The grand tour of Southern Spain: Western Andalucía 31st January – 6th March 2024 Day 14 Chipiona

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 Day fourteen: Wednesday A change of plans

Starting mileage 16420

We overslept and so are late getting away. In addition, we forgot to do our daily reading of local news sites. In this ignorance, we stop off on the A49 at La Pausa for more of those chocolate filled, lightly icing sugar dusted croissants! This is not a good move on two counts. Firstly, cholesterol! Secondly? Read on!

 And then we promptly run into a Spanish farmer road block protest! We are stuck for an hour and fifteen minutes before we creep up to an exit. There are hundreds of neon safety vest clad farmers wandering the motorway and heading up the slip road to the little town. Back and forth they trundle whilst car occupants abandon cars and start looking for discrete loo sites in the groves of trees on the embankment!

We are aiming for Jerez and Cadiz but that isn’t going to happen. Every single junction is blocked. Traffic is at a standstill. We decide to head elsewhere. Chipiona on the coast looks promising. Maggie immediately reroutes us along lanes. A journey of what should have been two hours takes seven but at least we avoid all the road blocks and see some interesting rural scenery! On the outskirts we call in at Aldi and stock up for a few days.

The marina Aire is flat tarmac with plenty of spaces and we secure one next to the fence overlooking a little bay and sandy beach. 15 euros with EHU and waste disposal and water services in the far corner of the site. Not the prettiest site we have stayed on but after the day we have had, it seems blissful!

The Andalusian Marina Aires are a funny set up. You pull up at a barrier. It takes your number plate. You are then allowed in and you have ten minutes to choose your pitch. You can also opt for electric from one of the bollards. These sockets are numbered differently from the actual marked pitches. Armed with your bollard socket number and pitch number you then return to pay. If you don’t pay within the ten minutes I think you get either rejected and not allowed out until you have paid and then you can’t get back in. Something like that!

After a frustrating day we stroll around the seafront promenade to the nearest decent beach bar for a drink and snacks. Nice golden sandy beaches and very strange walls built out into the sea – exposed at low tide, covered at high tide, we muse over what they can be possible for.

 The weather is going to be monsoonal again for the next few days so later back at the motorhome we book a Bodegas tour at Jerez and email two potential Aires as to whether they have spaces available. At 2215, the bongo drums begin at a local bar up the road. And the wind rises.

Distanced travelled: approx. 86 miles or so

Costs: Fuel 88 euros; campsite 15 euros

Route: A4 – IV – 471 – N480