1954 Series II - on our Jolly's 1954 style! Now with pics!

[irmscher]

Any pictures of your travels ????

[horologiumwatches]

So I’ve finally got around to sorting out the memory card after our France trip, and have now uploaded a few pictures of our adventure in the Morris.
It went something like this:
We set out from my father’s house in Shropshire and had a lovely first day driving down to the ferry in Portsmouth. We took the scenic route travelling down through Shropshire, and across the Severn Bridge and down through Somerset.




We arrived four hours early for the ferry, so after a pub dinner I snapped up the chance to polish the car before embarking.


Even though we were so early, for some reason we got stuck at the very back of the ferry on the open deck and exposed to the spray and elements. I was not happy, but fortunately the crossing was mill pond calm so the car still looked good when we arrived in Caen the next day.





As it happened I needn’t have worried about the spray on the ferry, as France greeted us with drizzly rain.

We drove down from Caen through Le Mans, getting in a trip down the Mulsanne straight, and following the track round and through Arnarge. That was a fantastic experience in its own right. We pushed south through the Dordogne, to stay with some friends at St Joury de Chalais.












After a couple of days with friends, it was back in the car for a lovely run south, passing countless beauty spots and landmarks. The most impressive of these was when we passed over the viaduct at Millau. This is a 2.5k long viaduct spanning the valley of the river Tarn, and was very impressive, as it should be being the tallest bridge in the world!














That night we did a spot of wild camping up in the mountains just a bit north of Montpellier.

So it was up with the light and back on the road for the blast down to the French Riviera. I personally preferred the middle of France with its lush greenery and perfect roads, as the further south we went, the dustier and bumpier it seemed to get.






We had to battle with a bit of traffic, and had an absolute nightmare getting lost in Grasse before we made it to our destination at Chatauxnerf.

Here we stopped off for a couple of days for the wedding. This was the view from the villa we stayed at. Those mountains were yet to be tackled……

On the Monday we went in search of one of my bucket list ambitions – a lap of Monaco in the Morris. A bit more getting lost, and plenty of traffic led us into Monte Carlo. I was hoping to recognise a bit of the track and busk my way around, but when I spotted a rumble strip and didn’t recognise the corner I got a bit confused. The penny dropped when I realised we had driven DOWN the hill into the first corner going the wrong way. Got turned around, and soon found ourselves on the start finish straight sitting in traffic in pretty much pole position! I got three laps in before Holly told me off for driving in circles.










After Monaco it was the start of the drive back North. Luckily as we were based near to Grasse there is only one way north…… through the mountains on the famous Route Napoleon. What a fantastic bit of road that is! We made it to our campsite 1000 metres above sea level, where we stayed for a couple of days.




















Then it really was back north. We did the last leg of the journey in pretty much one hit, braking only for one short overnight camp. This was a bit of a stressful run as we had a ferry to catch (the old story) and as I result I pretty much maxed the old car out the whole way, but we made it with time to spare.














Hello again Blighty!



We stopped off for a quick look at the Battle of Britain Memorial on our way back up north. Very poignant and well worth a visit.









The car ran absolutely faultlessly. We did a total mileage of 2413 miles, and the car didn’t miss a single beat, even though we were on the bump stops the whole way, partly because of all the tools and spares I had in the boot!
Home again and back to bed for the old girl.



Would I do it again? In a heartbeat.

[MarkyB]

Great pictures from what sounds like a great trip.
There is a certain frisson you feel when driving on a famous formula one race track isn't there

[horologiumwatches]

I've been playing and here is a little video.........

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q5ZuH2c3 ... pgjuNs3DYQ

[DAVIDMCCULLOUGH]

Excellent pictures, a proper minor adventure

[George Smathers]

Wonderful!