# France in the snow



## ThursdaysChild (Aug 2, 2008)

If you are still on the English side of the Channel, stay there for a while !


Monday night's snow, stretching way down past Paris, has left the French road system in a state of chaotic paralysis. 
Almost every lorry ever built is static, either in a motorway logjam or holed up at the side of the road. Paris to Lille A1 is at a standstill. 
The N and D roads are just about usable, but not for the faint-hearted.

We are holed up on a site at Sorel, having been forced to overnight in the carpark at Douai - could not get through to anywhere else.


Maybe we should have opted for Gravelines !


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## rosalan (Aug 24, 2009)

Hi

We were there last year and understand what it is like. Stay where you are if you can and wait a short while.
Although the Tunnel has re-opened, it does indicate just how bad it has been.
I am in Bedfordshire and still having the odd snow flurry although it is beginning to lighten up in the UK, pictures from Belgium and N France show that there are still a few problems.
Be safe!

Alan


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## bigcats30 (Aug 13, 2012)

I'm in Normandy in 2 1/2 weeks time so the sun will come out and melt it all away!!

I hope lol


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## ThursdaysChild (Aug 2, 2008)

If they do not get a move on, the snow will still be around to greet you.
This afternoon we've had snow, rain, sleet then more snow.
Going to bed early, fortified with a large sherry.


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## rugbyken (Jan 16, 2006)

Just got back home, drove up from Nozzay just above Nantes on Tuesday, Tomtom said 5hr drive to Calais 
, but my mate Lesanne on here had gone up the day before to Caen and said he had 2 hr delay, set off at 10 ran well up to Rennes saw a little snow here & there after that more snow built up and at avranches they closed the motorway the next 30 mls took 5 hrs we gave up a couple of times then the snowplough cleared it and we pushed on, they put us back on the A84 at quilberville 30 ml from Caen that took another hr so at 7:30pm we parked up at Caen docks when e
We got up next morning got 2 reports of red alert up north so we were lucky enough to get on board the 4:30 Caen Portsmouth ferry relatively cheap for a last minute deal 238 euros glad to be out of there just didn't want another day like that.


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## Penquin (Oct 15, 2007)

Crikey, that is a really bad journey - we know the route from Nantes to Caen well and it rarely takes more than a few hours including stops.....

Really feel for you all and hope that it will clear before we are due back - waiting for our passports to come back before we can book a return to France. Probably at the beginning of April.

Dave


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## ThursdaysChild (Aug 2, 2008)

Staying here for another day to give the roads a bit more time to clear - but where on earth do we head next ? Still got plenty of books to read, 10A mains, cheap wifi, gas, food and water. But we cannot get rid of our waste water - the exit pipes from the underslung tank are frozen solid and athough a hairdryer managed to free up the tap all we can get is a solitary icicle. So I guess it's wash and wash-up in a bowl and sling it out of the window.
Oh, and the tv works fine - so might well stay until after the six-nations finals at the weekend.
Dutchman next to us last night had just had six weeks in Portugal and was trying to get back to Holland. Despite all his efforts, his VW 4x4 Touran wouldn't get him and his caravan off the snow. So it was Le Patron and the tracked Bobcat to the rescue again.


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## rugbyken (Jan 16, 2006)

The navigator jan was trying to keep track of where the diversions were taking us we went of the m/way towards st lo then turned and came back down, spoke to gendarme at caen apparently they can't keep the m/way clear not enough traffic and the long slow hills are too much for the snow ploughs to keep clear,so they keep the hills clear on the side roads a snowplough stationed at each hill ,
In previous life I have driven an army lorry on the soltau plains -16 that didn't scare me anything like Tuesdays drive slipped & slid all over the place many muttered plea's to Bessie to keep going etc & really thought we were stuck for the night several times dug myself out once and relied on half a dozen French guys to push us over the crest of a hill ,
The hill in question was just outside the aire at quilberville a frequent stop for us as we go south didn't even realise that counted as a hill before do now


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## fatbuddha (Aug 7, 2006)

any update on what it's like in Northern France now??

we're in a ferry to Dunkirk this evening and staying overnight at Gravelines with a view to driving down to Chamonix via Lille/Belgium/Luxembourg/Metz/Nancy etc

can we assume that the autoroutes are now open OK??


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## rayc (Jun 3, 2008)

fatbuddha said:


> any update on what it's like in Northern France now??
> 
> we're in a ferry to Dunkirk this evening and staying overnight at Gravelines with a view to driving down to Chamonix via Lille/Belgium/Luxembourg/Metz/Nancy etc
> 
> can we assume that the autoroutes are now open OK??


webcams of autoroutes here:
http://www.autoroutes.fr/en/webcams.htm


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## ThursdaysChild (Aug 2, 2008)

Can't answer that one - you may be ok heading eastwards, but southward still very iffy according to a Belgian who has just arrived on site at Sorel.


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## fatbuddha (Aug 7, 2006)

thanks for the webcam link - I tried that earlier and it didn't seem to be working but is now ta.

all the main routes look OK - downside possibly is that meteo.fr is showing freezing rain for the North East (between Dunkirk and Lille) for the morning - let's hope all the salt they've chucked down on the autoroutes is enough to cope with that.

I hate freezing rain - t's a bugger to drive in if the roads are unsalted


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## fatbuddha (Aug 7, 2006)

ThursdaysChild said:


> Can't answer that one - you may be ok heading eastwards, but southward still very iffy according to a Belgian who has just arrived on site at Sorel.


it seems to be worse towards Paris and the Rouen area - fingers crossed that going via Luxembourg is the right choice

hey ho - let's see how we get on.


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## sideways (Jun 2, 2008)

Got back today after a rough couple of days, fromTours this way is a nightmare thousands and i mean thousands of lorries just stacked at the side of the road or in the slow lane and in all the services, it was paticulary bad around Everaux, it got better as you got nearer calais, this morning 9am they were stacking lorries outside the port although waving campers and cars through.both water tanks froze by the way i would take some 5l bottles of water with you unless you have tank heaters.


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## frankly (Mar 17, 2012)

Chaos! Just arrived in Rosslare after driving up from Arromanches-les-Bains (where we were snowed in for 2 nights) to Cherbourg...it was quite an experience! Snow drifted a good 6ft deep and we had to pretty devious (and very lucky) to get past the countless abandoned vehicles which clogged up mile after mile of the motorway...Luckily mild temperatures returned as soon as the snow stopped or I'm sure it would have been far worse...


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## seanoo (Mar 31, 2007)

all clear here near vire , basse normandy. had a little snow overnight but it melted today. even the little side roads are clear of snow and dry here, cheers sean


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