If we can do it so can you. (1 Viewer)

Dec 4, 2014
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Well we threw ourselves in at the deep end having only used the campervan for a few weeks since we got it 2 years ago.
We bought it with the intention of taking us & Charlie the dog to Fuertventura for our winters.

Booked the tunnel 26 October not knowing what to expect never been to France not really any plans or directions & no expectation.

Yes we had the odd hiccups lost a full set of keys even left the front windows down overnight
(thought the Eberspacher was on a lot):ROFLMAO:

But we've met lots of great people along the way had a few laughs with no regrets (y)

Now we know what an Aire looks like some good some ok:whistle: but we can find them and make a decision on the spot the campsites in Spain have all been good the roads in France & Spain excellent.

At the moment we're at Estepona in the sunshine killing a few days before moving on elsewhere for another few days before moving to Cadiz for the ferry crossing to Lanzerote for a few days sight seeing then onto Fuerteventura for winter.

Have posted this for anyone worrying can they travel abroad ?
We have it's a doddle (y)
 
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18th February.


As yesterday was such a lovely day we decided to have the day on the west of the island:)
So we set off through the mountains passing Tetir, La Matilla, Lajares, El Roque & El Cotillo.

We stopped at a few view points along the way for Charlie's pit stops sadly no chipmunks to chase but a few goats in the distance which we keep him away from!!

Had a look at a windmill at El Roque then pulled up overlooking the surfing beach at El Cotillo had a wander around but couldn't go on the beach with Charlie after a couple of hours we headed over to the lagoons.

As we pulled up about 20-30. dune buggies came up the track now it's sort of the done thing that everyone waves at each other

Charlie couldn't believe his luck at all the attention he got nevertheless we sauntered past the buggies as they had parked up.

We had a good look around the lagoons which are great for Charlie plenty of greenery for the gecko to hide in.
the sea here was calm as this area is fairly sheltered.
Again we set off to the lighthouse down another track @ Faro de Toston.

This area is too rocky for surfers but the waves are tremendous as we walked up to the sea a couple were taking a selfie stood at the edge of the water with the waves behind them.
"FAIL" next moment they were on their hands & knees in the surf probably freezing.
They crawled along for a few seconds until they reached dry land

So we walked down some paths with the typical Canarian rock art so we placed a few rocks on top (as you do)

Then we headed home as the sunset was going to be down below the mountains.

Just another great day.
 
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John.
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21st February.

Monday was overcast so we decided on driving to Agua Verde winding up through the mountain roads.
Passing a few goat farms then to the end of the tarmac & onto the tracks passing a few deserted farms then down to the sea front unfortunately it started to drizzle so we had a quick look around before taking another track to Los Molinos.

Passing a few camels they didn't look too happy & a few ruined buildings.
Los Molinos is a parc natural so we had a look around the stream & duck pond which leads into the sea then headed to Tefia.

Stopping at another old windmill then heading across a tarmac track to another windmill then onto a proper road towards Tindaya.

Tindaya has some beautiful old buildings!!

Then onto Villa Verde & Corralejo.

Heading down the coast road passing the kiteboarders on the left who would be enjoying the high waves.
You have to watch the roads here as the sands drift across the roads when it's very windy but not today.

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John.
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Had a run over to the south of the island yesterday mainly to drop the grandkids off at the Oasis Park zoo at La Lajita then on to Costa Calma & Tarajalejo.

All of the roads are excellent in Fuertventura even the off road tracks are generally passable within reason as most are on solid rock.

Spotted a few Motorhomes's parked up so we had a drive over @ Tarajalejo.
2 separate areas here connected by a slightly narrow track but also accessible off the road.
Fronted by a tiled walkway plenty of benches & leading down to the black sand beaches.
Plenty of places for walking dogs etc also toilets at the end of the walkway and shopping in the town within walking distance.
We didn't speak with any of the other motorhomers as they were out and about but looked a good place to stay with easy access.
 
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Oct 26, 2014
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We normally stop and see the carnival up at Corralejo, Noisy buggers!, this year we were at Caleta de Fuste and caught the last night as we arrived!

hired a car for the first time and was shocked how big the island actually is, our photo's pretty much match yours, saw quite a few campers between El Cotillo and the lighthouses

Will definately be a winter destination in the van for the future

Andy
 
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Hi Andy I honestly think you could do a lot worse than Fuertventura.


This year the winter weather has been a bit cooler than normal that said at night it can drop to about 17 degrees & about 32 degrees in the day when it rains it's generally at night which last for a very short time.

We wouldn't like to be here in the summertime as one year we had over 40 degrees which is a bit hot for us.

Originally I planned on making a note of all the places I found that looked good to stop overnight but gave up as they were so abundant (y)

The garage as you enter Caleta has a motorhome service point sign (airport end)
the garage at the McDonald's roundabout end has a pressure washer handy for de-sanding the van €1 a go.

Vets are all over the island we use Species @ Caleta de Fuste
tel 928 16 35 74 673 699 127

Dogs are generally welcome in bars & cafes although we always sat outside (in the sun)
most places don't have a drinking bowl but willingly provide one on request we just carried our own(y)

Again dogs must be on a lead but in the wilderness they do run about under supervision.

Food / drink / fuels are cheaper than UK
Taxis fairly cheap & buses are cheap, clean & reliable.
We tend to think of the airport as being in the centre of the island & say each furthest point is about 45 minutes drive away.

English food is available @ British shop at Caleta & Corralejo (Christmas puddings etc)

Most bars have free wifi & also wifi is available on a per day / week charge we use Canarynet.

One thing we struggled to get a good copy of a Fuerteventura map???
But most other countries were readily available but we managed with the ones we bought.

Hopefully it might help others.
 
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One thing we struggled to get a good copy of a Fuerteventura map???


Thanks for all that, Funnily enough we found a great little well detailed map in the local supermarket for about 1.60, not an OS but good enough for us with clear road numbers etc, could not believe how good condition the roads were! or how big some of the waves were at Ajuy

Now back to reality in the freezing UK!!!

Andy

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Lisa

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Agree with Anthea, thanks for the update and info. Very interesting :)
 
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Looking like it's our last week on Fuertventura But we've not finished yet (y)

As its St Patrick's day & 2 of our friends are on the stage @ 9pm it would be rude not to show our support :rolleyes: (could be a late night)

Now we're not sure what to expect as we know nothing about St Patrick's day but then again we know nothing about campervaning but we survived for a few thousand miles so here's to a good night :wine:

Piccies to follow (y)

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John.
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Well we had an eventful journey to the port to catch the ferry over to Lanzerote.
The police local decided to pull us over apparently we had done an illegal turn ? not that we noticed!!
They decided not to give us a €200 ticket as everything on the van was in order & it allegedly was a minor incident?

So we checked in at the port office after waiting a few hrs we got pulled to one side for a drug, tobacco & weapons checks.
Surprise surprise they didn't find any :)

The custom guys were very keen on the date we crossed into Spain asking us to prove the date we actually crossed from France into Spain
Diane ((ex PA to CEO) instantly produced all the toll tickets etc from day one.
Think they hoped we had over stayed the 6 month period.
Wonder if the port police will stop us at Cadiz?

At the moment we're about halfway to Cadiz hopefully we arrive Monday afternoon so guess we'll just park up for a few days.

Then we start off again to anywhere we fancy for the next month or so(y)

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Well we had an eventful journey to the port to catch the ferry over to Lanzerote.
The police local decided to pull us over apparently we had done an illegal turn ? not that we noticed!!
They decided not to give us a €200 ticket as everything on the van was in order & it allegedly was a minor incident?

So we checked in at the port office after waiting a few hrs we got pulled to one side for a drug, tobacco & weapons checks.
Surprise surprise they didn't find any :)

The custom guys were very keen on the date we crossed into Spain asking us to prove the date we actually crossed from France into Spain
Diane ((ex PA to CEO) instantly produced all the toll tickets etc from day one.
Think they hoped we had over stayed the 6 month period.
Wonder if the port police will stop us at Cadiz?

At the moment we're about halfway to Cadiz hopefully we arrive Monday afternoon so guess we'll just park up for a few days.

Then we start off again to anywhere we fancy for the next month or so(y)

I know Canaries has a special tax status but presmably there are not Customs checks between the Canaries Islands, so I presume the Customs check was leaving Lanzarote for Cadiz.

As we do not use Toll Roads nor Campsites we would be hard pushed to prove when we entered a Schengen country or left it. I suppose keeping s/market and diesel receipts - but for months? And a lot of them are almost unreadable after a few weeks. Take a photo crossing the border with a date-line on? Does not prove less than cumulative 183 days in a year, as someone living near the border could nip out for a day after 5 months in the country.

This could start to be a problem, especially with Brexit looming. Although possibly not where there are no manned Border Controls where the questions could be asked. But it gets one thinking.

Geoff
 
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John.
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Well sure enough we got pulled over again at Cadiz but we had nothing to declare.

This time THEY told us when we entered Spain so definitely tracking our vehicle for the 183 day rule @nicholsong

We bought a bottle of gin in Cadiz €12 the same bottle in Fuertventura €5 so obviously they want to stop the smugglers.

Having a few days chilling at Camping Roche at Conil de la Frontera before moving on a bit.
 
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Had 3 good days @ Roche all the facilities were good showers etc & our pitch was perfect for us although the tree climbing chickens woke up rather earlier than expected @ 3am.
Cost €15 per night with free wifi.

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After Roche we headed off towards Pueblo Blanco stopping off first at Conil de la Frontera port & then Picking at random to stop at Borneo ? Where we found a street that just got narrower & narrower until we could neither go right nor left.
Had a great laugh along with the Spanish locals no harm done but I'm sure the 100 +
school children will remember us :rolleyes:
 
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Arrived at Pueblo Blanco great site with good facilities & spacious pitches with mostly stunning views €17 + extra for wifi but you can only link one iPad etc.
Lots of stuff for families (y) 3 days here.

We had a day out visiting the area stopping at Olvera, La Muela & Zahara.
 
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This afternoon we arrived @ La Vinuela as this site is overlooking another lake.
The views are beautiful the facilities are clean if not a little basic but this in our opinion is overshadowed by the location over looking the lake(y)

Cost €15 free wifi great walks around the lake which a tourist tells me has turtles in it ??
Apparently the shepherd also has his flock of sheep grazing around the lakeside accompanied by 2 sheepdogs & the shepherd so dogs must be on a lead(y)

Access to the lake is through a metal gate on the campsite & down about 6 steps.

At the entrance to the site are a couple of restaurants judging by the amount of Spanish cars parked outside they must be really good(y)

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We left La Vinuela heading 2 days ago to our chosen campsite being Pinar del Rey which was closed lol ? Well that'll teach us to use an old acsi book but nevertheless we adopted the the attitude "carry on regardless"
ending up at Playa de Mazaron has everything you could want great facilities great beach & in our case brilliant neighbors. 2 nights here @ €17 per day.

We headed off approximately 180 miles to a small site which again (in our opinion) is spot on :cool: a small friendly site which at first glance you might be thinking ehh I'm not sure ? But if you're not massive you will fit in (y) (see acsi guide) €15 per night.
Right on the beach a restaurant a few parrots in cages & friendly staff (y)

Had a great evening with a German & a Swiss couple in fact the more we meet people from other countries the more we realise we're all the same (y)
 
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Left Camping San Vicente after a couple of nights which is right on the beach €15 per night inc wifi.

Arriving at Camping Anpolla Playa staying 2 nights @ €15 per night + €1 per night tourist tax :-/ + wifi €2
Again just a walk across the road to the beach.

Headed back into France leaving Spain in less than the 6 month rule
arriving @ Camping De la Vallee which is fairly quiet & peaceful.

Perhaps have a month in France before heading home.

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Camping De la Vallee was a good stop for us @ €15 inc wifi.

We moved to Camping de Montolieu nice quiet site a bit of road noise @ some pitches but nothing to bother us.@ €13 per night.

Wandered in to the village of Montolieu ideal if your into books & libraries a few nice cafes & places to look at.

Drove up to the Chateau de Villeneuve then into the next village of Saissac again another pretty place.
 
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A few pictures from a lovely Aire @ Boisse Penchot and close by.
 
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Ended up at Grande Sologne great site for us over looking the lake for a couple of nights. €16 inc wifi.

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Moved closer to Calais now after a whistle stop @ Chartres we moved to a lovely site Camping Pommiers des Trois Pays which is literally 30 minutes drive to the tunnel (according to the sat nav) :rolleyes:
We decided to book a crossing yesterday evening all last minute really but that's exactly what we've done for this trip all along :LOL:
 
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