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Published: November 28th 2022
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We drove the 6 hours to Newhaven and caught the 00:30 ferry across to Dieppe. A very busy ferry for the time of night and a lot of people must be regulars on this service as they had come equipped with pillows and blankets ready to grab some sleep on the 4 hour crossing, we managed to get a comfy chair and managed a few decent hours kip. Arriving in Dieppe at 5:30am it was dark and chucking it down so we headed south through Rouen and pulled into an aire-de-service just outside Dreux and slept for 3 hours. Feeling a bit more lively we continued our journey and arrived in Chartres around lunchtime. I checked us into the campsite where the reception staff were very helpful and sorted the van electric, water etc whilst Mel made some lunch. After a chilled afternoon we walked into the centre of town at 8pm. Chartres is famous for it’s light show ‘Chartres en lumieres’. The UNESCO Notre Dame de Chartres cathedral and 20 other buildings in the city are lit up externally every night from 9pm to midnight for 9 months of the year. We walked the 20 mins to the Cathedral and
waited with the crowd, at 9.20pm the light show started and for 30 minutes the cathedral was lit with an animated show of the history of Chartres it was very clever. We walked the city for the rest of the night viewing at least another 15 monuments and buildings all lit up in glorious colour. The city itself is nice and deserves another visit during the day, we’d definitely recommend a trip to see the light shows.
Leaving Chartres around 11am and heading south-east across France we drove down passed Orleans, Gien, Auxerre, Avallon and through the picturesque Morvan area before reaching Dijon, the campsite in Dijon is in the city itself and is perfect for a visit but it was fully booked, there was an event on in the city and with it being a Saturday it was full, so plan B was to drive south to Auxonne and to a campsite 20 miles away. This site was quiet and alongside the river Soane, it was now 7pm so we settled in, Mel knocked up a Bolognese and we watched a DVD.
A nice hot morning so we chilled then after lunch we caught the train from
Auxonne into Dijon 20 minutes away. Dijon is the Gastronomy city of France and celebrates this with festivals, fairs and even and has a vegetable garden in the middle of the city. The old town is very picturesque with buildings dating back to roman times but most are from the 18
th century in the gothic style. There are loads of restaurants and cafes as you would imagine and on a Sunday in September the squares and streets were full with people dining out in the sunshine. We had a few drinks then ate steaks in the Laura Grill which we’d seen back in April, home on the train and crashed out by 11. If you are a foodies then a weekend here is well worth it.
Heading south via Dole, Poligny and Bourg-en-basse we arrived at Lac de Bourget and to the campsite on the lake edge. We checked in and set up and as it was 31 degrees so we sat on the pebble beach for the rest of the day. The following morning I went for a cycle ride to the north end of the lake (30 miles) and after lunch I persuaded Mel to cycle into
Aix Les Bains on the fold up bikes we’d bought. The cycle path on the lake edge is great and easy to navigate so we took a slow ride into the town for a drink and a look around then back to the site and on the beach again for a swim in the lake as it was again 30 degrees. Tea and Mel hammering me at cards and an early night as we were knackered.
Another gloriously sunny day in the Alps and we were off the site by 0930 and on our way passed Chambery, Grenoble and down towards Sisteron. The scenery was stunning, I think the best drive we’ve ever done in the van. We stopped off for lunch in the beautiful Trieves region and arrived in Volonne at camping Sunelia around 2pm. The campsite is very smart, the pool complex has 3 pools, slides, jacuzzi and a very nice restaurant, the toilet/shower facilities are excellent, they look brand new and were very clean. We got parked up on a pitch alongside the river Durance and then went to the pool for an afternoon swim, the sun had disappeared but it was still warm until tea
time when the thunder came. After a quick downpour we went to the restaurant for tea and watched a DVD to round off the day.
Leaving Volonne at 10am we drove the N85 through stunning countryside again, through Digne, Castellane and Grasse before arriving at our caravan in Biot near Antibes. We were there to drop some decorating stuff off for when we returned in November. Once we had dumped the gear we sat by the pool for the afternoon, we caught up with friends on site and had a quiet night in.
That’s the drive down now the next stop is Italy and onto the Italian Lakes
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