We have been asked a number of times why we don’t include more details of the road journeys well cos for me it’s the boring bit listing the roads we took etc., etc.
I can however appreciate that others who happen to be following the same route may find it helpful so after each time we move the caravan I will do a “move blog” which will include such details as I can
Humilladero, Spain - Jávea, Spain
This was a journey of two definite halves, the first half to Camping Pinar del Rey where we had planned to spend a couple of nights and the second half from Camping Pinar del Rey to Camping Jávea where we planned to spend a couple of weeks visiting Dirkje.
The First Half - Camping La Sierrecilla to Camping Pinar del Rey.
Above: The first part of the journey.
From the site exit was easy to reverse our way just one kilometre then, after taking the first exit on the roundabout to the N334, a further 2.6 km took us onto the E92 road a wide dual carriageway that we followed to a distance nearly 60 km beyond Granada. The road around Granada came with some quite steep hills which for any reasonably matched outfit would present little or no problem provided you don’t have a motorhome that has been following a truck struggling uphill at no more than 10 mph pull into the overtaking lane directly in front of you and then find he was unable to accelerate past the truck.
After Granada we passed to our right the magnificent mountains of the Sierra Nevada totally shrouded in a thick covering of snow, we understand the skiing has been good this year. The road continued interestingly hilly until a little under 60 km past Granada we turned off the E92 onto the N342 that strangely soon becomes the A-92N. Despite instructions in the ACSI book to the contrary turned off at junction 108 and drove through the village and up a hill to Camping Pinar del Rey.
The Second Half - Camping Pinar del Rey to Camping Jávea.
After a short break in Camping Pinar Rey we returned to the A-92N by reversing the directions in the ACSI book but found no reason for them to have recommended the long way as our way was no harder, OK it was no easier either but it was shorter. Once back on the A-92N it was simply a motorway plod to the E-15 which a way before Alicante became the AP-7 (in Spain AP roads are toll roads) and after more trundling onwards we came off at the Jávea junction 62. Coming from this way it is far quicker and no less easy to exit the motorway at junction 63, it is also probably a bit cheaper as junction 62 goes way past Jávea and you follow the A332 which at this point runs parallel to the motorway and to get to Jávea goes back the way you have just come for a considerable distance.
Above: The second part.
If you are using a sat-nav to get to Jávea you must take great care as you approach the town, even my caravan specific navigator in which I have muted the length, width, height and weight will try to take me to the site avoiding the main town which is possible but only if you are comfortable driving down VERY narrow roads with walls or houses either side and very few passing places - if you are not comfortable reversing your rig I strongly advise that you go into town, follow the signs to Lidl or McDonnalds and then pick up and follow the signs to the site. If you do not have a caravan or motor-home specific sat-nav then DO NOT allow it to take you off the main road into town, when in car mode mine, and I have the latest maps installed, tries to take be along very narrow roads that after a few miles is closed because the road has collapsed into the river that runs alongside. It has been closed to my certain knowledge for four years and if you get a caravan there then you had better be damn good at reversing it.
Above: The whole journey.
Tavira, Portugal - Humilladero, Spain
Tuesday 24th February 2015
Parque de Campismo da PSP, Bavaria is just a few yards from the N125 road, we go directly towards Spain, it is quicker to go the other way and pick up the A22 by the shortest route but that means you pay tolls and for what? Not only do you pay tolls you also drive further, OK only a few kilometres and so spend more on fuel. We followed the N125 eastwards until the sat-nat said we could join the A22 toll free (junction 17). As you cross the Portugal/Spain border the road becomes the E1 which we followed till the south about Seville ring road, the SE30, that we followed to the A92 which we followed until junction 132 where we pick up the MA-701 in the direction of Humilladero, and at the first roundabout on reaching the town followed the signs to the La Sierrecilla site.
The easy 312 km (194 mile) drive took around three hours.
