Blog 1.6: Confirmed

Well, all things being equal, we're off to France. And Spain. And possibly Andorra too.

Yes, the ferry from Newhaven to Dieppe is now booked for 10am on the 22nd September, and we'll travel down the day before.

Our friend Jane has kindly said we can park overnight on her driveway in Seaford so we have an easy fifteen minute hop to the ferry terminal in the morning.

Dieppe, sadly, has moved its ferry terminal out of the inner harbour now. It used to be lovely to moor up adjacent to the railway line and the shops and bars, but now it's all a bit more soulless, a bit more Calais-like I suppose.

Still, the upside is that it's now said to be a much easier drive away from the port and on to Rouen, so not all bad!

Landing at about 3pm local time gives us a bit of breathing space to head south away from the coast and to find an aire or other suitable park-up for our first night, ready for day two and a fair push onwards towards the Spanish border.

There's no great rush however, and we'd anticipate several days drifting southwards (with maybe the odd lateral wriggle here and there) avoiding the toll motorways where possible, and soaking up the atmosphere of the small (and larger) towns and villages on the way, with Carcassonne a target before crossing the Pyrennees line.

It's starting to get real again, although I'm hoping my lower back issues continue to improve until then...

Wish us luck.