GJ-GU-FL/NO G4OBK Planning

With the “roll out” of the Pfizer vaccine to the elderly and clinically extremely vulnerable persons in the UK starting this week, I am hoping of being protected against this dreadful disease in early 2020. As a result thoughts turn to SOTA activating outside the UK again, despite the unknowns which are still to be settled by a hard deal or a no deal Brexit which no one voted for but which we will have to stomach…

I am in the throes of booking one week in a Gite in Brittany for my XYL and I near the town of Mur-le-Bretagne with a view to exploring the area and activating all the summits in that part of the FL/NO region, which is west of Rennes. The plan is to drive there using the ferries to reach Guernsey, use the foot ferry to Sark and then the car ferry to Jersey, before proceeding on the Condor Ferry to St. Malo, reaching the Gite on Saturday 26th June. On the 27th June the Tour de France cycle race finishes in the town where we are staying, so that will be exciting to watch and to see if Dan Martin, the Irish Pro Cyclist can repeat another audicious win like he did on Stage 6 in 2018!

The map of 150 Km radius shows 11 summits if you include the Channel Islands 3:

On Sat 3rd July we will leave Brittany and head towards the Channel tunnel near Calais. There is a possibility of stretching this journey out over 2 or 3 days to allow me to complete some more FL/NO summits en-route.

If any other activator is planning to visit this part of the FL/NO region before then please alert this in good time as I need to Chase several summits in that area for the first time. If I could work them from home before we go there is a chance of a few more SOTA Completes!

It’s great to be able to look forward to a more active SOTA year now we have the news of the vaccine.

73 de Phil G4OBK

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Hello Phil !
That sounds so great tour. I’ve never visited this part of France. May be and thanks for you, I will go there. :wink: Today I chased more than 4000 summits, I will not have any time to visit all when I’ll be retired. hi ! I will look for you. 73 QRO
Roger
GU/GU-002 ==> 1 chase by me
GU/GU-001 ==> 1 chase by me
GJ/JE-001 ==> 1 chase by me
FL/NO-110 ==> need it
FL/NO-067 ==> 5 chases by me
FL/NO-079 ==> need it
FL/NO-009 ==> 2 chases by me
FL/NO-021 ==> need it
FL/NO-022 ==> 1 chase by me
FL/NO-087 ==> need it
FL/NO-024 ==> need it

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Sounds like a nice tour Phil, I hope Brexit doesn’t derail it (sigh). I’m kind of relieved not to be going to Tenerife for Christmas this year, as my status would change whilst overseas. My plans for next summer are to take the motorbike to Nordcap via Denmark and Sweden. In all, I’m hoping to add 8 countries to my total. Unfortunately, I will be setting off later in July and going north via Luxembourg and Belgium, so no chance of hooking up. I’m currently looking for a very soft cushion for the KTM :confounded:. Have a good one!
73 DE OE6FEG
Matt

Thanks for the infos Roger and Matt. I’m not a motorbiker myself but the I think the KTM make specialise in for trials bikes, hence the hard seat. If so you must be a very hard man to ride all the way up to the north of Europe Matt!

73 Phil

The stock seat on the KTM 390 is not very soft for an Adventure bike. There is an Ergonomic Seat available, but I think it makes more sense to buy an aftermarket cushion, I’m not that tough.
73 Matt

Well the dates for Friedrichshafen Rally are out and I’m starting to make some tentative plans. By then, sadly, my EU driving licence will have expired as will my EU passport and I will have replaced them with something having considerable less benefits. Looking at plans the cheap airlines have for adding more charges, I think I’ll be flying with more upmarket airlines. If there’s no real value to a cheap and cheesy carrier like EasyJet I may as well pay more and be treated less like scum.

That looks a nice trip Phil. Just reading about it and looking at FN dates has me tingling that I MAY be able to get to France this year for bagging in The Vosges this summer and to Nimes to see my sister and eat, drink and activate some of those lovely SOTA summits down there.

It’s a long way. A long way from anywhere Matt. I was horrified when I was planning a (postponed) trip to the Arctic Circle and I was looking at OH/KI-005 Saana and thought “Oh look Nordcap is just up the road, it would be rude not to visit the top of Europe”. Well it is just up the road, sadly 8hrs and 550kms from Kilpisjarvi.

I’m doing my Arctic Circle SOTA trip when we’re further up the solar cycle.

You will be after riding from Austria to Nordcap :slight_smile:

It would be great if you could get to the Vosges this summer Andy. Don’t forget the international driving permit for your annual FN trip. I will get mine in the new year and Insurance Green Card for driving, which was not needed before the Brexit. When folk voted for it they didn’t realise that free access to Europe for people and goods from the UK would come to an end. The people here with holiday homes in France and Spain etc will be restricted to 90 days stay it seems unless they apply for a Visa. I know some who go there for longer periods than that during the summer and they take their pets with them. That’s another issue as the pet passport system that made this easy is also finishing.

All the best for 2021!

Phil

Ah well I’m getting a dose of free access electronically today. I’m connected to the Porto Salvo node of the VPN at work and then to my personal VPN near Zurich. So Edge/IE/email etc. for work goes via Portugal and private email/browsing goes via Zurich (i.e. home>Edinburgh>Porto>Zurich> the reflector). It’s the best I can do.

Sounds a fab trip Phil. FL, ON, DM and EI are all in the long-term post-Covid thinking of @M0HGY and me.

When you do Sark, I recommend spending a night on the island. It’s a fantastic place with far too much going for it than to be crammed into a day trip from Guernsey.

Put it this way, after Jimmy and I spent one night there on our SOTA trip in 2018, Marianne and I spent 3 nights there for our Silver Wedding Anniversary in 2019. And after that, Marianne and I are keen to go there again.

The other GU summit is far less appealing!

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Hi Phil,
Nice to see you will be in move again.
May be one day I will have next chance to see you.
Wish you good luck in planned trip.
Take care with vaccine, it is very new one, I am personally afraid about its 100% safety and effectiveness.

System (I know both bcse I went with my dogs to Crufts using old rules with blood test obligations and new rules also) was/is difficult for the people coming back to UK, If you go out no problems :wink:

Personally I hope to go to France in early May 2021 to celebrate birthday of my grandson. May be on my way to or back I will activate summits in France/Germany.

Anyway Phil good luck to you and lets your plans will effect and bring you success.

73, Jarek

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Just hold your horses there young Phil. From Jan 1st we are most definitely outside the EU and because of Corona virus restrictions, UK citizens will not be allowed into the EU until either the UK becomes a safe country to travel to/from in the EU’s eyes or some kind of deal is made enabling travel.

Yes, I saw that info come through a few days after I booked the Gite and shelled out the €80 deposit, however I needed to secure the accommodation due to the demand in that area caused by the Tour de France that week. If I lose that deposit so be it, at this stage I won’t be booking any other accommodation or travel and incurring further expense…

Decision to be made in late May on the Gite when things are clearer. I know we will be vaccinated well before then, being seniors, however to be clear on travel we will have to await further news as a third country outside the EU from January 1st.

73 Phil

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