Our grand tour of southern Spain January 19th Day Five

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Thursday 19th January Day Five

Do you need snow chains for your motorhome if you are crossing from France into Spain during winter months?

Well, this is a new one on me! A frozen services point. No water whatsoever. Both taps immoveable at 0830.  It was clearly a very cold night and there is a hard frost and lots of black ice everywhere. It’s a stunning sunrise through the trees though and the river level behind us had risen a foot during the night. Glad we chose a central pitch and not one next to the river! We have an icicle hanging down the side of the motorhome, emanating from the circular heating vent I have no idea whether this is a good or a bad thing. What I do know is we were very grateful for the heating kicking in during the night when the temperature fell to 14C.

Today is a another long, long slog south. We leave at 0900am and we don't get to Zaragoza as planned. We stop short at Casante, just off the AP 68, an hour north of our intended stop, arriving at 1800.  It's taken nine hours and I've driven for seven and a half of those. The rest of the time was breaks at services. 

Traffic was hard going around Bordeaux and south down the A10. Lorry drivers were awkward and deliberately so.  When I pulled out to overtake one ahead, another would pull up the inside of me and then start beeping his horn loudly to get me to pull out into the third lane and then exceed my speed limit. Didn’t matter that a car would be overtaking me on the third outside lane! Throw in heavy rain and horrendous surface road water and spray and it made for difficult and tiring driving conditions.

The route from Irun up the A15 was a steady climb into the mountains, well above the snow line. The temperature plummeted and it just rained, sleeted and snowed non-stop all afternoon. 

All in all, an interesting experience and not one I will ever do again...except on the way back from this trip. Next time we take the Santander ferry! Lesson learned – sea sickness has to be preferable to this slog! Or maybe not! I need to think this one through!

The Casante town Aire is a car park in front of the leisure centre. It is flat, water is free, there is a waste water drain. You need to park between the trees and across double parking spaces. There will be noise from the local football practice field and teenagers going to and fro to the sports club behind during the early evening. After that it’s really peaceful. What the town is like I have no idea. It's raining, cold, windy and I'm shattered. I just need to sleep!

So, what about snow chains for a motorhome?

One of the issues to consider when driving south down through France and into Spain during winter months is the issue of snow chains. Most districts along the French side of the Pyrenees require that you legally either have all season winter tyres showing the symbol in the photo below OR you carry snow socks and/or snow chains! I spent considerable time researching this on the internet and the conclusion is yes – if you don’t have all terrain or all-season tyres – you need to carry either socks or chains.

Here are some pointers/tips about them:

·        Since November 2021 French law states you must carry snow chains or snow socks where directed in 48 departments around the Alps, Massif Central and Pyrenees in mainland France, irrespective of the weather conditions you are experiencing at the time. 

·        The dates during which you do this are 1^st November to end of March each year and the roads will be indicated by a Panneau B58 road sign showing a combined snow chain, tyre and mountain range symbol.  On these roads you MUST have during these dates EITHER winter tyres marked 3PMSF with the alpine symbol of a snowflake and mountain peak and M+S or MS marking on two of the main steering wheels (front or rear mounted) OR carry snow chains or snow socks for two primary steering wheels OR have stud tyres.

·        Snow socks work but don’t last long and are primarily for shorter length trips.

·        Which is why we opted for snow chains instead! We have the Thule/Konig XG 12 pro snow chains for the front wheels. You can read more about them here:  https://snowchains.co.uk/snowchains/thule-xg-12-pro/?gclid=CjwKCAiA9NGfBhBvEiwAq5vSy_ZkhxLkMfLrVFZ4hUn00VsWgbSdIoeqFFnCH0gkF7MYrtlWOHjfnxoCMMgQAvD_BwE . These were recommended for our motorhome by several snow chain suppliers we contacted via phone and email. So, we brought them on ‘trust’!

·        Fitting instructions can be found here: https://snowchains.co.uk/_pdf/instructions_xg_12_pro.pdf

·        And here is a YouTube video to help as well: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9sZLZDfKgI

By the way, we aren’t endorsing these snow chains, nor are we paid to do so – these are just the ones we brought, as recommended to us, by several snow chain suppliers we contacted!

·        Chains can affect the operation of electronic wheel sensors- so check your handbook first before buying them

·        It goes without saying that you need to know how to fit them. We passed several bays where you could pull in to fit them to your front wheels. Although it sleeted and snowed today, it didn’t build up sufficiently that we had to stop and fit them on. But, it’s clear from the depth of snow around us that a week or so earlier and we would have needed to.  I spent a whole morning a few weeks ago putting them on and off until I was completely familiar with how they fitted and worked. I did not want to be caught out in driving snow and freezing temperatures on the side of the road trying to fit snow chains whilst watching a YouTube video showing me how to do it on my phone! 

·        Traction control/anti-skid should normally be turned off, if you have that option on your campervan or motorhome

·        There is also, by the way, an art to packing snow chains away in their case so that they don’t come out as a tangled knot next time you need to use them! Go on, ask me how I know that!

·        When buying snow chains, pay attention to the thickness of the links – standard 9mm thick links for cars – won’t be adequate enough for a heavier campervan or motorhome.

·        Don’t drive with snow chains on roads without snow or ice – it will damage the chains, damage your tyres, damage road surfaces and may get you fined!

·        Remember that you wont drive faster than around 25 – 30 mph on snow chains – take it slowly and take it easy.  Excessive acceleration and hard braking will put too much pressure on snow chains and may cause them to snap. Slow down on bends. Pull away slowly.

·        Stop and take them off immediately if you think they have broken in any way

·        A bonus - Snow chains can also be used in muddy conditions - very useful for motorhomes.

·        After using your snow chains, wash them in warm soapy water using a firm brush to remove salt residue and grime. Hang the chains, spray them with WD40 and then let them dry. Check for worn or broken links and connectors.

Things to avoid when driving with snow chains on:

·        Wheel-spin or locking-up the wheels under braking – it will break your chains

·        Incorrect fitting - failing to centre the chains such that the inner or outer bands get run-over (or any of the working components like the springs, ratchet or connectors).

·        Hitting curbs or pot holes can also break chains

·        Driving on clear tarmac (without a significant covering of snow or ice) is also to be avoided.

·        Chains massively improve traction on snow, ice, mud; but they don’t help you to beat gravity or overcome ‘slippy’ physics.  Some slopes for some vehicles will be unclimbable even with chains on - do not spin the wheels to try get up the slope, as there is a high chance you will break your chains and potentially damage your vehicle.

 

Useful information:

Route: A10 – A63 – AP1 – AP15  - AP 68

Distance:  340 miles

Costs: none

Campsite location: https://park4night.com/carte_lieux?lat=42.00782573903911&lng=-1.6706428496399894&zoom=13