Tuesday, a day after Monday
31st July 2018
Tuesday, a day after Monday - as Wikipedia no doubt peerlessly defines it.
Where would we be without the internet, eh? A lot bloody happier, I suspect. I have certainly been cursing google a good bit today, based on the fact that they have mapped and photographed the entire planet, or if not all of it then one helluva lot of it. The net, net of that to me, today, has been to encounter the odious satnav guided Eurocamper in droves at every turn, plus blocked roads to stop them clogging up once obscure narrow back lanes that might otherwise be enjoyed by the rest of us.
We had a really excellent night at our civic rest area in Eletot, old stone church one side and open countryside to the sea on the other and once the sun went down not a squeak from anyone or anything. The early evening was mildly entertaining though. At about work knocking off time a bunch of half a dozen young men, probably farm workers, arrived to play boules for an hour or so. Very good natured stuff and a joy to watch whilst I savoured my supper. A little later a couple in their 30s turned up with three collie type dogs and proceeded to shout 'NO' in unison at their dogs every time they so much as looked as if they might be going to enjoy themselves. The couple sat in the back of their car, on the rear bumper with the tailgate open and the dogs were allowed to do not very much on the village green - a space of grass dividing them from me. Bizarre! They were there quite a while and I eventually realised this was their idea of exercising the dogs.
Takes all sorts, I guess.....
We had a decent dawn walk in the adjacent countryside and clifftops and then once again set off down the road south. Very soon we were in Fecamp where I found a deserted Lidl supermarket and for once didn't have to queue to pay. A good omen for the day I thought but it wasn't to be.
From Fecamp we explored Etretat and its environs, both of which were a holiday nightmare, that is to say very busy. Etrtat is a nice enough old place and is wonderful out of high season but today it just couldn't cope with all it's visitors and nor could I.
Just south of Etretat we found a quiet rural rest area with a nice long leafy walk to a small cove with a pebble beach. At 10am ish when we arrived it was very quiet but by lunchtime it was quite busy. It was tolerable enough to stay for lunch but after a short doze we pushed off as I was getting tired of the French paterfamilias loud voice. Boy, do French fathers of young families have a lot say, about what one wonders?
It wasn't long though before I was regretting the decision to leave our lunchtime location as the entire area to the south was busy and blocked at every which way and it was not until the outskirts of Le Havre, after many aborted attempts, that we finally found a place that will do for tonight. Its a dead end road with a large parking area at it's conclusion atop the high cliffs overlooking the sea. People, weirdo types mainly, come and go to gawp at the Le Harvre ferries plying back and forth but I am hoping it will be a fairly quiet place to spend the night. The alternative is a drive south over the very impressive Point de Normandie bridge dropping off on the southern side at Honfleur, but as I recall it's not wonderful wild camping territory there either. I've done it in that general area, although I don't currently recall exactly where, but it was winter and that's a whole different ballgame in terms of what one can and can't get away with. Nobody bothers you if you take a few liberties in winter, not even the local cops.
I am wondering if its not finally time to leave the coast, due to the time of year and head more or less due south and inland from here down to the Pyrenees. I'll sleep on that idea and see what tomorrow brings.
For tonight though it appears we are here:
Google Maps
Latitude : 49.55708 (49° 33′ 25.47″ N)
Longitude : 0.09144 (0° 5′ 29.19″ E)
accuracy of signal : 3 m
