Still in Brittany; it's still beautiful!

On Wednesday, after handing Francie her phone back (we charged it for her as she doesn’t have the luxury of a leisure battery), we swapped numbers and bid farewell.  As we’ve already seen her twice, we imagine we’ll probably cross paths again before our paths diverge at the Spanish border.

Beautiful Brittany

This morning we left the Pleslin and headed west to our next overnight stop.  We had planned to stop off at Cape Frehel en route but our camperstop guide had misinformed us that parking was free.  Having already put back up coordinates in the GPS, (which we’ve taken to calling Hazel), we admired the beautiful views on our way to Hillion.

Leaving Normandy

After yesterdays’ beautifully sunny day, we woke up to another stunner today.

We slept ‘downstairs’ last night as it was pretty chilly and we’re trying not to use the heating until we really need to.  Powell was grateful of the company we think, although I don’t think he appreciated having to share his space again.

Next Stop, Powell's Homeland...

 After leaving Pointe du Hoc on Friday, we had intended to drive across to Utah Beach, but due to a mix up with parking (vehicles higher than 2.2 metres no longer allowed!), we ended up missing it.  Tired from an emotional few days, we made our way to the nearest free stopover at Saint Sauveur le Vicomte.

D-Day Battlefield Tour

Wednesday saw the beginning of our time on the D Day coastline.  We crossed over the Pegasus Bridge on the way, with the intention of riding our bikes back to look at the museum.  Unfortunately, we didn’t make it back there though.

Biscuits at last!!

Can you tell where we shopped?!

Today we left St Jouin and headed south to Ouistreham, the start of the D Day beaches.  First stop was the enormous Carrefour in the centre commercial to pick up supplies.  Never go shopping when you’re hungry....

Biscuit hunt in Bruneval

You know when you could just eat something sugary, like a biscuit or some cake, but there’s nothing in the cupboards to satisfy the craving....?

Today we travelled to St Jouin Bruneval; a sleepy hollow of a village just outside Le Havre.  Not long after we arrived at the free aire, we decided we both fancied something sweet, but as we had nothing in, we set off with Powell to find a shop that sold biscuits.

St Valery en Caux

Today we drove 21 miles, to St Valery en Caux; a smaller, much nicer version of Dieppe.  The stopover was right on the harbour with views out to sea.

Dieppe

Tonight is our sixth night in France and we’re spending it in Dieppe.  The stopover is unfortunately not free, but at 7 euros, it's not exactly expensive and water is free, so we’ll be sure to top up before we leave tomorrow.

Cheesy cidre in Criel sur mer

After making the most of the free water opportunity, we headed to our fifth free overnight stop at Criel sur mer.  You might have noticed a distinct pattern in all of our stopovers so far.  We’ve decided to follow the coast more often than not, or at least until we get further south to warmer climes.

Breezy Berck sur mer

Thursday morning brought more wind and rain.  But it also brought us to Berck sur mer and another free stopover.  It wasn’t supposed to be free.  From what we could work out, it was supposed to be 10 euros until the end of October, but the ticket machine was out of order when we arrived and it was still out of order we left; bargain!

Montreuil....mmmm

After two relaxed but very rainy nights in Wissant, we headed south to Montreuil.  It used to be called Montreuil sur mer, but the estuary dried up years ago so I guess that’s why they dropped it.  Although judging from the amount of rain we’ve had, I wouldn’t be surprised if it filled up again soon!

Nous somme en France!

On Monday, we travelled the final 74 miles from Kelvedon Hatch to Folkestone.  After some last minute shopping at Pets at Home and Sainsbury’s, followed by some last minute administration for Pete, we were Eurotunnel bound.

One more sleep...

It’s hard to believe, after planting the seed of an idea over 18 months ago, the eve of our great European adventure has finally arrived. We’ve spent the last month living full time in Dora and she’s well and truly feeling like home; good job really, seeing as this is it for a good while!