What i did last week
Discussion
Well, in celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Peugeot 205, 14 hardcore(read borderline mental) 205 owners and an official Peugeot support van embarked on a European mega-tour. Thought up by a 205 owning soldier, serving in Afghanistan with the aim of raising money for the Help for Heroes charity took 8 months of brain storming and planning. As the event snowballed we combined with 205 owners from France, Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia, Austria, Belgium, Poland, and Holland for a series of Epic adventures. Sadly i didn't take many pictures, because as the trip went on i realised that no amount of photos could do justice to the places i've been, the things i've witnessed and the people i met.
So Day 0 we meet at Travel Inn Dover for food drinks and introductions as most of us had only met one or two others from the group.
Day 1 we get a 5am ferry to Calais where we appear to have our first casualty. A poor chap who drove all the way from Scotland the day before has problems starting his car after turning it off whilst waiting to check in. With limited time to solve the problem the rest of us had to leave him behind so not to compromise everyones trip. After he phoned the AA to help him out it magically decided to work again. Thankfully he made it onto the ferry in the nick of time.
Arrived in Calais ready to convoy onto Reims
Heading south next to the Peugeot museum in East France, another breakdonw with the potential to be terminal. A broken alternator mounting on a GTI6 converted 205, and no spares that would fit. Luckily the car was running bike carbs so could continue the journey running nothing but ignition management and swapping batteries every couple hundred miles. It ran like that until he got home yesterday!
With a bunch of issues, we got to our hotel late and missed the museum so decided to do it the next morning.
Day 2, a bit of fettling at the hotel.
And onto the Peugeot Museum
Lots of stuff there, all the pictures are on my facebook pages, but this was the main reason to go!
Had a long journey to catch up the main group who set off several hours earlier but the roads were fantastic and the sights got more and more spectacular until we finally got into Switzerland.
That was somewhere near the Gothard tunnel, and when we got out the other side it was dark, its a very very long tunnel.
We got to our campsite in Baveno, Italy almost at midnight having driven some very twisty roads in the night i knew we were somewhere special but couldnt see it due to the lack of sunlight. When we awoke in the morning we could see the beautiful lake about 20ft from where we pitched up!
Day 3 we drove back up the roads we had done the previous night this time taking in the full glory including Lake Como
and meeting with some Italian puggers
Leading a convoy of 205s up a mountainside pass
only to be turned around by a freaking big avalanche cutting off the road.
So once again we didnt get too our campsite until gone nightfall. Waking upto yet another picturesque lake scene at Iseo
Day 4 legging it to Venice, its probably the least car friendly city ive ever been too. Parking was E25! But the place was brilliant. Here we parked on the 10th floor of a carpark the size of a football pitch. Overlooking the start of Venice's canals.
We just had to have a gondola tour whilst we we there
One of the cars in my group had a 3.0 V6 conversion that managed to chew a driveshaft which we needed to fix in the carpark and took a few hours so yet again we had no chance of catching the main group we decided to get shuteye near the Itallian/Slovenian border. Me and my codriver had enough of camping and needed a shower so we found a hotel and bedded won for the night while otehrs searched in vain for a campsite but ended up just pitching on a random patch of grass! We wouldnt see them again for a few days whilst they went to Croatia.
Day 5 we decided to check out the well known Miramare Castle near Trieste
And then onwards into Slovenia to see the Postojna caves which beat the hell ouf of Dan-Yr-Ogof!
Day 6 Having missed out Croatia we were a day ahead of schedule so took the backroads all the way to lake Bled. Another stunning lake with a curious island in the middle.
After lunch we made tracks towards our hotel in Austria visting some more brilliant backroads. Ive no idea where it was but the best road i have ever driven wasn't far away, i will have to spend some time on google earth to refind it!
After having a swim in the cold indoor pool and a dip in the even colder outdoor one, a 4 course dinner and some traditional Austrain entertainment... i got a little sleep and ready for the next day.
Day 7, i decided i didnt want to even try and stick to the schedule as it was far too adventurous, we came up with our own idea of heading north to a place of some historic significance and plenty of natural beauty. Another fantastic day of driving through an out of season ski village
To Germany's cleanest lake, Konigsee
and Hitlers Eagles Nest (or as near as the snow ridden roads would allow)
No more pictures from here on in as we really had to haul ass along the autobahns.
Day 8 we got to Stutgard and stayed in an Etap. Looked a crap city tbh but we had a good meal in a nice friendly Italian.
Day 9 we headed to Nurburgring in time for 2 hours of public tracktime and sat on the sidelines a bit jealous of those that could go on track. Another lovely meal in one of the Italian restaurants i know.
Day 10 more bahn-storming as we make to the Zolder racetrack in Belgium for a final intercontinental 205 meet and a look at some bikers enjoying a trackday before making for Calais and catching a ferry at 7.40pm A short channel crossing and i was back on the motorways heading for Cardiff to arrive at 1.30 am on Monday, total 3018 miles.
So thats it, the final farewell to the car i have loved for the last 5 years
So Day 0 we meet at Travel Inn Dover for food drinks and introductions as most of us had only met one or two others from the group.
Day 1 we get a 5am ferry to Calais where we appear to have our first casualty. A poor chap who drove all the way from Scotland the day before has problems starting his car after turning it off whilst waiting to check in. With limited time to solve the problem the rest of us had to leave him behind so not to compromise everyones trip. After he phoned the AA to help him out it magically decided to work again. Thankfully he made it onto the ferry in the nick of time.
Arrived in Calais ready to convoy onto Reims
Heading south next to the Peugeot museum in East France, another breakdonw with the potential to be terminal. A broken alternator mounting on a GTI6 converted 205, and no spares that would fit. Luckily the car was running bike carbs so could continue the journey running nothing but ignition management and swapping batteries every couple hundred miles. It ran like that until he got home yesterday!
With a bunch of issues, we got to our hotel late and missed the museum so decided to do it the next morning.
Day 2, a bit of fettling at the hotel.
And onto the Peugeot Museum
Lots of stuff there, all the pictures are on my facebook pages, but this was the main reason to go!
Had a long journey to catch up the main group who set off several hours earlier but the roads were fantastic and the sights got more and more spectacular until we finally got into Switzerland.
That was somewhere near the Gothard tunnel, and when we got out the other side it was dark, its a very very long tunnel.
We got to our campsite in Baveno, Italy almost at midnight having driven some very twisty roads in the night i knew we were somewhere special but couldnt see it due to the lack of sunlight. When we awoke in the morning we could see the beautiful lake about 20ft from where we pitched up!
Day 3 we drove back up the roads we had done the previous night this time taking in the full glory including Lake Como
and meeting with some Italian puggers
Leading a convoy of 205s up a mountainside pass
only to be turned around by a freaking big avalanche cutting off the road.
So once again we didnt get too our campsite until gone nightfall. Waking upto yet another picturesque lake scene at Iseo
Day 4 legging it to Venice, its probably the least car friendly city ive ever been too. Parking was E25! But the place was brilliant. Here we parked on the 10th floor of a carpark the size of a football pitch. Overlooking the start of Venice's canals.
We just had to have a gondola tour whilst we we there
One of the cars in my group had a 3.0 V6 conversion that managed to chew a driveshaft which we needed to fix in the carpark and took a few hours so yet again we had no chance of catching the main group we decided to get shuteye near the Itallian/Slovenian border. Me and my codriver had enough of camping and needed a shower so we found a hotel and bedded won for the night while otehrs searched in vain for a campsite but ended up just pitching on a random patch of grass! We wouldnt see them again for a few days whilst they went to Croatia.
Day 5 we decided to check out the well known Miramare Castle near Trieste
And then onwards into Slovenia to see the Postojna caves which beat the hell ouf of Dan-Yr-Ogof!
Day 6 Having missed out Croatia we were a day ahead of schedule so took the backroads all the way to lake Bled. Another stunning lake with a curious island in the middle.
After lunch we made tracks towards our hotel in Austria visting some more brilliant backroads. Ive no idea where it was but the best road i have ever driven wasn't far away, i will have to spend some time on google earth to refind it!
After having a swim in the cold indoor pool and a dip in the even colder outdoor one, a 4 course dinner and some traditional Austrain entertainment... i got a little sleep and ready for the next day.
Day 7, i decided i didnt want to even try and stick to the schedule as it was far too adventurous, we came up with our own idea of heading north to a place of some historic significance and plenty of natural beauty. Another fantastic day of driving through an out of season ski village
To Germany's cleanest lake, Konigsee
and Hitlers Eagles Nest (or as near as the snow ridden roads would allow)
No more pictures from here on in as we really had to haul ass along the autobahns.
Day 8 we got to Stutgard and stayed in an Etap. Looked a crap city tbh but we had a good meal in a nice friendly Italian.
Day 9 we headed to Nurburgring in time for 2 hours of public tracktime and sat on the sidelines a bit jealous of those that could go on track. Another lovely meal in one of the Italian restaurants i know.
Day 10 more bahn-storming as we make to the Zolder racetrack in Belgium for a final intercontinental 205 meet and a look at some bikers enjoying a trackday before making for Calais and catching a ferry at 7.40pm A short channel crossing and i was back on the motorways heading for Cardiff to arrive at 1.30 am on Monday, total 3018 miles.
So thats it, the final farewell to the car i have loved for the last 5 years
That looks absolutely fantastic. One year I'm going to do that. 
deffo. My dream holiday that.
i'd do the same thing though for the good of group.
No mate, not GE, i work at the airport.
It was hard to leave the fella behind but we were all a bit stuck for ideas as the car was turning over and sparking just apparently not fueling, and to prove the randomness of the fault it did the typical french car thing of fixing itself to leave you with no clue whats actually wrong and the niggling doubt that its fine again. The ferry co. wouldnt let us tow him onboard and if we didnt catch the 5am ferry we would have never have made the first rendezvous with the French and Dutch owners at Reims
It was hard to leave the fella behind but we were all a bit stuck for ideas as the car was turning over and sparking just apparently not fueling, and to prove the randomness of the fault it did the typical french car thing of fixing itself to leave you with no clue whats actually wrong and the niggling doubt that its fine again. The ferry co. wouldnt let us tow him onboard and if we didnt catch the 5am ferry we would have never have made the first rendezvous with the French and Dutch owners at Reims
didnt put much effort into the writeup, just enough to link the pictures! The 205 is going for no logical reason other than i've had it so long and really fancied a change. You might see my replacement at the next breakfast meet, it can stay relatively secret until then 
Anyone who ever wanted to do something like this, you really really must get off your arse and do it. Ive been wanting to do something like this for almost 3 years (after my first 'ring trip when i realised how small UK really is!) and its really not that scary. Have an idea of where you want to go and what you want to see/do then get out there and do it. you can usually find wifi to get internet access so you can research destinations, roads, weather, etc. with tomtom and a roadmap you can navigate your way anywhere
Anyone who ever wanted to do something like this, you really really must get off your arse and do it. Ive been wanting to do something like this for almost 3 years (after my first 'ring trip when i realised how small UK really is!) and its really not that scary. Have an idea of where you want to go and what you want to see/do then get out there and do it. you can usually find wifi to get internet access so you can research destinations, roads, weather, etc. with tomtom and a roadmap you can navigate your way anywhere
Looks like you had a great time then Ben, what a cool holiday
sorrento205 said:
The 205 is going for no logical reason other than i've had it so long and really fancied a change. You might see my replacement at the next breakfast meet, it can stay relatively secret until then
You can't leave us hanging like that, so what you getting then?sean19 said:
Ben, looks awesome mate!
Very jealous indeed. I assume your ran with no issues?!
Next one in the Type R ...?
Cat / bag Very jealous indeed. I assume your ran with no issues?!
Next one in the Type R ...?
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