This blog website is used mainly to keep family and friends informed about what I’m up to when bimbling about on my motorbike.
It also serves to remind me of what I did and when I did it.
Thursday..
a wander around Arass and lunch on a pavement restaurant.
Think I bought shares in the business when I paid the bill.
Semi wild camped with a few other campers on the coast, some 20 miles from Calais.
Early ferry back to blighty.
Took a very steady drive west. Definate tootle at 40 mph.
Stopped a couple of times – a small town having a mock victory march in miltary costumes from the 1700′s (video) – once for a walk in the woods – and a few other stops to look around.
including an old hotel/cafe for sale in southern Belgium. It would be a good B and B and camping stop as its on a major tourist/bikers route. Between Givet,Fumay and Couvin.
Stopped at an Aire in Bavay- NE of Cambrai.
As soon as we stopped we got talking to a brit couple (Paul and Anne)who have been doing this camper thing for 20+ years. Ended up sorting the van out at 10 pm after a very interesting evening.
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Tuesday…
Went through northern Luxembourg – a well kept secret with its hills and small towns – and then dropped south into Belgium ending up at Neufchateau.
Using a campsite for the showers and to charge the battery up.
there will be some changes to the van when we get home.
Followed the river for a long as possible.
After 3 hours of bimbling along we arrived in Cocham.
A very pleasant lunch taken in the shade as we watched the various boats go along the river.
Once again the sun is out and all is well with the world.
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From Ligny en-Barrois, through Bar le Duc and on to Verdun.
Did the underground tourist bit. Guided tour of a small part of the 7km of tunnels made during the first world war. A walk around the town and the north east into Luxembourg.
Luxembourg city itself is a very good city to visit. Open spaces – not cramped like most towns. Worth a revisit.
After Luxembourg continued north east through Trier and into the Mosel valley.
Hillsides covered in wine trees.
Staying at a camper van site a few miles west of Trittenheim.
Huge flat field with perhaps a 100 camper vans in. Still plenty of room.
one or two brits. Spoke with a retired couple from Colne.
Staying here at least 2 nights so we can explore the area on the bike.
So there we were, heading north toward the mountains of the Rhineland.
Got to Strasbourg and turned left.
Problem being the Rhineland is to the right.
So we ended up at a brilliant little Aire in a small town just off the highway some 20 or so from Toul. The Aire is also a mooring placing for leisure boats or caravans that float.
Toul is a very nice place and well worth a visit.
Met a dutch chap in a small sprinter with motorcycle decals on the side. Good talking with him although it was Ali who ‘found’ him. Minx.
looking at doing a bike ride out in the am. Verdon and Luxemberg. May be in Germany by Sunday.
The ad hoc way this tip is going its anyones guess !
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Up and about at 8am saw us off on the bike around the Black Forest.
Our route :
Triberg – Furtwagen – st Georgen – Schramberg – Freudenstadt – Griesbach – Bad Peterstal – Wolfach – Hornberg – Triberg.
As you would expect in a forest there were plenty of saw mills and the scent of fresh cut pine occasionally filled the air as we ride along.
Lots of good biking roads. Lots if bikers.
Also plenty of ‘chocolate box’ houses.
At one point went along a forest service road. Dirt tracks covered in broken branches. Came across a couple of youngish men on the forest track snaffling logs and loading them into a trailer. Trailer was blocking the path but he moved it quick enough. Just as well as his mate was bloody massive. Must be all that exercise he gets picking huge trees up.
Will do the Northern part if the Black Forest tomorrow before moving on to the Eiffle (Rhineland) part of Germany.
Getting tired. Combination of miles, hot weather and sleeping ‘rough’
Good fun though.
Both of us agree France is an easier country to get along with.
Germany is good, and its difficult to say what it is that isn’t quite right. The fact that its spotless. No litter anywhere. But thats a good thing.
The unbelievable adherence to rules. Exampled by an almost robotic change in speed as the cars/bikes go through speed signs. Again, nothing wrong there.
Perhaps its just the sense, as it were of everything having to be just right ( according to whatever rule or standard applies.)
Mmmmm. Probably because we haven’t been here long enough.
France is a pair of comfortable slippers. Germany is a pair of new pair of Brogue shoes.
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Made our way to Triberg – a busy little mountain town.
Found a german version of an Aire – a wunderbusencampersnellsnell or similar.
Even saw a brit camper van. We moved on to the other side of town and into the hills were we found a few other parking spots reserved for camper vans. .
We chose one that was quiet (Italian and a Spanish van parked up ) and after Ali checked with the smooth swarve sophisticated Italian that we were good to park for a few days we planted the van and got the bike out.
No services but a mountain stream about 7 foot away.
Tomorrow is starburst day. A full day on the bike exploring the Black Forest.
A visit to the Cuckoo Clock Museum no less.
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Our entry into Germany was a tad delayed after we picked up a couple of Swiss hitch hikers. Two young students doing Spain, Portugal and France. Dropped them off NE of Colmar in a very nice little village and then made our way to Frieburg.
Beautiful place. Very piktureski.
Parked up and had a large chicken salad for lunch in the plaza.
Got back to the van to find a parking ticket on it. Not any old parking ticket. A proper german one which, when we asked, we were told we got it because we didnt have a ticket displayed in the windscreen, available from any garage for free. Advised to leave it be and if we get anythin through the post then take it from there. This advice was from the wife of a chap in a garage who just happened to have run out of said tickets.
Also.. this system is different for every region/town.
Trust the germans to make it complicated.
As can be seen from the photo – the Black Forest area is very nice.
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A long day.
Doris obviously thought we were up for a bit if off roadin’ judging by the route we took.
Definite overload of beautiful scenery everywhere we went. The downside was we ended up going along a 25 mile stretch of single carriageway about 7 miles being steep downhill with hairpins and soft verges. Brakes got very hot and began to fade. Then we had the same again up hill but only for about 5 miles.
excellent biker route though- in and out of Switzerland ( you can tell because fuel is 1.90 euro a litre )
camp – la cure – St Laurent – D437 to Pontarlier – La Chaux de Fonds – Saignelegier – Porrentruy – Audincourt – Montbeliard – Belfort.
Still in France. Can’t seem to escape the place.
At a campsite with electric as the leisure battery is very low after 7 days without being topped up. Solar power just isn’t enough.
Only there 5 minutes when I got talking to a dutch BMW rider a pitch or so away from ours.
Very sunny and warm again.
Both of us agree Gex, or at least the area north of it, is the best part of France we have seen. Perhaps its just the alpine nature of it.
Tomorrow we WILL be in Germany !
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