Heading home

Snow on the mountains near Granada

It was with some trepidation that Harvey was packed up ready for the off on the 13^th of February as there had been a lot of snow farther north and the Madrid ring road had been closed for a couple of days. We must have been mad to think of journeying home in the middle of winter but both the van and the car needed to be MOT'd so it had to be done.

The Motorhome Area at Alcazár de San Juan

We left Málaga Monte Parc at 09:00 and headed to Granada with the intention of getting LPG but when we got to the Repsol station that we wanted to use they didn't have an adapter. So we had to go to the main depot and it is not really constructed to cater for larger vehicles so getting in to the pump involved unhitching the trailer and then manoeuvring so that I could reverse alongside. It took much longer than I had anticipated, pretty much par for the course, so an unscheduled stop for the night had to made once we got back onto the motorway.

It was a motorway service area but, despite all the horror stories of people being gassed and robbed in motorway services, we thought it would be OK as trucks would be stopping too. By midnight we were still the only vehicle in this huge truck park and we were getting a bit worried. We went to bed but I got up after about half an hour, got dressed and dosed on the sofa. At about three AM the trucks started to arrive so I headed for bed but when we awoke in the morning at about 07:30 we were already alone again. After tostadas and cafe con leche for breakfast it was back on the road to Alcazár de San Juan, our first scheduled night stop.

Entrance to the bull ring at Alcazár

The A4 is a pretty good road and we made good time, arriving at Alcazár in the middle of the afternoon. The Motorhome Area is situated right next to the Bull Ring and was easy to get in and out of but I had to park Harvey across the marked bays taking up four out of the twelve. We just hoped that there wouldn't be too many other motorhomes on the road at this time of year. There was a nice park across the road and, as it was a lovely sunny afternoon we had a walk around then headed back towards the town, passing the bull ring. The doors of the bull ring were open so we had to have a nose around and a chap caught us but he just told us about the museum that was also a bar. So went and admired the matadors sequinned suits and the heads of defeated torros. There were no heads of defeated matadors. Walking on further into the town, after having a beer in the bull ring bar, we came across a statue of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza still tilting at windmills. The main shopping precinct was bustling with people and we joined them for a little while before heading back to the van and having some dinner. We turned in quite early in order to get an early start in the morning.

The bull ring museum and bar

Next morning saw us on the CM-42 heading for Toledo and a Repsol garage that was supposed to have LPG. It was a bit of a detour but LPG stations are pretty few and far between so it was with great relief that it was available and the access to the pump was fairly easy. After filling up it and getting on the road again, Madrid was successfully negotiated by going around it in an anticlockwise direction and getting onto the A-1. It was an easy run then to Aranda de Duero.

The Motorhome Area in Aranda is behind the railway station and equipped with water and a waste disposal point. To get there, though, we had to drive into Aranda and negotiate a busy junction with a left turn that was pretty tight. It was a bit hairy but once surmounted it was easy to find the Area and it was empty so we could park across the bays again.

Don Quixote and his faithful companion

A Repsol garage supplying LPG had been spotted as we drove into Aranda so Harvey was filled up again in the morning before hitting the road north. Once again on the A-1 and making good time towards Burgos where I had intended turning left and cutting across to the A-67. The Burgos ring road was pretty confusing and I ended up heading anti-clockwise around the city and eventually we found ourselves on the N-623. This wasn't a bad road but it was a bit disconcerting to see snow lying on the verges. When we pulled into a service area for lunch there was snow on the car park but it was melting turning the area into a muddy quagmire. We had passed a Routemaster London bus on the A-1 a while back but, as we had lunch, it  pulled in so must have been following us and heading for the ferry too.

The elephant enclosure at Cabárceno

Although there was snow all around and the mountains looked as if they were frosted the sun shone all the way to Santander and it was a lovely day when we pulled into Cabárceno Nature Park for the night. The Motorhome Area is near the lake and is reached by passing the elephant enclosure but instead of pulling in there we carried on down the the lake and stopped there. It was a lovely spot to spend the night.

Camping by the lake at Cabárceno

In the morning it was off to Santander to catch the ferry with a brief stop on the A-8 to get LPG. Getting on board the ferry went off without a hitch and we were soon stowing our gear in our cabin. The cruise was great, the Bay of Biscay flat calm, and we arrived in Portsmouth in brilliant sunshine (it was a tad colder than we were used to though). We were soon on the road to Wareham and Wareham Forest Tourist Park which would be home for a few weeks.