ALL GOOD THINGS...?....

1st-6th April 2017

Stayed at Aquarius for a week in the end, leaving Friday 7th. and taking a slow route back through France as the weather is so fine. I didn't expect to be leaving Spain on the Mediterranean side when I suggested that we check out the Pates Summer Residence at Jonzac which is north of Bordeaux on the Atlantic coast side so we have a longer route than  is strictly necessary so we are taking 5 days.

We have had a great week ; the weather is very warm but this area is windsurf and kitesurf central because of the wind which does not do the GF any good at all as we all know, and the wind has sometimes been extremely strong making cycling a joy one way but hell on the return.
Lots of cycle paths around and good maps available and the route signposting usually quite good, so we have been out and about most days......and I did a great little route to pick up 5 caches one afternoon on my own when the wind was too much for the GF. In fact this was quite a rich area for caches and my total is now 347.
We planned a day in Figueiras by bus, believing that it stopped outside the camp only to discover that it only comes down here in the summer and that the rest of the year you have to walk over 2.5miles to pick it up. Consequently research showed an Aire in Figueiras within walking distance of the centre so we took the van and parked in a supermarket car park along with 20 other vans probably doing the same. Figueras is the home of several Salvador Dali museums and we can thoroughly recommend the Teatro Dali which he created in his lifetime. Astounded by the crowds ......tours and school parties which made it almost as bad as the Hermitage in St.petersburg.  Amazing place and the volume of his work here is truly outstanding.  Even the GF  was finally won over after muttering 'Weirdo' for the first hour. I loved it. An we had a nice lunch.
We cycled to L'Escala down the coast, past Roman and Greek ruins and having such a nice time rather foolishly decided to continue on another cycle track . ... mountain bikes would have been good, or rather essential. It was a bit stressful and the route was not well marked. Fortunately  a very nice family ( on mountain  bikes) confirmed our whereabouts on our rather sketchy map and we didn't get lost . Ascending had been a pain....descending was a nightmare in places and the descent was a third of the distance of the ascent and all on rocky flint tracks. I was quietly terrified that one of us would pick up a puncture. Amazingly we were passed by a motorbike  and 3 4x4s out for a spin. Very relieved to get back to town and have a jolly good lunch before heading home.