ACE Rally in Navarrenx (SW France)

We first got to know the site in Navarrenx (SW France) when towing from our home in Spain to UK.
As we were passing around the outside of the town walls there was a big bang behind as the nose of the caravan hit the ground. The tow bracket on a Citroen C5 is secured by two bolts each side that screw into nuts welded inside the chassis. The rear nut on each side had torn out! (Citroen later paid for the repair despite the car being out of warranty, on the grounds that it should never have happened. Too true!)
After over two hours waiting for the recovery services, I gave up and went to the campsite on the other side of the town. I my schoolboy French I explained my predicament to the young lady in reception. In perfect English she said Dad would tow us in.
The owners, Richard and Wendy are a wonderfully helpful couple from Jersey and Navarrenx is their second venture into campsite ownership in France.
Having got to know them, the town and their site, we organised an ACE (Autos y Caravanas de España) rally there in May of last year.
We had now changed to a motorhome and soon appreciated one of the reasons why this is such a good site for motorhomers - the town is all contained within fortified walls only 400m by 250m and the site is just outside the walls so everything is within easy walking distance.
On the first evening Richard and Wendy laid on a reception in their pavilion where members were served with cocktails followed by dinner. It was a super start to the rally.
The following afternoon the Town Hall laid on a guided tour (in English) so everyone could understand something of the history of this fascinating town, once the capital of Bearn.
Navarrenx is on the pilgrimage route to Santiago de Campostella so has hostels for the pilgrims and many budget-priced places to eat. One of the best of these is the Auberge du Bois, just outside the town. It is run by Bernadette (that’s her stood in the background) and she laid on a superb peasant style meal for us all with so much food and wine that it was a good thing the campsite was within staggering distance.
Eight caravans or motorhomes made the journey to Navarrenx and one other member stayed in a chalet on the site. We used the site pavilion for a BBQ later in the week and could have used it at any time to shelter from the weather but in fact that was not necessary!
As well as walking around the town and on the banks of the river to watch the salmon fishermen, a number of members cycled to Gürs, 8km away, where a refugee camp was set up in 1939 to house some of the half million people who fled across the Pyrenees at the end of the Spanish Civil War. The camp was later used to house Jews from Germany and most of the tombstones in the cemetery are theirs. It was very moving.
On our last night we all had a farewell dinner in Hotel du Commerce in the town. This was a great end to a wonderful week and the weather had been good right up to our departure the following morning. Although it had started to rain when we left, those of us who went north got back into the sunshine before reaching Bordeaux.
You would be very welcome to join us on one of our rallies, so if you would like to know more just send an e-mail to acerallyinfo@gmail.com
Barrie