Vive la France ! Here we come

Tuesday 22nd August 2023

Tomorrow we leave our rather unpredictable wet and windy English summer and head across the channel into France.

Destination was going to be unknown apart from getting to Calais and turning left or right depending upon the weather forecast.

But Lauren and Chloe have a week in Portugal booked so it seems like a nice plan to arrange to meet up with them for a few days.

It also links in well with a long planned trip I already had in mind to travel to the Basque Country in northern Spain towards Santiago de Compostela then south to Porto.

So an opportunity to go a little further south to where they would be seems a shame to miss.

I've got a bit of a plan for some places to visit as we bimble down through France and I hope to have a week or so in the Dordogne and Lot regions.

Then cross the Pyrenees for some mountain scenery and into Spain.

That's the plan then . . . .  let's see where fate takes us to ?

I booked an early Tunnel crossing 0520 tomorrow, it seemed like a good idea at the time to save a few quid, but now the time has arrived, getting up so early it's not so appealing, ah well.

At least we'll be early into France, I'll probably just drive for half an hour from Calais then find a beach for a walk to stretch our legs and give Louis a run.

I'd forgotten how much I dislike driving that journey from home, around Birmingham, then around London on the M6 and M25 carparks. 

What a nightmare.

Anyway we made it to a beautiful overnight parkup at Farthing Common just 20 minutes to the channel tunnel terminal.

Farthing Common is the highest point on the North Downs at 285 metres above sea level so there are great views over the Kent countryside.

We're also on an old Roman Road, Stone Street which originally ran to Canterbury.

I wonder who Willaim Gammon was ?

Evening walk over Farthing Common