# Sat nav for 9 countries in 10 days - no problem.



## 96523 (Oct 14, 2005)

Pam is the map reader in our team and she is very good but after getting a bit lost on a trip to Holland in April we thought that a sat nav might be a good thing. We got ourselves a TomTom 100 europe for about £190 from Halfords and set off in late May to find the Romantische trail through Southern Germany.

Our first day took us from home to Andres just south of Calais and we had our first experience of the sat nav on the short trip to Andres. Fine. Next day we set off to go as far as we could towards Wurtzburg in Mid Germany. Route plotted and off we went. About a mile from the excellent campsite we came to our first X roads and thought that a right turn was needed. Alice - our name for the TomTom lady said nothing afer we turned and then we realised that we had not been listening to her dulcet tones before we turned. We were quickly on pretty, narrow, country roads as we belatedly tried to follow the sat nav route. After a couple of miles and a couple of "not listening properlies" we were in danger of spending the day going around the same circuit and decided to listen carefullay and do what we were told!
In quick time we got on to the motorway from Calais to Dunkirk and on via Ghent, Antwerp, Masstricht and so on to Aachen where the motorway turned south. Until then the traffic was heavy but driving was unthreatening. When we got further into Germany that changed and life became more than a bit exciting. For the next 200/250 miles both lanes were completely full of the big trucks with registrations from Bulgaria, Turkey, Romania, Slovenia and other points East and South where truck maintenance, loading and observance of any rules are just a little less than we are used to. We heard later that over 70% would not meet ther EU standards.

The trucks ran at their governed speed of about 58 m.p.h and given a few metres gap they would drive their cab into it. The following truck was always coming up behind us as the driver much nearer to our loo than we were there was a fair risk of something going wrong. Some of the overtaking moves took over 10 miles to finish and just as I was opposite the the dear chap in the truck in front of him would cut out and the whole process started all over again. I tried both lanes but the overtaking one seem just a tiny bit less frightening than the other.

When we stopped from the normal pit stops the service stations were absolutely full with trucks filling up the car parking - we saw several who were taking up to nine parking bays. There are a lot of service stations on that road and as we went past they were all full of trucks lined up in echelon looking as if they were waiting for a gap to join the fray. Not a single police car in 250 miles. Amazingly no serious accidents so presumably when they do happen they straighten them out themselves. UK procedures for accidents would colse the network completely.

In the end we turned off an found a quiet campsite and had a cup of tea and something to eat before bed. Next morning we decided to set Alice on the non motorway mode and off we went again. For the first few miles it was slower but much more enjoyable and then we hit the road works, followed by more road works and then more. Several sizeable villages were closed other than to local traffic and some of the diversions ran for up to 30 miles alongside the proper route and Alice was going quietly mad correcting the plan but every time we were able to get back to the route she was there with spot on instructions.

The Romantische Trail from Wurtzburg to Fussen is magical with beautiful towns and villages, each different with their lovely old painted houses churches and shops. At the Northern end of the Trail villages such as Dinkelsbuhl were terrific and in Rothenburg we had some of the best food we have had anywhere.

The weather was letting us down so we decided to cancel out trip to Slovenia, it wasn't planned anyway, well not really, and took off by the country roads of Austria, Leichenstein - not much of a place - to Switzerland and from there to Lake Como. Alice took us up over the Splugenpass - hairpins in groups of 10 - and down to Lake Como and eventually to an overnight stop at Lenno by the lake. The rain had followed us and was throwing it down as we went along the narrowest of roads where we had out wing mirrors kissed four times in 10 miles. The last one was when we stopped virtually touching a wall by the side of the road and a Dutch Van stormed through and cost me £225 for a replacement unit. We are not going back there. 

Next day we went up over the top to Locarno and Lake Maggiore when we ran into beautiful sunshine and stayed for five days. It was only then that we realised that we had been in 9 countries in the previous 10 days. Alice was faultless in her directions and brought us home via Interlaken and up through France to Rheims by motorways. After Rheims we decided to give her a final trial so we took off to Bolougne by non motorways and kept changing our destination right up the coast. We found the real unspoiled France without a tourist in sight.

Our big problem was not the route or the campsites, which were fine but then we don't use the showers as we have one with us. Our big problem was the fuel gauge which misread dramatically whenever we went up to high altitude. We were on the top of the Susten pass one Sunday, for example, with the fuel gauge at Nil. It had been half full 30 miles before! I drove the 20 miles down the hill on I swear less that a cupful of diesel and a big amount of finger crossing by both of us. Filled up at the bottom to find that we had over 25 litres left. Gurr!.

Do try the Romantische Trail but keep off that Autobahn. 
We have had another big trip to France since and the only mistake in navigation was not listening properly to Alice.
Alan and Pam 
P.S Sorry no photgraphs but I have not licked the technology yet and getting past learning much new.


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