The Sputnik/LX670 36h wheel, HG80 cassette, HG93 chain, and M590 with 44.32.22 - supergranny gear.
Should be able to go up walls now. £200 the lot inc £20 for LBS fitting the hollowtech BB.
Shiny new bits
The Sputnik/LX670 36h wheel, HG80 cassette, HG93 chain, and M590 with 44.32.22 - supergranny gear.
Should be able to go up walls now. £200 the lot inc £20 for LBS fitting the hollowtech BB.
Ten top French campsites
What makes a
good campsite? Assuming you have picked a site for its location, when
you turn up at the gate/electric security cordon/gap in the hedge, what turns
you on or off?
In order of
importance, perhaps:
Space per pitch – you can hear nextdoor whispering
that they can hear you whispering that you can hear them whispering etc...
Size – camping à la ferme – pitch up
under an ancient oak tree in six-inch deep grass and miscellaneous shrubbery having
overlooked the fresh cowpats or, in a site so big, it possesses its own football
league and crematorium?
Grass - or stone-age flint arrowheads scattered
liberally about the pitch - or industrial aggregate/cement that requires
pneumatic drills for the tent pegs. The closer you get to the Med, the harder
the pitch.
Amenities – one toilet with no door shared by
fifty pitches, cold shower, or, warm bidets and Gordon Blue communal cooking facilities
and a host who speaks 130 languages and spent two years in whatever town it is you
come from and/or Bournemouth.
Barkage - children, railways, farmyard noises
from over the hedge, airport, discos and dogs. The closer you get to the Med, the louder the crickets.
Viewage – even if you have picked a des res in some fancy locale, the
viewage can still add: the general attractiveness, foliage, bubbling brook, and
the view over fantabulous scenery – or not. All this may be irrelevant after by
the number of mouthfuls of mosquitoes you consume - before breakfast.
These tenting paradises (well, almost) just happened to be the ones en route - and often the only option. They added to the trip. You wouldn’t want to build a tour around campsites but, if you, too, are passing by any of these choice sites....I haven’t revisited any of these yet so best check up on them to see if they metamorphosed into a retail park.
The Ten - in no particular order:
La Meije, La Grave, D1091, Haute-Alps.
La Meije has a stunning view of the, er, Meije. It also has soft grass and earth, well-spaced pitches and good amenities, although the showers require a token. It is sufficiently distant from the village centre not to suffer noise, but it is close enough to the village centre for some nightlife of sorts - a couple of bars and a great pizzeria. Plenty of trees and greenery. Top spot. I think I even spotted a marmotte amongst the rocks on the banks of the Romanche that glides by the site.
Camping des Gorges de la Méouge, Barret sur Mèouge D942, Haute-Alps.
After a
great ride up a dry, spectacular gorge, this spacious oasis of lushness provides a welcome break from the heat of the southern Alps. A pool and a
little shop complement the general laid-backness though the amenities can be
a bit of a trek. The village has a bar restaurant with a limited menu so best
pick up stuff in Laragne-Montéglin.
Corbès D284/D284B north of Andluze, Gard.
This is a delightful spot though a darned trampoline increases the
barkage if there are kiddiwnks about. Camping à la ferme and so it's basic. Cute amenities with great wide-open,
grassy pitches in a vineyard. Pick up supplies en route as I don’t recall there
being a shop.
Camping Municipal Gabarreys, D2E6, Poulliac, Gironde.
Quiet, pristine,
grassy with a warm breeze off La Gironde that’ll dry washing in a jiffy. Just
down from the Rothschild vineyards on the banks of said river, which provides a
great sunset. The village has very little going on so pick up goodies elsewhere
though there is a petrol station nearby for basic provisions.Camping de l’ile d’Or, off D431, Amboise, Indre et Loire.
Lovely spot. Lot of space but not so quiet and if you are worried about flash-floods avoid the site as it sits pretty on an island in the Loire. The site is accessed by the bridge. Very laid back and a good bar with my favourite arrival snack of frites and 1664!
Camping La Ronflure, rue des Routis, Le Coudray-Saint-Germer, Picardie.
This one is not on Google maps but may be familiar to anyone who has done Dieppe to Paris. Wembley-surface pitches with basic amenities. Barkage levels not so low as the farm next door has special nocturnal cows. Enjoy a delightful dusk with a cheap bottle of wine from the cornershop nearby and whatever’s left will clean your chain.
Camping Le Nant Matraz, D992, Seyssel, Haute-Savoie.
Top location by the ice-blue slumbering Rhone. Soft, generous pitches and reasonably quiet. Nice little bar with basic foodstuffs but a huge Carrefour supermarche with all manner of goodies is just across the road. Seyssel is a nice village too.
We revisted this in 2016 and it is a wee bit livlier with a terraced restaurant but it is still a great spot.
Camping De La Capelle, D116, Saint-Papoul, Aude.
If you are on the Canal du Midi you may well pitch up at the municipal site on the fringes of busy Castelnaudry. La Capelle, on the other ahnd, is a few miles north east and off the beaten track. It is very quiet and basic with nice pitches. Both of these are just summer sites so beware. Get provisions for Castelnaudry as Saint-Papoul seems void of any commercial activity.Camping Les Cerisiers, D15, north of Robion, Vaucluse.
Not an easy find but worth it. A bit pricier than usual but has a pool and a nice bar. Big field with lots of space in addition to the usual. The ablutions block could be a long trek if you pitched in the field. Kind of ramshackley, Provencey, laid back feel and on Fridays there was a sit-down communal meal of frites et moules at a fiver a head. Provisions should be procured at Robion or wherever you pass through.
Camping Chantemerle, D998, Bèdoués, nr Florac, Lozere.
Idyllic hideaway on the Tarn. People fishing, splashing, lolling, wading, snoozing and generally
having a relaxing time of it up in them thar hills. We were too late for the
restaurant and nipped around to the more livelier site a short distance back
towards Florac.
www.camping-chantemerle.com
www.camping-chantemerle.com
Camping La Pommeraie, Bagnères de Bigorre, Haute Pyrénées.
If you’ve been on a pilgrimage to La Tourmalet you may well have already been to this tiny site, south of the Bagnères and on the way to Campan. Lush grass, gnarled trees, simple site. Pick up what you need in the town. Lots of cyclists about.
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