The Motorhome Years: Tour of Andalucia Feb 2013

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TOTAL TOUR STATISTICS

11 days (10 nights)
Distance 1316 kms (818 miles)
Fuel used 128 litres
Fuel economy 10.1 km/l (29 mpg)
Fuel cost €182.44
Groceries €132.86
8 nights camping costs €118
2 nights wildcamping €0
Meals out €18.80
Motorhome goods €62.80
TOTAL €514.90 for 11 days

Our first major tour (more than one day) in Cervantes took us to Andalucia to watch the cycle race called the Ruta del Sol. This would be a testing time for the van and for us. We had just about mastered the water filling and toilet emptying, but the fridge seemed to have a mind of its own as to what it was running on - 230 volts, van battery or gas (always read the manuals - there is a delay when it changes from battery to gas), and the gas regulator onto the gas bottle didn't seem a very positive fit.

Thursday 14 Feb Home to Cartagena
Our first night was at the aire in Cartagena where the staff are superb. On the way we stopped at Caravanas Sangar where previously we had seen the ACSI camping card book for sale. We bought one for €14.50 which gives us over 2500 sites at a guaranteed €12, €14 or €16 per night including electric. This is low season pricing only, and each site sets their own season. Some are available to camping card all year apart from July and August, while some extend the high season to include June, July, August, September, Christmas, New Year and Easter. All the info is in the book when you buy it. We intend only to tour in Spring and Autumn and spend Summer in the house, so this card is ideal for us.
The aire was, as usual, very friendly and helpful. They lent us an adaptor as we only had a 2-pin hookup and theirs was a 3-pin.
The next morning we watched the departure of the biggest combination we have seen so far - a Concorde towing a covered trailer containing a Smart car - I think the trailer must have cost more than the car! They don't do things by half, the Scandinavians!

A very expensive rig

Cartagena Aire N37°39'22" W1°00'22"

Friday 15 Feb Cartagena to Bolnuevo
Today we set off early heading for the coast. Before going we emptied the grey water and the cassette, and filled the freshwater tank (so we thought). The water overflowed from the filler neck so we thought it was full (not knowing how long it took to fill it), and as it turned out, we had filled it to less than a quarter of a tank, so a lesson learned there.
Our first stop with our brand new Fiat was the dealer in Cartagena appointed to deal with motorhomes. All the manuals and instructions we had are in Spanish, but we had managed so far. We just wanted to check that the first service was indeed at 48,000 km (30,000 miles), and you were not expected to do anything before that. The very helpful guy we spoke to said that was correct, but he would recommend a minimum of an oil and filter change once a year, which I was quite glad to hear.
We bought a litre of oil from him and continued to Bolnuevo campsite which was excellent. Literally step out of the campsite on to the beach (sand) and walk for miles. We noticed some high hills just behind us, and decided to stay here for 2 nights and climb the hill on Saturday. Fantastic views of Mazarron from the top, and our campsite and the sea looking the other way - well worth the one hour effort to climb the 250 meters up there.

The view was worth the effort

Camping Playa de Mazarron (Bolnuevo) N37°33'47" W1°18'14"

Sunday 17 Feb Bolnuevo to Cabo de Gata

We had always wanted to stay at Cabo de Gata so now was the perfect opportunity. Just 1 km from the beach, it said (but turned out to be more like 4 kms), but the site was ok, if a little remote. Excellent walk to beach which was huge and deserted, and we noticed a carpark full of motorhomes which were wildcamping - noted for the future.

We have decided that we need some ramps as soon as possible. If the van isn't level, the sink doesn't empty properly and the pans move a bit on the gas rings, but that isn't the real problem. When you're in bed on a slope you feel like you are continually about to fall out - not a good feeling, so ramps asap.

Remote but good site

Cabo de Gata Camping N36°48'29" W2°13'55"

Monday 18 Feb Cabo de Gata to Carchuna

Leaving Cabo de Gata we headed southwest and ended up in Don Cactus camping in Carchuna. Another friendly site (aren't they all) where again we had to borrow a 2-pin to 3-pin adaptor, although this time we found out where we could buy one (the ferreteria in town which we did the next morning).

Again this site was on the beach (this time shingle) from which we borrowed 2 large flatish stones to drive Cervantes onto to try to get level (half successful). It was a bit confusing in the showers and toilets as the Don Cactus pictures at the male and female entrances didn't seem to indicate which was which - the cactuses were both dressed in a non-male/female way so it was just a guess as to which one you went in. (It wasn't just us - everybody was doing it - lots of laughs and lots of 'sorry - excuse me' etc)

Chilling in Carchuna

Don Cactus Camping N36°41'45" W3°26'36"

Tuesday 19 Feb Carchuna to Humilladero
We had the route for the Ruta del Sol cycle race, so headed for the climb of Puerto de Torcal - lots of hairpin bends and narrow roads. We found a good flat viewing spot off the road ready to watch the race pass by tomorrow.
Then we thought - why don't we wildcamp here - it would be ideal for our first time. After an hour, and seeing 2 cars go past, beautiful though the spot was, we decided to go and find a site as this was just too remote and exposed for our first time wildcamping.
Camping Sierrecilla in Humilladero was where we ended up. Excellent, well-kept, smart luxurious site, again very friendly. We bought 2 litres of excellent olive oil for €6 in reception - what a saleswoman, but she was right - it really is good. On the way to here, it had been torrential rain for 2 hours, and as a result the site was slightly waterlogged, but nothing of a problem really.
The town we came through to get here was Antequera - a fantastic old town which we will definitely return to, with a huge church and a castle on a hill surrounded by high mountains - picture perfect.

A little too wild for the first time

Camping Sierrecilla N37°6'28" W4°41'47"

Wednesday 20 Feb Humilladero toTorrox

After going back to our "wildcamping" spot, we watched the race go by. Prior to that, as we were parked having tea and biscuits, we heard the tinkling of bells, and out of the window saw sheep as far as you could see with bells around their necks all coming towards us. They split around the van and carried on up the valley - hundreds of them. After 20 minutes, when the last one had passed, they decided to come back and took another 20 minutes to pass us again.

As Glyn said - it's a good job we didn't wildcamp here last night - we would never have got any sleep!

We headed for Torrox down an almost single-track mountain road for 30 km with fantastic views, but a major problem if anyone had been coming too fast the other way. We tried to get a pitch at Camping Lagunaplaya but they were full, so we moved up the coast to Camping el pino in Torrox. Quite an old site, but with so many low trees and sharp turn offs, it was a nightmare to manoeuvre round - goodness knows how the bigger vans get on. However we stayed for 2 nights, and on Thursday walked 6 km to Nerja to re-kindle some old memories of when we stayed there 22 years ago.

Camping Laguna-Playa N36°43'46" W4°6'9"

Camping El Pino N36°44'22" W3°56'59"
131km in 3hrs 5mins

Friday 22 Feb Torrox to Mojacar

We were now on our way home, and decided that wildcamping on Cabo de Gata beach was appealing. However, when we got there, the wind was blowing so strongly we could not open the van doors, and the spray and sand were sandblasting Cervantes - he was rocking about like someone demented.

We thought discretion was the best option and headed for a site on the opposite side of the mountains in the lee of the wind. Camping Los Escullos was a lovely site, only 1 km from the beach. On the way we passed a Michelin tyre test track where they road test agricultural, earthmoving and truck tyres - a very impressive installation. Disaster struck when our hook-up lead would not work (we had to connect to a power point across a road at El Pino, and our lead, along with everyone elses, had been run over numerous times - another lesson learnt there). A very helpful handyman at Los Escullos was all for making us another one, but the wind here was just as bad, and the overhead shade covering didn't look as if it was going to last the night, so all in all we decided to move further NE up the coast.

We drove from Garrucha to Mojacar looking for a campsite we had in the satnav (thank you Ryan and Mel for a fantastic database of just about everything), when we came across 2 motorhomes on a sandy car park 10 metres from the sea. Obviously we parked next to them and spent the night for nothing with the sound of the waves on the shore all night - bliss.

Another van in sight so we felt OK

Mojacar wildcamping at N37°07'48" W01°49'50"
303km in 4hrs 54mins

Saturday 23 Feb Mojacar to San Juan de los Terreros

We decided to drive up the coast to Aguilas to explore a bit further. Approaching San Juan de los Terreros we saw 10+ motorhomes in a car park and even more across the road on the edge of the beach. You see one motorhome and they have stopped for tea, two motorhomes and they have met up for a chat, but more than two and it's wildcamping. We got there at 3, and by 6 there must have been 20+ on the car park. Mostly French in enormous A classes, Germans, Dutch and Swedish...... and us.

So, the second consecutive night of wild camping in the beautiful Pulpi Costa - what an excellent village and beach - we will certainly return to here.

Batteries were fantastic on solar power. The only limiting factor is the toilet cassette - 4 days seems to be the maximum before it needs emptying, but water, waste water and batteries are all fine for much longer than that.