Bleary eyed, Team Basil made its way, in the dark, to Folkestone for our 8.20 shuttle to Calais. Sarah nipped in to the terminal to get some sandwiches for breakfast while I took the dogs for a well deserved walk in the carpark.

We arrived in France and were on the road by 10 am French time and the day would have been a straightforward 7 hour drive on empty French motorways were it not for SatNav’s propensity, whenever we go anywhere near Paris, to take us on the dreaded Peripherique.

There are motorways that allow you to avoid Paris, but SatNav always insists the quickest way is straight to the centre and around the Peripherique. He may be right, but quicker or not, it certainly adds to the excitement of the journey!

As we have moved south the skies have cleared and lovely sunshine has warmed Basil’s cab. Unfortunately nobody has told the sun to warm the outside. The highest temperature we have seen today is 6 degrees.

After a quick lunch break near Orleans we chose a likely looking spot for the night at an appropriate distance and had finished the journey for today by 4.30pm. We parked Basil in a great little aire, next to a canal with facilities to empty but with the water turned off for the winter (47.144149,2.210020).

We are in the small town of Mehun-Sur-Yèvre, about which we knew absolutely nothing until we had a quick wander round it’s pretty environs. As it’s name suggests it sits on the River Yèvre, which runs, along with an associated canal, right through the middle of the town. Like many small British towns the streets have many closed shops, but I have spotted a Boulanger for the morning!

In addition to the charming waterways there is also the ruins of a huge medieval castle which was apparently a favourite of King Charles VII. A quick Google also reveals that Joan of Arc spent some time here, attending the King’s court, after she had lead the capture of Orleans.

It’s amazing how we stumble across these little gems, totally by accident, as we travel across Europe.

Tomorrow we don’t think we will quite make it to Spain, so we will probably find an aire somewhere near the French Mediterranean,