2006, Day Seven Les Andelys

Day seven 7th July

On the morning we set off for the Château, quite a steep walk luckily its was bit overcast or it would have been a very hot climb. Château Gaillard was built by Richard Coeur de Lion, King Richard I of England, in little more than 12 months, between 1197 and 1198.  If you want to know more, you can always trek up there yourself and read the packs, we did not pay to go in to the museum, we had already seen enough.  There are really good views of the valley and old town from up there as well.

By now it was lunch time, so we set off for the new part of the town (it was further then we thought), we stopped off at the first supermarket we came to and bought cooked chicken and baguettes, which we ate in the small park opposite.

We had seen two or three Ford GTs pass by as we walked towards the town centre, very unusual, but now as we sit in the park eating, more and more of them keep passing bye (I have looked on the net to see if there was a mention of this but nothing), nice to see them though. As we continue our walk to the new town we keep hearing music, at first I think it is coming from a house window, as it fades as we walk on but then it comes back so I look to see if it is coming from a car stuck at the lights in the heavy traffic but again no. The music keeps coming and going, then eventually we discover loudspeakers on the lampposts, we had seen these before in France but never actually doing anything before.

The new town is busy so we just have a quick look around have a sit for a drink and a rest, then head back towards the river but by a different quieter route away from the traffic.

We arrive back at the river next to the hospital, and its the best looking hospital I have ever seen. From there we take a slow walk back to the site via the river bank again.

A Dutch family (Mam, Dad and two teenagers) in a small campervan are next to us when we get back, the Dad has a huge knife in a scabbard on his belt (laws must be different here). The first thing that they do is, the boy starts a small stove to boil rice and the Dad lights a small BBQ on the road, then hacks open a pack of steaks with his dagger (that's what its for). When they have eaten and it starts to get dark, they then start to set up a tent, is it just me or would normal people get things sorted first before it gets dark and then eat?

2006, Day Six, Les Andelys

Day six 6th July

We left Houlgate nice and early but by a different road to the one we had come in on, this one was a lot wider, It was the one AutoRoute had suggested on the way in, so it is useful most of the time.  We were heading to a site close to Giverny so that we could visit Monet's garden before heading back north.  We had picked out a four star site from the ACSI Camping Guide Europe, Camping Château Gaillard at Bernières-sur-Seine on the Seine.  On the way back to the A13 there are people by the side of the road and lots of police (don't see many police in France usually) so Dot says the Tour must be coming this way.  Now usually, when in France when the Tour is on, we check to see where they will be and in fact we had checked most days but had forgotten today.  Dot did suggest stopping to see them go bye but as we weren't completely sure it was the tour, or what time they may be passing, we just carried on.

So it was back on the A13 all the way to the A154 for a short distance to the N155 and an Intermarché for some supplies then on to the D135 to Bernières-sur-Seine via the C82.  Well that was the plan, A13 to A154, 110k no problem, then 1.5K before the N155 with only 17K still to go, we are waved off our route to make way for the Tour de France.  We are not allowed to stop and check for an alternative route (which there wasn't as the Tour coming exactly the opposite way we wanted to go) just waved on in to the town of Louviers.  There we did stop eventually after being waved on several times, and plotted a route to get us back on track.  This took us down a very narrow street but luckily it wasn't very busy (the Tour was passing through the town just behind us and everyone besides us must have been watching).  Another bit of luck was passing a large supermarket, as we were not going to get to the one we were originally heading for.

Stocked up and back on route after our detour, the D134 is still intermittently lined with with Tour supporters some having BBQs, most drinking, all waving, the road is painted with massagers for riders and the villages all have bunting out.

Bernières-sur-Seine is tiny, Camping Château Gaillard is on the outskirts and doesn't look like a four star site, we pull up outside and walk in.  The people on reception are friendly and allow us have a walk round the site but we do not like the look of it (in my opinion it looks like a travellers encampment), anyway we get back in the van and head for Les Andelys about 5K further down the D134.

LES ANDELYS Camping Les Trois Rois 27700 Les Andelys Web Site

The municipal site at Les Andelys is just over the bridge, sharp right as we entered the town, it is beside the river with views of the medieval fort Château Gaillard.

We get a pitch facing the river, on the site there is a small bar/cafe with a half built/demolished swimming pool, not sure which.  The Brits on the next pitch tell us how we just missed the Tour passing the site and going over the bridge and also that it has been raining with massive thunderstorms for three days, until about an hour before we arrived, so we have had some luck today.

After watching the huge barges going up and down the Seine, we set off in to town to have a look round, there is a municipal pool on the other side of the bridge.  We find the way up to the Château just by the tourist info and also   the way to the new town but by the time we get to the shops, its late and everywhere is shut, we got an ice-cream and walk back to the site along the river.

That evening several Austin Healeys and a couple of other sports cars come on to the site and setup small tents, they would have to be small there's not much room in their boots.