Well, Day 26 turned out to be a bit of a whopper.
After four weeks of travelling around Europe with our motorhome, Tilley and Frankie, we managed our biggest driving day yet, 502 miles in one day! And, naturally, we added a little drama along the way.
Because apparently, simply driving 500 miles wasn't enough excitement for us...
The Mother of All Thunderstorms
Let's start where we left off yesterday.
We'd mentioned the thunderstorm beginning as we finished recording, but what happened afterwards was something else entirely.
The rain got heavier, the lightning started flashing across the whole sky and, because we'd parked right on top of a hill, it seemed as though we were surrounded by lightning in every direction.
There was sheet lightning lighting up the sky, thunder booming away and rain absolutely hammering down.
Suzanne, who apparently remembers hiding behind the sofa as a child because her mum was frightened of thunderstorms, was understandably impressed!
I decided to brave the elements and went outside to try and film it. I managed to capture some of the lightning, although standing outside in a thunderstorm with a camera probably wasn't my finest moment.
The dogs had very different opinions.
Frankie was terrified.
Which is rather ironic considering she's a gun dog and has never been bothered by gunshots. Yet apparently thunder is where she draws the line!
Tilley, on the other hand, wasn't particularly bothered and simply went to bed.
Eventually, we climbed into bed, listened to the thunder and watched the lightning flashing through the windows. It was almost like white noise, although Suzanne did point out that my snoring probably wasn't quite as relaxing!
By morning, though, you'd never have known there had been a storm.
Blue skies. Sunshine. Warm weather.
Typical French weather!
Exploring the Volcanic Landscape
Before setting off, I decided to get the drone out and take some photographs and video of the area.
We were staying in the Auvergne volcanic region of France, an area that probably isn't at the top of everyone's traditional holiday list.
But having now seen it from the air, we'd definitely come back. The scenery was absolutely beautiful. The only problem was the wind.
My drone kept giving me warnings telling me to bring it down because the wind was getting too strong. Naturally, being me, I carried on for a little longer! I'm pleased I did because I managed to get some cracking footage of the landscape.
It did get us wondering whether we'd come back here in winter. We know the area gets snow, and there were signs relating to snow chains and mountain access, so perhaps this could be somewhere to explore on a future trip.
A Little Digital Housekeeping
Before the drone went up, I also had another little job to do. My phone storage was completely full. I'd been accumulating photographs and videos throughout the trip and eventually reached the point where the phone was basically saying:
"That's enough, Steven."
A quick bit of housekeeping, including deleting and reinstalling Instagram, freed up more than 10GB of storage!
Which is rather impressive when you consider that I'd apparently been carrying around all that digital rubbish without even realising it.
The Shower Situation
We also had another amusing campsite moment.
Yesterday we'd mentioned the shower block, but today we had to revisit the subject. Let's just say that the showers were... very open plan.
Three women could quite happily be showering while a bloke was wandering around shaving, brushing his teeth and generally going about his business. Suzanne wasn't quite as enthusiastic about the arrangement as I was.
Apparently, when another bloke was in there, she decided that doing the washing-up was suddenly a much more attractive proposition! Meanwhile, I had absolutely no problem having a shave and brushing my teeth while other people were showering. Maybe we're just getting to that age where embarrassment has finally packed its bags and gone on holiday.
The 502-Mile Marathon Begins
Eventually, we got ourselves organised, packed up the motorhome, filled the water tank and prepared for the long drive.
We'd paid €106.32 for three nights at the campsite, which wasn't bad at all considering the facilities available.
There was just one strange omission... No water drop point. Everything else was there, but apparently emptying the motorhome's waste water was not part of the package.
Never mind. We weren't about to start carrying buckets around! Then we hit the road. We had around 500 miles to cover, and we'd agreed that we'd share the driving. And that's when the next bit of excitement started.
The Great Diesel Panic
We have a golden rule when travelling in the motorhome: Don't let the fuel drop below a quarter of a tank.
Unfortunately, that rule appears to be more of a suggestion for some members of the crew. As we travelled along, the fuel level dropped towards that dreaded quarter mark. Suzanne claims she had already been pointing out fuel stations. I apparently hadn't heard her. Eventually, we pulled into a huge Leclerc fuel station after coming off the motorway and we were very glad we did.
I put €150 worth of diesel in.
Then the pump stopped.
Thinking there was still room in the tank, I added another 10.5 litres or so.
When I worked out roughly how much fuel we'd actually had left, it was frighteningly little, somewhere around three-quarters of a litre.
That's probably only about 12 or 13 miles of driving. And we'd still had around 48 miles to Le Mans! So, despite my insistence that we'd probably have made it, Suzanne quite rightly gets the win on this one. Well done, Suzanne. You saved us. Although she did have to listen to me explain that I probably could have made it. She wasn't convinced.
The most alarming bit was the fuel computer.
- It first told me I had about 50 miles of fuel remaining.
- Two miles later, the low-fuel warning started beeping.
- Another mile later?
- Zero miles remaining.
- 50 miles to zero in roughly three miles.
That's not a particularly relaxing feature when you're driving a motorhome!
502 Miles, Two Drivers & One Very Long Day
The dogs were absolute stars.
They spent most of the day in the back of the motorhome while we covered the miles, with stops along the way for leg stretches, toilet breaks and general dog-related business.
We also managed to finish listening to Ken Follett's A Key to Rebecca on the journey. Another cracking audiobook.
We've already started another book, 'London's Falling' , although at over 12 hours long, we've got plenty of driving ahead of us if we're going to finish that one!
Suzanne even took over the driving for around 170 miles. Apparently, I had a few comments about braking and approaching roundabouts... Apparently, I drive too fast towards them... Apparently, everything in the motorhome starts flying around.
Cups. Cutlery. Dogs. You name it.
I maintain that Suzanne is exaggerating. She maintains that she isn't. We'll let you decide.
A Slight Navigation Adventure
At one point, we encountered a rather confusing diversion.
The road suddenly changed from a dual carriageway to a single track section, and the signage wasn't exactly what you'd call crystal clear.
We ended up taking a little scenic detour before eventually finding our way back onto the correct route. The funny thing was that other vehicles seemed to follow us too. So at least we weren't the only ones who hadn't got a clue what was going on!
Eventually, we reached our overnight stop. It's a lovely little spot opposite what appears to be opposite a cemetery. The important thing was that we were level.
Dinner: The "Use What's Left" Special
After 502 miles, we were hungry.
So, naturally, it was time for a barbecue.
Dinner consisted of:
-
Pork belly
-
Sausages
-
Potatoes
-
Couscous
-
Coleslaw
-
Whatever vegetables we could find lurking in the fridge
It wasn't exactly Michelin-star dining. In fact, we agreed it was probably one of the strangest meals we'd had on the trip.
The dogs weren't complaining, though. They got their share too!
Brittany Bound
And now we're back in Brittany, with the coast calling.
Tomorrow we're planning to walk to the vets, which is only around 16 minutes away from where we're parked. This is partly to get some paperwork sorted for the dogs before we eventually head for the ferry. After that, we're going to head towards the coast around Roscoff and hopefully find somewhere nice to spend Saturday and Sunday.
We're also going to need to do some shopping, so we're keeping an eye out for a Super U along the way. The plan is to slow things down a little for the next couple of days. After all, we've spent the last four weeks covering an awful lot of ground.
Four Weeks of Motorhome Adventures
Looking back, Day 26 really highlighted just how much we've done.
We've now been away for four weeks, and we've covered some serious miles.
We've been through some incredible places, stayed on some fantastic campsites and, as you'd expect with motorhome life, we've also had our fair share of things needing attention.
- We've fixed the shower.
- We've had problems with the wardrobe.
- We've had rattling.
- We've had things coming loose.
- Tyre problem
- And now we've apparently got a problem with the flyscreen.
We're beginning to wonder whether the motorhome is slowly trying to dismantle itself!
But that's all part of the adventure. And if we'd split today's journey into two days, we wouldn't have experienced that incredible thunderstorm. So perhaps the extra day in the Auvergne was worth it after all.
Day 26: Done & Dusted
So that's Day 26.
502 miles.
Our biggest driving day of the entire four-week adventure.
Back in Brittany.
The dogs are ready for their trip to the vets.
We're heading towards the coast.
And, hopefully, the next couple of days will involve considerably less driving and a lot more exploring.
Because that's really what this European motorhome adventure is all about.
Take your time. See what's around the next corner. And don't forget to check the fuel gauge!
Goodnight from us, Steven & Suzanne — and, of course, Tilley and Frankie. 🐾🚐❤️
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