Cheers lads.

It was nice to wake up to some encouraging words! Believe it or not its a mixed feeling this end of the internerd - I am at once excited, of course, but there is a deep sense of concern and, well, fear too. The unknown. Not just the unknown but the unknown permenantly is a big deal I reckon. Unlike your average trip which has a commensurate beginning, chewey in the middle and largely extremely relieved end etc.

The lack of a BMW and a big gay sponsor's logo, metal tins to put my musty socks in and a whiff of good credit is, believe it or not, the least of my worries. I'd travel light even if I didn't have too .. like ted says. I am only going to Spain at the end of the day, but I am going one way, with no fixed abode and nowt to look forward to at the other end. Its a bit funky but ina good way.

Eh Ted, what am I supposed to buy from Tesco for £15?

And do you get wafers with it?!

- Harry

Hmm following a chin wag with my old mum this morning I looked up ferries to Spain direct - this came after we looked at the temperatures in Orleans and Poitiers (0c and -1c respectively) and decided that was not looking like a game of soldiers!

Turns out you can get cheap ferries directly to Spain now - Plymouth to Santander was, if you accept a 'chair' not a cabin for 36 hrs, £99.

Can't really beat that, it means cutting 4 days off the trip droning along autoroute, freezing to death and with nothing but a freezing bivvy to look forward to at the end of the day.

France is nice I'm sure, but I'll see it in the summer I reckon!!

So, trip now commences at Santander! Slight but significant change. Tum te tum!

Good trip, and misses out on that slog through France.

I would have advised NOT following the coast as it as as windy as feck even in the summer. The Forest of Gascony south of Bordeaux get's harvested in strips at 90 degrees to the autoroute! You get blown around a fair bit if the wind is from the West.

If you do gor for it, head towards Mont de Marsan from Bordeaux, then to Dax, Orthez and across to Pampalona. But might be a bit chilly this time of year. But good D and N roads and quiet.

Know most routes through France but only ever dipped a toe into Spain so good luck and keep us updated with the adventure!

A TENT !!!



£99 to Santander ! Fook me thats cheap. It was about £350 when I was looking.

__________________
Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

Aha! Well I had my beady eye on one of them Decathalon own-brand Quecheueuaueuuauauachiwawa pop up tents. They had a 1 man self erecting (ooh er) tent on their website for £20. But for some inexplicable reason it has now vanished and been replaced with some utter cock priced at £89. I guess tents aren't in season.

Ebay does have some tho .. but £30. So we'll see how much not having to piss around with guide ropes and thread poles through right angles etc in the dark when you are knackered/cold/wet etc is worth to me. I think it will inevitibly be worth a tenner more. Hehe.

Re: the £350 over night ferry fares - It still is and oddly enough that was what I said to mumsie this morning when she suggested it. I then checked some 'cheap ferries' price comparrison site and got a quote of £250 from P&O. About to give up then, but I tried 23rd December and left it open as to time, one way, seat and got the quote from Brittany Ferries for £100. £85 for the trip and £15 for a seat in the lounge to, you know, lounge on.

I didn't book it, and I dunno why its so cheap, seasonal? Last minute deal? No idea. It was WAY cheaper than anything else so it may not be the case in January when I actually want to go ..

We'll see.

Ahhh many thanks for the heads up. Cross winds are a real issue on my plucky little CG. It just doesnt cope with them at all. I'll definitely avoid the autoroute there then and look in to the detour .. if I can't reproduce the cheap ferry ticket lark in the new year!

Update on the Decathlon pop up tents ..

Decathlon - Touring Tents - Tents and Shelters - HIKING GEAR - Hiking/Climbing/ Nordic Skiing

£19.99 and proper UV and water proofing.

Best I found in terms of value ..

They are a bit heavy at 2.4kg compared to a traditional 2 pole one man tent (1.5kg) and they are an awkward size/shape packed but personally the last thing I want to do is piss around with poles after a day's riding.

You might want to check these guys out also. I recently bought a winter bag from them.

Gelert Eiger 2 Tent online - World of Camping

at £20 they seem reasonably priced.

Many french camping car enthusiasts overwinter in Morocco due to low costs, but I don't know the cost of the ferries involved.

You are right about the temperatures around Poitiers, but note in Jan/Feb -10 or -12c is not at all uncommon.
I went for a ride Sunday, but after 30 miles was chilled. So your plan to ferry it to Santander is a good one. If you HAVE to use some other route, you may find the overnight ferry from Newhaven for about £50. Is by no means luxurious but will be warmer than camping and drop you on the road in the morning. I regard sub zero camping as a test of survival , you really need good gear for it. It may be wiser to cough up for a cheap hotel the first night. Also take a big Routier truck stop 4 course lunch at about 9-12 Euros. It will help keep you warm. The trick is to survive, without that your trip will be a failure.
There is not much that is more miserable than being kept awake all night by the cold.
You might be able to find a removal lorry that is going to Spain not full to collect some returning Brit. Maybe you could negotiate a price to be ported in the lorry some or all the way to Spain? Might be worth a few phone calls. Even an individual traveling back to his foreign home with a trailer or small truck big van? Try looking through here.
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