Saturday, 21 February 2015

Into France - Peyriac sur mer & Carcassonne

Weds 18th

Another big drive as we wanted to get into France, so we planned our route to use mainly N roads with only a bit of peage to get round Barcelona. It was relatively easy but boy did we see a lot of lorries. They dominate all the roads and take no prisoners if you drop below 60 mph. I just let them get on with it and we usually wafted past them again on the hills!

We had chosen Peyriac Sur mer as our destination as it is just north of Perpignan and close to the main road. We found the aire and were soon parked up in a sunny spot. A quick walk into town to stretch our legs revealed a really nice little town right on the edge of disused salt pans and lagoons. We saw more flamingos out on the lagoons which was nice.


lots to see


Thurs 19th

It was cold overnight – down to -2 deg C which was a shock for us. The sun wsas soon shining, so all wrapped up we walked around the lagoons down to the fishing port. It was very small with only a  few small boats but had empty moorings for about another 40. As we walked back into town we saw a pelican fly overhead then circle above us. Wonderful.


Peyriac lagoon


empty berths


2 groups of flamingos 


disused salt pans



After lunch it was cleaning time – I washed the solar panels as they were covered in thick dust, then washed the van. Tina was meanwhile hovering the inside. After polishing the inside we were ready to move, you just have to have sessions like this every so often!

Whilst having lunch I had decided that we should visit Carcassonne to see the citadel, so sat nav set off we went. We followed a huge yacht on the back of a low loader, it was so wide that oncoming lorries had to pull over. The driver was not hanging about either only slowing down for roundabouts. Entertaining to watch it snaking down the road and just passing under a bridge. Obviously they had researched the route – I hope.


We found the aire just outside the citadel and once parked up we got chatting to another Brit couple Greg & Caroline. They were 3 months into a year’s travel so we had plenty to chat about. They joined us for dinner and we all enjoyed one of Tina’s yummy stir frys and  2 bottles of Spanish plonk. What an enjoyable evening swapping tips and experiences. We will definitely keep in touch with them and follow their journey.


Carcassone Citadel

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