Diary for the period 30 May to 6 June

30 May - Portsmouth Harbour Car park

We're sitting in our van at the ferry car park. We've just had our first meal of coffee and biscuits. Neither of us are quite relaxed yet - feeling quite anxious and a bit uncomfortable. I'm sure that we'll both be fine once we hit the first camp site.

31 May - Cancale

Our fears of reversing onto the ferry were availed when the crew removed the bike trailer and pushed it on, so all that was left was to reverse the van. The ferry was very fast with a huge wind out on deck due purely to the speed as the weather was calm.

We arrived at Cherbourg and set off into the great unknown. The drive was better than expected and marginally faster! On arriving in Cancale we were surprised that everything was closed including the first three campsites! At the fourth campsite we found someone at reception and listed our requirements in broken French. He ended the conversation by saying "anywhere you like"! We then set up camp and John hurt his back unhitching the trailer (it's fine now Mum).

We then set off to the town to buy our provisions for the night. On our return we had a few beers and prepared our evening meal - the first in our new home.

For dinner we had ham, salami, cheese, tomato, paté, salad and bread. It was a lovely meal eaten outside and washed down with a bottle of wine.

1 June - Cancale

It's my birthday today!!!

I woke up to presies, a breakfast of bread, cheese and fruit and a lovely cuppa.

After a slow start to the day (calm and relaxed for the first time in ages) we headed of to Mont St. Michel on the bike. We had a nice ride there and the view coming up to it is fantastic.

We had a hilly climb to the top of the village where we went up to the old monastery - beautiful. After that we stopped off for café and crepés at a terraced café. After that we headed for St. Malo.

At St. Malo we walked across the beach to the old Royal Fort where we had a guided tour. A short walk through the old town finished the day and we headed back to Cancale.

At Cancale we walked around the harbour area and got rather hot and so stopped for a beer in the sun. In the town we then bought postcards and some prawns for supper.

2 June - Concarneau

Today we were very healthy and started off the morning with a run. After breakfast and a shower we packed up the van and set off towards Quimper.

We had a good drive even though the weather was awful - wet and windy.

We decided to look for a campsite close to Quimper. The campsite we found in Concarneau was really nice! That was a huge relief after the drama we'd just had with the van!!

We'd parked at a campsite to find that it was closed and then the van wouldn't start again.... So, while I was away for a while looking for a loo, John decided to unload the bike on his own - that turned out to be a bad move because when I returned I found his pride and joy lying on its side on the trailer! After much stress getting sorted out with a garage, etc we were moving again. So, the first breakdown over and done with!

That evening we had good meal at a restaurant and a well deserved bottle of wine!

3 June - Concarneau

Today started with a wonderful run along the coast. After we showered John went off on the bike to buy a fresh baguette for breakfast. The morning was spent cleaning: car, bike, clothes, etc. So, with the clean clothes hanging on the line and a sparkling bike and van we settled down to morning coffee and cake. Then the rain came, oh boy did the rain come!

So we had no choice but to sit inside and wait for it to subside. Once it did we set off on the bike to do a bit of exploring.

We ended up in a pretty thatched village called Kerascoët where we had croque monsieur, beer and tea. Next down to Ile Raguénez where we walked along the rocks and John found a tiny crab. We then headed home to finish drying our clothes in a tumble dryer.

Supper was penne bolognaise, "alien" bread and vin (of course).

4 June - Carnac

This morning was another wet, miserable day so we decided to skip the run and also move on from the campsite - there didn't seem much point staying when we would probably have to spend the day indoors.

The journey went fine and we reached our destination, Carnac, and had an easy time finding a campsite. Set up camp, had "morning" coffee and then set off on the bike to see the ancient stones - thousands set up in long lines of up to a few kilometres long and dating back to around 3000BC. After seeing the stones we did some shopping and headed back to camp.

5 June - Carnac

Another energetic start to the day with a run again. John went on his usual bread run and came back with a little extra this time - pain au chocolat. The weather seemed better so we laid out the breakfast table in the sun. Needless to say halfway through it started pouring with rain so we had to make a quick dash inside.

After the rain stopped we set off for Vannes and into the old town. It was really beautiful with stunning and interesting little shops. Down a little side street we stopped at a café for coffee and watched the world go by.

Some more wandering later we came across a market - amazing with the variety of fresh foods available. After feeling we seen enough of the town we set off to Quiberon - a town at the end of a peninsula.

Here we stopped for beer and croque monsiers and then walked along the coast in the strong wind looking for some impressive displays of sea spray. None were found but later on heading back on the bike we stopped to get some photos of waves crashing spectacularly over a beacon.

Later on in the day we headed back to the beach to fly the kite. As soon as the kite was set up the rain returned. We could only laugh but decided to carry on anyway. It didn't last too long but then again neither did the kite - the strings (presumably weakened with age) kept snapping with the strong wind. In the end we were just happy to sit on the beach and watch the birds and a lone wind-surfer.

6 June - Pornic

Mostly blue skies this morning! Breakfast in the sun and then we packed up and set off for Nantes. It was a smooth journey and we arrived at the campsite in Pornic (a little way west of Nantes) at 14:30.

After setting up camp we set off into town to find lunch - salad and beers which made us very lazy so we went down to the beach and had a nap in the sun.

When we woke up we were rather lethargic but went in search of a supermarket - a fruitless effort as they are all closed on Sunday afternoon. So, back to the van where we sat in the sun reading our books and sharing a beer. We must have been quite a sight: John wearing just shorts baking in the sun and me with fleece and jeans - shivering in the 'cold'!

That evening after a great shower we went to the campsite restaurant for a meal of ham and chips.