We had an early start to catch the ferry, driving through Belgium to get to the ferry at Calais, France. There were roadworks along the way so it was just as well that we had given ourselves plenty of time.
We arrived in Dover around 1pm, giving us an hour to make our way to Folkstone for the car's MOT/roadworthy appointment. The technicians didn't mind us setting down the caravan in the parking lot temporarily until the car had been MOT'd. I was tired so I had a nap in the caravan and Paul did a bit of reading.
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| Today's route, more or less. |
The car finally passed its MOT. Whew!
Back on the road again, we took a scenic drive via small roads along the southeast coastline towards Hastings. The day was drawing to a close and nightfall was just around the corner when we tried to find an all year round campsite. One place was closed (different to what was said on the website), another one didn't take caravans, two we couldn't find so we had to go onto the internet to look for other campsites and ring them to see if they were open. We were in luck - one place that we rang was open but not really to caravans at this moment in time because the ground is very soggy from so much snow melt and rain. When they heard that our caravan was very small they agreed to allow us to stay in their car park rather than lose a bit of business by turning us away because of boggy fields.
Getting to Dogwood Cottage Campsite (http://www.dogwoodcamping.co.uk/) wasn't a problem. It was the little lane that they were down that was the problem. We followed the instructions to the village but missed the lane because it was in a darkish corner and not lit up by a road lamp. I thought I had seen the sign but by then we had 'sailed' past it. All Paul could do was try and find a place to turn around. We did so in the car park of a care home for the elderly was sited (from what we could see in the dim light) in spacious grounds. Back we went but again we passed the small lane. There wasn't a suitable place to turn around for a good mile or two and eventually Paul decided to turn into a road and then back out onto the main road. I had to guide him as he couldn't see the road properly. Back in the village Paul drove at a snail's pace so we wouldn't miss the turn-off into the lane. He was dubious because the lane was very narrow and it was not lit up with street lights.
We finally got the campsite and met the owners. They advised us on the best way to put the caravan in the tiny car park and after that we could set up 'home', unhook the caravan and go to a pub for dinner. We didn't get very far with anything. The electric hookup didn't work. And it was pouring with rain.
Paul spoke to the campsite owner who had a fiddle with the plugs but they were working fine. The campsite owner had a brainwave: re-wire the our European camping socket because he'd known people from Europe staying at the campsite and having the same problem. So Paul re-configured the hookup plug and it worked.
We were starving by the time we headed out to look for a pub that served evening meals. One pub wasn't serving meals because the owner was away (I guess he/she does the cooking). We found another pub and they were open. You could tell we weren't locals. The minute we entered the pub door the chit-chatter from the locals ground to a halt as they twisted their necks around to check us out. We were told that the pub was due to be holding a quiz session at 8 so were shown to the dining room area of the pub rather than sitting at a table near the bar. We bagged ourselves a seat near a heater, and wined and dined alone; listening to the banter coming from near the bar.
Fortunately getting back to the campsite wasn't a problem. Time for a shower now - and it is raining outside. Maybe we should stand out in the rain instead, with some soap and towel handy ....
We set off for Calais around 7:30 am with the caravan in tow. Traffic around Antwerp was bad but it wasn't quite as bad as we thought it would be, fortunately. It was good that we left half an hour to an hour earlier than we could have so that we had plenty of time to get to the ferry terminal in Calais.
Once we set up the caravan we walked around the Naturist Foundation's property and it was as I remembered it since my last visit a few years ago. It is a family friendly place with a children's play area, a nice swimming pool with a roof that can be opened or closed, sauna and games courts where volleyball, mini-tennis, badminton & petanque can be played, outdoor gym, a jogging/walking track and much more. The site also has lovely manicured lawns, a function room/dining room, reading area, bar and much more. Please note that the photographs are from the Naturist Foundation's website to show you what the place looks like as I am not allowed to take photographs.
