Sisteron

 Tuesday 15/04/25

Lavender field directly behind our caravan.

We had to pop out for some supplies this morning and, as it wasn't raining as much as expected, we decided to make a detour into Sisteron town centre, a short drive along the  Durance river.  This gave us an opportunity to stretch our legs a bit, something we'd missed over the past few days of long driving.

Very dramatic rock formations.

As you can see from the photos, it is a very old commune nestled against the banks of the river, overlooked by the Citadel, a 12th century hilltop fortress.  We haven't been up to it yet but a visit is definitely on the cards.

France just keeps on giving, we're not running out of stunning places to visit any time soon.

Bonus pic:

A cousin of Orthos, or someone's supper?

Sisteron

 Monday 14/04/25

A rare treat for us - our own ablution and washing up facilities.  
We got a really good deal by booking early so decided to spoil ourselves.

We set off this morning knowing that, although we didn't have a massive distance to cover, it was mainly mountain driving which was going to take a long time.  After a good start, we left the lovely dual-carriageway toll-roads and found ourselves in a long train of vehicles travelling behind a truck - with nowhere to overtake.  However  the pace was about right for us and at least we couldn't be blamed for holding up the traffic.

It looks like we are flying through the clouds...

We have passed through many tunnels along our route.

Although the weather forecast was quite grim for the day and clouds obscured most of the mountains, we were treated to occasional bursts of glorious sunshine.  The views on the way were simply outstanding.

A slightly dusty looking but atmospheric French town

We arrived at our campsite early this afternoon and have set up the caravan.  We've been warned about the Mistral wind which can blast the area and so have held off setting up the awning for now.  The forecasted weather for this week is very stormy, but we should get better spring weather after that.

We really like the area where we are now: the mountains, farms and vegetation feel very familiar and Cape-like.  We need a few days to find our feet and explore this region.

A celebratory cuppa!

Camping Les 3 Lacs du soleil

Sunday 13/04/25

As it was our wedding anniversary today (34 years!), we decided it would be nice to spend some quality time together... so we woke up early and drove all day.  

How romantic. 😂

Another almost-empty campsite

We wanted to cover a lot of ground today, firstly because Sundays are usually quieter on French roads as the trucks don't drive and secondly, we wanted to get past Lyon to avoid having to go through on a Monday morning.  As it was, the roads were quite clogged with holiday traffic so it was quite slow going anyway.

It was very grey and drizzly today so we didn't manage any photos along the way, and we're cooped up inside this evening as the weather front we have been travelling in all day arrived at the campsite at the same time as us.  Still, we have nice food, a cosy bed and gorgeous countryside, so we're not complaining!

Tomorrow we turn southwards again for the final leg of our journey.  Not a massive distance to cover but I think the mountain passes will slow us down somewhat.  

 

It's goodbye to La Basse Cour

 Saturday 12/04/25

On Thursday B&T arrived back from the UK to spend their summer at La Basse, so after spending two final days with them and the cats, it was time for us to hit the road this morning.  

We have the entire campsite to ourselves - great!

After having had the most wonderful weather for the past week, the rain has finally arrived and we are camping in the rain on our first night away.

We raised Jasper from kitten stage and have known him for 5 years.

We have, as usual left La Basse with heavy hearts, even more so as this is the last time we will be doing the winter sit, but we're also excited to be going on a new adventure.

Tiny Lily crawled into our heart - and gave us all our days!

Sundays are usually good travel days because the trucks keep off the roads, so we have our longest leg to drive tomorrow.  We are heading for a campsite just to the East of Lyon.  Hopefully the rain should stop overnight and we can start making our way southwards.