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A life less complicated

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Having completed a large chunk of the British coastline and visited 1467 beaches on the way, ventured into the unknown, crossing the English Channel for the first time and seeing what the coastline of France has to offer and adding a further 459 beaches to our tally, we are off again. This time, as a complete change we are on the pursuit of stunning scenery and again crossing the channel and meandering down the core of Western Europe to see what we can see…

If you would like to see our earlier journeys around the UK, they have loosely been grouped together by location and you can find the links below.

NB some of the links below are not yet working properly as it is a work in progress….

Beach Guides:

To catch up with our earlier adventures in:

  1. North coast of Cornwall from 5th October 2017 to 11th February 2018 –   Freedombird in Cornwall
  2. Back in Cornwall at various times to complete the coastline – Freedombird back in Cornwall
  3. North coast of Devon from 11th February to 19th March 2018 – Freedombird in North Devon
  4. Somerset from 19th March to 29th April 2018 – Freedombird in Somerset
  5. South Wales coast from 29th April to 14th August 2018 – Freedombird in South Wales
  6. West and North Wales coast from 14th August to 21st October 2018 – Freedombird in West and North Wales
  7. North West England from 21st October to 26th November 2018 and 27th January to 4th February 2019 – Freedombird in North West England
  8. Cumbria from 27th January to 5th April 2019 – Freedombird in Cumbria
  9. South Coast of Scotland from 5th April to 25th May 2019 – Freedombird on the South Coast of Scotland
  10. West Coast of Southern Scotland from 26th May to 17th July 2019 – Freedombird on the West Coast of Southern Scotland
  11. Edinburgh and surrounding area from 18th July to 30th July 2019 – Freedombird in Edinburgh and surrounding beaches
  12. East Coast of Southern Scotland from 28th July to 15th September 2019 – Freedombird on the East Coast of Southern Scotland
  13. North East England from 12th September to 20th November 2019 – Freedombird in the North East of England
  14. Yorkshire from 14th January to 22nd February 2020 – Fredombird in Yorkshire
  15. Lincolnshire from 23rd February to 13th March 2020 – Freedombird in Lincolnshire
  16. Norfolk and Suffolk from 15th to 24th March 2020 and 28th June to 18th July 2025 – Freedombird in Norfolk and Suffolk
  17. Inland England on various dates travelling through – Freedombird in inland England
  18. West Coast of Northern Scotland Part 1 from 11th September to 14th October 2024 – Freedombird on the West Coast of Northern Scotland Part 1
  19. North Coast of Scotland and the Orkneys from 15th to 27th October 2024 – Freedombird on the North Coast of Scotland and the Orkneys
  20. East Coast of Northern Scotland Part 1 from 28th October to 15th November 2024 – Freedombird on the East Coast of Northern Scotland Part 1
  21. In the Highlands of Scotland from 15th to 26th November 2024 and 10th to 21st June 2025 – Freedombird in the Highlands
  22. West Coast of Northern Scotland Part 2 from 8th to 17th April and 31st May to 5th June 2025 – Freedombird on the West Coast of Northern Scotland Part 2
  23. Outer Hebrides Part 1 from 22nd April to 12th May 2025 – Freedombird in the Outer Hebrides Part 1
  24. Outer Hebrides Part 2 from 10th May to 30th May 2025 – Freedombird in the Outer Hebrides Part 2
  25. East Coast of Northern Scotland Part 2 from 15th to 18th June 2025 – Freedombird on the East Coast of Northern Scotland Part 2
  26. North and West Coast of France from 11th September to 7th December 2025 – Freedombird on the North and West Coast of France

Sunday 12th April 2026 – A wander up to and around Montauroux….

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Overcast for most of the day, still warm but in fact a bit of a relief for the walk we have planned today.

After a slight detour to take a look at Chateau del Colle Noire – famously redesigned and owned by Christian Dior from 1950 and still owned by Parfums Christian Dior it wasn’t easy to get a look but….

We then started the 3 mile climb up to the old town of Montauroux, which sits at about 1300m above sea level, using a network of quiet residential lanes and footpaths to wend our way to this historic old town with it’s narrow cobbled streets…

Some of the streets were barely 2m wide, with others (closed to vehicles) not even that – I’m so glad I left the van down on the Aire. It was quite quiet on this Sunday afternoon, though a few people sat outside the cafes or pottering around the table top sale in the main square…

After a little mooch, we wandered along the deserted streets to find the ruins of Chapelle St Bathelemy….

And to admire the views from either side of the town….

Before we had had our fill and it was time to start to make our way back down, this time sticking to the quite lanes as the footpaths had been rather sketchy on the way up….

Today’s stats:

  • Miles walked – 7.5
  • O/N – £13.13

Sunday 11th April 2026 – a walk down to Lac de St Cassien….

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Well I had thought that it might have been a bit cooler away from the coast, but that certainly was not the case as it remained warm until sundown last night. However it was a little hazy and cloudy this morning but still very warm and so we had a bit of a lazy morning and set out to walk down to Lac de St Cassien mid afternoon.

We had a couple of false starts as there wasn’t any clear information on either Apple maps or the skeleton version of Ordnance Survey but essentially we took which ever footpath that seemed to be going in the right direction and after an hour or so we made it….

We aimed for and landed on Plage le Rocher, where there was some kind of activity centre (although closed and by looking at it it was hard to determine whether that is permanently or just not getting ready for the season yet) and a few families picnicing, so we found a quiet spot on the rocks by the lake with a bit of shade to sit and rest up for a bit….

Before attempting a circular route back (successfully I might add) – it wasn’t a particularly long walk but it involved a fair incline on the way back – we earn’t our supper….

Today’s stats:

  • Miles walked – 6
  • O/N – £13.13

Saturday 10th April 2026 – a walk along the promenade from Frejus to St Raphael….

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Time to move on from our little campsite on the coast….

We make the short drive to the other end of St Aygulf and find parking on the edge of Frejus and start with our first beach (and as it turns out the only dog friendly one!) – Plage du Pacha – just a little further on than Plage St Aygulf visited on the 8th….

After a little paly and relax we wander along the wide promenade to Plage de la Base Nature….

Around Port Frejus – catching a couple of Bears enjoying their morning coffee…

A glimpse of Old Town Frejus up the river and one of the many beautiful splashes of colour along the promenade…

Next a string of 3 beautiful sandy beaches – Plages de Frejus, Republique and Sablettes….

Here we merge into St Raphael with the stunning Notre Dame de Victoire, completely hidden from the promenade by new buildings…

A quick lap around a few blocks in the centre to make sure we aren’t missing anything – very nice but no so back onto the colourful promenade we go….

Plage de Veillat in the centre looks absolutely stunning, before we end our journey at Plage Beau Rivage just before Port St Raphael and wend our way back along the seafront to the van….

A lovely walk along these 2 resorts both mostly modern but clean and appealing all the same. After allowing the van to cool down a bit we are off heading inland for the weekend, hoping to avoid any weekend madness on the remaining busy stretch of this coast – namely Cannes, Nice and Monaco.

Today’s stats:

  • Miles driven – 24
  • Miles walked – 7.5
  • Beaches – 7
  • O/N – £13.12 (Camping Car Park – Montauroux)

Friday 9th April 2026 – a walk to St Pierre….

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It was hotter still today as there seemed to be less breeze around, so we left it until mid afternoon before venturing out for a proper walk – this time heading south, again along the cycle path, to St Pierre….

Our furthest point, a couple of miles away was Plage de la Pinede…

Here we stopped for a breather and a drink and for Till to have a bit of off lead time, before heading back this time where possible along the coastal path firstly via Plage Sun Beach….

Next up was Plage Calanque de Tardieu….

Plage de Port St Piere (looking rather like a private beach and definitely no dogs allowed on here…

The next section of coastal path was more a case of clambering over rocky outcrops but encountering some delightful little coves along the way….

Around another rocky outcrop was this serene little Port Ferreol….

Here the coastal path seemed to disappear and we had to detour through a residential area on the other side of the main road for a while until we could rejoin the coast at Plage du Corsaire….

A further rather dodgy section of coastal path…

Took us back to Plages de la Gaillarde Ouest, des Eclaireurs and finally Plage de la Gaillarde and home in time for tea….

Thoughts of the day:

  • Why are washing machines a or rather the repair thereof seem to be a very low priority for campsites? I guess most ordinary holiday folk are not that bothered but for those of us on long term travel they are rather essential, especially as that is the main reason we stay on campsites!

Today’s stats:

  • Miles driven – 0
  • Miles walked – 6
  • Beaches – 8
  • O/N – £22

Wednesday 8th April 2026 – a walk along the coast to St Aygulf….

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Another beautiful blue sky day, as we take a stroll along the coast heading northwards to the main town of St Aygulf. What that really meant, as the main road pretty much hugs the coast and doesn’t have consistant safe pathways, is that we meandered along the cycle path just above the main road, dipping down and crossing the main road at intervals to pick up a couple of beaches on the way. Firstly Plage de la Corniche Azur, then Plage de Grand Boucharel and just on the outskirts of the town Plage de Pebriere…

A fairly common theme along this section of the coast seems to be small coves with rather course sand and lots of drift wood debris, separated by rocky outcrops, with little opportunity to beach walk as many of them have dog bans and there is no such thing as a coastal path linking them together.

As we arrive in St Aygulf, a small seaside resort comprising largely of spacious holiday homes with a smattering of bars and restaurants at the centre and a large marina….

The main beach at the centre is Plage de la Galiote….

And then across the bridge over the river there is the long stretch of Plage de St Aygulf, fortified by stone groins into little bays for about a mile of unbuilt up land to the river Argens and the town of Frejus beyond….

A very pleasant walk, largely due to the leafy (shaded) cycle path keeping us away from the busy coastal road.

Thoughts of the day:

  • With no real prior knowledge, I expected these beaches to be absolutely stunning and though pretty , I feel this is largely due to the blue skies and crystal clear blue waters and mountainous back drop – mmm the outer Hebrides with this warm sun? Yes would probably be ruined by being over run with visitors.
  • The section of coast with Cannes, Nice and Monaco are going to take a bit of planning as according to many reviews a lot of the available parking opportunities for vans are prone to being targeted by petty theft when left unattended, so we shall see how I feel as I value my van much more than visiting these cities.

Today’s stats:

  • Miles driven – 0
  • Miles walked – 7
  • Beaches – 5
  • O/N – £22