Hot, hot, hot!

What a dreadful night’s sleep! At 1.20 we were woken by some inconsiderate people arriving in a Winnebago and parking up next to us. They spent half an hour crashing around outside before finally closing the door and curtains and settling down! Then at 3, I woke again to the sound of John snoring loudly… and got grumbled at when I asked him to stop. Finally, at about 4.30 the local cockerel decided it was morning, and time to get up. Grrrr!

We had a cup of tea and banged around outside for a bit, meanly hoping to get our own back on the Winnebago owners. Our other neighbours seemed to be doing the same thing! We had a long drive ahead of us, down to St Jean en Royans, so it was good to be away early anyway.

Although very long, hot and a bit boring at times, the drive was once again straightforward. John has the tolls sussed and, thanks to the tag, we haven’t had the usual dramas; for example, when I can’t reach the ticket or the credit card isn’t accepted. We stopped a couple of times to fuel Bertie and ourselves (including a visit to Burger King! Who eats Burger King in France?!) and, in between navigating, I read and snoozed. We finally arrived at the campsite at about 3.30.

We have a nice shady pitch but its 36 degrees in the shade and we don’t feel like doing anything… we can’t even be bothered to go out for dinner! We did walk into town to visit tourist information though, and treated ourselves to delicious ice creams on the way back… pistachio for John and caramel and nut for me.

We were going to hire bikes to cycle the gorges but I don’t think I can cope with that in this heat. Therefore, tomorrow, John is going to attempt taking Bertie and hope he doesn’t get stuck in a tunnel or under a rock overhang! The lady in tourist information was helpful and advised us which roads should be ok. Fingers crossed!

Over the weekend, thunderstorms and rain are forecast so we may visit some grottos and wander around Pont en Royans. St Nazaire en Royans is another option, with its aqueduct, as well as the possibility for some pack rafting. I’m really hoping that the temperature gets cooler because there are some good peaks to climb. I’m a delicate English rose and I’m seriously wilting in this heat!