DEANB:
On the way to Cherbourg.1
0
That looks nothing like the RN 13 to me, have they updated the road to Cherbourg, Buzzer.
DEANB:
Laurie Dryver:
DEANB:
geoff luther:
1A couple of regular faces i know there ! heres another man that alot of you should know been going
through Poole for about 35 years !0
The inimitable and irrepressible “Percy” Harris when he was driving for John Davidson - Mounthooly Transport respect to Percy for his dedication and consistency - Top Man
Indeed Noel , would like a pound for every mile Percy has done through his life !
Tha penny has just dropped. It Noel Minchew Isn’t it?
Buzzer:
DEANB:
On the way to Cherbourg.1
0That looks nothing like the RN 13 to me, have they updated the road to Cherbourg, Buzzer.
Thats the Rennes ring road John just coming off onto the A84 to Cherbourg/Caen probably about
2002 ish i expect the roads are totally dfferent to when you used to tramp them me old mucker.
Buzzer:
DEANB:
On the way to Cherbourg.1
0That looks nothing like the RN 13 to me, have they updated the road to Cherbourg, Buzzer.
Hi Buzzer you are dead right that’s nothing like the N13 as we never hit the motorway till near Paris in the old days.Thanks for the input anyways Dean.cheers Geoff
Talking of the RN13 from Cherbourg when I used Truckline in the early 70’s the food on the ships was terrible so it was normal if we were crossing back to Poole for two or three of us to pile in a tractor unit and go about 10ks down the roller coaster RN13 to a restaurant cant remember the name but it was on the nip of a hill on the right hand side and was run by a family, father and mother were cooks and the kids did the serving, does any one else remember this establishment. There were three teenage daughters and a son who was the youngest about 11yo. It was always proper food especially Rungions (kidneys) which was a particular favourite of mine done in a cream source have never forget that taste. The French only always have two things on a plate for main course meat and one veg, not like us where we have two or three veg, the only thing I refused to eat in all my travel’s through that country was tripe and that was in St Jean Du Maurienne on my way to Italy so I had double dose of charcuterie instead, over here we feed that to dogs ad the waitress could not believe I did not want it, cheers Buzzer.
Buzzer, i too loved the kidneys, like you said the sauce was tasting so good, think it was a brandy sauce of some sort, i tried the tripe, cows stomach and intestines, not for the faint hearted, the tongue was not bad, but has the prickly surface on it.
Pigs trotters was another one, very fatty but the meat was tasty.
You may have stopped at the Saint Leonards creperie for a tacho break near Mont St Michael, back in those days you could run the coast line from Cherbourg passing small fishing villages, but now it is a weight limit.
The restaurant over looking the bay at La Rochelle was my best stops, and the saucis volante or the flying sausage Rouitiers.
The Shell garage at Le Mans with the big hairy dog called Eigor, they did croque monsieurs, cheese toasties and steak, good breakfast, the young couple lived there, and had a skinny guy who was in to cycling.
Always made welcome, they all spoke good English.
toby1234abc:
Buzzer, i too loved the kidneys, like you said the sauce was tasting so good, think it was a brandy sauce of some sort, i tried the tripe, cows stomach and intestines, not for the faint hearted, the tongue was not bad, but has the prickly surface on it.
Pigs trotters was another one, very fatty but the meat was tasty.
You may have stopped at the Saint Leonards creperie for a tacho break near Mont St Michael, back in those days you could run the coast line from Cherbourg passing small fishing villages, but now it is a weight limit.
The restaurant over looking the bay at La Rochelle was my best stops, and the saucis volante or the flying sausage Rouitiers.
The Shell garage at Le Mans with the big hairy dog called Eigor, they did croque monsieurs, cheese toasties and steak, good breakfast, the young couple lived there, and had a skinny guy who was in to cycling.
Always made welcome, they all spoke good English.
Hi “toby1234abc” you have mentioned several of the places I also have used over the years. Tripe is not so bad as people imagine,the French do it a way that it is not too bad to eat.I am surprised that Buzzer refused it but each to his own.Cheers mate
Dont forget Luke’s on the same road as The Flying Sausage Toby, and yes the Fish restaurant. (Aire de Marin ) was the best on the road to Bordeaux.
Some decent Rouitiers by coming off the forest road South of Bordeaux, a few not seen from the road, and a few that you could see, one I used, was in the forest down country lanes, they had a barrier up to stop the trailer kitchen diners not spending a penny, you could enter if have a meal, or pay for a shower.
I have come back from St Lucia, their meal on offer in the restaurants was pigs tails boullion or a goat curry, imagine the fuss if you ate a goat in the UK, not possible as it is a nanny state, you got to be kidding.
Would the pigs tails give you curly hair ?Or turn you in to a bore ?
Is that Stevie Holland, Shady in that photo and Ian from R&G ?
Steve was not there , he was on holiday in Majorca.
Edit to add : Ian was there though .
toby1234abc:
Some decent Rouitiers by coming off the forest road South of Bordeaux, a few not seen from the road, and a few that you could see, one I used, was in the forest down country lanes, they had a barrier up to stop the trailer kitchen diners not spending a penny, you could enter if have a meal, or pay for a shower.
I have come back from St Lucia, their meal on offer in the restaurants was pigs tails boullion or a goat curry, imagine the fuss if you ate a goat in the UK, not possible as it is a nanny state, you got to be kidding.
Would the pigs tails give you curly hair ?Or turn you in to a bore ?
Going south: Liposthey, Cap-de-Pin, and Castets. They were all excellent when I was on the road. 
Robert
robert1952:
toby1234abc:
Some decent Rouitiers by coming off the forest road South of Bordeaux, a few not seen from the road, and a few that you could see, one I used, was in the forest down country lanes, they had a barrier up to stop the trailer kitchen diners not spending a penny, you could enter if have a meal, or pay for a shower.
I have come back from St Lucia, their meal on offer in the restaurants was pigs tails boullion or a goat curry, imagine the fuss if you ate a goat in the UK, not possible as it is a nanny state, you got to be kidding.
Would the pigs tails give you curly hair ?Or turn you in to a bore ?Going south: Liposthey, Cap-de-Pin, and Castets. They were all excellent when I was on the road.
Robert1952,
Castets ■■ Really ? I would have thought you wouldn’t have rated it… I certainly didn’t, thought it was the most smelliest dirtiest car park, awful grub, and showers on the whole way down… I only stopped there twice on a Saturday night (after hearing it was good) second time was for the benefit of the doubt.
But no, first impressions were correct…
Did a couple of turn rounds there when on for mckellars but always made sure I’d allready eaten/showered before arriving there.
Tubbysboy:
robert1952:
toby1234abc:
Some decent Rouitiers by coming off the forest road South of Bordeaux, a few not seen from the road, and a few that you could see, one I used, was in the forest down country lanes, they had a barrier up to stop the trailer kitchen diners not spending a penny, you could enter if have a meal, or pay for a shower.
I have come back from St Lucia, their meal on offer in the restaurants was pigs tails boullion or a goat curry, imagine the fuss if you ate a goat in the UK, not possible as it is a nanny state, you got to be kidding.
Would the pigs tails give you curly hair ?Or turn you in to a bore ?Going south: Liposthey, Cap-de-Pin, and Castets. They were all excellent when I was on the road.
Robert1952,
Castets ■■ Really ? I would have thought you wouldn’t have rated it… I certainly didn’t, thought it was the most smelliest dirtiest car park, awful grub, and showers on the whole way down… I only stopped there twice on a Saturday night (after hearing it was good) second time was for the benefit of the doubt.
But no, first impressions were correct…Did a couple of turn rounds there when on for mckellars but always made sure I’d allready eaten/showered before arriving there.
I take your point, Tubbysboy! You have obviously read my other thoughts on Les Routiers. Castets, frankly, was marginal for me. On one hand it smacked of the kind of Continental truck stop to be avoided for precisely the same reason as avoiding the Cabbage-patch in Bordeaux or Victors in Spain (ie a lot of white-socks-and-sandals-wearing English odd-bods got in there - just taking the pyss, don’t take offense). However, for me it had a number of redeeming features:
- It was incredibly convenient for going south into Spain because you could just do it from Calais on your card
- No end of North Africa drivers got in there, so pleasant camaraderie was always on tap
- They were wonderfully generous with the vino collapso in the 10-year period I was doing it, so you never had to worry about the bar bill
- There was always enough room to park
- The food was actually OK
- The staff were superbly helpful and friendly
- If you were ‘weekended’ you could always stroll into the old village across the motorway and sit outside what used to be the Routier for a meal and a drink
Robert 
(Happy memories!)
PS I would add that I have enjoyed some of the best spontaneous drivers’ parties down the road, at Castets, as anywhere! I met an enormous number of really good blokes there, whom I would never normally met: good company, no probs, sound as a pound. Robert
And the toilets / shower area stank with the smell coming up the stairs into the bar and you had to pass the stair well to get to the dining room.
robert1952:
Tubbysboy:
robert1952:
toby1234abc:
Some decent Rouitiers by coming off the forest road South of Bordeaux, a few not seen from the road, and a few that you could see, one I used, was in the forest down country lanes, they had a barrier up to stop the trailer kitchen diners not spending a penny, you could enter if have a meal, or pay for a shower.
I have come back from St Lucia, their meal on offer in the restaurants was pigs tails boullion or a goat curry, imagine the fuss if you ate a goat in the UK, not possible as it is a nanny state, you got to be kidding.
Would the pigs tails give you curly hair ?Or turn you in to a bore ?Going south: Liposthey, Cap-de-Pin, and Castets. They were all excellent when I was on the road.
Robert1952,
Castets ■■ Really ? I would have thought you wouldn’t have rated it… I certainly didn’t, thought it was the most smelliest dirtiest car park, awful grub, and showers on the whole way down… I only stopped there twice on a Saturday night (after hearing it was good) second time was for the benefit of the doubt.
But no, first impressions were correct…Did a couple of turn rounds there when on for mckellars but always made sure I’d allready eaten/showered before arriving there.
I take your point, Tubbysboy! You have obviously read my other thoughts on Les Routiers. Castets, frankly, was marginal for me. On one hand it smacked of the kind of Continental truck stop to be avoided for precisely the same reason as avoiding the Cabbage-patch in Bordeaux or Victors in Spain (ie a lot of white-socks-and-sandals-wearing English odd-bods got in there - just taking the pyss, don’t take offense). However, for me it had a number of redeeming features:
- It was incredibly convenient for going south into Spain because you could just do it from Calais on your card
- No end of North Africa drivers got in there, so pleasant camaraderie was always on tap
- They were wonderfully generous with the vino collapso in the 10-year period I was doing it, so you never had to worry about the bar bill
- There was always enough room to park
- The food was actually OK
- The staff were superbly helpful and friendly
- If you were ‘weekended’ you could always stroll into the old village across the motorway and sit outside what used to be the Routier for a meal and a drink
Robert
Robert,
I’m happy to say I never went to victors, as really couldn’t understand why no one would use the motorway from Vitoria to Burgos, it used to cost about thrupence ha’penny and was deserted…apart from the ocassional ■■■■■■ porka on a mission to get back to matosinhos…
I did use the cabbage patch very occasionly but only when it was really the very last option…
Funny really the old BP truck stops, Macon (dump) Zaragoza (good) guarroman (great) roye (not too bad) Bordeaux (■■■■■■■■
Least that’s how I’d rate them…hahaha
[quote="TubbysboyI’m happy to say I never went to victors, as really couldn’t understand why no one would use the motorway from Vitoria to Burgos, it used to cost about thrupence ha’penny and was deserted…apart from the ocassional ■■■■■■ porka on a mission to get back to matosinhos…
I did use the cabbage patch very occasionly but only when it was really the very last option…
Funny really the old BP truck stops, Macon (dump) Zaragoza (good) guarroman (great) roye (not too bad) Bordeaux ([zb]
!!)
Least that’s how I’d rate them…hahaha
[/quote]
Spot on! I used all those. Robert