628, -9.07343This year we have pretty much stuck to our intended clockwise route around the Iberian peninsula but the area I had least planned was northern Spain, with the exception of the Picos de Europa mountain range - a 'must see', we had both agreed. This was partly due to not knowing how long we would be able to devote to exploring the area and also the weather, which can be changeable. Indeed, as we drove northwards the cloud cover was low, the first rain we had seen in six weeks appeared on the windscreen and a layer of 'Scotch mist' was hovering over the indented coast as we neared our next destination.When asked, one of our fellow travellers at Quinta Chave Grande who knew Galicia told us about Muros, and we are presently pitched ... read more

Geo: 40.824, -7.69385Before relating details of our long excursion yesterday, a bit more about day-to-day life here at Camping Chave Grande.What sets this site above the level of many that we have used over the years is that our hosts, Lidia and Jorge go the extra mile in creating the best experience possible for their clients. Take Sunday, for instance, when we went to the evening buffet of Portuguese 'cold table' - a wide selection of delicious cold meats, cheeses, artisan bread, honey and the equivalent, I guess, of our chutney which looked like sliced jelly! This time, our fellow guests were French (a young family of five plus a couple nearer our age who later proudly showed David his Land Rover Defender - boys and their toys) and a Danish family, the latter are clearly ... read more

Geo: 39.6378, -8.33616We're on Day 57 already and still more than a month to go. I booked the return ferry a couple of weeks ago, so I shall dose myself with Stugeron since it is the 24-hour crossing from Santander in northern Spain into Portsmouth and I don't sail well. At least it will give us more time to explore Spain and Portugal rather than using a week to take the slower route up through France to one of the Channel ports.However, back to more current matters, on Sunday, we reluctantly said goodbye to the lovely people we had met in just a few days at Camping Alentejo, hitting the road yet again in a northerly direction for Tomar and arrived at Camping Pelinos 77 just after lunch.Although I study websites and all the wonderful resources ... read more

Geo: 37.1026, -8.73425After heeding the suggestion of a British-born owner of a gift shop in Praia de Luz, yesterday we headed for the hills, or the Serra de Monchique to be precise in order to find the alternative Portugal. Once off the initial bit of motorway, the road meandered uphill through pine and eucalyptus clad hills before turning in a westerly direction south of Monchique itself. The route along the ridge went through little hamlets with panoramic views down to the Algarve Coast in the distance. At a fitting viewpoint we stopped for coffee to take in the scene from the terrace, with citrus trees below. The only other customers were two Dutch guys out for a ride from the coast on their motorcycles, as ever speaking excellent English, the conversation mainly revolving around football, such ... read more