wild camping in France is it safe?

in 1976 i did lots of grape picking through france . then orange picking in spain . then on to maroc . not sure which was worse or best wine drinking in france and spain or smoking in morocco. i do know i,m glad i didnt get hooked on either. i do know that its amazing how much pollen you can get shaking some seeds in a black bin bag . there is another world out there many here will never know about .
yet most of our raisins etc come from Israel, yet cheaper here than over there .
 
My French is becoming rusty too...which is frustrating, having to think again !!!...Some of the experiences you could not book in a travel agents that is a certainty !..

I am lucky enough to live on the cusp of Derbyshire and have Holmfirth and North Yorks all not far away stunning scenery etc ...In its own way stands handsomely with anything else I have been lucky enough to witness. The people are Ok too in the main.

However there is something in France hard to describe, Everyday when I wasn't working was an adventure ( the work could be interesting too ) , no agendas and invariably something interesting would rear its head.

Simple things , the Atlantic coast near La Rochelle I think people trawling with nets on the beach sifting sand and the smallest seashells ever ...before I knew it perhaps my interest the lady cooked the shells splash of wine hint of garlic fresh parsley and a baguette and shared lunch ....A beautiful human experience. Often the parents wanted to see how much their children could speak |English ( I bet you get it ) in reality no problem I got to practice my French. Mistakes don't matter the French quite happy to correct you and offer explanations.

Vidange v vendange I really need to get back !!! losing the plot a touch.

Alors ..c'cest la vie a la moment

Channa
 
When I read all the quips/replies good or humorous/replies not so good etc. it makes me realise how much most of us on here have crammed into our lives, we meet people everyday who have never been anywhere, two weeks a year to Magaluf or Benidorm and they think they are seasoned travellers, what makes it more amazing is the same people wonder why we have a box on wheels (it is how one of them described my Hymer) and want to go on holiday and cook our own meals
 
i think for many of us, our love affair with France is because that was the first foreign experience we had. a lot of us would have driven there before it became cheap enough to fly there, and consequently got to see a bit more of it than holidaymakers.
in my case it was the sense of freedom that being a foreigner in another country can bring , we could drive vans that weren't strictly legal and park almost anywhere, with no fear of the cops ! we did the vendange and sold on the markets, as well as doing building work when we stopped for a while. doing the markets was a great way to see the country,learn the language, and get to know other traders. early set-up,but finished at midday and time to explore . the kids thrived on it,and so did we.
we feel as much at home there and Portugal,as we do here
 
tezza33 said:
When I read all the quips/replies good or humorous/replies not so good etc. it makes me realise how much most of us on here have crammed into our lives, we meet people everyday who have never been anywhere, two weeks a year to Magaluf or Benidorm and they think they are seasoned travellers, what makes it more amazing is the same people wonder why we have a box on wheels (it is how one of them described my Hymer) and want to go on holiday and cook our own meals
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Although I would allow plenty of latitude for anecdotal embellishment, know what I mean?
 
We live here in the Apls in France and have for the last 11 years. We have travelled the whole of France and have wild camped for every holiday, both on Aires at the motorway services and in towns and villages, supermarket car parks are great and in villages you can always find car parks. We regularly travel down to the Italian Lakes, and down south and have never had any problems, this is not to say things don't happen, but I have never encounted anything or met anyone that has a problem. Enjoy Ypur holiday.
 
Byronic said:
Although I would allow plenty of latitude for anecdotal embellishment, know what I mean?
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au contraire,my wife makes me tone them down. some stories are best kept for people you know,round a campfire
 
The part story may well not be believable either, that's the conundrum, publish all and be damned. As long as it's an interesting tale then who cares, and as the saying goes; never let the facts get in the way of...etc
 
TJBi said:
If you haven't considered it, you might find it convenient to have a day cabin, particularly with the "little people" and particularly for the longer crossing back from Saint-Malo. Added expense, but something that I always do for convenience; if not booked in advance, it's possible to ask at the information desk on board whether they have any cabins available.

At the risk of going completely off topic ;) if you're not desperate to push on to Brittany as soon as you disembark from the ferry, you could consider a day or two on the Normandy coast (D-Day beaches). Heading for Brittany, you have the option of the A84 toll-free motorway from Caen to Rennes or seeing more of the real France by using the D roads.

Tom
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I understand your thinking but my 'little people" are 9 and 11 so maybe not quite so little. Also they both go like Duracell bunnies. Part of my reason for not doing a night trip is because there is no way they would of slept or stayed in a cabin for longer than 5 minutes. They would want to be off exploring. I won't be sitting for much longer than it takes to drink a cuppa coffee. Lol bless em!

And we are not intending to go direct to Brittany. As per your suggestion we were planning to stay in Normandy for at least a couple of nights before moving on so thank you for the tip of the A48. We will also probably use the D roads as we do like to stay off the beaten track (if at all possible this time of year). :)
 
n brown said:
au contraire,my wife makes me tone them down. some stories are best kept for people you know,round a campfire
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You should have more resolution than that Mr Brown. Obviously you don't give the WC Forum Members their due consideration in your order of priorities, but if your missus is bigger than you, we'll understand.
 
High vis jackets. Yellow or Orange?

This may be a silly question and yes I have already googled it but cannot seem to find a definite answer. The high vis jackets that you must carry can they be yellow or is orange acceptable.

I ask as I already have 2 yellow ones in my van however there are 4 of us travelling and as my partner works on the railway he obviously has orange ones and so I wonder if these are ok or would I need yellow.

Not really sure I need to worry too much but just thought it worth asking!

Thanks to anyone that knows the answer. :drive::rulez:
 
runnach said:
I had one of each colour with us for our recent visit. You'll be fine with either, or.....enjoy your trip.
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Thank you! I though that may be the case. And I'm sure we will. Got to be better than the rain here!
 
For a truly budget jaunt to France you could do what my friends did,they took their 3 young children to Poole from London,then got the Sandbanks chain ferry to the other side of the harbour,about two quid and three minute ride on the ferry. Told the kids it was France on the other side lol,but they were just as excited to end up in Swanage!! They couldn't understand why all the signs were in English....scarred for life they are...
 
Asterix said:
For a truly budget jaunt to France you could do what my friends did,they took their 3 young children to Poole from London,then got the Sandbanks chain ferry to the other side of the harbour,about two quid and three minute ride on the ferry. Told the kids it was France on the other side lol,but they were just as excited to end up in Swanage!! They couldn't understand why all the signs were in English....scarred for life they are...
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when my lads were young we used to get them to hide when going over toll bridges or ferries like the one you just mentioned . even the isle of wight ferry . of course they were really free . when we went to france it took alot of persuading to them that we had bought them tickets and they didnt need to hide . it was funny . they had planned where they were going to hide in the cupboards etc . even now at 37 the youngest came away with me the other year asked if he should hide in the toilet with a big grin on his face .
are they scarred or just switched on to having fun ?
 
years ago when he was about 20 he came with us to maroc . on the way we called at adra on the spanish med coast . he used their toilet and got locked in . we could hear ,help let me out i,m locked in the toilet etc .
now every time we go near adra we have to tx him and say help let me out . he knows where we are . most of my mates do it as well.
we are all children . even his kids kbnow all about it and want to go to adra to see their dads toilet . ha ha .
have you grown up yet?
 
tezza33 said:
We haven't, every time we see a E.Leclerc in France we lift our glasses and in a best Allo Allo voice we say "it is I, Leclerc", we smile for the next few miles
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I will say this only once...I loved that program!!
 
Totally agree, visited Brittany on many occasions from Plymouth. On paper Dover to Calais seems cheap until you factor in fuel used and valuable holiday time lost getting to Brittany. I think that a lot of people don't realize how big france is compared to the UK.
 
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