24th August 2024

Bought a baguette, and a couple of pain au raisin from the local shop. Excellent bread. Very hot day with temperatures in the 30s. I went for a fast walk and ran across two bridges and along the River Marne. 13k in 2 hours and 20 minutes.  I know this is not marathon running!  A few dragonflies on the walk.  Geese seemed to be confined to the pavements of the suburbs!! Back at base lunch on the baguette and then a lazy afternoon finishing the first book in the Three Body series.

Prepared supper, and while we were eating it, the thunderstorm came in and drenched us. I put up the awning, getting wet, while R sheltered in the van remaining dry.  After the awning was up, she came out to sit outside.

Interesting goings on in the site. One van packed up and left during the rain. The pitch next to us had a drying line and cloths drying out. So, no one parked there. We think the previous occupants might have left it by mistake. Chap from opposite came and begged us to charge his mobile for a few hours (he was on a no-electricity pitch). We duly obliged. His son came to collect it, bringing with him, as a thank you, a packet of very nice biscuits. Very sweet of them.

The honey seller is now ignoring us.

The town had a huge firework display tonight. Is this something to do with the Paralympics and the flame carrying?I know they are involved in this.

Discussion on whether to move on, going to head to near Geneva, but decided to stay on one more day before heading off.

22nd August 2024

The alarms woke us at 5.30 and we were away before 6.00.  There was a little precipitation as we drove off on relatively quiet road. We were early enough to miss the queues on the M25/A41 junction.

The M25 was fairly quiet, though there were large sections with speed limits of 50 mph. Huge, sections of improvement work with nothing happening. I know it was early in the morning, but how can such large sections be worked on at the same time.

Crossing the Elizabeth bridge and we were on our way. A little rain and grey sky followed us down the road

Heading down to the M20, I saw there were some ‘Road Works’ and we would be down to 2 lanes, travelling on the wrong side of the motorway.  Rosemary shouted that the Channel Tunnel crossing route was on the left.  So, I obeyed her, and then found we were in the truck queuing system, which had been resurrected. Only trucks in this lane, while all the cars on the other carriageway stormed past. This section of several miles had a slow speed limit. There was stoney silence in the car. I have no idea why the queueing system had been instigated; in any case it had been removed by the time we came home in September. I drove all the way down the 10-mile truck queue lane on the M20 to join all the other cars.

Still, we arrived well ahead of the schedule and moved up two departures at no extra cost.

In France there was a strong wind, but the day was cloud free. The further we drove the warmer it became, necessitating the aircon to be turned on.

Our destination was the town of Châlons-en-Champagne. We booked into the site, Camping de Chalons en Champagne, for three nights, expecting to tour the town (and R fusses over me doing “too much driving”). We have stayed here twice, but not looked around the area.  Before arriving at the campsite, a quick visit to buy some food at the huge supermarket, Carrefour Chalons En Champagne. We drove into the campsite behind a California VW, which was also blackberry coloured. Picture taken of the two blackberry-coloured VWs by the woman from the other van. They were staying one night.

At the campsite, there were loads of Brits passing through for the night.  Bikers camping across the way, the female doing a striptease. Some lads next to us, they were working during the day and staying at the campsite. This seems quite common practice in France.  They went off fishing in the evening.

The pond was still in existence, and bats flying around. The bat detector suggested they were Pipistrelles.