Time as new territory

Driving south through central France heading for the Costa Brava, sticking to the usual roads and familiar stopping places, I wondered if now was the moment to admit defeat; our avowed aim to use retirement to explore unfamiliar places now seemed 'mission impossible'. Why, I wondered, had it proved so tricky? Partly I think it reflects the difference between how you imagine retirement will be while you're still in work and the realities of it. We spent decades juggling stressful jobs with family commitments. Though early retirement gave us lots of free time, the other responsibilities remained, our youngest was still in college and Gill's dad, as his 90s loomed, became ever more frail.

Our original idea of travelling for up to six months at a time had to be scaled back. The result was that we returned time and again to Spain and Portugal during the winter months because of its sunny climate and easy links to the UK. In 2017 the lure of Iberia became even stronger after our elder daughter re-located to Lisbon.

Nevertheless, this did not prevent me planning future six month trips. On my laptop there are route plans to Greece via Croatia and Albania, alternative itineraries through Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria, lists of all year sites in Crete, ferry routes connecting Sicily, Sardinia and Corsica; all we needed was the opportunity.

Roads taken...

and routes planned.....

In August Laura, our youngest, finally landed that most rare of commodities, a full-time permanent job. This should have prompted our return to long term travel, but that has been called into question by Brexit. Unless sanity prevails in future we will be limited to travel within the Schengen area for 90/180 days. All very annoying.

As we crossed France bathed in late summer sunshine, watching dusty August become yellow September, it struck me that we have never been abroad at this time. Indeed, the only time we have ever had a holiday in September was a week in the Cotswolds in 1978 just after we got married. If you work in education one thing is certain, holidays in September are impossible; it's a lost month that passes by in a flurry, 60 hour working weeks the norm.

Our last holiday in September - 1978!

So it felt luxurious and a tad transgressive to depart during the last days of August, journeying through a time of transition, sociologically as well seasonally. Different tribes were on the move - families travelling northwards after precious weeks in the sun, 'la rentrée scolaires' looming; heading south, retirees like us, the first wave of late summer sun seekers, as many caravaners as motorhome owners; younger couples too, some deliberately avoiding the school holiday period, others, new parents with babies and toddlers in tow saving a bit by avoiding high season prices.

The result of all this tooing and froing - the roads, campsites and aires were unexpectedly busy. For the first time our usually reliable first stop in France - the aire in Neufchatel en Bray - was 'complet'. Luckily one in the nearby village of  Mesnières-en-Bray had space, even better, it was free.

Mesnières-en-Bray, a pretty spot if the popular aire at nearby Neufchatel is 'complet'.

Next day, the usual road south, Rouen, Evereux, Chartres eventually, after the usual 'bouchon' in Nonancourt. The plan was to meet up with our daughter, Sarah and her partner Rob somewhere in France, then camp together in Languedoc and the Costa Brava. They had crossed the Channel the day after us, but travelling by car on the autoroute meant they would soon catch us up.

Gill 'Whatsapped' Sarah, 'We're planning to stay just south of Orléans.'

'That's amazing,' came the reply, 'so are we!'

Gill and Sarah began searching for sites. Gill found a municipal on the southern outskirts of Orléans at Olivet. She decided to phone ahead, which proved fortuitous; it too was 'complet'. Sarah and Rob were heading for a Huttopia site a little further south at Bracieux, a small town in 'La Sologne' situated in a forest near the chateau of Chambord's park. We decided to meet up there.

It was 'tres jolie', reminding us why for years we spent our summer holidays camping with the kids in France. The Huttopia chain has re-branded the pleasures of summer camping in the French countryside for millennials in the same way Eurocamp did in the erly 1970s for our generation. The diffences are largely cosmetic, the sturdy Cabanon frame tents we used have been replaced by khaki ' Safari tents on wooden decks; 'eco' styled, but manufactured by the same company. The marketing blurb asserts 'sustainability', but really 'the back to nature', family oriented proposition remains much the same.

The sites are staffed by teams of twenty somethings, outgoing, personable and quite jolly. This is not always the case with the front of house staff in French campsites who can be offhand and miserable, conforming to a stereotype described somewhat outrageously by the travel writer Tim Moore as like 'Eeyore with cancer'.

Sarah and Rob traversed France north to south by 'Huttopia' staying at the sites near Versailles, Bracieux near the Loire, Royat near Clermont Ferrand and Millau. We mixed in a few Aires to save money. Even though the Aire at St Pourcain Sur Sioule accommodates over seventy vans we struggled to squeeze on. French vans predominated, but most other northern European countries were well represented too. However, we were the only British motorhome. We had seen very few on the entire journey south. Brexit uncertainties definitely seem to be having an effect.

Number of mohos - 72; number of Brit vans - 1 (us).

In Millau we rejoined Sarah and Rob. In the summer it is a vibrant place, the site, at the confluence of the rivers Dourbie and Tarn, is a short stroll from the town centre and handy for pleasant riverside walks.

Another lovely Huttopia site with pitches big enough to camp 'en famille'

Pretty riverside location

Millau - suddenly you feel you have reached the south.

 Though our trip can hardly be described as intrepid, rediscovering how beautiful summer in France can be is new territory so far as motorhoming goes. We have avoided it up until now largely because of high season prices, however, most sites have introduced the Acsi discount rate by the last week in August and though the coast may be packed, inland is not busy at all.