But we are off next day, so four days in this place has been a complete waste of time.  The campsite is ok, the shop looks good, but for goodness sake don’t go in five minutes before closing time because you will not be welcome.  Here is Gien in the sun:

Sunshine in Gien

Here is the Nuke with the clouds of smoke getting blown in a new direction:

The wines, we mean winds, have changed direction

The clouds of smoke are probably good news, since, given the location, this is probably a water cooled reactor, so if there are no clouds it is probably about to go into meltdown, and that would really put a downer on the holiday.

One of the more annoying things that can happen on a campsite is that you pay for your little bit of land for a couple of days and then somebody decides to use it as a shortcut to get to somewhere that is easily accessible on the designated paths.  So look at this joker:

Now you are on the internet and there is nothing you can do about it

Rained cats and dogs all day then brightened up at sunset once again.  Also, we have now completely run out of gas.  We thought we arrived in France with a full bottle of gas and a nearly full bottle of gas, whereas in fact we must have arrived with an empty bottle and a nearly empty bottle.  In practice this means we have no fridge unless we are moving or on a campsite, and we have no heating unless we are on a campsite.  Nor can we cook unless we do it outside on the Cadac, or make do with microwave and our single electric hob.  No chance of bringing any food back to UK from France either, as we have no idea how long we will have to wait at the tunnel.

Ville avec pluie more like

Poured with rain all night.  Poured with rain all morning and afternoon which is all a bit worrying when you are 100 meters from the Loire.  Stopped raining early evening so I took the opportunity to wreck the campsite chemical toilet emptying facility.  Drenched again but not my fault, the tap just came off in my hand while it was on full power.  Turned up at reception dripping wet with the broken tap still in my hand suggesting somebody may want to take a look at the toilet block.  Non motorhome/caravan owners should probably be relieved to know that all this mess was clean, fresh water, not sewage.

Late evening and the sun comes out:

Sunshine on Gien, nearly.

Sunset somewhat obscured by smoke belching out of the local Dampierre Nuclear Power Plant:

It’s going to blow, wake up, Homer!

Finally, some sort of local event next door with tents, food, drink, and maniacs on motorbikes so we stopped in for a look:

Mad person on bike

Another mad person on bike.

Three days of rain so we we decide to move on.  The weather madness is apparently something to do with some nonsense going on in the Bay of Biscay, so maybe moving east will bring some relief.  So off we go to Gien:

Neuvy-sur-Barangeon  has to be one of the most unpleasant places to drive through ever – mad chicanes, lorries in the middle of the road and all sorts.  Come on, France, build it a bypass!  Sat Nav then took us on the D30 (no lorries but rubbish road) rather than the D926 (lorries but better road) because it was less far.  Next time we do the D926,  Eventually we get to Gien and go for a walk.

More nasty looking clouds

Five minutes later it was pouring with rain and we were drenched.

Last day in June, central France, all the windows are shut and the heating is on.  Not too good.

The weather has gone nasty but the campsite sells food and drink and there a small supermarket a short walk away, so we stay here and see it out.

Those clouds look bad.

The Weather

The cupboards are bare, the fridge is empty and it is pouring with rain.  We know from a previous visit we can get food and drink in Loches without leaving the campsite, and if it stops raining there are things to do.

Here are a couple of pictures from our previous visit:

Etchings on the walls.

Entrance to Chateau.

The sun is shining again, and Brantôme is a great place.  However, rain, storms, thunder and lightning promised for the next three days so we are off tomorrow, to who knows where.  We will be back to this relaxing town and campsite sometime in the future.  But for goodness sake, mayor, get your signage sorted.

Snapped this upside down.

Three men in a boat, and all their extended family.

Here is (what’s left of) our dinner:

Some nice chap roasted this for us.

Another giant chicken, granted not on the same scale as the one in Argelès-sur-Mer

Arrived here after a couple of uneventful nights in Limeuil, an old stomping ground from years ago.  Temperatures in high 30s, too hot to do anything energetic, but relaxing for a couple of days.  We’d never heard of Brantôme until we picked up a guide book and saw a nice picture, so off we went.

Brantôme is a nice place place but the sign posts are appalling.   Here is a tip.  If you are unlucky enough to drive your motorhome onto this street:

This really is a main road.

Do not panic, do not get out of your vehicle, and do not walk to the end of it to find out whether you can carry on or need to reverse.  If you do the locals will not like you, although the fire brigade did not seem that bothered.  Just carry on driving – all will be good.

The following day, having walked into town, two other motorhomes went down the same street, bottled it, somehow turned around and went back, probably causing even more mayhem than us.

In spite of the motoring chaos, Brantôme is small but very nice.  In keeping with the the farmyard animal theme, here is a pink pig:

Oh no, snort snort.

Went for a trip around the area:

Yes, there is a cow there.

They seem happy.

View from a road. No idea what road, but it was a road.