18th September 2009

We took the N1 road out of Paris after first spending about half an hour trying to find a petrol station that would have room for a large van.  It's more difficult than you think, as they won't let you use the truck area, or don't have one, and there are height barriers on all the exits, so you need to be very careful that before you drive in, you can get out again.

It took as about four hours to get to Calais so we arrived at 1:45pm and were able to join the queue of waiting vehicles.  As we had arrived early (we’d originally booked for next Monday) we had to pay an extra €7 which wasn't as bad as we thought it might be.  We made lunch in the van whilst we were on the train, arrived at Folkestone and drove straight to Blackhorse Farm campsite again.

I made a vegetable curry for dinner and I played my DS and went on my laptop.  Paul was ages on the phone to 3 again trying to get the £20 back from the cancelled dongle contract.  I must say it's nice to be in England again, I've had enough of staying on campsites now, and we're both looking forward to part two of our trip next year.  Italy in comfort.

We're off to Luton and Watford to look at two S type Jaguars, hope we can find a decent one.  Then we have to find a suitable property to rent in Tavistock.  Paul has seen a couple but we need to visit the estate agents and register with them before we can arrange a viewing.

I won't be writing in this journal every day, just when interesting events happen like buying the car or finding a house.  I'll start it all again when we commence our trip to Italy next year.

Some Notes on our Final Europe Tour

We’d driven another 2,300 miles, stopped in some really nice campsites, seen a lot of Germany and a bit of Austria and also had to suffer the state of some of the French campsites.
We met a lot of really interesting people.  Of all the nationalities we met, the Dutch came out tops as the most friendly, and the most accepting of us Brits.  The Germans were also nice but as I couldn't speak their language, I felt less comfortable with them.  The Dutch have to speak good English because nobody else in Europe speaks Dutch.  Ha ha!

17th September 2009

We left the campsite and drove for ages trying to find a site that offered the ACSI rate and was still open.  We found one at lunchtime, but it was under a load of trees and we couldn't get a signal so we drove on.  We stopped by the roadside and ate lunch of French bread, cheese ham and tomatoes which was nice, and then headed on to a site on the outskirts of Paris.

Camping Club Parc du Paris

The campsite is the Camping Club du Parc de Paris and I think it's horrible but it's the only one near here and it's now 5pm so we'll have to stay.  We both went for a shower as we didn't have one this morning, and it was disgusting.  They smell of urine, and the gutters for the water to run away, are filled with dead flies, moths and other brown stuff.  The water is either scalding or freezing, nothing in between.  I think everybody should camp in France and see what it's like; it would really open their eyes.  We’re going to leave early tomorrow morning and see if we can make it to Calais in time for a Eurotunnel train.  As it's not the time we booked we will probably have to pay extra, but it will be worth it!  Paul's just gone off to get WiFi which is €4 for one hour, what a rip off!  However, we need to book the tunnel and we're trying to locate a Jaguar for when we get back so we'll just have to pay it.

16th September 2009

We left the campsite quite early, goodbye Germany, see you again soon, and headed into France.  We are in the Alsace region which is quite different.  That's what Paul says is fascinating about France, it can be so different depending on which area you go to. We’re heading for a campsite called Camping Du Lac which as the name indicates is by a lake, so might be nice.  I'm not looking forward to French toilets and showers again though!

Bye Germany - hello France!

We stopped on the way to get some shopping at a Leclerc and had our favourite lunch, pizza followed by chocolate cake with Crème Anglais mmm delicious.  We arrived at the campsite and I did some washing and then checked out the loos, which were gross.

Camping Du Lac in Alsace

I then cooked some dinner.  Ha ha I just said something stupid and it made Paul laugh.  Whenever I put the oven on, it makes Paul's mouse jump about on the screen.  He said, ‘oh that sometimes happens when you get electrical interference.’  ‘But’, I said, ‘the oven is gas!’  He roared and said yes, but the igniter's electric isn't it?  Doh! I'm so blond sometimes.

15th September 2009

Another rainy day and we were stuck in the van all day again.  We've had a long talk and decided to go back home, well to the UK.  We've got to the stage where the weather isn't very good, it's dark early in the evenings now, a lot of the campsites are closing down for the season, and come November we will have to tax and re-insure the van for another year as well as renew our Caravan Club and other memberships, so it's really decision time.

We've had a great time, but all we seem to be doing now is drive to a campsite, sit in the van all day and then move on to another.  It might have been better, with hindsight, for us to have bought a caravan and car as we could have driven off to see places rather than sitting around, but it's the one thing that isn't so easy to do when you have a 27 foot long van to park and manoeuvre everywhere.  I feel a bit sad that our adventure is coming to an end, but we’ve spent nearly six months travelling which is a hell of a lot more than we both thought we’d do.  We've seen some great things and magnificent countryside like the Sierra Nevada, Algarve, Glencoe and the Mosel valley.

The plan is to go back to the UK, buy a car, maybe an S type Jaguar, rent somewhere to live and sell the motorhome (shame) and after the new year, maybe in April, go to Italy by car and stay in hotels and see some of the sites we’d have tried to go to in the van, like the Trevi Fountain, Rome, Florence and so on.  So at least we have something to look forward to, and I have the added bonus of being back near my family as we’ve decided we’ll try and find a property near Tavistock in Devon.

We’ve under spent our budget on this trip and provided we can get a decent price for the van, we could afford to do another trip next year. Paul has sorted out a route home and we'll leave tomorrow and hopefully be back in the UK by next Monday.

We both spent the day online and I did some more editing of my book.

14th September 2009

We didn't do much today as it was still raining so we sat in the van and I played MK and AC and Paul read his book.  I made bacon and eggs for dinner and we watched some TV as Paul has been able to get a good satellite signal over in this part of Germany.

13th September 2009

Today is our tenth wedding anniversary.  We both got up and headed for the showers and when we returned we opened our anniversary cards.  Aww Paul's is one of those really lovely Art Deco ones.  We went down to reception to sign in as we didn't have time last night, and then we sat in the van and went on-line as they have free WiFi hooray!

As they also have what looks like a nice restaurant, we decided to have a celebration lunch so we got ready and walked down to the restaurant.  It was a typical ‘Stube’, rustic wood and loads of flowers in baskets everywhere.

Campsite "Rustic" restaurant our 10th Anniversary

Paul had a venison steak and I had a pork steak which was nice but too big and a little under-cooked for my liking, but it was very good food.  It’s obviously popular with the locals as well, as it was packed.  At one point and elderly lady came and asked Paul if she and two other people could share our table.  Paul explained that we were celebrating our anniversary and would sooner be alone.  She didn't seem too pleased but I don't want to share my table with a bunch of strangers all talking German thank you!

We went back to the van and had a snooze as we’d been drinking Champagne and wine and I'm no good drinking at lunchtimes, it just gives me a headache.

12th September 2009

We've decided to head back into Germany, and to try and find a nice site over near the French border.  I suppose we should have done this yesterday instead of going through all the bloody hassle with the Go-Box. There are no other English people on this site, so nobody to talk to, we can't get a TV signal, it's raining again and I don't want to sit inside the van all day with nothing much to do.  This doesn't matter too much in the summer but it now gets dark about 6pm and you can't sit outside when it's like this. We tried to get our money back for the internet card, but the woman wouldn’t give it to us. Horrible cow.

We obviously wouldn’t get to see Italy or Switzerland as we had originally planned, but could do that maybe next spring when the weather is likely to be a bit better.

So! we won't be going in this direction then?

We drove for about nine hours in all today, a large chunk of it being spent trying to get our money back from the Go-Box.  The first garage didn't sell them, the second, which was about 40 miles inside the German border, did and said we would get a credit for €56 which means our little detour into Austria had cost us €24 or about £20!!  What with the woman at the campsite refusing to give us back the money for the internet access we didn't use, our impression of Austria was not altogether good!!  Now we have to check our bank and see if we do get the money back on the Go-Box.  I won't hold my breath!

We arrived at the new campsite which is situated in the triangle where the borders with Switzerland, Germany and France meet near to Basel and Mulhouse.  It's a nice site although we couldn't see very much of it as it was nearly dark.  If it's as nice as it looks, we'll stay for a week.  Poor Paul is absolutely knackered, I felt sorry for him having to drive all that way as he's still suffering with a cold and needs to have a rest.

Lug Insland Erlebnis camping Bad Bellingen

11th September 2009

Paul complained about the internet this morning as sure enough, the time was running out all night so we didn't even get 2 hours access let alone 24.  They gave us our money back. I can't believe we're the only ones that complain, so why do they charge in this way?

We’re moving on to Austria now but before we enter Austria we have to find someone who issues these ‘Go-Boxes’ which is how they charge for tolls in Austria for vehicles over 3.5 tons.  They’re supposed to be available in all fuel stops on the highway but the first one we stopped at didn't sell them, the second did sell them but their system was down so they couldn't issue them and then we finally found a huge service area that did them.

They told us that they would charge €80 for the unit and Paul nearly choked.  He said but we only want to go through Austria to Switzerland and that's about 160 kilometres (Probably about €20 in tolls) but the man said sorry that's the minimum amount you can load on the unit.  We asked what do you do when you leave Austria and want to get the unused part back.  He said you can stop at any service station and they will credit you back the money.  It all sounded a bit chancy to me so we said we'll think about it and drove to the next service station!

Paul was getting a bit worried as we were already in Austria and we could end up being fined if we were stopped for not having paid the tolls.  This place also didn't sell them but a young guy at the petrol pumps said that the next one along the road did and he very helpfully drove ahead of us and asked the people to give us a unit.  They also said ‘minimum amount €80’ and we almost blew up.  We thanked the young guy and had to pay the money and take the unit, we didn't have any other choice.  Finally, after having paid the money the garage had a power failure and the computer system wouldn't work so he had to give Paul the money back and we drove to the next service area where finally, they gave us the bloody Go-Box, ironic name really, it should be, Stop-Box.  What a palaver.

I think my impression of Austria is already diminishing by the minute although I have to say the countryside is beautiful, mountains and castles all along the highway.

Entering Austria

Austrian Schloss

Camping Seehof at Kramsach Austria

We finally arrived at Camping Seehof near Kramsach around 6pm and we had a really nice welcome.  The campsite owner came out to meet our van and shook hands with Paul and then showed us where to pitch.  This was right beside a pretty Tyrolean house where the showers are located.  Everything is very clean and tidy, just like German campsites.

Paul tried to get a TV signal but could only get German and Italian TV down here which was a shame.  We’d bought internet access, but couldn’t get anything either, so all in all, not a great evening. We had something to eat and then went to bed and read for a while.  It seemed to rain all night and only stopped in the morning. 

10th September 2009

The weather is on the turn so we think we'll leave today and press on towards Austria.  Paul really wants me to see some mountains but I'm not that keen if it means going on little roads with massive drops at the side.  He's told me we'll be going on motorways and we will have to buy a special tag to fix in the front of the van which clocks our mileage and charges us the toll.  Not sure how this all works!

We found a Real supermarket so stopped for provisions and bought a couple of rolls for lunch.  We then drove to a campsite near Fussen.  On the way we saw the wonderful castle Hohenschwangau and took some pictures.

Schloss Hohenschwangau in Bavaria

The campsite is the Via Claudia and overlooks a pretty lake and had a few swarms of midges which worried me.  However, the showers and toilets were, as usual, in very good condition so we decided to stop at least for one night.

Camping Via Claudia

We paid €5 for a 24 hour internet access card but we are suspicious that the 24 hours runs from the moment you log in and continues even if you're not using it.  It's such a con this internet access business, but not as much as in France.


We couldn't watch TV as Paul couldn't get a satellite signal, I fear we are too far south now and won't be able to get a signal anymore with the size of dish we have.

9th September 2009

Another hot day, we can't believe how lucky we are with the weather for September.  I sat in the van and did some editing and after a while I went and sat outside with Paul.  It's almost too hot now, I've had to put a sun hat on and some sun block on my nose and chin.  I'll do sandwiches again for lunch although we are sitting here munching pretzels we bought yesterday.  I'll go back inside in a while and play AC or we might walk up to reception and check emails again.  It's so nice not doing very much and enjoying the good weather although I do get a bit bored and restless after a while doing nothing.  It's a good job I have my laptop and my card making stuff.

I finished reading a book yesterday, ‘Twenties Girl’ by Sophie Kinsella.  It was really good and goes to my favourite books list at number three I think.

8th September 2009

Because we’re staying here, we needed some food and things so we disconnected cables from the van and after asking an elderly German couple behind us if they would guard our cables and satellite dish etc, we drove to a nearby Aldi.  The German couple were very puzzled at our attitude about looking after things, they said, ‘nobody will try and take anything from your pitch so don't worry, it's not like that here in Germany.’  We managed to get most of what we wanted except for water where they only had the little bottles and again and you had to pay a deposit on the bottles.

We got back to the van and cooked ourselves hamburgers and then sat out in the sun all afternoon.  We had sandwiches for our dinner and then watched Eastenders and Holby on TV.

7th September 2009

We're going to stay here for a while as it's a nice campsite and the weather is good, the showers are great and they have internet.  We walked up to reception to use the WiFi and collected our email and after some lunch we sat outside.  I made some cards and Paul read.  I heard the noise of an engine in the sky and when I looked up there was an airship floating along.  Paul said it was a Zeppelin and had come from their factory on the lake at Friedrichshafen.  I was fascinated as I've never seen an airship before.  Apparently you can go up on a flight, but looking at the little passenger compartment underneath, there’s no way you’d get me in that!

Zeppelin airship near Salem

Later, in the evening we got ready and walked up to the restaurant where we met some other English people and we all sat together on a large table and had dinner.  I had a Pork Schnitzel with chips and Paul had the same but with noodles. It took a long time to arrive as I think the woman on reception is also the cook.  But although I didn't like it much, Paul said it was very good.  We were invited back to one of the other couple's caravan for coffee, but we declined, and got back to our van a little tipsy after a good few glasses of wine.

6th September 2009

We got up and ate our breakfast outside and then walked up to the reception area where there’s free Wifi. On the way we spotted a free pitch so we shot back to the van, packed up and took it up to the new pitch.  It was much better there and we were within easy walking distance of the showers and reception, and away from the dog walk path too!

We checked emails and did some other computer stuff.

We went back to the van and I vacuumed inside, Paul tried to set up the satellite dish but we were now a long way south and the signal was interrupted by trees on the hillside.  Paul said it's a good thing we bought the signal meter as it's a bit more precise and easier to set up.  He finally managed to get a reasonable signal, so at least we could watch TV.

It was very hot today so we sat outside although I needed to be careful I didn’t burn.  The showers were great, the best we've had so far, so we had a lovely long shower.  The first I've had for three days and I think it's four days for Paul, ugh smelly tramps ha ha!

Just managed to get a satellite signal

5th September 2009

We just want to find somewhere we can stay for a few days and we're not having much luck so far.  Paul has seen an ACSI site near Lake Titisee so we are packing up this morning and heading there.  Thank God the rain stopped so the van is not bogged down in the mud.  We did have spinning wheels for a bit, but sensibly, Paul had parked facing down hill so we got out okay.

We stopped on the way at a supermarket and bought some bits and pieces including some bottled water.  When we got outside I checked the receipt to find we had been charged an extra €1.50 for something so I went back in and the cashier told us that it's a deposit for the bottled water.  I've never heard of being charged a deposit before so I asked for our money back and returned the water.  The lady cashier showed as a large five litre bottle of water, which we bought instead, no deposit!

We drove into Titisee which is very pretty and is obviously a very popular holiday area.  There were a number of campsites around the lake but none of them seemed very nice.  Probably a case of the resort is the draw so the campsites don't need to do much to attract customers. We noticed a nice looking campsite on the other side of the lake, and tried to drive round to it.  It was impossible, we just kept getting lost, so in the end we gave up and drove to another ACSI site Paul had seen in the guide but was was quite a drive away.

Gern-Campinghof Salem

We arrived at Gern-Campinghof Salem, which is very close to Lake Konstanz.  Across the lake is Switzerland.  The site looked good, there was a restaurant and bar at reception but the only problem was that the only pitches they had left were right at the far end of the site, miles from anything and it was next to the dog-walking path, so we had people and their dogs walking past us all the time.  Hopefully, after the weekend people would leave and then we could find a better pitch, so all was not lost.  The weather was good, sunny and hot so we decided we’d try and stay for as long as the weather held.

We met a nice English couple opposite who had a Spanish registered Hymer Motorhome as they live in Spain.  We shared a bottle of wine with them and soaked up what was left of the sun.  Then we both went and had showers, they were great.

4th September 2009

We were going to stay at the site but Paul didn't like the showers either so we left and drove back towards Heidelberg and then to the Hockenheim Motor Racing circuit as Paul wanted to visit it.  He asked the man at the gate whether we could go inside and drive round and the man said yes so we went in.

Hockenheim Motor Racing Circuit

I took some photos.  It's a shame we couldn't get to the Nurberg ring as well but that wasn't on our route.  Maybe on the way back.

We then drove to the next campsite, Konigskanzel Camping near Freudenstadt in Baden Wurttemberg.  It was raining again and the campsite was on the side of a hill.  They didn't have too many hard standing pitches and the only other thing we could find near reception, was under a bloody great pylon.  Sorry, we're not camping underneath a pylon.

Camping Konigskanzel

Paul drove down further into the campsite and we found a grass pitch under some trees.  He wasn't too happy though, with the rain being quite heavy, he was worried that the van would sink in overnight and we’d have trouble getting out again.  We were also a long way from the showers so I hoped it would stop raining soon!  We should probably have gone on to a different site but I want Paul to have some rest.

We couldn't get an internet signal as we were too far from reception.  Shame as their internet is free.

I cooked a Spagh Bol for dinner and play AC and Paul went to bed.

3rd September 2009

Poor Paul has come down with a cold so we want to find somewhere nice so he can rest for a couple of days to shake it off.  Wolfsmuhle was okay, but they only had a pitch available for one night anyway, so we packed up and moved onto the next site.

We stopped at a Lidl store for food and I needed the loo.  Unfortunately they didn't have one so we drove on and found a small store on an industrial estate which seemed to sell everything.  I bought some clothes pegs, teaspoons and a new dustpan and Paul got a little wheeled trolley for transporting the toilet cassette and water container. It's a real pain lugging them backwards and forwards on a campsite.  The price tag had come off so I told Paul to go back and get another one with a price tag.  He found one marked €1.49!  It should have been at least €5 and we have seen these trolleys for €15 and more, so we got a real bargain.

We found the next campsite right on the Neckar river but it didn't look very nice, not well looked after, so we headed on further down the river and finally found Camping Friedensbrucke.  It's in a nice location, we could get a boat from here into Heidelberg if we wanted, but the showers aren't too good.  They are clean enough, but there are about six individual booths side by side, it's unisex and the cubicles have opaque doors so you can see everything! Also there’s nowhere to leave your clothes and things inside the booth so you have to leave everything outside on the floor and when you get out you are completely on show.  I don’t think so!

Friedensbrucke camping on the River Neckar

Paul bought an internet access card from reception for €2 but we couldn't get any signal on our pitch so the man gave us our money back. We had dinner and watched TV.

2nd September 2009

We left the Prumtal campsite, which we thought was very good generally, and we’d stay there again.  We were searching for a place to do some food shopping.  Our SatNav told us there was a Walmart Supermarket nearby.  We had so much trouble trying to find it that we asked someone and they said, Oh that isn't a Walmart it's called Real, and there it was in front of us.  It was a huge supermarket and it had everything we needed including Snickers bars and some other recognisable chocolate, so we stocked up!

Model Vineyards, miles of them!

We then took a long meandering drive along the Mosel River admiring all the vineyards and the old medieval style villages. Everywhere was notably clean and very pretty.  The vineyards are planted all along the hillsides, miles and miles of them with all the famous names in big signs across the hill.

Quaint Model Villages

They have little monorail trains running up and down the hills so the workers can pick the grapes.  There are also many campsites set by the riverside but they all seemed to be on the other side of the river to us.  The villages have many nice looking restaurants, which all looked busy so they must be good, much better than France & Spain.

We eventually arrived at our chosen campsite about 5pm.  It was okay, right on the Rhine river, but a bit noisy from traffic on the nearby main road.  The rubbish bins were next to the showers, and they smelled dreadful.  We thought we’d stay that night but probably look for something better the next day.  We walked down to the riverside in the evening and I fed a couple of swans who had a baby with them.  They got a bit excited and hissed at me, which scared the life out of me.  Ha ha!

Wolfsmuhle Campsite on the Rhine

1st September 2009

Well, we're into September now.  Can't believe we’ve been travelling for five months already.  It doesn't seem that long at all.

Weather not so good today, so we stayed in the van and played on our computers, well I played Bejewelled and Paul messed around with Autoroute trying to decide where to go next.  It rained quite heavily at times so we couldn't sit outside at all.  When it did stop Paul went out to sort out our table and chairs which he had stowed underneath the van and they had got covered in mud and twigs. He also cleaned off the ground sheet.

We had pasta and sauce for dinner and watched TV, Holby, then went to bed and read.

31st August 2009

Another lovely sunny start to the day, probably the best weather we've had since June in Portugal.  I got some washing done and we sat out in the sun.

As the campsite had a restaurant, we decided we’d treat ourselves and have lunch there.  It wasn't expensive, €6.80 each for a three-course meal so we were a bit wary.  It was a fixed menu so no choices, but at that price I thought it would be okay and I should try it.  Well the starter was smoked bacon soup, which was nice, followed by a cold beef and onion salad with sauté potatoes.  I didn't like that very much as it was actually three different kinds of meat and I wasn't sure what it all was so I left a lot of it.  Paul seemed to enjoy it though. Dessert was a strawberry mousse type thing and as the waiter noticed I had left a lot of my main course, he brought me a large serving of the mousse.  Unfortunately I didn't like that either.  Such a fuss pot, Paul ate all his and most of mine as well!

When we got back to the van we found that the clothes dryer had fallen over and our clothes were all over the ground.  I don't know how that happened because Paul had staked it to the ground.  There was a Dutch couple on the next pitch and they must have seen it happen, but they did nothing, just left them all lying there.  Paul noticed that they had a big ACSI banner inside their car and he heard them later up at reception talking to the owner.  Turns out they were ACSI inspectors.  Hmm, not very thoughtful or helpful ones eh?

We had a light dinner, just some tinned salmon with salad potatoes and then watched TV.  It was a much quieter day, no football.

30th August 2009

We got up and showered.  The facilities were very clean and tidy and didn't smell, unlike most of the French ones.  We had breakfast outside and as the weather was nice, Paul stayed outside and fiddled with his computer while I stayed inside.

Then a load of bigger boys turned up to play football.  We found out later that it was the local town team and they were pretty serious players.  Obviously the noise increased dramatically with lots of shouting from the pitch.  Then we caught a bunch of them standing by the river right opposite where we were pitched and they were all peeing in the river.  Bloody hell, footballers are the same everywhere, no thought for other people, didn't care about exposing themselves or anything.  Paul complained to one of the gardeners who was tidying up the site.

The football didn't stop until about 4:30 so we had noise all afternoon really.  So Paul took all the carpets out of the van and hoovered them.  We had dinner and watched TV as we could just about get a satellite signal.

29th August 2009

Tina: We were going to stay at this site in Belgium but I didn't want to, so we packed up the van and headed to Germany.  The Belgian Grand Prix is on this weekend and we drove past the Spa Francorchamps circuit.  There were loads of police and crowds of people everywhere and long traffic queues.

Spa Francorchamps Racing Circuit

We arrived at Prumtal Camping in the town of Oberweis in Germany.  The nearest big town is Bitburg and this area is called the Palatinate.  Paul parked at the entrance to the campsite, went in to see them and book in.  Officially their ACSI low rate doesn't start until tomorrow but the man said it was no problem and he’d give us the lower rate.  See, why couldn't that woman in Belgium do the same?  Isn't it better to have a customer at a low price rather than no customer at all?

First visit to Germany

We drove round the site to have a look, something we suggest you always do, and there seemed to be a lot of permanent pitches and in places it looked like a refugee camp, so we decided to go on and look for something else.  The next site was even worse, so we stopped and had something to eat, then drove back to the Prumtal one.  The owner was so friendly and helpful and he told us where to go to find the best pitch, which was down by the river that runs alongside the campsite and is actually quite nice.  The only thing was, there’s a road the other side of the river and behind our pitch was a large football ground where some kids were playing.  We hoped after the weekend it would be quieter as most people would go home.

The sun was out and when it was quiet you could just hear the water running in the river.  I spotted a black caterpillar with really spiky hairs all over it.  Paul thought it might be one of those poisonous ones that fall out of the trees.  We took some photos.

Is this a poisonous caterpillar?

Prumtal camping Oberweis near Bitburg

28th August 2009

We got up early, left Blackhorse Farm and headed for the Eurotunnel terminal.  We have a train about 09:30 I think, which means we should be there by 9am at the latest allowing for the time difference.

We had time to look around the shops at the terminal and Paul dumped our waste water and emptied the chemical toilet in the facility especially provided for Motorhomes and Coaches.  At least we'll start off all clean and new. I bought some books and magazines and Paul bought a large map covering Germany, Austria and Switzerland then we boarded the train.  No long wait this time, straight on.

We drove up to Belgium and headed for an ACSI listed site called Groenpark located near Ghent.  Paul had an email confirmation of this booking just to check that they would honour the out of season price as strictly speaking it was still in high season although by this weekend everybody was on their way home from holiday.  We parked opposite reception and went in to book in.  There was a lady there who seemed very harassed although I don't know why as the site was more or less empty.  When I asked her to confirm the price she said that the price we had was too low as it was still high season.  Paul commented that he had an email confirming the price, and she just said ‘no I'm not doing it at that price.’  We were dumfounded and determined not to pay the higher price which I think was €32 per night.  The problem was we didn't have an option close by but nevertheless we were not going to stop at that site even if it meant we would sleep by the roadside.

I have to say that the two bad experiences we had were both with Belgian run campsites, this one and another in south western France.  They seemed to be either money grabbing or just didn't like the British.  Shame as we have also had many pleasant experiences with Belgian people.

We turned round in their car park and left the site.  Paul stopped by the roadside and we tried phoning another campsite mentioned in the ACSI guide.  Luckily, these people were very pleasant said they had no problem giving us the off-season price as their season ended this last week.  The only problem was, the site was quite a long drive from here.  We jusy hoped it would be okay.

We arrived at Domaine Chateau de Dieupart at around 4pm, and the campsite was okay.  It was situated under the trees and beside a small river but it was a bit dark.  The facilities weren't brilliant but for one night it would do.

Tina at Domaine de Dieupart Belgium

Paul:  I was really furious with the Groenpark campsite woman.  I had an email confirmation in my hand and she refused to even look at it.  Arriving at the Domaine de Dieupart I was a bit worried as it was dingy and I could see from Tina's face that she wasn't impressed.  Nevertheless, we set up the van and went and had a look at the rest of the site.

They had a little restaurant by reception and I suggested we might eat there but the menu was very limited so we decided against it.  Tina decided to have a shower, but you needed a token, which we got from reception.  She was worried that the token wouldn't last long but the guy on reception assured us it would be fine.  

The weather was warmish so we sat outside and had some wine before we had dinner inside.  We’ve learned not to sit outside by water as it's just asking to be bitten by mosquitoes.

27th August 2009

Tina: We left Littlehampton and headed to Folkestone.  We are going back to Europe again. Now the prices will have dropped as we are officially out of season at the end of August, and Paul has booked a couple of campsites already who say they will honour the lowest price according to the ACSI guide. We stopped and bought some sandwiches at a Tesco along with some other things and we also topped up our LPG tank.  This is the first time since we set out back in April, so we were surprised to note that it was slightly over half full still.  It's a bit daunting filling up as you have this feeling that messing around with gas can be dangerous.  It's similar to filling up with diesel or petrol in that you have a gun type thing on the pump itself, but you have to lock it onto the filler on the van and then you can pump the gas in.   Also, when you've finished and disconnect the gun, there is a big bang as the connector comes off which when you're not expecting it, makes you jump.  It cost about £9 to fill the tank back up so using gas this way is really cheap.

We arrived at Blackhorse Farm about 2:30 so I had time to do some much needed washing and I hung it to dry on our new whirly line although it wasn't warm enough to dry very well.  We had some dinner and watched TV.  Tomorrow we're off abroad again!

Some notes on our UK Summer Tour

Another 3,200 miles from John O'Groats to Lands End, and the van is still running perfectly.  We’ve had a couple of breakages, the awning pole and the security catch on the fridge, but these were replaced at Warminster.  UK campsites are generally clean and tidy but some are a bit worn out now and need updating.  You only need to compare some of them with the new site at Littlehampton to notice the difference.  I'm interested to see Germany as we've heard some good things especially about the state of their showers and things.  Let's wait and see huh?

26th August 2009

Paul:  I've booked us on the Eurotunnel train for Friday and we are going to try touring through Belgium and Holland on our way to Germany.  We’ve heard some good and bad things about Germany so we're interested to see what it's really like.  I also want to show Tina some mountains as she's never really seen big ones and we are going to try and get as far as Austria and Switzerland.  The provisional plan is to gradually work our way down towards Spain again for the winter, but as we can't get a TV signal beyond there, and as 3 have stopped providing free internet access in Austria, I think it more likely that we'll come back to England again once the weather deteriorates.

On the way to Littlehampton, we stopped off at a caravan accessory store in Southampton and bought a whirly washing line and Tina pinched an end cap for one of the chairs, naughty.  What she didn't know is I had done the same thing and so now we had a spare as well!

We stopped at Tesco in Chichester and arrived at the campsite in Littlehampton about 3:30.  This is a newly opened site next to the amenity tip just on the edge of town but don't be put off,  it's a nicely laid out site.  All the showers are brand new and the wardens are very friendly.

Littlehampton Caravan Club site

Tina played AC in the afternoon until Sandy came and collected us about 5:30 and we went to their house for dinner and to sort out our mail and things.  Tina and Sandy were looking at Jo's wedding dress (Sandy's daughter) which was apparently lovely and only cost £50, it was made in China.  You order your own design from a shop on e-Bay and then the design is sent to China where they make it and ship it back to you.

25th August 2009

It's raining again this morning so we are staying in the van.  I did computer stuff like editing photographs and things and also more of my book.  In the evening the fish and chip van came and there was a queue a mile long so we waited and although not the best we'd eaten, it was nice not to have to cook.

24th August 2009

Today we are going to go round the wildlife park and grounds so we got up early, walked up the road a bit and found the entrance to the park.  We bought passport tickets which were £23 for me and only £17 for Paul as he is a Senior Citizen now ha ha!  These tickets allow you access to everything except the safari tour bus which is extra.  Paul said he wouldn't take the van through the park and have Monkeys climbing all over it and pulling bits off it, we will take the bus so we can see all the animals close up.

Longleat Caravan Club site

It did rain in the morning a few times but we went into the house and looked around and then we walked back to the van and had some lunch so we didn't get soaked.  We took the bus tour in the afternoon.

It was excellent as the driver is able to stop in places you couldn't do in your car.  At one point we were so close to the lions and he opened the bus doors and asked if anyone wanted to come forward and take pictures.  It was a bit scary as you could have leaned out of the door and almost touched them.  Then we went on the boat trip round the lake.  Whilst we were waiting in the queue we could talk to the meerkats in their enclosure, they are Paul's favourite animal and they are so cute, especially the babies.

On the boat we had the sea lions chasing alongside and could see the hippos in the centre of the lake.  We slowed and stopped alongside the island where their gorilla Nico lives, and were surprised to see a television aerial on his little hut.  According to the guide he loves watching TV especially since he lost his partner last year and is now probably quite lonely.  Unfortunately he is too old and set in his ways for them to introduce a new female so he must remain on his own now.  Sad really.

Meerkats at Longleat

Nico the Gorilla

Next it was the railway trip round the whole site which was also interesting.  This is the first proper touristy thing we've done since visiting Monet's gardens in France.  We had a lovely day, well worth the money actually.

By the way, last night we did hear the lions roaring as we were going to sleep.  It must be wonderful in the wild to hear all these sounds on a real safari.

23rd August 2009

We left Bagwell Farm about 08:15 and we are now headed for Longleat in Wiltshire.  The Caravan Club have a campsite right on the Wildlife Park and we are quite excited about staying amongst the Lions and other wild animals.  We only stopped for fuel on the way as we have enough food to last us. I didn't eat that much at the BBQ yesterday just one sausage and half a hamburger and some of the rice stuffed mushrooms that Steve cooked.

On the way, we stopped at Webb's Caravans at Warminster to get a new catch for the fridge door and an awning pole which had broken.  They weren't overly helpful or friendly, what a contrast to Johns Cross in Kent.

We arrived at Longleat about 11:30 and for a change the weather was warm and sunny so we sat outside for a bit and had some lunch.

I did some editing in the afternoon and we then came and sat outside again in the evening with a nice glass of wine.  We can hear the sea lions barking from here as we are actually in the middle of Longleat grounds, just behind the house.  They say you can hear the lions roaring in the night, I hope they don't escape!

We noticed that they have a fish and chip van visit on Tuesdays so we might have that for dinner mmm!

22nd August 2009

We got up early and I had a shower at 7 am, I often wake up this early.  We walked to a car boot sale in the next field with Steve & Ann.  I don't think we are really car boot sale people because most of what we saw was other people's rubbish and it started to drizzle with rain as well.
Played Wii in the afternoon for a couple of hours as Steve & Ann had some things to do.  They came back about 3:30 and started setting up the BBQ's.  Steve had two and we had one and there was plenty to drink.

Steve at the BBQ Bagwell Farm

We even tried some of Steve's vegetarian food.  Lisa and Dritan turned up and also Moira, Ann's sister and we had a pleasant afternoon chatting and playing music.

Paul & I turned in about 8pm as I was tired and it was getting cold. The campsite is quite nice and has a bathroom with an actual bath, first time we've seen that on any campsite, however, it's a little bit more expensive than we expected at £22 per night.  Lisa & Dritan bought us a couple of pottery ducks to put outside our van when we are pitched. Aww that was nice of them.

21st August 2009

We moved on from Cornwall and headed for Weymouth.  We're booked into another private site which Paul's niece Lisa's husband works on. We stopped en route at Tesco in Dorchester and stocked up with food including burgers and salad stuff as we're having a BBQ with Steve & Ann and their daughter and her kids.

We arrived at Bagwell Farm and met Lisa's husband Dritan at the reception, and he led us down to a pitch where we saw Steve & Ann's motorhome, couldn't miss it really as it has a bright orange roof ha ha.  He parked us alongside.  The site is a sort of terraced layout with steep banks at the back of each pitch.  Unfortunately Paul caught the back of the van on the bank as he was manoeuvring but there's no real damage just a mark.

Bagwell Farm - Steve & Anne's Hoochy

After about an hour Steve & Ann arrived with Elenna.  Had a nice afternoon with them and then Lisa turned up later on.  Dritan and Lisa then left to go home and we went to a nearby pub for dinner with Steve & Ann.

20th August 2009

Didn't do very much today as we have no internet.  I just edited some more of my book, played Bejewelled and Paul planned some more of our journey and booked some more campsites.  It was also very very windy, the worst we've experienced so no awning and we stayed inside most of the time.  There's only one other caravan in this part so it's nice and quiet.

Treamble Caravan Club site

19th August 2009

We got up, showered and left the campsite to drive to Cornwall.  We stopped at the proverbial Tesco in Redruth and got some shopping and then drove on to Lands End.  We were meant to pay at the car park but as it was £10 and we only wanted to take some photos, I managed to persuade them to let us park in a temporary spot and I ran down to the where the sign is and took some photos.

There were so many tourists having photos taken that I couldn't get a full photo of the sign but I did get the bit that said Lands End to John O'Groats.

Land's End to John O'Groats 874 miles

We then drove to St Michael's Mount so we could see it, as we had been at Mont Saint Michel in France and this is the sister site.  We took some photos so now we have both of them.

St Michael's Mount

We went on and found our next campsite, Treamble Valley, another Caravan Club site. The site is okay but we can't get a phone or Internet signal.  Paul did manage to get a satellite TV signal though.   We're down on a separate part of the site that is all hard standing and it's not too far from the showers.

18th August 2009

Maria came out again and Shanice took the kids off to play in the park.  Maria and I had a look at the static holiday homes show house they have on site. We both liked it.

Mum & Dad came out again and Maria left about 12:30.  They left about 2pm and Paul and I stayed outside for a bit longer and then we went in and had dinner and watched TV.

Tomorrow we're off to Cornwall.  We're going to go to Land's End so we can take a photo of us at the identity post so we have a record of us doing Land's End to John O'Groats.

17th August 2009

We got up early and took the park and ride from Coypool into Plymouth Town to do some shopping.  Paul bought a couple of T-shirts and we bought some DVD's to watch when it's raining- Batman and Pirates of the Caribbean boxed sets.

We had pasties from Ivor Dewdneys for lunch and then got the bus back. We sat outside for a bit but it wasn't very warm so we retired inside and watched TV.  We have a good internet signal so we were both on the computer for a while.

16th August 2009

This site is absolutely full of caravans and tents.  Funny things is most people are local Plymothians or from not very far away.  What's the point of hooking up a caravan only to drive two miles to the nearest campsite? It's very noisy, loads of kids and the loos and showers are filthy.  Next time we're down here we'll go to the Caravan and Camping Club site near Tavistock I think.

Maria arrived about 10:30am with the kids.  They were okay.  It was nice to see them all again.  Wayne & Kirsty arrived too.  They all left about 2pm and Paul & I sat in the sun, what there was of it, and then went inside and sat on the computers for a while.  We managed to get the washing we’d taken to Mums dry, so that was good. We had dinner and watched TV.

15th August 2009

We left Brynich and headed off to Plymouth.  It took longer than we hoped because the traffic was  really slow on the M5, the only time we had decided we would take the Motorway. We stopped off at Tesco in Exeter then went on to the Riverside site in Plymouth.  This will be the third time we've stayed here, but probably the last.  It was very busy, as you'd expect this time of year I suppose.  We arrived about 3pm and then Dad arrived about 3:15 and took us back to their house.  We had fish & chips for dinner.  Their new bathroom is lovely, really nice.  Also they have a new hall carpet and lounge furniture and wallpaper, Dad's done a good job of the decorating.

He took us back to the campsite around 8pm and we watched TV and went to bed.  I had left some washing with Mum who had kindly washed it all for me to take back.  Thanks Mum!

14th August 2009

This morning we set off to try and find the pub/restaurant and see what it was like, our intention being to return tonight for a meal.

Well it turned out to be more than 20 minutes across fields and along a dark track in the woods.  At one point we were walking in a sunken lane, when above us I heard a huge cow moo in a loud deep voice.  It was so close above our heads, that it scared the life out of me and Paul couldn't stop laughing.  Not funny!

We found the pub but didn't bother to go in, it looked positively mediocre, and was too far to walk in the dark tonight so we walked all the way back.  Never mind, at least we got some exercise!

In the evening we went on the computers again, had dinner and watched TV.

13th August 2009

We left Shawsmead this morning and drove down to the Brecon Beacons.  We were going to stop for some provisions, but we couldn't find a supermarket with a parking spot.  Never mind, we have enough to last us for a few days.

We're aiming for the Brynich Caravan Club site.  We arrived mid afternoon and set up next to a couple with a caravan and chatted to them for a bit. This used to be a privately owned site and was recently acquired by the Caravan club.  There is a small supermarket at reception which is unusual for them but it is only half stocked at the moment.  There was also a restaurant, but they haven't got anyone to run that yet so it remains closed, shame!  They mentioned that there was a pub restaurant within about five minutes walking distance.

12th August 2009

Tina: The weather has brightened up this afternoon so we both sat outside and Paul played guitar.  We had a couple of glasses of wine and later went inside and watched TV and I played AC

11th August 2009

We had a bit of a contretemps with a couple on the pitch behind us last night.  Whilst I was setting up the satellite Tina overheard the occupants of the pitch, a rather fat handicapped man and his wife, comment that it was ‘amazing how some people couldn’t be without TV for five minutes.’  This was said in a loud voice that we could hear quite clearly so his obvious intent was to be rude.  So Tina said to him that if we were on holiday for two weeks then we would do without TV, but as we were travelling for a year we looked forward to having a TV available.  Cheeky git, someone will thump him one day, handicapped or not.

Our pitch was on a steep slope and I'd had trouble trying to get us level so decided to move to another pitch that had become available. After moving I took a walk up the road as there is another fishing lake close by and I intended to go fishing again.  However, it started to drizzle with rain and I'm only a fair-weather fisherman so decided not to go. We both spent the rest of the day on the computer.

Lovely weather we're having this summer NOT! I think it's the worst summer we've had for years.

Shawsmead campsite Llanarth

10th August 2009

Left the site about 9am and headed back into Wales towards Snowdonia.  We want to see some of the mountains and valleys.   We stopped at a Tesco in Shrewsbury and stocked up with food.  It was a very long drive although we did detour to Snowdon and Port Merion.  Trouble was it rained again and was very misty so we couldn't see much really.

Into the mountains of Snowdonia

As we couldn't see much on the journey, we didn't have much of an impression of Wales which was probably unfair, I'm sure it's amazing but you do need to see it to form an opinion!

We arrived at the campsite at around 5pm and set up.  We were both tired as it had been a long day, 8 hours in the van, and Tina doesn't like lots of driving.

9th August 2009

Didn't do any fishing today as we decided we'd have lunch in the campsite restaurant. Our food took ages to arrive, nearly an hour for starters, and although it was good, we couldn't eat it all which was a bit of a waste.

Tina has been complaining of indigestion at night recently, I guess it's because we do seem to have been eating a lot of carbs and sugar and bread since we came back to the UK.  We must try and cut back a bit.  Also smaller portions are a good idea!

Tina edited her book in the afternoon and I sat out in the sun, I'm actually getting a bit sunburned now.  I had a snooze.  Tina made a rice pudding in the slow cooker for dinner.  It was nice but Tina thought it wasn't up to much.  And she's a rice pudding expert!

8th August 2009

We drove to a fishing tackle shop close by the campsite as I wanted to buy a few extra things, some more bait and a better reel as the one with the basic kit was exactly that, basic.  We then came back to the campsite and went fishing again.  It took a bit of time to set up the new stuff because the line kept being dragged off the reel by the wind.  I had to rewind the new line I'd bought, but once I'd done that everything was fine and we spent the afternoon by the lake.

Although there are no monsters in the lake I caught a good few mirror carp and some bream all about 2-3 lbs and Tina was doing a great job landing them all in the landing net.  She was enjoying herself and she didn't think she would do at all.  She even tried to remove a hook from a fish but as soon as she touched it, it wriggled and she screamed and dropped it ha ha!

We stopped about 5pm and went back to the van.  A large glass of wine and a casserole that Tina had been cooking in the slow cooker finished the day off rather nicely.  We were both tired and ready for bed, must be all this fresh air.

7th August 2009

Paul: We got up early and had breakfast. Today we’e going fishing, I don't think Tina has ever been before and I haven't been since the early 90's when I lived by the river in Oxford. I've bought a very basic fishing set from Argos and it has all the necessities. Let's see how we get on.

We got to the lake after buying a day permit from the reception and I set up all the stuff.  This bored Tina at first but as soon as I started to catch some fish, mostly rudd and roach, she got quite excited.  I even gave her the rod and let her have a go.

Tina Fishing

6th August 2009

We left Wales and headed partially back the way we had come making for Whitchurch and Shrewsbury.   We didn't get a chance to say goodbye to the Geordie couple as they were still asleep at 9am when we left. We got some shopping at Tesco and arrived quite early, 11:30, at the campsite.  This is the adult only site and we're really looking forward to it.  Hope the weather holds.
We sat out in the sun for a bit and I edited my book.  I really want to get it finished so I can have it printed in paperback form.  We went for a walk up to the fishing lakes, which looked good so tomorrow we're going fishing for the day.  This is a lovely site, it has a restaurant and is very well maintained, the loos and showers are excellent, there's trees and lawns and lots of ducks everywhere.

Beaconsfield Farm Park Campsite Shrewsbury

5th August 2009

It was a lovely day today.  We spent most of it sitting in the sun outside.  We had coffee with the Geordies across the way and invited them to join us for lunch and we had a nice afternoon drinking and chatting.  We both actually caught the sun.  We spent the evening on our own watching TV.

4th August 2009

Woke up to another drizzly rainy day, so we'll be spending the day in the van again!  I did some more editing on my book and Paul read and played guitar.
In the evening the sun came out and it was quite warm.  We got talking to a couple in a caravan on the opposite pitch, who are from Newcastle and were really friendly.  Okay, so all caravanners are NOT the same.  They had a couple of kids but they were grown up so no problems there.  It's nice to have some good weather for a change.

3rd August 2009

We left the campsite and headed into Wales aiming for The Lady Margaret Caravan Club Site near Chirk.  We tried to stop at a Post Office as Paul needed to get his fishing licence but we couldn't park.  Later on we spotted another Post Office that had a large car park opposite so we were able to stop there and get the licence.  Now he can fish anywhere that's suitable.  The next campsite actually has a fishing lake so he's really looking forward to that.

We arrived at the new campsite after a roundabout journey through some narrow country lanes, which at times was a bit hairy.  The warden said that they had loads of hardstands but when we drove around, caravans had occupied all of them!  We've come to the conclusion that caravanners generally are pretty selfish, some of them were really small and didn't need a hard standing at all.  They also let their dogs wander everywhere even though campsite rules usually say dogs not allowed off their leashes, their children are the same, the number of times we've seen kids running over other peoples pitches and making loads of noise, and now they take all the hard standing pitches.

Lady Margaret Campsite Chirk

So, we parked on grass pitch and I went off to do some washing as we had loads of it.  I managed to tumble dry it all so that's a big job out of the way. I made a roast again for dinner and it turned out a hell of a lot better than last time, thank goodness.

2nd August 2009

Didn't do much today, I went on the computer and Paul read his book and fiddled about with the van. In the evening we sat outside with the i-Pod playing through the docking station and Paul was playing his guitar.  A couple opposite were actually singing along to some of the songs although it wasn't very loud. Suddenly a man walked over to us from a pitch about 50 meters away and asked us to turn the music off.  This was about 7pm and we were waiting for our dinner to cook. No one else had complained, what a miserable sod!  You’d have thought that people would enjoy a little music, it was mostly country stuff like The Eagles, Cat Stevens.  I wandered down to where they were pitched and I couldn't hear a thing except a car next to them that had a radio playing so I don't know what their problem was!

We watched TV and I played AC.

1st August 2009

We really needed some provisions, food mainly, so we drove to Macclesfield via Buxton.  We stopped in a Sainsbury to get our shopping and when we came out and were putting the shopping away inside the van, a man of about Paul's age parked next to us and proceeded to get out and bang his car door on the side of our van.  Paul went out and said to him, ‘That's right, just slam your door into the side of my van, it only cost me £45,000!’  The man started to walk away and said as an aside, ‘well you shouldn't take up so much space then’.   He then turned and put his face right up against Paul's so they were face to face, well as he was a bit taller than Paul, face to nose, and they were both arguing.  Then Paul said, ‘Stop winding me up or I'm gonna break your nose for you.’ Well that made me laugh.  I went outside and got in between them to stop it escalating, and told the bloke to shut up and that we were entitled to do our shopping as much as he was, and if there was no room why didn't he just find another spot rather than damage our vehicle.  He called a parking attendant over and said we were taking up too much room and shouldn't be allowed to park in this car park. To his surprise, the parking attendant said, ‘They're okay there.’  Well the other man wouldn't leave it and kept on at Paul until the attendant told him to pack it in and go and do his shopping.

Ha ha I thought that it was all really funny, although Paul was getting quite worked up about it.  We left the car park before the man came back.  It just shows you that some people are really inconsiderate and no matter how careful you are parking, they think you’re a nuisance and will think nothing of damaging your property because they are jealous I suppose.

We drove on to a Tesco as I needed the loo and we stopped and ate our lunch in their car park being careful not to upset anyone else ha ha. We then went to a fishing tackle shop and Paul bought some bait for fishing although I wouldn't let him buy maggots.  He’d have wanted to put them in the fridge and I'm not having that ugh!

We got back to the van and I did some more editing and Paul went on the computer.

31st July 2009

Went to reception this morning and told them we’d moved pitches, but didn't bother to tell them why.  We met a nice couple who were walking their cat on a lead.  Turns out they both work in the funeral profession and want to move to Devon to live and want to buy one of those static mobile homes.  We swapped email addresses with them, hope we can keep in touch as we had a lot in common.

Had a nap after lunch and now I'm writing this whilst Paul is playing with his fishing rod outside.  It's not really nice enough to sit outside though, this bloody weather, I'm fed up with it!

30th July 2009

We left Thirsk very early, we were on the road by 8am, and stopped on the way and bought Paul some fishing gear as the campsite we are heading to this week has a fishing lake and Paul wants to do some fishing.

Sherwood Forest visitor centre

We also stopped at Sherwood Forest and had a walk around the visitor centre and drove through Bakewell before arriving at this site.  It's set right in the middle of the Peak District and again is a typical Caravan Club Site.  They are well equipped and well laid out, but a bit boring really and this is miles from anywhere so nothing to do unless you like potholing or exploring caves.  We found a nice quiet pitch but no sooner had we set up, than two families in caravans on the next but one pitch came back from their day out and proceeded to have a BBQ and party with loads of kids running about everywhere including backwards and forwards over our pitch.  Why can't people respect others when they do this and at least keep their kids under control?  The adults just stood round the BBQ and allowed the kids to do whatever they wanted.

We stuck it out until 9pm, hoping that they’d pack up and quieten down, but they didn't, so we packed the van quickly and moved to another pitch.  So glad we can do this in a few minutes.  Grrr, noisy kids and barking dogs, the two worst things for us.

Losehill Campsite Peak District