Towards a surf beach with easy access from the van – that’s the plan! It’s Friday and that makes it two weeks on the road. The accommodation spend is looking good at €80 for the entire 14 nights. The grommets are chomping at the bit to get on a wave … quietly I am too. I feel the pull towards the alchemy of the ocean. I long to feel myself submerged in the warmth of her salty, cleansing embrace.

In the past I’ve always been a creature of summer but these last few years I’ve felt a great shelter in the winter and the cold. The quiet, slow, stillness that the shorter days encourage. The time to hibernate and think on things. The freedom to be without the expectations of switching on socially. Summer tends to be noisy I find! Perhaps it was more about taking a break from the continual ‘on’ summer feeling of living in Sydney (or how we’d experienced work/life in a big city).

We arrived into Loredo in the afternoon … we never seem to be able to get ourselves going early. We knew we’d be lucky to find a spot in the caravan park that Greg had found in the camper contact ap. But we decided to just go and wing it. We’d again stocked up on food, filled the clean water, emptied the dirty water so we were organised. If we couldn’t get a spot in the campground we’d wild camp again.

I’m starting to enjoy this freedom of not worrying or booking ahead of knowing it will all be ok. Of trusting that perhaps something else was meant for us if it didn’t work out. We are always going to be fine anyway aren’t we? We have a house on wheels and we’re not falling short of meeting our basic needs. Hmmm there’s some life wisdom in that perhaps.

As it turned out the campground was full! But the owner offered us his car spot at 20% off the normal rates. Sure. I need to wash those three bags full and they have a laundry, playground, cafe and beach access! We could camp out here for a bit. Mind you even with the discount it didn’t come cheap at €46 per night. It did however come with spectacular sunset’s, contented little people, salty surfs, healing swims, endless beach to wander and the barrel of laughter and joy that comes with the chill of a beach break and family time.

It also came with pre dinner dips and endless bowls of pasta dinners. Because – hungry, active kids. It came with UNO and new friends in caravan park playgrounds. Even when the kids didn’t speak English. The was time to read a novel of fiction, one that had me lost in the valley of emotions and dreams. Glorious escapism at its finest.

As a town to holiday in there wasn’t a lot of charm … it’s a new built with a modern feel. The Spanish village charm is missing. That’s fine for us we are self contained in our little house on wheels and can sink into what we need from this time spent by the water’s edge.

If you look above you’ll always find yourself a spectacular shot. A point of focus, a view, a compass … a place to rest your lens and linger in beauty. Perhaps I should show you what lies below this shot.

Can you see what I see above the tree line? What I captured in the shot above this? This is where I like to view life … above the noise and distraction of chaos. My friend Annette is famous for looking up.

It dawns on me during this stay that for the first time in years we will be going home after this trip. Home to somewhere we’ve lived for a while. I start to feel a stirring of that being a good thing. It’s timely. I’m ready to stop moving (for now) and I’m ready to feel summer again. There’s a longing of wanting to create something with all the travel and exploration of the past years. Perhaps more than a longing, perhaps a pull. And it’ll take energy, summer energy.

So dear friends as we leave the ocean and set off on the road towards the mountains, these thoughts and this pull come along with me. What will the mountains do with them?

Buen camino,

Fran xx

Camper tips:

Be not afraid of not knowing where you’ll park up! The possibilities are endless.

You’re off to Great Places!

Today is your day!

Your mountain is waiting,

So… get on your way!

Dr. Seuss, Oh, The Places You’ll Go!