The Final Day!! Some apprehension was evident this morning as we prepared for the last 40km leg into the Paris finish point, the Eiffel Tower”.

Some of the group, including ourselves were sorry to see this fantastic trip coming to an end. Others were ready to return home to loved ones and normality. Some were obviously just happy to make it to the end and having achieved what we set out to do in the first place. Some of the cars were running on borrowed time and some like our 2 Fiats were running better than when we started the journey. The VW Kombi had starting issues having stripped off ring gear teeth, the Saab had a disconnected front shock absorber which had been destroying top mounts and breaking up the inner guard. Clutch problems had also given the Ridley, Matheson crew some sleepless nights from day 1. The Capri and Volvo had run well and endured the rugged roads well having suffered only ignition and bent rim issues.

The last part of the journey into the Eiffel Tower did prove to be a final test as suspected.

We found ourselves on a very congested “Paris Peripherique” south bound heading for the Port Dauphine exit which would take us via some well know Paris Landmarks. At this point the grand plan of all the cars arriving in convoy at the Eiffel Tower fell to pieces. Three of the team missed the exit in the busy traffic and had to use their own resources to navigate to our finish point. The rest of us negotiated our way around the Arc de Triomph and drove down a busy Champs d’Eleysee. We crossed the Seine River and found enough available car parks to assemble the cars with the very imposing Eiffel Tower in the background. The rest of the group arrived some 15 minutes later.

Lots of celebratory photos were taken for the personal history books.

We had arrived at our final destination at 12.15 pm as planned several months previous. The finish was not a wild celebration but rather a mood of satisfaction and accomplishment having completed such an ambitious challenge.

Our sincere thanks to our loyal sponsors, supporters, families and friends all of who will be acknowledged when we return to normality. Without the support of the above mentioned this ambitious challenge would not have been possible.

Greg, Daryl, Geoff and Dallas.

We negotiated our way out through Heidelberg commuter traffic and headed for the E50 autobahn which would take us all the way to Paris. Initially we missed the turn that we needed and ended up on the outskirts of Manheim, the home of Mercedes Benz. When travelling on European autobahns, navigating skills have to be fined tuned otherwise the probability of heading off in the wrong direction is easy.

By 11.00am we had crossed the border into France. No passport check was necessary as both Germany and France belong to the EU. Immediately we knew that we had changed countries. The quality of the road deteriorated slightly and the road signs reverted to the characteristic French variety that I remember from my coach driving days. The other very obviously change being the language which we had to deal with at the first fuel stop just another 100km down the road.

Our destination today was a campsite at “Jablines” about 40km outside of Paris where we planned to re unite with the rest of the group and a few friends. This was to be the last night before making our way into our final destination, the Eiffel Tower in central Paris.

The final part of the drive toward Jablines was on easy French Autoroute though mostly flat fertile cropping country with sizable fields of wheat, barley and colourful sunflowers.

We were running alongside the railway for much of the day which was built for the 350km/hr French SNF fast train. The tracks are more like a slot car track than a rail line.

We had received good instructions from Geoff Ridley earlier in the day by way of text.

The selected route took us via the E50 then the A104 to exit 8. We followed a complex series of country roads passing through some beautiful small country villages that are not always visible from the main autoroutes. On arrival at the campsite we were greeted by the rest of the team as well as a big welcome sign in French posted on the reception window. We enjoyed comparing notes with the other members of the group who had elected to take the Northern Germany route. A plan was discussed regarding tomorrows drive into the Eiffel Tower and a 10am departure from the campsite agreed on.

Greg and Daryl.

 The car was removed from the secure National Museum car park at great expense. It was now costing almost as much to park the cars as it was for a hotel room on a daily basis.

Being a Sunday morning our 9am exit from Prague was a breeze. Immediately we were travelling on European type roads with 130km/ph speed limits. This may be fine for late model cars but our classic’s travel comfortably and economically at 100kph. This meant that a careful watch has to be made for fast approaching cars in the fast lane as we are now travelling just a little faster that the truck traffic. The left hand exterior mirror has now become the most important accessory on the car.

The Czech German border was a non event and our progress through Germany was just a matter of covering the vast distance. After a brief team discussion it was confirmed that we would make the city of Heidelberg, situated on the River Neckar our destination today. I was aware of a nice campsite located on the river from my camping tour days so we headed for there. Just prior to turning off the E50 autobahn we passed close to one of Germany’s motor racing circuits, Hochenheim.

We were now back to a camping situation, although some of us took the opportunity to take a couple of available cabins, so no need to erect a tent tonight. We also now had the pleasure of a top quality European campsite with novelties like warm showers and clean cooking facilities. Over a camp dinner of boil in the bag food and some duty free Russian bubbly and beer we reflected on the past days of the trip and the now fast approaching finish in Paris.

Greg.               

Today’s plan was to participate in a walking tour of the city. According to the brochure that Sandra found in the hotel lobby this also included a boat ride on the river, a restaurant lunch, a tram ride and a visit to the spectacular Prague Palace. This was going to cost $1000 Czech Crowns ($US50). This sounded like a pretty good deal by European standards.

We walked a short distance to the start point of the tour, near the statue of the well known “Good King Wenceslas”. Our multicultural group of about 20 tourists was guided by a very enthusiastic lady with an amazing historical knowledge of Prague and its environs. She also had some very definite political opinions that just 10 years ago would had her spending an extended period in a Czech jail.

The first part of the tour was through the incredible “Old City” area which leads us down to the rivers edge for the second leg of the tour, the boat ride. The Prague River has a series of man made weirs which restrict the boat traffic to a distance of about 2km in either direction. The free beer served on board was appreciated as the temperatures started to reach the mid 30’s. After a longer than expected walk we reached the restaurant for the included lunch which was a 1.5hr affair but more than satisfactory and an opportunity for some of us to rest our legs. The next and final part of the program took us across the historic “Charles” Bridge to a tram stop where we boarded on of Prague’s impressive trams which quickly took us up to the Prague Palace. On entry to the Palace was a collection of live exotic birds including Owls, Falcons and Eagles. For a small cost there was an opportunity to handle one of these birds. Daryl was keen to take up the offer and some great photos were taken of him with a huge and heavy Eagle perched on his arm.

The Palace location offered fantastic views of Prague city. This point was also the end of the tour from where we made our way by foot back to the hotel. In conclusion a great tour in an interesting city. We completed the day with a meal at a nearby restaurant which offered Afghan food. As is common in Europe, many of the restaurateurs originate from Middle Eastern and Asian countries. The Kebabs and Biriani made a pleasant change.

Greg.