Tinca's on Tour (1 Viewer)

[Tincataylor]

The ferry is booked (one way) for our departure on 14th December from Portsmouth to Bilbao and even though its a few weeks away we are getting really excited about the trip. The intention is to post a report of our travels whenever possible, along the lines of the Devon Bee Keeper thread, and as we have never done a tour abroad in our camper before we hope that our adventures and lessons learned will be of use to others. Our plan, such as it is, will be to make our way to the coast via Rioja and Zaragoza in time to spend at least a week over Christmas on a site by the sea in the Tarragona area.
It is deciding on a campsite for the Christmas break that we would like to draw on the experience of other Funsters as we are naturally looking for others to spend the holiday celebrations with. A trawl of the web has thrown up three possible sites and we wondered if any of you have or are intending to use any of them; they are Estanyet, Ametlla and Cala d'Oques which are all quite close together. Naturally if you know of others close by then we would like to hear of your recommendations.
We have given ourselves no firm date to return and we intend to travel slowly in a roughly clockwise direction along the coast with multiple detours inland as and when the fancy takes us. The plan (?) is to finish up travelling North through Portugal before returning to Bilbao / Santander for the trip home. We also intend to take in as much of the culture, food and wine of the different regions we will be visiting and this is made easier as Mrs Tinca is a fluent Spanish speaker; at least she is before too much wine has been consumed.

Preparation so far has been making sure all household management can be done remotely via 'tinternet and getting the camper prepared. It now has a brand new MOT, new front discs and pads and a re-fillable 11Kg gas cylinder, the latter being a really simple DIY job with the help of Gas-It.


All helpful suggestions are welcomed and we hope to be able to keep this an informative, and humorous, thread for others to follow as we make our way down stranger roads than we are used to. Did I mention that we are excited?.............its way more that ..............

The Tinca's

 

[Debs]

Sorry, can't help with recommendations but really looking forward to reading about your travels I too, enjoyed DBK's posts

Bon voyage

 

[Jandek]

Good luck with your travels. Sorry dont know any of those places so cant help. Would think you need to book your stay for christmas as am sure will be a lot that are fully booked. We head down that way mid jan and could not get in our chosen site and that was a month ago. Keep posting... may see you somewhere!

 

[Carol]

Sounds wonderful, look forward to following your travels

 

[Tincataylor]

Another small piece of the preparation puzzle was put in place today. We had long discussions as to whether we wanted TV in the motorhome, and if so what equipment would we require to ensure we had reception in Spain and Portugal. As always the pages of "Fun" were a mine of useful information and from this we were able to make a decision. We decided that if we could not do without UK TV for a couple of months while in a foreign country, where everything around us would be new and fresh, then it was a poor job. However we also recognised that it would not all be beer and skittles weather wise while away and there would inevitably be days when we would be banged up in the van with it hissing down outside. I think DBK had more than his fair share while he was on tour so hopefully he got our share as well. Our "solution" has been to purchase an external hard drive for the laptop on which we have loaded up endless seasons of Mad Men, The Sopranos and Spooks which we have never watched. We are still adding to the list of media as and when we think of it so there should always be something to while away the odd hour or so. To be honest this is not so different from when we are home as we tend to watch more recorded than live TV; I still feel smug when fast forwarding through the adverts.

We have decided that the Estanyet campsite near Tarragona http://www.estanyet.com/index.php?Idioma=EN looks good to us and we are in the process of booking a week there to cover the Christmas holiday. If anybody else likes the look of it as well and wants to join us, or is already there, then the more the merrier.

The Tinca's

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[PORKSTER]

This is worth a lookhttp://Broken Link Removed

Sitting here now very nice

 

[Tincataylor]

Porkster,

Many thanks for this, all recommendations gratefully received. We have friends in Castellon that we will be visiting in the New Year and this site could prove very useful, how long are you guys planning to stay there?

 

[PORKSTER]

Hi we came on here for the night yesterday afternoon we haven't left yet. The locales are now playing boules I think I see a Xmas dinner option possible

 

[Tincataylor]

As part of our preparations something has cropped up that is probably old news to a lot of you, but if it helps just one person that was unaware then this post will be worth while.
We have purchased a one way ticket on the ferry as we have no form plan of when we will return to UK. Then somebody pointed out to me that I need to check the "Unoccupied" terms and conditions of our household insurance policy for extended periods away from the house. I have contacted our insurers and it turns out that if we had gone away without notifying them then our insurance cover would have been severely compromised.
I hope this may prove useful to other duffers like us who had not given it a second thought.

The Tinca's

 

[JJ]

Enjoy...

And please include photos if possible...




JJ

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[LAM]

HI 'the Tinca's,
We had a similar situation when our cottage flooded. We were informed by our insurers (after many enquiries from us), that if the property was empty for 6 months our insurance would not be valid. Has your insurers 'dated' your absence, because now that we are retired we are away a great deal ?

 

[Tincataylor]

LAM,

Firstly I have to read the "unoccupied exemptions" clauses in the policy document and then ring them with the approximate dates when the property will be unoccupied (a thieves charter if it fell into the wrong hands), then they will decide to either

1. Do nothing
2. Declare the whole policy null and void
3. Ask for an additional premium

No guesses for which of the above it will be.............

The Tinca's

 

[LAM]

Get your hand in your pocket !!

 

[Tincataylor]

This has now been resolved by having to cancel my existing policy and take out an entirely new one with another company that allows me to be away from home up to 90 days. To those people who have responded saying that they get round the occupancy clause by getting their neighbour to pop in occasionally, I would urge them to check the wording of their policy documents as they may find themselves uninsured.

The Tinca's

 

[joncris]

LAM,

Firstly I have to read the "unoccupied exemptions" clauses in the policy document and then ring them with the approximate dates when the property will be unoccupied (a thieves charter if it fell into the wrong hands), then they will decide to either

1. Do nothing
2. Declare the whole policy null and void
3. Ask for an additional premium

No guesses for which of the above it will be.............

The Tinca's

Also don't forget to turn off the house mains water and drain the header tank including the taps. If you don't it may be that your ins. cover for burst pipes is invalidated

Also its a good idea to notify the local plod that you'll be away and give them a contact number or email address should owt happen

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[DBK]

How do you manage any copyright issues loading the DVDs onto the hard drive? I don't mean in a legal sense but I thought they generally don't copy across easily due to copy protection technologies.

 

[mjltigger]

How do you manage any copyright issues loading the DVDs onto the hard drive? I don't mean in a legal sense but I thought they generally don't copy across easily due to copy protection technologies.

Easy when you know how..

It is perfectly legal to digitize media you already own or have rights to so there are both hardware and software solutions available. I download all my media now but I used to use DVD decrypter for the task (software)

 

[DJA]

Hi DBK

We take hardrives when we go away with recordings on them of programmes we can watch whilst it is hissing down.

There is a programme called magicdvdripper which costs about £35 which will convert DVD recordings into various formats. I know there are cheaper programmes but this one works every time. We have an Avtex tv and so we also download the DivX coding from the same website and produce .avi files. This works very well for us however should you want to copy bought DVDs it will also convert those. Not a facility we use, must be my Scottish heritage, as we don't buy DVDs but I know it definitely works. It means you can convert a DVD collection and store on hardrives and play via a Smart tv for example and the DVDs can be packed away.

One word of caution the Avtex tv's need usb2 not usb3 hardrives and the hardrives must be fat32 formatted like a usb stick. I know usb3 is back compatible with usb2 but they don't work on the Avtex

 

[Tincataylor]

In order to play media with mixed file formats we found the simplest way was to download the free software from VLC Media Player Broken Link Removed
Once installed on your laptop / PC this will play pretty much anything you thrown at it,

The Tinca's

 

[DBK]

Many thanks, I feel as though I have been given honorary membership of the Guild of Rippers. I will investigate as this seems like a way to play my blu-ray disks in the MH. They work at home but my Avtex TV just gives the digital equivalent of "?" if I load a blu-ray disc.

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[Tincataylor]

DBK,

I am not familiar with the Avtex but in my experience Laptops are Laptops and TV's are TV's and getting either to perform the duties of the other can be fraught with difficulties. However if the TV will play media from and external source and that external source is a laptop with the above software downloaded then it might work. I'm sure there are others on here who will be better able to advise, but as with a lot of things it might be better to just give it a go and see what happens,

The Tinca's

 

[DJA]

Hi Tinca

Your above comment gives me the impression you have misinterpreted what the software is used for. If I am wrong please forgive me.

Using the software referred to you can put a bought or personally produced DVD in the computer and produce a Digitalized file (Computer File) of the DVD. You can then load that file on to a USB memory stick or external hardrive which you connect to a USB socket on the TV and play. This means that you can take lots of films/ TV programmes/ Video files on a hardrive instead of having to take all the DVD's which take up space and weight. For example you can get at least 12 normal length films on a 16GB memory stick or 600+ on a 1TB hardrive. This is very much more convenient and also takes less power to run a USB stick or Hardrive than the DVD in the TV.

We have for example been away and arranged for a TV series to be recorded. Then we returned I transferred the programmes to a hardrive and then SHMBO watched the series (not a soap) on our next trip away.

Anyway to get back on topic we look forward to hearing how you get on with your forthcoming tour.

All the best.

Doug

 

[Tincataylor]

Well its just a few days to go now until we sail and I have found that the most important thing to do to ensure we leave the house in a safe state and also make sure we have not forgotten anything is to have a detailed checklist.

1. Re-home the cat for the duration of our trip
2. Turn off the water
3. Buy Mrs Tinca's seasick pills
4. Cancel the Sunday papers
5. Get a neighbour to keep an eye on the place.

This list has been buzzing around my head for days now and I've had to have a small drinkie to calm myself, however I pretty much have it memorized:- buy the cat some seasick pills and turn off the neighbour, remember to cancel the wife and keep an eye on the papers. On second thoughts (and a few more tinctures) I will turn on the neighbour and re-home the wife, not forgetting to cancel the cat pills and read the papers on my way to the airport.................................

The Tinca's

 

[Geejay]

Reading your last para everything seems to be under control.

Make sure BF have your mobile number as they will text you if there is a delay with the ferry. Also, check their website for Latest Sailing Information (under Routes & Timetables) and their Twitter feed for up to date info.

Don't forget your Passports, Driving Licence, Vehicle Doc, original Insurance Certificate, Travel Insurance details and EHIC.

Enjoy and will look forward to reading your reports - in Spanish of course.

 

[DBK]

When are you sailing? Gales forecast for the Channel tonight and tomorrow morning. Buy extra seasick pills if needed but with storm force 10 forecast the ferry won't be sailing tonight I suspect. http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/public/weather/marine-shipping-forecast/#?tab=map

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[Tincataylor]

Shhhhhhhh........quiet you fool; Mrs Tinca is already on a state of high alert regarding the weather as she is not the best of sailors, and she is currently hanging on Carol Kirkwood's every word. On the day I'll have her so full of seasick pills she will be in danger of becoming unstable if they start to roll around in her tummy, however the pills will make her rather drowsy so she is not due to wake up until after Christmas...............

Truth is we do not sail until very late on Sunday and the worst of it should have passed by then; at least that's the best palliative story I can come up with so far to calm her down. Grisly details of the crossing to follow shortly,

The Tinca's

 

[Tincataylor]

We had a dream ferry crossing from Portsmouth to Bilbao with hardly a wave to be seen. We found the ferry to be clean and comfortable with the on board prices quite reasonable seeing we were a captive audience. Sat Nav Sally let us down badly at Bilbao and we had an interesting first hour getting used to driving on the right and driving past the same road works about 3 times in the city centre!! However once we cleared the city we were fine and found our way easily with a combo of satnav and map. We opted for using the minor roads to travel in a South West direction and we were rewarded with some lovely scenery before descending down into the Rioja region where we have purchased copious amounts of the local produce. Very comfy in the Nuevo and have everything we need. We are currently in a very out of season site about half way to the coast and it feels rather like we are on the movie set of "The Shining" as we are the only living thing here except the camp guard dog and the caretaker. So far we have gotten more sense from the dog than the caretaker, however the latter is much better at fetching sticks. The only place on site with Wi-Fi is also close to freezing so this will be a very short report for now. We are due to arrive on the coast roughly on the 22nd by which time we should have got some exploring done in the hills and have more of an update for anyone who is interested.

The Tinca's

 

[DBK]

Nice to know you arrived in one piece. Sounds like the weather inland is a bit chilly?

 

[Tincataylor]

18/12/14
We had a lovely drive from the last site, Bolosa, down through Aragon to the border of Catalunya ending up at the tiny pueblo of Arnes where we will stay for 2 days at the Els Ports campsite. As usual up to now we are the only ones on the site which is good as there are no noisy kids or barking dogs, but we will be glad when we get to the coast and have other campers to talk to. The scenery here is beautiful and there are impressive hills in the distance that we will be exploring tomorrow if the weather permits. It has been non stop sunshine today which added to the pleasure of the drive, which was in excess of 200 kilometres and as far as we ever intend to drive in a day. For information the last 50 kilometres or so offered plenty of wild camping opportunities, for those interested, in olive groves set off the roads. The campsite is a 15 minute walk from the the little pueblo of Arnes which is full of sleepy Spanish charm. It has suffered from an exodus of its young people and has seen its population shrink from 1200 to 500 in recent years but we have been made very welcome in the one and only bar that is open and is full of families with kids running amok. Mrs Tinca's ability to speak fluent Spanish & some Catalan has been a great help as the locals are not used to their visitors being able to speak their local dialect.


19/12/14
We set off this morning to explore the well known walk in the hills facing the campsite to Els Estrets which follows a river course through an impressive canyon. The first 4 kilometres was through mainly olive groves but there were also almonds, grapes for the local wine and hazelnuts grown as well as some wheat for bread making. The scenery in the gorge itself was quite spectacular and the river changed colour from crystal clear to green depending on the depth, but there were no fish evident. We had a simple lunch comprising of fresh bread baked that morning with some Serrano ham, cheese and tomatoes, and it tasted just great out in the clear mountain air. What we did see was vultures circling overhead in the thermals and on our return through the gorge we saw a male and female Ibex warming themselves on the cliff face in the afternoon sun. They let us get quite close and we had a great view in the binoculars which pretty much made our day. The walk was about 12 kilometes in all which was enough for us and we are writing this update in a local bar while they are preparing our food which is simple and wholesome and about 8 euro's a head. A few glasses of Rioja to top it all off and we will be ready to call it a day. We will up sticks tomorrow and take the relatively short drive to the coast.

The Tincas

 

[DBK]

I must look that place up on the map. It looks a gem.

Edit: just found it, very close to the coast. Interesting looking area.

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