Into Italy
France, Late November
We try to avoid the tolls but soon discover that the non-toll road is closed by roadworks and are diverted onto the very toll road we are trying to avoid. It’s not just being tight frugality, the smaller roads are better suited to the van’s performance and for bonus points, take us through interesting little towns and villages that we’d otherwise miss while attempting a land speed record on the toll.
We get confused at the toll booth and think we’ve broken it. But it’s not charging at the moment, which makes sense if this is the diversion. Our last kilometres in France have been scenically snowy and that’s good as poor Godzuki! has to meander up a long and steep climb to reach the tunnel entrance and the cooler temperatures keep his engine and transmission from having a hissy fit. Patiently, we pootle along in amongst the trucks and let the modern traffic scream past. I have one eye on the road and one on the vast array of worry gauges we’ve installed.
Like moles we descend into depths of the Frejus tunnel. It’s an odd experience, driving underground in a tunnel so long that it has its own radio station. All the while, I try to keep a couple of hundred metres or so from the lorry in front and with no GPS signal I have to actually keep an eye of the van’s vaguely inaccurate speedometer, squinting to make out the tiny KM markings.
Half way through the tunnel we cross from subterranean France to subterranean Italy then, eyes blinking in the sudden sunlight, we pop out the other side of the Alps into Italy proper. In the small town of Oulx we find a little spot near the river to park up It has a view of the mountains and more importantly, is a few hundred metres from the launderette. We also sort out an Italian SIM, we’ve been without useful internet since we left the UK, an almost unthinkable situation in this modern world.
In the shadow of the Alps, amongst the almost Swiss like buildings, the temperature plummets to -7c overnight. Despite plenty of winter camping, I think this is likely the coldest we’ve experienced in the van. We’re comfortable, we have the heater during the day and we have good sleeping bags for the night, but the dash camera is having none of it and throws its toys out of the pram. It’s screaming “Warning! Recording! Warning! Low Battery!” over and over. I disconnect it and hide it under a pile of clothes but it continues with it’s warnings until morning. Scraping the ice off the inside of the windows and prepare for the day, by which I mean, I prepare to face Italian driving. It does not have a great reputation. It’s getting busy outside the van and we realise it’s market day.
We accidentally get on another toll road, I’m finding the signage is a little last minute but at least the cost isn’t too painful; then we pick up the ring road around Turin, which is an experience where I learn a little more about how road signs are done here.
Finally we get onto some more scenic roads. This is more like it. We park up in a town which has none of the advertised facilities, or at least we can’t find them. There’s a quarry behind the park up that thankfully stops late in the evening and we are able to get a good night sleep; it’s warmer here and the dash cam behaves.
Italy, Early December.
We are starting to worry that out of season camping in Italy might be problematic. Maybe we’ve been spoiled by the French network of motorhome stops and have become soft. There’s no escaping the fact that the toilet and waste tank need emptying and the fresh water tank needs filling. The battery bank is vaguely happy, so that is something.
We make a run for the coast where there’s an open camping Sosta. It’s not very instagram or #vanlife but we are in need of facilities. The weather is poor and we end up spending much of the weekend in the van while dwarfed by huge and luxurious Italian motorhomes, but we’re charged, empty, full and I even get the accounts done. In the brief periods of dry weather we try and get to the fort we can see on the cliffs, but find access restricted. In consolation we head to the lighthouse instead.
Reaching Portofino I am finally starting to feel that the trip is beginning. It’s all been such a rush, after all the delays, knowing that we are working with a fairly fixed return date. We’re starting to slow down and enjoy the places we’re stopping in more.
From our park up on a hillside overlooking the sea, we find a well maintained footpath through the woods that leads into Portofino and then out the other side to the castle and lighthouse. Portofino is beautiful. The sun is shining, the late autumn colours of the trees are popping, the sea is sparkling and we are smiling. We wander around the cafes and decide we’re too tight budget conscious to spend €5 on a coffee. It’s probably very nice coffee.
We consider continuing along the coast and down to the cinque port towns, but we figure they will be more of the same, so instead turn inland for something a little different.
Flickr albums: France | Oulx and Vado Ligure | Portofino