An extended stay in Six Fours Les Plages . . .

Following along the Southern Coast of France from Monte Carlo we drove through the big city of Toulon and found ourselves pulling up at a campground perched high on a hill in a little town called Six Fours Les Plages.  Just the name itself sounded so French.  Sometimes we've stumbled across the best spots to stop just by avoiding the bigger cities - this was one of those times.  Situated in a National Park of some 50,000 acres with a fort, small fishing towns and a boardwalked beach, Six Fours Les Plages looked like a fabulous place to stop for a few days.  Only our few days turned into almost a week when Swifty had a hissy fit and started to chew up 50litres of diesel to the 100km - the maximum it could do - while we were out doing a grocery shop.  And so with the engine straining and sounding really bad we limped back to camp and waited the weekend out until we could drive to the nearest Fiat dealership where they hooked Swifty up to a couple of computers and diagnosed and fixed the problem.  This left us with the weekend free to explore the area, to ride along the boardwalks and to ultimately discover the prettiest little fishing town within riding distance of camp and with a harbour filled with brightly coloured wooden fishing boats called Sanary. 

Rugged up against the cold winds, our ride along the waterfront was fabulous.

In Sanary we came across 20 local gentlemen partaking in a friendly game of
boules alongside the main (and only) road and opposite the harbour.

Just down from the friendly boules game we came across this launch
that dwarfed the entire town.

The coloured fishing boats are a major attraction of Sanary.
Not just for show, they are used by the local fishermen who take
them out regulary and then sell their catch in little stalls upon their return.

These wonderful old carousels are everywhere in Europe.

Despite the freezing winter winds, just before dusk all the local surfers
hit the waves which were rolling in beautifully.  We watched as one
girl ran in with her mates, turned around, and then ran straight back up
the beach with her surfboard.  She then threw her board onto the sand,
sheltered next to the break wall and lit up a cigarette - it was too cold for her!

A cold but still beautiful sunset on the foreshore, Six Fours Les Plages.