The surf is brilliant, the weather is brilliant .. everything is brilliant …. oh, and did i say, the surf is brilliant? I have loads to upload about my trip and movements, but the surf is so good that I haven’t had any time. I’ll try and do some posts tomorrow. I have some good photos.
My board was lying on the floor after a surf. It is made by Firewire and the brand is a Hellfire. Firewire make several different boards and one of them is called a Spitfire.
A German guy came over and stared at my board and said to me: Iz Dat a Spitfire? ….. I really want a Spitfire!
I started laughing and wanted to say “Your Grandfather would have wanted exactly the same thing 75 years ago.” 
I drove from Saintes past Cognac, Rochfort and around Bordeaux. I was heading for Lacanau, a place my friend Chad had told me about. He surfed there a few years ago and a remembered the name when I saw it on the map.
When I arrived the sun was shining and I saw nice sized clean surf rolling in. There is no better feeling that that. I got changed and had the first surf of the trip and it was great to get into the water. I did learn how un-paddle fit i am though. It is tough to get out at a beach break and it’ll take a week of surfing before I am properly paddle fit.
Everything is now so much better.
After the surf, I checked into my first camp site and got a great pitch under the pine trees about 5 minuted from the beach.
Monday 29th Sept.
Had an amazing day. Got 2 surfs. I currently have that nice ache you get in the back and shoulders after a good surf and am sitting outside the van writing this. I’ll have a early night and get back in the water in the morning . . . PERFECT.
Pitch under the pines
I drove from la Rochelle towards Bordeaux and stopped in a town called Saintes. I parked by the side of the road in what I thought was a quiet spot. It turned out to be the main route through town and every time a car drove past at speed, my van rocked from side to side. There was also a rave blasting out music until 1pm nearby (how times have changed, as few years ago, I would gave gone along) and unbeknown to me, I parked by an electric sub station and at 4pm, 2 guys turned up to carry out some work and parked behind me and chatted loudly for about 2 hours.
I woke up at about 8am and I decided to sit by the river alongside the road for 5 minutes. I opened the van door, and closed it behind me. I didn’t realise until I tried to get back into the van, that opening the side door doesn’t unlock the van . . the keys were inside, the doors were locked and it was a Sunday.
I had my phone with very little charge left and I turned to the obvious person in a time of crisis and called my Mum with details of the road I was in, my registration and the company I had breakdown cover with (that hadn’t emailed me details of my policy an who to call in a crisis). I said I’d turn off my phone for 30 minutes to save battery and walked into town. I was in shorts and a t-shirt with no money. The worst thing was that I really needed a dump and couldn’t go into a cafe, have a coffee and drop off the kids at the pool, as I didn’t have any money. I found the back of a factory and looked in a bin and found some nylon strip tape that is used to secure boxes. I went back to the van and as the windows were a couple of inches open I pulled off the wind deflector on the passenger side, got my fingers through the gap and tried to use the strap to hook open the door handle. I then noticed my puffa jacket on the back of the chairs and my van keys were in the pocket. I got a stick and slowly lifted the jacket up and over the back of the seat towards the window. Amazingly, I managed to get it to the window and take the key from my pocket. Just when I had been resigned to having to smash the window, the drama was over and and huge feeling of relief descended. I called my Mum and she was on the phone to the recovery people and I explained that everything was OK . . . I thanked the Lord and his saints
My locked van with the keys inside.
27th Sept – As there was no surf, I set off to la Rochelle, the home of French sailing, about 1.5 hours south. La Rochelle is a beautiful town. There are 3 large harbours full of sailing boats and activity everywhere. An old white stone town with lots of tourists sitting in bars and restaurants.
There are cycle lanes everywhere including on all of the roads which is good and I cycled around one of the big harbours and stopped every now and again to improvise a workout when no one was looking, with pull ups from branches, one leg squats off a low wall and dips of railings etc. I did a big loop and cam back to the town centre, where everyone was watching their local rugby team play Stade Francais (the Paris team). I had a beer with some of the locals and hoped for a La Rochelle win and a party, but unfortunately they got walloped.
At about 6pm I decided that I’d drive south again and set off.
This is a lot of pea for 1 night, and a little too dark, I must be de-hydrated . . too many beers I think!
No Surf – Flat . . I drove from Sees for about 4 hours and got to the coast to a smart seaside town that is twinned with Worthing of all places. I think the major of Worthing has come off best with his annual visit here.
It had a long sandy beach in the heart of the town with bars and restaurants along the front. It was busy but should have been buzzing, and it had what I think is the French disease of lacking any soul. Also, it looked as flat as the English Channel. A few desperadoes out trying to catch tiny waves, but nothing worth getting wet for unfortunately.
The seafront was busy in the early evening, but there were no young people. It was strictly 40 years and over. All walking along, not chatting and laughing, just existing. I know that the Brits are considered to be ‘Stiff’, but the French make us look Caribbean. Everyone is sooo serious.
I have travelled to a lot of countries and the only one that I am not fond of the nationals in, is France (broad statement I know, but generally it is true). I have always thought of them as rude, but now I think the nation is generally depressed and people just come across as rude as they are in a deep rut. The country generally has a mono culture and everywhere has the same people doing the same things. There is a high level of unemployment and I’ve been told by several of the many French that have the drive to leave to work in London (I think it’s about the 5th largest French inhabited CIty) that you need the right connections to get on and it isn’t a true meritocracy. The average person seems to have a very average and drab life, which makes me understand why so many people are parked up in Calais desperate to get out in lorries going to the UK. The French have more holidays than us and strong unions, but I think that this has meant more taxes and less money for the average person to spend on their plentiful time off.
From what I can see the only restaurants you can eat at are selling French food, with the occasional exception of Pizza or kebabs. Everything closes at 9pm, even the bars. Driving through towns during the day is weird as there is no one on the streets and over 50% of the houses have all of the blinds down or shutters closed. I don’t think they can all be holiday homes.
I was sitting in my van having breakfast this morning and played a game, saying bonjour with a big smile on my face to everyone who walked past and peered in with a frown, which was 90%. They didn’t know what to do and all panicked and just looked away and scuttled off, it was amazing. In Spain, everyone says hello and even if it’s not the norm in the UK, if you look at someone with a smile and say good mooring, they generally smile and say good morning back.
MORE OF MY RANT AGAINST THE FRENCH
The French haven’t caught on to the idea of picking up their dog do do yet. It is like England in the 80’s . . dog shit everywhere!
There is no Wi Fi available anywhere. I did a circuit of the town on my bike and couldn’t find anywhere to download my emails. I went to the tourist information office and they frowned at me and said they did have a free wifi service, but it did not work.
Finally, at about 6pm, I needed a shower and sought out the local camp site only to find that its office closed at 5pm and i couldn’t book in. I therefore parked outside for the night and cycled in to use their facilities. Ended up getting my shower for free :).
26th Sept
Had a 4 hour drive though the centre of France to the west coast. The roads are deserted and great to drive on, but the towns are also pretty deserted and I can’t work out where all of the people are. Here are some of the photos I took.
25th Sept
I arrived at 3pm and looked at my map. I hadn’t really planned where to go up until then and i was shocked to see how far Brittany is from Dieppe and also that it is driving back on myself and up towards the Cornish coast. I therefore decided to head towards Vendee which is a bit further south.
I set off at about 4.20pm and drove for a couple of hours before pulling off the motorway. I pulled into a place called Sees, which is a small village that happens to have a huge cathedral totally out of keeping with the village, which you can see in the photo. I went for a run for an hour and then had a beer. I then cooked up the lovely soup that Jo had made for me before I left. I found a street to park in that I didn’t know was directly outside the school. When I woke up, there was only my van in the street and I was surrounded by hundreds of noisy students, which was a shock. My first night in my van is now under my belt . . Excellent
J’arrive
24th Sept 2014
I was planning to set off today and remarkably, I have got almost everything done and am ready to leave. The past 2 weeks have been so busy. Almost everything that could go wrong, did go wrong i.e. letting my house and moving everything out, a demanding tenant, useless utility companies, a fault with my car I was selling etc. etc. However, everything finally came together and the house is empty ready for the new tenants, my car is fixed and sold, my business is delegated and ticking over and all insurances and utilities have been sorted (almost).
My last stop was my Mum’s in Ringmer and then onto the 11pm ferry from Dieppe. However, my Mother’s cooking and her common sense persuasion convinced me to stay the night with her and leave on the 11am ferry on 25th.
25th Sept
Well, I am just about to arrive in France, ready and excited about what is to come. I only have a rough itinerary and nothing is set in stone.
25th Sept – 10th November *France, Spain Portugal and Italy
10th November – 17th November *Sunny Brighton
18th November – 18th December * The Philippines
18th December – 3rd January * Thailand
3rd Jan – 7th February * Bali
7th February – 7th March * New Zealand
7th March – 17th March * Bali