Trip to France

[barryd]

Yesterday we had a great afternoon parked up watching a Boules tournament which we enjoyed immensely, with some really good players there, we used to carry a set but in one of the van changes they got put in the garage and they got too rusty to use.

So we decided to buy a new set, I asked a couple of the players where I could buy a good set, Decarhalon, in Claire, near Perpignan, which was good as we wanted to go there.

Google maps made a real hash of it, taking us all over the place and then rerouting us again and again,and much as it pains me to admit it, I gave up and asked Liz to try on her iPhone, and it worked fine

I tried to uninstall maps but you can't, I did clear the maps cache and it seems to be ok now but I have been using it forever and never had a problem

Have you got the maps for all of France downloaded Kev? If the phone signal is crap in my experience Google maps struggles if you don't have the offline maps.

 

[Robmac]

The big grey van I pictured was a brit too, his solution to the Angels morts sticker was quite good.

Dunno if he's on here, last 3 are LOV

Shoulda nicked it Kev!

 

[Pudsey Bear]

Yeah,

Have you got the maps for all of France downloaded Kev? If the phone signal is crap in my experience Google maps struggles if you don't have the offline maps.

Yeah, I did it all the week we came away to save data, signal has been good most of the time too, and it was strong when maps acted up, just a stupid cache glitch I think.

 

[barryd]

Yeah,

Yeah, I did it all the week we came away to save data, signal has been good most of the time too, and it was strong when maps acted up, just a stupid cache glitch I think.

Google has a habit of deleting them unless you manually update them or connect to WiFi within 15 days

Download areas and navigate offline - iPhone & iPad - Google Maps Help

If you're going somewhere where the Internet is slow, mobile data is expensive or you can't get online, you can save an area from Google Maps to your phone or tablet and use it when you're offline. N

support.google.com

 

[Pudsey Bear]

Yeah but I'm on Android, google doesn't like Apple.

 

[colinm]

Yeah,

Yeah, I did it all the week we came away to save data, signal has been good most of the time too, and it was strong when maps acted up, just a stupid cache glitch I think.

I've always found Google maps to be, at best, third rate for offline use. Best I've used is TomTom, second best was Windowsphone maps.

 

[marchie]

Oil you.

We're having a really great time TBH just a few gripes, some out of ignorance of course, we can't all be clever buggers can we, met some great Brits on the road too, one today with a toad as we were both getting gas on the same pump,I asked if it was illegal to tow on an A frame, he said he'd never been stopped.

I've never been called a clever bugger; an ignorant one, Kev, but never clever ... . But, straying close to clever bugger status, I would say that 'never been stopped' is not the same as being legal, merely that the law has yet to catch up with the miscreant ...

My own preference is not to do anything that invites attention from Police or any similar bodies, because that just gives them a reason to poke around in greater detail [and, however fastidious one is about maintenance, stcikers, insurance certificates, V5 etc etc, there will always be something on the vehicle that isn't quite up to spec], and a fine or other penalty would just ruin the holiday

Steve

 

[barryd]

Yeah but I'm on Android, google doesn't like Apple.

Me too. I think that applies to all formats.

 

[marchie]

The big grey van I pictured was a brit too, his solution to the Angels morts sticker was quite good.

Dunno if he's on here, last 3 are LOV

The suction cup mounts are quite popular, Kev. I've seen several Posts promoting them on different Forums, plus the 'Don't use beam deflectors, don't drive in the dark; don't display Angles Morts stickers, they're in the glovebox if I need them; don't have a Crit'Air sticker, I don't intend to drive in any cities; and the [rarer] 'bloody jobsworth fascist copper, stopped me and fined me for speeding/not having Crit'Air sticker/a cracked lens on the A Frame and no Beam Deflectors'. They should be catching proper criminals, instead of harassing Brits, just because we left the EU ...'

Steve

 

[Val54]

The suction cup mounts are quite popular, Kev. I've seen several Posts promoting them on different Forums, plus the 'Don't use beam deflectors, don't drive in the dark; don't display Angles Morts stickers, they're in the glovebox if I need them; don't have a Crit'Air sticker, I don't intend to drive in any cities; and the [rarer] 'bloody jobsworth fascist copper, stopped me and fined me for speeding/not having Crit'Air sticker/a cracked lens on the A Frame and no Beam Deflectors'. They should be catching proper criminals, instead of harassing Brits, just because we left the EU ...'

Steve

And all that happened because you were speeding ............

 

[Pudsey Bear]

I've always found Google maps to be, at best, third rate for offline use. Best I've used is TomTom, second best was Windowsphone maps.

It works fine, but for off line I think CoPilot is best if kept up to date.

 

[Pudsey Bear]

I've never been called a clever bugger; an ignorant one, Kev, but never clever ... . But, straying close to clever bugger status, I would say that 'never been stopped' is not the same as being legal, merely that the law has yet to catch up with the miscreant ...

My own preference is not to do anything that invites attention from Police or any similar bodies, because that just gives them a reason to poke around in greater detail [and, however fastidious one is about maintenance, stcikers, insurance certificates, V5 etc etc, there will always be something on the vehicle that isn't quite up to spec], and a fine or other penalty would just ruin the holiday

Steve

Not forgetting the nut on the steering wheel.

 

[Pudsey Bear]

Me too. I think that applies to all formats.

It says 12months on mine.

 

[TJBi]

It looked like the tap had prostate problems Tom it was running so slow.

We're at La Barcares, on the Med, very touristy but it's dead.

You have to love some of those palm trees. I've stopped a few times at CR Port Barcarès, the other side of the main road. Always very windy.

 

[Robmac]

I use Waze all the time on the bike and find it brilliant, apparently good in France as well.

I use it purely for navigation though so not sure what it's like for POI's such as restaurants, petrol stations etc.

 

[TJBi]

In all my years motorhoming in France I don't think I have ever seen a van pull up to a service point and get a watering can out to fill the van. As you discovered many are on a timer. Whip the hose out. Short ones are best, bung it in and "then" stick your money in. Takes me 20 seconds.

I did see a few using watering cans in Beauvais recently. Unthreaded tap for the drinking water and no easy way to secure a hose unless you have a very special adaptor. Ludicrous thing was, the tap for rinsing cassettes was threaded!

 

[TJBi]

Because you have a constant flow with a hose, dont have to walk between the tap and the van each time and then start all over again and providing its not one of these taps where you have to hold a button in you can do something else at the same time such as empty the loo. Sounds like an added bonus with a hose in that it will fit in a locker and you dont have to keep it in the bathroom.

We hold the world record for being the fastest ever users on a French service point. Sounds to me like you might be stuck on there longer than a Frenchman!

On most of those pushbutton taps, the pushbutton will stay pressed in using a reusable cable tie. Just a very few where it has to be released for the water to flow for a short time before being pressed again. Hose-to-tap adaptor, hose-to-filler pipe adaptor, do black and grey while tank is filling.

 

[TJBi]

It works fine, but for off line I think CoPilot is best if kept up to date.

But there are a few places where CoPilot can let you down. One of the POIs not far from Montpellier was unnavigable by CoPilot in spring 2023, both going to it and leaving it. Duly reported; don't know if they've got it sorted.

 

[TJBi]

Dont carry one, dont want one, nor getting one, and not going to use a paid one again.

Watch out for the service points that require use of a Hozelock-type male adaptor. They won't start dispensing until it's plugged in and keep going until either your money runs out (if it's a paid one) or the adaptor is removed, whichever happens first. Very messy without a hose!

 

[Pudsey Bear]

You have to love some of those palm trees. I've stopped a few times at CR Port Barcarès, the other side of the main road. Always very windy.

Nice spot there, it was very wet n windy last night but all gone by 6am, church bells started at 7am and repeated 10.minutes later.

It's very quirky here but mostly in a good way, some of the roads are well wacky though, you have to be on your toes, you just think you have it sussed then some planner has shaken it up especially exiting some roundabouts.

I'm loving seeing loads of old cars on the roads, this one just drove by.

I ran one of these for two years doing light haulage up to east kilbride almost every night on the old A74 an LT35 flat bed.