Here We Go Again

Wednesday I awoke to the sound of several thousand horsepower berthing not far away and knew that the boat had arrived. Soon after the agent turned up and I could enter the security compound although I had to wait a bit to be unloaded and for the Portuguese customs to do their thing I was empty and away by 13.00, as I negotiated my way out of the docks area the heavens opened to a downpour the likes of which I have seldom seen and once more any foto taking was severly impeded as I went over the old bridge heading south towards the Algarve. Just short of Faro I stopped for a break and the rain was still pouring down. Entering Spain at the border near Ayamonte and passing Huelva I made my way towards Sevilla and parked up for the night to await further instructions.


Crystal Serenity in Lisboa


The old bridge across the river


As said it was pissing down all day


A quick shot of Lisboa between showers

Once I received the instructions I made my way around the top of Sevilla with the rain still pouring down and soon found the small village where I was to be loading called Villanueva del Rio not far from the Rio Guadalviver only to be told that I would not be loaded until the evening. Come evening and I am told there will be a further delay as the machinery has broken down and I eventually leave there at 23.30 and drive along the national road to Cordoba before joining the A4 heading towards Madrid getting as far as Valdepeñas before saying bollocks to it and going to bed.
Friday at about midday I wake up and make some coffee and at 13.30 I hit the road once more still heading towards Madrid on the A4, Rounding Madrid with no problems I am soon on the A1 and have a 45 minute break just before Aranda de Duero before continuing up past Burgos and heading for home.
Leaving home Saturday evening there were no problems at all as I drove across the French border and up past Biarritz and Bayonne managing to get within 20 kilometres of Bordeaux before parking up for the night.
Waking up Sunday morning to pouring rain I drove up past Bordeaux and then followed the RN10 up past Angouleme as far as Poitiers before rejoining the A10 and taking a 45 minute break at Chatellerault before continuing up past Tours and Orleans and turning off on to the RN20 at Artenay which I then followed as far as the A104 where I had another break before tackling Paris. Getting through Paris went quite smoothly and I was soon winging it up the A1 and got as far as the Belgian border at Rekkum where I parked up for the night.
Monday morning it was still pissing it down as I got my Eurovignette and started the journey through Belgium, after about 30 minutes everything ground to a halt for no apparent reason, eventually passing Gent and Antwerp proved to be no problem I passed the Dutch border and carried on up past Breda and Dordrecht to Barendrecht where I was to unload, I soon found the address and reported for unloading only to be told that would be a long wait, this was at 11.00, at 14.30 I am told that I can now unload, upon opening the trailer I discover that I have had visitors during the night and 11 boxes of Oranges have disappeared, by 16.00 the trailer is empty and I drive back to the yard to change trailers and fill up with Ad Blue. Leaving the yard once more it was back down the same route past Antwerp and Lille getting as far as Vemars just north of Paris before parking up for the night.
At least on Tuesday morning it was not raining for a change and the battle of Paris was not too bad as I made way through using a combination of the A3, Peripherique and A6a to get me on to the RN20 towards Orleans only took an hour, up past Orleans and Tours I had a 45 once again at Chatellerault before turning off at Poitiers and running back down the RN10 and around Brdeaux before having another 45 at Muret where it started raining again as I carried on down towards Spain eventually parking up for the night just north of Bayonne.
Crossing the Spanish border Wednesday morning I took the N121a up towards Pamplona and then followed the A15 down as far as Castejon where I then took the National road past Cintruenigo before stopping for breakfast at Vilaverde, continuing on through Agreda and passing Almazan without problems there was a short hold up just before Medinaceli where a Spaniard had missed the road and was parked in the field on his side,



joining th A2 I drove down past Guadalajara and wound my way in to Coslada where 2 pallets of groupage were soon unloaded. Rounding Madrid on the M40 as the A6 which I then followed for a short distance I turned of at Las Rozas and soon found the next delivery address, here I was told that they had to find a forklift to borrow in order to unload the Jacuzzi so in the mean time I went to a nearby restaurant and had some dinner, some 3 hours later they had managed to borrow a forklift and the jacuzzi was unloaded, now I drove back to the M40 and followed it towards the north before turning on to the A1 and immediately turning off again at Alcobendas where headed for the industrial estate and parked up outside the next unoading address for the night and walked down to the nearby bar to watch the football.
Thursday morning once the customer decided to open at 09.30 I unloaded 21 pallets of boat engines and then set off to negotiate my way around Madrid, I noticed that there was less traffic than usual so I took the decision to go straight through the middle on the M30 and see how the eternal roadworks are getting on, I was pleasantly surprised as there was only a few hundred yards of works and absolutely no hold ups and I was soon through the other side and heading south on the A4 stopping to refuel and at the BPin Guarroman I then drove down the road to the Andamur for a meal. Suitably refreshed I took the motorway down towards Granada passing Jaen, just before Granada I turned once more towards Sevilla and just before Antequera I turned off towards Malaga and after the 2 motorways converged the long descent towards Malaga began which brought me on to the ringroad which I followed round towards Torremolinos as far as the turn off for the airport where I followed the road into the Industrial area and soon found the next customer where 5 hydraulic rams were unloaded just in time for me to participate in the evening Malaga rat race with it´s long traffic jams. Once around Malaga I continued along the coast Passing Torres De Mar where I turned off and had my evening meal in a restaurant inside the Shopping Centre just outside the town, I set off for last stage of the journey passing Nerja and I eventually parked up for the night just outside Motril.
Friday morning and I continue along the coast road towards Murcia passing Almeria as far as the turn off for Antas where I turned straight on to the industrial area next to the junction and unloaded two whirl pools, the amazing thing about this industrial estate is that every second company is bloody English and as typical arrogant Brits in a foreign country they can´t even be bothered to have their premises signed up in Spanish. Now it was back along the coast to El Ejido where I parked up to have my 24 hours off. This 24 hours is starting to get up my nose, I could have loaded this afternoon and driven back to Guarroman and then driven home Saturday and had my 24 hours off at home instead of sitting here in El Ejido at the dump that masquerades as a truckstop.
By 13.00 Saturday the 24 hours are up and I drive to Dalias where I load 10 pallets of green peppers before setting off for Vicar where after an hours wait I am loaded with another 16 pallets of peppers and meet up with a Spanish driver that I met more than a year ago in Livorno. Back along the coast past Almeria and tunring off towards Guadix I followed the usual route back up to Guarroman and stopped at the Andamur for a meal. I managed to get past Madrid and parked up close to the Somosierra and went to sleep.
Waking up Sunday morning I noticed that the road had been salted so it must have been cold last night, further proof of this was supplied by the sight of a Spanish artic that had slipped off the road just past the crest. Up past Burgos and I was pleasantly surprised to see that the north bound side of the new dual carriageway just before Vitoria has been opened for use and the southbound stretch will also soon be open, I stopped at the andamur at Araia for a meal before filling up at the BP at the bottom of the Etxegarrate and crossing the border in to France where passing the usual places I had a 45 minute break at Cestas before continuing past Bordeaux and travelling up the RN10 I got as far as Poitiers before parking up for the night.
Leaving Poitiers Monday morning I followed the A10 to just north of Tours where I turned on to the A28 and head up past Le Mans and Alencon and approach Caen from the other side this time. I was on the waiting list for the 23.45 sailing but managed to get on the 17.30 boat and was in Portsmouth and parked up near Havant by 23.30.
Arriving at the customers on Tangmere Airfield I was pleased to see that I was the only vehicle on the premises so I was soon unloaded and heading for Dover via the A24 and M23, M25, M26 and M20, once again lady luck smiled on me and I was straight on a Norfolk Line sailing for Dunkerque, once on the other side I receive instructions to load near Kortrijk so I head towards Lille and then turn off and cross the Belgian border near Ypres and soon arrive in Kortrijk where after a short waiting period I am loaded with deep freeze. As I head for Gent on the motorway I hear on the radio that Operation Stack has been implemented because of a strike in Calais so it seems that I got out of the UK just in time, continuing up past Antwerp I turn right just before Breda and follow the motorway towards Utrecht before turning off for Dongen and driving around the town soon arrived at the industrial area and was immediately unloaded. With the trailer now empty I drove to Tilburg where I was supposed to be loading in the morning and parked up for the night.

Reporting to load Wednesday morning I am told that the load is still on its way from the UK and is held up by the strike in Calais. Having been told to head for theyard I drive back past Breda and drop the trailer in the yard before going to the trailer repair company in Roosendaal to pick up a tautliner that has been repaired, now I head for the truckwash and get the whole thing washed before heading back for the yard. When I get back to the yard I am told that due to half of the load for Madrid still being in England I could drop the trailer that I had washed and pick up the dirty one that I had left this morning and go to Weert to pick up a complete load for Madrid. Off past Breda again and Eindhoven I arrive in Weert to be told that there is a delay so I settle down for the wait. Eventually loaded I head Towards Liege via Maastricht before following the motorway past Namur and Mons crossing the French border at Valenciennes I get as far as Ressons where I park up for the night.
Leaving Ressons I was impressed that I managed to get through Paris with no major hold ups and I took the usual route along the RN20 and the A10 passing Orleans, Tours, Poitiers and then taking the RN10 past Angouleme and around Bordeaux and managed to get as far as Bayonne before parking up for the night once again.
Away from Bayonne early in the morning I crossed the Spanish border and turned on to the N121a and managed to pass Pamplona before the traffic started, following the A15 down as far as Castejon I took the national road past Cintruenigo and stopped for breakfast at Villaverde before continuing on through Agreda and past Almazan till Medinacelli where I turned on to the A2 towards Madrid passing Guadalajara, turning off at Coslada and heading for the Transport Centre I soon found TDN where I was to be unloaded and mush to my surprise even though it was lunchtime I was unloaded and away witin 30 minutes. Seeting off once again I rounded Madrid using the M45 before turning on to the A3 towards Valencia after about 30 minutes I stopped for lunch before carrying on towards the coast eventually stopping for the night at Requena.
After a long nights rest I left Requena at about 09.00 and after rounding Valencia and passing Sagunto and Nules I was in Burriana by 11.00 and by 13.00 I was loaded and on my way north, apart from a slight deviation to cut off the corner near Xiva I followed the usual route up past Teruel and Pamplona and stopped for the night at Sumbilla between Pamplona and Irun for the night where a good evening meal with a few colleagues lasted until the early hours.
Up late Sunday morning the dirst task was to make some coffee and clear the head before heading for Irun to get some more money and do a bit of shopping before entering enemy territory, once again the usual route was followed up past Bayonne and Bordeaux and had a break at Barbezieux before continuing the journey north with the fridge clattering away behind me, up past Poitiers and Tours and another break was had at Blois. Up past Orleans and on to the RN20 at Artenay I parked up for the night just before Paris.

Leaving it as late as possible before attacking Paris unfortunately it was still completely gridlocked at 10.00 the A104 had an accident on it and the A86 was at a standstill, leaving me with no option but to head for the peripherique which was also at a complete standstill




but at least it is shorter thus less kilometers of stress, eventually passing the Parisienne shitehole I head north on the A1 with a short stop at Wancourt to get a Eurovignette I am soon past Lille and in to Belgium where I stop just before Gent for a meal. Continuing the journey I get through with Antwerp with no problems and just after crossing the Dutch border I turn right towards Eindhoven for a few kilometers before tunrning left towards Utrecht as far as the A59 which I then turn on to going past Waalwijk as far as s´Hertogenbosch where once again I head towards Utrecht for 2 junctions where I turn round and head back the way I came to reach the service area to park up for the night, this leaves me about 500 metres form the turn off that I need in the morning.
Up early Tuesday morning I take the turn off for Hedel and five minutes later I am unloading the oranges and half an hour later I am back on the rest area waiting for further instructions.


saw this one at Hedel Scania XXL Conventional

By lunchtime the instructions arrive and off I set for Uden where upon arriving at the loading address no one knows sod all about it, after a couple of phone calls I am eventually loaded with 7 small boxes and start making my way towards and around Eindhoven when the phone goes and I am told to go to Tilburg and drop off the seven boxes and then reload a complete load of Land Rover sunroofs for Rugby. Within 30 minutes of arriving at the customers premises I am on my way heading past Breda to Antwerp in severe rain fall when the traffic grinds to a halt so I divert through the Liefkenshoek Tunnel and apart from a short hold up I am soon having my evening meal near St Niklaas in Belgium. Setting off once in a torrential downpour I turn right towards Oostende at Gent and then follow the motorway over the French border and park up just past before Calais at the Transmark, the reasons for this are because of the severe weather conditions and gales there are boat delays and the French are diverting the trucks to a holding area in Dunes where I have no intention of going.
At sparrowfart I creep out of Transmark and quickly pass all the waiting trucks as they appear to have given up and got their heads down and I drive straight in to the docks pass through the immigrant checks and head for the P&O ticket booths where it does not surprise me that I have not been booked on by the customer so after passing the passport controls I go to the main freight office where after a severe amount of waffle I am given a ticket for the boat, a wait of 2 hours and I board 07.20 Pride of Canterbury and we set sail for the UK with the decks heaving underfoot. Entering the drivers restaurant the opportunity arises to ruin someones breakfast as I see muppetdriver sitting at a table and go and join him. Dover is reached and I join the endless queue of trucks trying to leave the docks eventually wacky races starts as I storm up the hill towards the M20 and by Folkstone I have caught up with Muppetdriver and his Swedish Shite Bucket, hitting the M25 I join the queue for the Dartford Tunnel before heading around to join the M1 which I follow up as far as the M45 which I then follow to the end and carry on over 1 more roundabout then take the next turn off and follow the signs for the industrial area, once again I am in and out within half an hour and head back to Watford Gap for a bite to eat. Now instructions arrive to load in West Thurrock so off I set back down the M1 and along the M25 and soon find the loading address at the back of the Lakeside shopping complex, upon reporting to load I am told it will be tomorrow so I settle down for the night.
Thursday morning they try to convince me that I will not be loaded until 14.00 but after a bit of waffle I am loaded and on my way by 11.00,


Dartford Bridge

as once again Operation Stack is complicating life arrangements are made to use the Eurotunnel and so I make my way to France by train and on leaving the terminal head down the coast past Boulougne and follow the motorway past Amiens and through Rouen as far as Le Mans where I head off towards Tours and join the A10 as far as Poitiers where I go on to the RN10 and park up at Vivonne for the night.
It is once again pissing it down as I follow the usual route down to Spain but after crossing the border the weather brightens up,


obviously someone is pleased to see me as I head home for the weekend.

Leaving reasonably early on Monday morning I headed towards Bilbao and then took the A8 out towards Santander as far as where the N634 branched off towards Torrelavega, once past Torrelavega the dual carraigeway began once more and I headed further along the coast, although the road is now nearly all dual carraigeway a few stretches are still being worked on and eventually after passing Gijon and Aviles I reached the town of Navia where I turned in to the hills to a small village called Anleo and duly unloaded the drums of whatever before retiring to a nearby restaurant to await further instructions, none came so I settled down for the night.
By 11.00 the next morning instructions have arrived to return to the same factory and load for Sweden, duly done I set off back along the coast stopping for a 45 minute break just before Santander and then continuing up past Bilbao and San Sebastian to Irun where after filling up with diesel I crossed the border in to France and managed to get nearly as far as Brdeaux before parking up for the night.
Wednesday was spent following the usual well worn route north and Paris was passed with no major problems and I stopped at Wancourt to get a Eurovignette before attacking Lille which has just introduced a new lorry ban for traffic going from south to north, knowing damn well that their diversion is quite a long one I took my own route and was soon passing the border and entering Belgium and parked up for the night about 20 minutes over the border.
Thursday I slipped around Antwerp just as the traffic was building up and soon arrived in the yard where I dropped off the trailer and picked up another one before heading off to the truckwash at Roosendaal. Once clean I headed for Rotterdam and was soon loaded with 4 pallets of deep frozen meat abd then headed back round the other side of Rotterdam to Hoogvliet where a further 22 pallets were eventually loaded after a certain amount of hooha and I couldnow head out past Utrecht and was so pleased to bale to partake in the evening ritual of passing the place at crawling speed before heading up past Zwolle and Hoogeveen and crossed the border in to Germany and parked up at Haselunne for the night where I enjoyed a good evening meal and settled down for the night.
Having been told the day before that I had to be in Hamburg as close to 08.00 as possible it was up at sparrowfart grab the maut ticket and by 05.00 I am storming up the A1 with all sails to the wind passing Bremen before following the A7 in towards Hamburg as far as the turn off for Waltershof where I also did the customs formalities and I rolled in to the company where the boat was being refitted at 08.30. Eventually after a lengthy manhunt I manage to find someone who knows something and am promptly informed that was not supposed to arrive until 18.00, great fun, fantastic, typical Dutch efficiency, as you can imagine where ever you park the truck it is in someone´s way and the day passed with the vehicle being moved several times, as customs had been completed leaving the docks was also not an option and the day passed slowly and turned in to evening when all of a sudden the pace sprang to life and with usual teutonic efficiency the trailer was soon unloaded the paperwork signed and by 20.00 I was empty and could now head around the dock area to the other side where I was to load for Spijkenisse this also took it´s time and at midnight I was eventually loaded and was told that I could now go and do customs to which I repled no chance mate I am going to sleep and promptly pulled the curtains.
Saturday morning I was back in to Waltershof and after a long wait in third world like conditions I eventually had the necessary documents in my hand and could start heading back along the same route towards Holland and am rounding Rotterdam just as afternoon turns in to evening and arrive at the unloading address to discover that they only want to unload 3 of the pallets that I have loaded and that I must take the rest to Antwerp and unload alongside the boat tonight. Having spoken to our office several times today I wonder why no one has bothered to tell me the change in plans and attempt to contact them by phone by get no joy after nearly an hour of trying I give up and head towards Antwerp and just before I cross the border in to Belgian the phone rings and our planner confirms that I can unload in Antwerp tonight. Wrong arriving at the boat at 22.00 I am politely told to piss off and come back tomorrow, Dutch efficiency and planning is doing well this week thinks I as I settle down for the night.
Sunday dawns and as I try to enter the docks area the Belgians will not allow me in saying that they have not been notified that I will be arriving, eventually after pointing out to this moron that I was allowed in last night so why should today be different I was allowed in and could unload alongside a container ship,


Container Boat Antwerp


These damn things go bloody fast

once empty it was back out to the Total garage and try to complete the 24 hour "rest period" and complete a trailer change as well. I eventually left at 23.00 and being night time I was through Antwerp like a flash with no valid Eurovignette and soon crossed the border in to France where I had a 45 minute break at Ressons before flying through Paris and eventually parking up for a sleep at Blois.
Monday afternoon and I am once more heading south along the usual route and crossing the border at Irun and after filling up with diesel I got as far as Briviesca where once more I parked up.
Tuesday is a simple case of honking down the A1 over the Somosierra around Madrid using the M40 & M45 before heading out on the A3 as far as Rivas-Vaciamadrid where I am unloaded so quickly that I nearly fall over with surprise. Instructions are received to start heading towards Valencia as I do so I have a 45 minute break for a coffee about 30 minutes down the road and shortly after the complete loading address arrives and I head down the A3 before turning off towards Alicante and after passing Albaceta and Almansa I park up for the night near Canals.
Waking up to a cold morning I head up the hill towards Ontiniente as it begins to snow quite heavily and I am pleased as I pull in to the town of Ayelo de Malferit and soon find the loading address, after a fair bit of buggering about I am loaded with glassware by 12.00 and head back down the hill and out towards Valencia where after following the motorway round Valencia I follow the usual route up over Teruel and along past Ricla and Pamplona and eventually park up in Sumbilla for the night.
Thursday is another bloody cold morning as I fill up near Irun before crossing the border and entering enemy territory the thermometer is marking -5 between Bayonne and Bordeaux accompanied by a hazy fog that was to hang around for the whole day as once again I followed the usual route up as far as Artenay where I turned on to the RN20 and drove as far as the restaurant at Mondesir where I settled to down to wait for the trailer that was being brought from Holland.
The trailer arrived at the ungodly hour of 03.00 and as the 9 hours rest had been completed I set off south back along the same route as taken yesterday and apart from a Frenchan who had missed the road



Frenchman missed the bend betwen Barbiezieux and Bordeaux

and a slight hold up on the Bordeaux ring road I once again reached the Spanish border with no problems and once past San Sebastian I took the turn off for Hernani and passed around the town till I reached the paper mill where the 1 box weighing 500 kilos was soon unloaded and I just managed to get back to the motorway before running out of hours so ended up parking up again 1 1/2 hours from home.

Leaving home Tuesday morning with instructions to be in Santander by 08.00 I head past Bilbao and along the Atlantic coast till just before Santander where I turned on to the industrial estate at Maliano and duly arrived at the customers premises at 07.55 only to be greeted with "your load is not ready yet" so I settled down to wait, at 12.30 I was called in to load 5 boat screws and proceeded to slide the roof open, the screws were loaded and secured and I headed back along the coast passing Bilbao and I turned off the motorway at Amorebieta and started the climb in to the hills to Gernika. Upon arriving in Gernika I soon found the loading address and the fun and games involved in getting a 3 meter long container that is nearly as wide and as high as the trailer itself and weighing 6 tons began, after about 90 minutes of buggering about we eventually had the damn thing in and the trailer closed. Now it was a case of back down the hill to Amorebieta and turn left on the national as far as Durango where I cut through the outskirts of the town and soon arrived at the last customers premises in Abadiano where I loaded 10 pallets, it turned out that the pallets were destined for somwhere in deepest darkest France. Back on to the motorway and passing San Sebastian I crossed in to France and parked up about an hour later as the hours were up and settled down to find out where this place called Myennes is in France.
Wednesday morning was a damp miserable day (France) and I coasted up past Bordeaux and along the RN10 as far as Angouleme where I then turned off towards Limoges, my original plan was thento slant off and head for Gueret but after seeing the signs warning of extensive roadworks I decided to carry on via Limoges and join the A20 which I then followed as far as Chatearoux where I turned off the motoway and followed the national roads through Issoudun and around Bourges before turning on to the D955 which I then followed and crossed the Loire river at Cosne Cours sur Loire and turned left and just on the outskirts of the town I found the village of Myennes and soon found the unloading address rolling on to there premises just as they were closing, a coule ofminutes of intense waffle later they decided to unload the 10 pallets before going home, once tipped I settled down for a 45 minute break before heading out towards the A71 which I followed until it joined with the A6 southof Paris and parked up for the night at the 1st service area that I came to.
Up early Thursday saw me through Paris before the shit started and stopped for a 45 and to buy a vignette at Wancourt. Now that going through the middle of Lille is prohibited I headed towards Dunkerque as far as exit 6 and followed the northern ring road round Lille and rejoined the usual route just south of the Belgian border, once in Belgium the instructions started to arrive and they want the boats screws unloaded 1st, telling them that it would be impossible as there would not be enough space between the open roof and the container to crane the screws out I am told to go and try "bollox" and a short argument later we decide to do things my way. So passing through Antwerp and turning right just before Breda I pass s´Hertogenbosch and Uden before rounding Arnhem andmakig my way across country to Winterswijk where once the address has been found the container is soon unloaded (a lot easier than I expected). Back as far as Arnhem where I park up for the night as the hours are done for. The instructions now arrived for the next day.
I was at the 1st loading address in Wijchen near Nijmegen at 08.00 but once again the goods are not ready so I have to wait, eventually loaded I head for the next customer in Tiel where I have to load a motorbike fortunately this takes about 10 minutes and I am soon back on the road on my way to get rid of these boat screws, arriving at the factory at 11.30 no one knows who has oredred them or where they are going to put them so I have to wait until after lunch, good use was made of the on site catering facilities. After lunch they appeared to get their fingers out and I was soon under a crane and the screws were out so now I headed back to the yard. After swapping trailers and loading the trailer I now head off back down through Belgium and manage to get as far as Senlis before parking up for the night.
Saturday I had a nice quiet run through Paris and down past Orleans and Tours before turning on to the RN10 and taking the usual route down past Angouleme, Bordeaux and Biarritz and arriving with at the 1st parking area in Spain with 5 minutes left on the tacho only to find the damn thing full at 18.45 because they have decided to dig half of it up, faced with no other alternative than to carry on past San Sebastian and go for the next service area where I was lucky enough to find a space and park up for the night.
An hour and a quarter down the road Sunday morning and in the door to HM.
Saw this while waiting in Holland 500bhp and all the shiny bits





Leaving the witches lair early Monday morning I dropped down past Burgos on the A1 as far as kilometer point 50 where I turned off and cut across towards Guadaljara and then dropped down again to Azuqueca de Henares where I unloaded the first 11 pallets with no hold ups. Carrying towards Madrid I rounded the city using the M40 & M45 before turning off on to the A4 until just past Valdemoro where I had my second drop at a supermarket RDC as usual this did take a bit of time but eventually the 12 pallets of sandwhich bags were unloaded and I could continue my journey south stopping to fill up at Guarroman I decided that the night would also be spent here.
Tuesday morning I carried on south past Jaen before changing motorways near Granada and headibg for Malaga, just after Malaga it was time for a 45 minute break before carrying on to Algeciras where after completing the formalities for entering the port area I was able to get the first customer off before they went to dinner, after eating I went across to the other side of the port to the Maersk container terminal and unloaded 2 pallets of paint. Heading back round Malaga I followed the coast road towards Almeria and parked up for the night with a nice view of the moon hanging above the sea.
Wednesday morning I was away at 07.00 and arrived at the last address in El Ejido just as they opened and the last 2 pallets were soon unloaded and I went about 5 minutes down the road for breakfast while awaiting further instructions. Eventually I was told to go to the DAF garage at Almeria to get the brakes on the middle axle of the trailer fixed this took until about 16.00 and once done I went 1st to Dalias and loaded 12 pallets of green peppers and then to Vicar to load another 14 pallets and then I was told to go back to the DAF and pick up one of our drivers and take him home to Totana near Murcia, once the plebiscite has been loaded I head out past Almeria and along the coast past Puerto Mazarron and Lorca and arrived in Totana at 23.00 where I got rid of the moron and parked up for the night.
Thursday was quite an easy run as it was quite foggy I decided to stay on the dual carriageways and go via Madrid rather than cut across country on the nationals, the time difference is negligible although it is a few kilometers further, once past Madrid the fog cleared so I headed up the A2 past Guadalajara as far as Medinacelli and cut across country through Agreda and Cintruenigo and managed to just get past Pamplona before parking for the night and enjoying an excellent evening meal for 11 euros.
Setting off Friday morning I filled up with diesel near Irun before crossing the border in to France and driving up past Bordeaux, Angouleme and Poitiers as far as Tours where I turned off towards Le Mans, the boss phoned and said that I was booked on the boat from Caen that same night and did not sound too happy when told that the boat would be going without me as after having to go via Murcia there was no way that I was going to make it and with a digital tacho there was sod all that I could about it. I managed to get just south of Argenton before parking up for the night.
Up at sparrowfart on Saturday morning I was Caen port just before 07.00 and was one of the 1st on the boat and set about having breakfat, shower and a kip as the boat rocked it´s way across towards England in somewhat stormy weather. I knew that things were bad in the UK from listening to the news on Talk Sport so I was quite surprised that when I arrived in Portsmouth the sun was shining (someone had obviously told the weather gods that I was on my way), off the boat and head towards Brighton on the A27 and I was soon at the customers premises in Tangmereand within 45 minutes the trailer was empty, contact with chaos control in Holland and it was decided that I would be having my 24 hours off in England as there was no chance of me spending 24 hours sitting on a lunar landscape in Dunkerque, heading up on the M23 I turned on to the M25 as far as junction 8 and headed for a layby near Banstead where I was picked up by Iain and we enjoyed a good meal and a couple of pints down the pub.
Sunday as it turns out was my 50th birthday and the only thing that riuned it was that Man United failed to beat the bloody gooners but never mind thanks to Iains generous hospitality an enjoyable birthday was spent thanks Mate.
Monday morning well before sparrowfart I am heading towards Dover and get the 02.30 boat to Dunkerque which was late so any hope of getting past Antwerp before the shit started were already dashed so I decided to stop for an hours sleep at Gent and give the traffic a chance to sort itself out before heading in to the truck wash in Roosendaal and giving the DAF a bath before heading to the yard. After several hours of hanging around I am eventually told that nothing else will be happening today, great they always come out with this one when it is too late to arrange to go and see Jennifer.
Tuesday was also spent scratching my arse but at least I managed to see Jennifer before heading south under cover of darkness and after a 45 just before Paris the fun starts as half of the roads around Paris are closed for maintenance and it is obviously far too much effort to expect the daft bloody kermits to put this information on the overhead panels, eventually I work my way through the chaos and head down past Orleans, noticing that the overhead panels are informing drivers that the A71 to Clermont Ferrand is closed to HGV´s and that the A20 from Vierzon towards Toulouse is also completely closed, I think one can safeley assume that winter has arrived and that the white stuff has caused chaos once again, after several attempts I eventually find a parking slot just north of Tours at 05.00 and dive into me pit.
Wednesday before setting off I am listening to the French and Spanish radios and it seems that the centre of France has been thrown in to chaos by the snow and that the A15 between San Sebastian and Pamplona is also blocked. But I still managed to get home without any problems.
Leaving home on the Thursday morning it was snowing once again



and as I climbed up towards Miranda de Ebro it got worse as I then headed towards Burgos,



just before the Somosierra the Guardia Civil were parking up all goods vehicles due to the snow so as to give the snow ploughs a chance to clear the climb



and after about two hours we were allowed to continue our Journey but the delay meant that I was now too late in Coslada.
Friday morning and as our agent opens I am straight on the bay and the 8 pallets are soon unloaded and I head off along the A2 as far as Alcala de Henares where after a two hour wait I was finally unloaded and received instructions to head towards Valencia. Rounding Madrid and following the A3 it was an uneventful journey until just before Requena where once again all goods vehicles were being parked up by the Guardia Civil and once again we settled down to a wait of several hours, apparently this time it was due to the fact that the snowploughs could not grit the long downhill viaduct because of the ice (why don´t they reverse down the bugger then ?). Evebtually we are allowed to continue the journey but we are diverted on to the old N3 before the viaduct and and rejoin the A3 on the other side where there is not a flake of snow to be seen, carrying on towards and round Valencia and Sagunto I arrive in Burriana at about 22.00.

Saturday at 08.00 they start loading the oranges and by 09.00 I am on my way north but before I get to Teruel the phone rings and the office asks if I can find somewhere that sells methanol as one of our Dutch drivers is stuck in Calamocha with frozen brakes so I divert into Teruel and stop at the Scania garage and manage to buy the only bottle of methanol that they have left, apparently during the night the temperature had dropped to -16 degrees celsius and even now at 10.00 it was still -5.







Arriving in Calamocha we soon had the dutchmans brakes working again and I continued the journey north following the usual route and managed to get as far as Bordeaux before parking up for the night.
Sunday was a nice quiet run through France and past Paris and I parked up just over the border in Belgium for the night.
After unloading In Hedel Monday morning I ran back to the yard empty and had 24 hours off.
Tuesday was a case of running up to Rotterdam amd loading 24 big bags and setting off on the journey south once again managing to get nearly to Tours before parking up.
Wednesday was another uneventful day and crossing the border in to Spain and following the N1 up past Vitoria I parked up in Briviesca for the night where there was still quite a lot of snow lying around.
Setting off Thursday morning I went around Burgos before following the new dual-carriageway out past Leon and joining the A6 at Algorta, stopping for a 45 minute break just north of Ponferrada I then continued on to La Coruña and soon found the unloading address where to my surprise I was unloaded immediately despite being a day early. Now I had to head for a place called El Ferrol and load 2 items for Holland and I was told that they only loaded vehicles until 14.00 but as it is always worth a try I went to see if I could be loaded and arriving there at 17.00 I was loaded and gone by 19.00 and drove the last 90 minutes that I had left before parking up for the night.
An enjoyable and quiet drive Friday along the Atlantic coast past Aviles, Gijon and Santander had me home for just after lunch.
Leaving home on Monday morning I drove back along the A8 to just past San Sebastian where I turned off on to the N1 and soon found the unloading address in Lezo where after a short wait the 28 pallets of beef extract were soon unloaded and I could now make my way back through San Sebastian and follow the A1 up the Etxegarrate pass towards Vitoria as far as Araia where I had 1 pallet of cocoa powder to unload at the ice cream factory before filling up at the ADS service area, then I went across the road and had breakfast at the Andamur truckstop. Suitably fortified I now headed towards Pamplona and was sson unloading the last 5 pallets on the Augistinos Industrial area, contact with nerve control centre informed me that they wanted me to head towards Barcelona so I duly drove off down the A15 before turning on to the N232 near Tudela and made my way past Zaragoza where I joined the A2 and after passing Lleida I found a parking spot in a village some 80 km´s before Barcelona where I had my evening meal and settled down for the night.
Up at 8 I was soon mixing it with the rush hour traffic heading for Barcelona as I turned off of the motorway and made my way towards the town centre on the Avenida Diagonal as far as the Plaza D´España which is where the main exhibition centre is,



Heading in to Barcelona on the Avenida Diagonal



Turned right here to enter exhibition centre





Waiting to load at Barcelona Exhibition Centre





Couple of shots of Barcelona from the top



Plaza de España



Leaving Exhibition Centre

fortunately someone had had the sense to put people near the entrance in order to direct the lorries to their respective points of loading so I was sson outside hall 6 which was still deserted so I settled down for the wait and spent some of the time taking a couple of fotos. Eventually someone arrives and the 13 pallets are soon loaded and I head off round Barcelona on the A7 as far as the turn off for Santa Perpetua de Mogoda where I turned off and headed for the Pol Ind Urvasa and reported in at my last loading address to be told that the goods had not yet arrived and that I would have a wait of about 4 hours, I now wandered off to a nearby restaurant and had dinner. By 17.00 the goods have arrived and I am heading north on the AP7 and as I get to Girona the motorway is closed because of an accident and we all have to divert on to the NII, at Villamalla I fill up with diesel and then head off to La Junquera for the evening meal before crossing the border in to France, turning left just before Narbonne I manage to get to within 50 km´s of Toulouse before parking up for the night.
Wednesday morning I have an uneventful run around Toulouse and soon reach the junction for the A20 where I turn off and follow the A20 until just past Limoges where I take the N147 towards Poitiers, as the load only weighs 6 tons I have been flying up the hills and joining the A10 at Poitiers I am soon rounding Tours and stop for my 2nd 45 minute break at Le Mans where I realise that I have made much better time than expected and that I will only be about 15 minutes short of Caen when my hours run out, I decided to go for it as I had no desire to park up for the night that close to a port and with 13 pallets with Motorola stickers all over them in the trailer, arriving in Caen and reporting to Brittany Ferries I am told that I should be able to get on to tonights boat instead of waiting for the morning boat on which I am booked, I sailed.
Arriving in Portsmouth Thursday morning I am soon siting in a traffic jam as I approach Southampton, making my way up the M3 I joined the M25 as far as junction 14 where I turned off and unloaded 2 pallets in Colnbrook before making my way on to the M4 and heading west, passing through road work alley I had a break just before Bristol before heading over the Severn Bridge in to Welsh Wales





Severn Bridge with horrendous prices

and soon reached the next unloading address in Pontypool where another 11 pallets were soon unloaded and I headed back the way that I had just come as far as Swindon where I unloaded the rest at the Motorola factory and settled down for the night.
At 11.00 Friday morning I am back on the loading bay at Motorola and by 13.00 I am back on the M4 heading towards London which I round on the M25 which is surprisingly free flowing although the same cannot be said for the poor buggers going the other way, M26 & M20 soon has me in Dover and on the Norfolk Line boat at 18.00 heading for Dunkerque, arriving in France I head for Belgium and follow the motorway to Gent where I head for Antwerp and park up for the night on the Dutch-Belgian border at Hazeldonk.
Saturday I head in to the yard at Rucphen and swap trailers and once loaded begin to head south once more back past Antwerp and round Lille I have a 45 at Vemars just before Paris, setting off once more the combination of Welsh rugby fans and French weekend drivers has contrived to bring Paris to a virtual standstill but I eventually reah the other side and am soon driving down the RN20 as far as Artenay before joining the A10 passing Orleans and Tours before parking up for the obligatory 24 hours off at Chatellerault.
Sunday was spent sitting around watching the rain come down in buckets.
I left early Monday morning so as to avoid the overtaking bans in the Bordeaux area and passed the Spanish border at about 10.00 and stopped to do some shopping before carrying on to Araia to fill up with diesel and have a break before eventually managing to get as far as Milagros near Aranda de Duero before parking up.
Tuesday was a doddle as I was in and out of the 1st unloading address in Coslada by 09.00 and went to the 2nd address in Alcobendas to unload some outboard motors and once again everything went smoothly and I was in and out in good time, as the rush hour was now over I decided to save a few kilometres and transit Madrid by going through the middle on the M30 before joining the A4 which I took until just past Pinto where I turned on to the M506 and soon arrived at Exel´s warehouse where the garden furniture was soon unloaded and by 11.30 I was once again heading south on the A4 until just after Guarroman where I turned left and drove down past Jaen as far as Granada and then on to the A92 until the turn off for Malaga eventually parking up for the night 10 km´s before Malaga.
Leaving early enough to bet the congestion around Malaga I was in Algeciras for 08.00 where I discovered that everything was closed as it was an Andalucian public holiday, a few phone calls later and it was arranged that some one would come and unload the boats spares as they were urgently needed, once this was done I drove to the other side of the port to discover that Maersk were also closed so the phone calls began once more and eventually the 2 pallets were unloaded and the trailer was now empty. Heading back past Malaga and continuing along the coast I stopped for dinner between Motril and Adra before carrying on to Dalias near El Ejido where I loaded 24 pallets of Peppers, now it was a just a case of finding somewhere to park up for the night as the fridge motor needed fixing and I also needed to load 2 more pallets but neither of these tasks could be done this evening due to the public holiday.
Thursday morning I drove to the Carrier agent in order to get the fridge fixed. once fixed I loaded 2 more pàllets of peppers and started the run north managing to get as far as Milagros where I parked up for the night.
Friday was an uneventful run up through Spain and France managing to get as far Chatellerault where once again the night was spent.

I was in Caen by midday Saturday and on the boat at 17.00 and once through the eternal buggering avout in Portsmouth I drove to Tangmere and watched the moon eclipse before going to bed.
Sunday morning the peppers were out quite quickly and I drove back to Havant to have my 24 hours off.
Once the 24 hour break was completed I drove back to Tangmere where I was supposed to be loading for Holland only to find out that the load had been cancelled. So off I heads towards Worthing and slings a left on to the A23 and lo and behold just before the M23 started there on the hill were the nice men from VOSA waiting for me after a cjeck that everything was legal I was allowed to continue my journey to Dover where I caught the Norfolk Lines boat to Dunkerque, once again the conditions on this boat were horrndous amongst other things the same toilets as 10 days ago were still out of order. Off at the other end I drove to Aalst and loaded a couple of pallets of chocolate before carrying on to Hazeldonk where I parked up for the night.
Tuesday mornig a few more pallets were loaded on an industrial estate at Hazeldonk before setting off to load at two more addresses in Tilburg after which it was back in to the yard to swap trailers before loading for Spain, once done I drove as far as Vemats just before Paris where once again the parking area was over full so I used the payable secure parking as the hours were up and went to bed for the night.
Wednesday was an uneventful run through France although I ended up parking up for the night at the peage at Biarritz as there had been an accident a bit further along the road.
Thursday I crossed the border in to Spain and refuelled near Vitoria before heading off down to jusy south of Madrid where I managed to unload in Humanes before they closed at 15.00. Unloaded in Humanes it was back around Madrid and head north once more as I still had 11 pallets for Burgos, I eventually parked up for the night at Gumiel.
Burgos unloaded the 11 pallets in record time and I was back home under the orders of domestic management by 10.00

I left home on Tuesday evening and made way through Bilbao and along the Atlantic coast until just before Santander where I turned off and headed for Torrelavega where I rejoined the motorway heading towards Oviedo as far as Llovio where once agin I turned off and followed the old national 634 towards Iniesto, about 5 kilometers before Iniesto I arrived in the village of Villamayor Piloña where I would be loading the next day, a hotel parking area provided a place to park for the night.
Wednesday I dove the 5 minutes to the factory and after a bit of a delay the trailer was soon full of Kojak type lollipops destined for Tokio although I would only be taking them as far as Paris. Once loaded the same route as the previous evening was retraced and just before Bilbao I stopped for dinner before continiung the journey along the A8 past San Sebastian until just before the French border where I turned off to fuel up with diesel before crossing the border, the usual route was followed up past Bayonne, Biarritz and Bordeaux and then past Angouleme and I parked up at Payre for the night.
Thursday I rejoined the A10 motorway at Poitiers Sud and continued north as far as Artenay where I turned off on to the N20 and stopped for a break, following the A104, A10, A6, A86, A4, A86 & A3 I managed to get through Paris in surprisingly good time and was soon backed on to the unloading bay at JAL on Aeroport Charles De Gaulle where the lollipops were soon unloaded. The office told me to head empty to Kerkrade in Holland to load in the morning so I set off north once more and headed for the Belgian border at Valenciennes where I stopped to get a Eurovignette and a bite to eat before continuing on past Mons, Charlois and Namur until Liege where I turned off towards Maastricht, after passing through Maastricht I headed towards Heerlen and then Kerkrade where I soon found the customers address and parked outside for the night.
Friday I was soon loaded with a complete load of lamps and was told to head for the yard so off I set up past Weert, Eindhoven and Breda and once in the yard I swapped trailers and set off for Moerdijk to load 2 jacuzzi´s and then to Tilburg to load groupage before returning once more to the yard and parking up for the night.
Saturday after loading yet another trailer I could now head south once more and passing Paris I managed to get as far as Poitiers where I would now be parking up for a 24 hour break.
Monday was a nice leisurely drive as far as Bordeaux where the skies started to darken and the wind strength increased considerably, it also started to snow slightly but soon stopped although the Spanish radio was telling me that it was snowing quite heavily in Spain accompanied by even stronger winds. Crossing the border I immediately drove in to a sleet storm as I rounded San Sebastian and as I neared the long climb towards Vitoria it started to snow,





passing Vitoria and Burgos everything was white but now it started to clear up although it was still very cold as I parked up for the night at Milagros I heard that the road was blocked at both Burgos and the long climb at the Etxegarrate so it seems that I got through just in time.
Leaving early Tuesday morning I was at my 1st drop in Madrid at 08.00 and by 09.30 I was on my way south once more rounding Madrid before joining the A4 which took me down past Valdepeñas and as far as Guarroman where I turned towards Granada and just after Jaen I stopped for dinner. Turning right at Granada on the A92 as far as the turn off for Malaga I decided to stop just before the top of the hill for the night as I didn´t fancy spending the night on the run down industrial estate.
I arrived at the customers in Malaga at 08.00 and by 09.00 I was heading along the coast past Torremolinos and Estepona to Los Barrios near Algeciras where they soon unloaded the 2 pallets of ships spares and I could continue my journey towards Jerez de la Frontera where after rounding the town I followed the national road out to San Luca de Barrameda and managed to unload 1 pallet of Cocoa butter before they went to dinner, once unloaded I also went to eat and had a damn good meal for 6 euros 50 before heading off back towards Algeciras and La Linea where I parked up for the night.
My first task Thursday morning was to enter the customs compound at Gibraltar



View of Gib from customs compound



Gun emplacements on the rock



Crossing the runway to leave Gibraltar

and wait patiently for the customs to do their thing before crossing the border and repeating the process all over again, once this had been done I drove across the runway and made my way to the unloading address where once again I was soon unloaded and could return to the Spanish side where I received instructions telling me that I could load in Puente Genil so off I set and arrived in Puente Genil for 15.00 only to be told that the load would not be ready until the morning.
At 07.30 the customer arrived and took me to another warehouse some 20km´s away where they set about loading the trailer with used truck tyres, as this was done manually it took them until about 13.00 to fill the trailer. Setting off across country towards Cordoba with the temperature reaching a welcome 20 degrees I eventually joined the A4 heading north and stopped just after Andujar. As I made my towards Madrid I couldn´t help but notice the amount of motorbikes heading south to the GP at Jerez, there was also a strong traffic police presence and eventually I was pulled over by the Guardia Civil for a control and after taking several print outs they decided that they were happy and I could continue my journey with the contents of my wallet intact. Another break just after Aranjuez ensured that I rounded Madrid just as the rush hour was dying down and I was soon on the A1 and eventually parked up for the night just after Burgos.
Saturday was a simple case of driving home but I did notice that a lot of the snow had already been washed away by 2 days of continuous rain and by 11.00 I was in the door.

Leaving home early Monday morning I made my way north crossing the French border at Irun and following the by now all too familiar route up towards Paris and eventually parked up for the night near Orleans.
Tuesday was another easy day as Paris presented no problems and apart from a slight hold up at Lille I was soon in the yard in Holland changing trailers and filling up with Ad Blue before heading back southwards again along the same route and I parked up for the night at Wancourt just past Arras.
Up at sparrowfart Wednesday morning I managed to get through Paris before the morning shite began and headed towards Orleans on the RN20 as far as Artenay before joining the A10 as far as Orleans where I changed on to the A71 as far as Vierzon where I then took the A20 down past Limoges until it joined up with Toulouse motorway and at the last service area before Toulouse the hours were up and it was time for bed.
Another start at an ungodly hour saw me crossing the Spanish border at La Junquera and filling up with diesel at the ADS pump on the old customs area at Villamalla before continuing my run down the motorway and around Barcelona before heading for the port area, to get to the other side of the port where the boat was in dry dock meant skirting along the edge of the town area above the motorway which goes under the part of the town near the old olympic village,



Colombus statue at end of the Ramblas in Barcelona many years ago before Zona Franca was built this where we had to park to do customs


upon arriving at the dry dock it was soon obvious that this was not going to be a quick job and after arriving at 10.00 they finally started unloading me at 14.00 and by 16.00 I was empty and could now make my way back round the left hand side of Barcelona where I took the motorway out past Sitges towards Tarragona and parked up for the night.
Having already been told that I would not be loading until the afternoon I didn´t start till 09.30 and then made my way down past Tarragona and Castellon and came off of the motorway just past Nules and soon arrived at the village of Faura, the customer then said that there would be a delay and that the load would not be ready till 21.00. Loaded and able to leave at 20.15 chaos control had said to head north in the general direction of Luxembourg so off I set back up the motorway and managed to get as far as the rest area at Penedes before calling it a day.
Saturday sees me once more filling up at the ADS and then having a good meal in La Junquera before entering France, the oranges in the trailer seemed to enjoy the run up past Nimes, Orange and Lyon and I parked up for my 24 hours off at Chalon.
Another boring 24 hours in France eventually passed and at 22.15 Sunday night I was once again heading north with instructions to change trailers at the Esso near Metz, by 03.00 trailers had been changed and it was coffee time before turning round and heading back south along exactly the same route as far as the Carrefour service area near Dijon where I went to bed.
As the load is in a hurry 9 hours later I am once more looking south and passing exactly the same places as Saturday only in reverse order I parked up for the night just north of Gerona.
Tuesday morning at 10.30 I am waiting to unload at the Bax Global depot near Gerona airport and just after midday the trailer is empty and armed with instructions to load at Casserres near Berga I make my way along the C25 passing Vic and turning on to the C16 just north of Manresa I soon find the customer well hidden off the main road in a small village









where they decided that I would be loaded when they came back from lunch. By 16.00 I am loaded and start to head north still on the C16 having taken the decision to go over the hump. Passing Berga and using the tunnels of Cadi



Tunnel de Cadi

I enjoyed the scenery of the snow covered Pyrenees



before crossing the French border at Puigcerda and taking the RN20










down past Ax Les Thermes which has been improved in some places but in others as you can see it still gets quite interesting and Luzenac where I often used to load talcum powder when I was driving powder tankers I joined the motorway and made my way past Toulouse and turned on to the A20 and headed back up north and got a good half hour past Limoges before parking up for the night.
Wednesday everything went super smoothly and I got past Paris,Lille and Antwerp with absolutely no hold ups which meant that I managed to get to Barendrecht near Rotterdam and parked up for the night on the fruit market where I would be unloading in the morning.
I was soon unloaded Thursday morning and I then made my way to Tilburg to load a small amount of groupage which I then took back to our yard and swapped trailers, filled up with Ad Blue and set off south once more and stopped for dinner at the Dutch-Belgian border at Hazeldonk. It was far too early as I closed in on Paris at 17.00 so I decided to have another break at Vemars where I eventually stayed for 2 hours so as to give the traffic a chance to clear, unfortuntely this was an utter waste of time as Paris was still at a complete standstill so I decided to follow the A104 round the shite hole but this was also jammed solid so this gave me a chance to use my magic route past all the crap and exactly 1 hour and 25 minutes after leaving Vemars I was on the RN20 heading for Orleans and I eventually parked up for the night at Meung.
Sailing down the by now well worn route I crossed in to Spain and pissed off home for a couple of days.

WOW you get around a lot

Very nice pictures

Still running about but as it is mostly to the same places it makes for boring reading. As soon as I get to go somewhere different I will start again