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Europe with the Mighty Conan
  • Clare Palmer
  • Nigel Palmer
  • Clare Palmer
  • Nigel Palmer

Europe with the Mighty Conan

Dragging Conan the Coachman from the UK to Eastern Europe & the Balkans hopefully 🙏 Read more
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  • Trip start
    September 1, 2025
    Europe with the Mighty Conan
    1

    Zell am See

    Sep 2–5, 2025 in Austria ⋅ 🌧 16 °C

    After a dirty dash across France & Germany we have arrived in Austria. We decided not to spend too long here as we want to get to the Balkans before the summer season finishes & all the campsites close. However it turns out that the randomly selected Panorama campsite is in rather a good location. Right on the lake & 1/2 hour from the Kitzsteinhorn Cable cars & the Grossglockner Pass. Bonza! The great location comes with a cost though - we are rammed in like sardines & surrounded by noisy Czechs & barking dogs 😭 The town is full of very rich Arabs staying at the posh hotels (We did have a lovely meal in an Iranian restaurant). It's a lovely area but maybe a bit sterile.Read more

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    Heading into Slovakia

    September 6, 2025 in Austria ⋅ 🌙 16 °C

    After a quick stopover at the inappropriately named Camping Paradise Gardens just south of Vienna, we headed onwards to Slovakia. That was after Nigel was shouted at by the owner for following his wife's instructions on how to negotiate an exit from the pitch. A full on argument ensued between the owner and his wife, none of which we understood as it was all in German, but our money was on the wife so we made a hasty exit. Nigel wanted to check the caravan brakes as they keep sticking but he ended up having to do it in a lay-by instead! Heading through Slovakia we were driving on route 66 towards some big storm clouds and thought we would get caught as soon as we arrived at the campsite but unlike the previous night, we escaped the rain. We are now staying at a Dutch run country/farm campsite out in the sticks where thankfully there are not so many people. We have been invited to sit round the firepit with the other campers but that is far too sociable for us so we will watch the sun go down over the cow fields instead 😜Read more

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    Sedliacky Dvor Campsite

    September 7, 2025 in Slovakia ⋅ ☁️ 16 °C

    Wasn't going to post today as we have just been chilling but what was a lovely quiet campsite last night & most of the day has this evening been invaded by lots of newcomers, including one of those women that has to broadcast their conversation with their grandchildren on facetime or whatever to the entire site 🙄 So we have retreated inside the caravan! Started today off with waffles made by the campsite owner, made a few friends (of the 4 legged variety of course) and went for an afternoon hike around the hills from where we could spot Conan before all the newbies arrived 🤪Read more

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    Banska Stiavnica & Hiking the Low Tatras

    September 8, 2025 in Slovakia ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    Yesterday we got up too late to go hiking so I consulted my guide book and read that Banska Stiavnica, an hour's drive from the campsite, was 'worth a trip'. It wasn't 😂 It is built in the bowl of a collapsed volcano and looks impressive as you drive in but once there, it took us 10 mins to look around. Lesson learnt! Once back at the campsite, we just finished tea in time before an almighty storm came in. Let's just say, we were very happy not to be in a tent as some other unfortunates were! Today we went for a very pleasant 15k hike in the low Tatras - we are not fit enough yet to attempt the high Tatras but this time next week, I'm sure we will be 😃Read more

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    Strbske & Popradske Pleso, High Tatras

    September 10, 2025 in Slovakia ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    Today we got up late again (this is becoming a theme already) so got breakfast from Lidl and then drove an hour north to the high Tatras. We were planning to do a hike that took in 3 glacial lakes but as we didn't arrive until lunchtime we cut it back to 2. Still, we did 10k there & back & quite rocky paths so the legs have had a work out. Dark at 7.30pm already & another weather warning for tonight, this time it is going to be raining cats & dogs for 12 hours! Once again we are feeling smug that we are in a cosy caravan and not a tent 😀Read more

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    Vlkolinec UNESCO Village

    September 11, 2025 in Slovakia ⋅ 🌙 16 °C

    A day off from hiking today. It was a choice between sight seeing or going to the aqua park, neither of which Nigel was particularly excited about 🙄 Sightseeing won so we headed off to Vlkolinec which is a mountain village comprised of a church, school & different coloured painted log houses, unchanged since the 14th century hence the UNESCO listing. I can imagine it gets very busy in the summer but today there was only a handful of people there. The downside to this being that the café & restaurant was shut so we had to go hunting for lunch in the nearest town, which was a bit like the Slovakian version of Waterlooville 😂 As you can probably guess, Nige very much enjoyed his day out learning about the local history 😜Read more

  • Europe with the Mighty Conan

    Slovak Paradise National Park

    September 12, 2025 in Slovakia ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    Our last day in Slovakia, we visited the Paradise National Park for another hike. The park is full of gorges, waterfalls, lakes etc and you have to negotiate your way through using the ladders & metal steps. I had a 'hug a tree' moment after I reached the top of the longest ladder and looked back down again (you don't dare look down while you are climbing) 🫣 We finished off with a well earned beer by the lake. Tomorrow we are heading for Bosnia via Hungary & Croatia, or that is the plan so long as we can get some car insurance at the border. 🤞Read more

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    Lake Balaton, Hungary

    September 13, 2025 in Hungary ⋅ ☁️ 26 °C

    No pics as we were driving all day and arrived knackered at a very packed campsite, mostly full of very loud Germans 😂 Lake Balaton is pleasant enough but not for us so we moved on hastily!

  • Europe with the Mighty Conan

    Eastern Croatia

    September 14, 2025 in Croatia ⋅ ☁️ 25 °C

    Another longish day driving, not helped by torrential rain, sticky caravan brakes & very bumpy Hungarian back roads! We have arrived in the region of the Lonjsko Polje Nature Park in North Eastern Croatia. We are staying at a small campsite in the sticks run by an eccentric old German couple who don't speak English. The husband looks after the campsite and the wife runs a one woman restaurant, which we, along with several other German couples attended this evening. It was a long wait for our home cooked meatballs, during which time we polished off a litre bottle of the local vino, but it was worth it in the end. Plus Nige has now passed out so I get a bit of peace for the rest of the evening 🤪Read more

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    Twitching in Krapje

    September 15, 2025 in Croatia ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    We all know Nigel loves a bit of bird watching, so today we went to Krapje, a small village on the Sava River which is renowned for the 200 yr old wooden houses and its ornithology reserve. When we arrived at the tourist office, the young guy said that today was really good for spotting birds - we weren't sure if he was being sarcastic or not - there was nobody else around and maybe the birds had already left for the summer 🤷 Anyway, it was quiet to start with but later I spotted two white tailed eagles, some egrets and grey heron - hurrah! No pics as I wasn't quick enough & Nige was already bored by then so we mooched on back to the campsite to cook on the BBQ & watch the sunset whilst all the newbies were recruited into the one woman restaurant 😂Read more

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    Close but no Cigoc

    September 16, 2025 in Croatia ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C

    Today we visited Cigoc which is famous for being the stork village - almost all of the houses have storks nests on the roofs as they come here to breed & raise their young over the summer. Unfortunately they all buggered off back to Africa about 2 weeks ago! So we had to make do with the fake stork, some cows & some horses 🤣 We also spotted a few 'doer upper' properties for sale within the park area - you can purchase a couple of acres with a rotting wooden house thrown in for around £20k. We are tempted....🤔Read more

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    Krupa River Gorge

    September 18, 2025 in Croatia ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    We set out mid morning to do a moderate hike around the Krupa river but we couldn't find any parking for our starting point so we ended up a few miles down the road at the official car park for the downhill hike to the Kudin Most bridge which takes about 40 mins. As I wasn't content with doing the short trail we took a different trail which an hour later ended up cut off by a landslide 🤦 Instead of walking all the way back, we waded across the river which went up to the mid thigh and ended up with very squelchy boots 😫 Later after a picnic by the bridge, we didn't fancy the tourist path back up so we chose the longer trail - we couldn't read the sign at the start but have since translated it - let's just say if we knew what was coming, we would have stuck to the tourist path 🫣 Of course, Nige had to settle his nerves with a beer at the end of the climb 🤣Read more

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    Sunset in Zadar

    Sep 19–20, 2025 in Croatia ⋅ 🌙 23 °C

    It's not that we don't love the caravan, but that holiday feeling is still a bit elusive so we decided to treat ourselves to a night in a hotel in Zadar 🤩 It was a fairly long walk into the old town but once we were there, we were on a mission to get drunk as neither of us was driving! Easier said than done however, as the Croatian waiters are not exactly proactive! Nige took to ordering 2 drinks at a time to avoid the long wait to get served 🙄 Later we joined the crowds at the sea organ (where the steps play a tune as the waves hit them) to watch the sunset that Zadar is famous for. The pictures probably don't do it justice 🫶Read more

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    Zrmanja River

    Sep 21–22, 2025 in Croatia ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C

    It's been extremely hot the last couple of days so we decided to chill at the campsite on Sunday. We felt bad about not doing any walking so in the evening, we diced with death and walked 45 mins down the main road with no pavements to the local restaurant Tomic. Forgetting how quickly the sun goes down, we got parped at by a few angry drivers on the way back 🙄 On Monday we headed out 1/2 hour down the road to the Zrmanja river, intending to do a short hike to the waterfalls. This time we found parking but couldn't find any signs for the trail. Good old Google sent us down the road on the wrong side of the valley and we ended up in someone's drive 🤦We had to walk back the same way (which is a pet hate of mine as I have to do circular walks 😂) by which time we were absolutely melting in the hot sunshine. We didn't get to see the waterfalls but consolation prize was a lovely dip in the cool river & a beer whilst watching the kayakers👍🤪Read more

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    Biokovo campsite

    September 23, 2025 in Croatia ⋅ ☁️ 24 °C

    We felt sad to leave camping Lika - it was quite basic but a great location for lots of day trips and the plot sizes were very generous. Today we drove the short distance down to Biokovo. On the way we stopped at services with fantastic views over the river Krka. The campsite however, has not such fantastic views over the motorway - trust us to get things the wrong way round 👊 My 'old lady' bruise is coming on a treat - caused by hanging on for dear life whilst negotiating the rock climbing last week and not, as many would suspect, by Nigel losing his rag with me 🤣Read more

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    Stormy Split

    September 24, 2025 in Croatia ⋅ 🌧 22 °C

    We spent the day in a very stormy Split, as did about 10000 cruise passengers! It is a big city so fairly easy to get away from the crowds if you need to but also fairly easy to get lost in the small lanes of the old city. We started off dry, with a coffee on the hill overlooking the city but by the afternoon, the thunder & lightning was upon us and the souvenir shops were doing a roaring trade in ponchos & brollies 😂 We tried to escape the rain by visiting the underground vaults of the Diocletians Palace - a few years back, it was the dragons lair in Game of Thrones but today it was a sanctuary for wet golden retrievers!Read more

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    Sarajevo via the Neretva Canyon

    September 26, 2025 in Bosnia and Herzegovina ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C

    We arrived in Bosnia yesterday and found a very 'rustic' campsite in the village of Blagaj, just outside Mostar. Down the road is the 'Dervish' monastery, built into the mountain on the Buna river. Historically it was a serene spot but now it seems it attracts coachloads of tourists coming on day trips from Mostar & Dubrovnik - not sure what the locals think about that ☹️ Today we drove to Sarajevo via the scenic Neretva Canyon road. Sarajevo is bustling and pleasant, particularly the Bascarsija, which is the original Ottoman centre full of mosques, bazaars, lanes & shops. On the western side it is more European, with a strange mix of buildings from different eras, the Latin Bridge where Archduke Franz Ferdinand's assassination kicked off WW1 and the museums dedicated to the wars & genocides. It's certainly a cultural melting pot & it feels strange to be walking down the street listening to the call to prayer coming from one direction and the angry Bosnian drivers honking their horns from the other!Read more

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    Mostar

    September 27, 2025 in Bosnia and Herzegovina ⋅ ⛅ 17 °C

    A day of two halves today! This morning, Nige lost his wallet with all of his cards & driving licence included 🤦We both spent a good few hours searching the car & the caravan several times over to no avail. On the off chance, Nige asked the campsite owner if it had been handed in and he suggested to look in the chemical toilet - obviously things got lost in translation 😂 So a glum Nigel set about freezing all of his cards & it was late afternoon by the time we got to Mostar. Upon arrival, he reached into the car door compartment for his sunglasses and guess what - the wallet was there after all🥳 Glum Nige turned into happy Nige & I was able to drag him round the tourist filled bazaars & Stari Most without too much complaining 👊 It's another city of great contrasts which really makes you think. We finished with dinner, Bosnian coffee & great views to watch the sun go down over Stari Most before walking back to the car past the Sniper's Tower 😟Read more

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    Back to Croatia

    September 29, 2025 in Croatia ⋅ 🌙 17 °C

    Yesterday was a bit of a wash out in more ways than one! We wanted to go for a hike and take in the Kravica waterfalls, which are supposed to be Bosnia's answer to Plitvice. They're not ☹️ Next, we set off along the Komoot route we had planned and found that the bridge to get across the river was missing & there was no other way to continue. So we sat down to eat our picnic just as the heavens opened & absolutely soaked us 😭 We had to admit defeat, go back to our rustic campsite and put the heating on! This morning, with everything still wet, we set off down Herzegovina's rather lovely 'Herbs and Honey' route, intending to cross into Montenegro. We had to double back into Croatia as we needed to buy car insurance but as we drove down the coast road, we decided it was too nice not to stop and we found a nice little campsite on the beach to spend the night - Montenegro will have to wait!Read more

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    Around Dubrovnik

    Sep 30–Oct 2, 2025 in Croatia ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    We are camping in Molunat bay, a tiny fishing village just south of Dubrovnik. Although we have a nice little spot looking out to sea, it is really busy with camper vans rolling up until well after dark. Just when you think they can't squeeze any more in, some monster truck turns up and parks in the middle of the campsite! On Tuesday it was hot so we hired a little boat so that we could explore the bay & swim. Yesterday & today, the temperature has dropped by about 10 degrees - hope winter is not coming just yet. Speaking of which, we couldn't camp so close to Dubrovnik and not visit (Game of Thrones fans, see what I did there?!) As expected it was very busy. I have to give Nigel some credit as we have done 4 cities within the last week now & we all know how much he loves city tours 😄Read more

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    Hike from Cavtat to Mocici

    October 3, 2025 in Croatia ⋅ 🌬 15 °C

    It has been a rather chilly 14 degrees today & very windy - definitely not a day to go for a swim ☹️ Instead we hiked from Cavtat, a touristy but pleasant town just south of the airport. We had our lunch on the side of the cliff with no one else around 🙂 The obligatory lager at the end of the walk became an IPA for Nige - I would have had a hot chocolate if only they had sold them! Back in the caravan now with the heating on & a spag bol bubbling on the hob whilst the van-lifers are all sitting outside shivering 🤣Read more

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    Made it to Montenegro... just

    Oct 5–6, 2025 in Montenegro ⋅ 🌧 8 °C

    As it turned out, we didn't need to worry about getting car insurance at the Montenegro border, it was easy. What we didn't anticipate was the customs officer asking for the registration document for the caravan 🤷 We both shrugged our shoulders (when I checked on gov.uk it was only needed for outfits more than 3.5 tonnes which we aren't). He wasn't going to let us through but then Nige stuck his bottom lip out... he asked us where we were going and for how long and said "don't do it again as I will be in trouble" 😅 We just made it to our campsite in the Zeta valley before it began raining cats & dogs for 12 hours straight. When we got up this morning, there was a moat around the caravan! Today, after the rainclouds had cleared, we went to Lovcen National Park where we hiked up the Jezerski Vrh mountain & visited the Njegos Mausoleum - you climb 470 steps through the tunnel & pop out the other side of the mountain for 360 views of Montenegro, Kotor Bay, Lake Skadar & the Albanian Alps. Quite stunning if also a bit vertigo inducing! On the way back to the campsite, the cops had shut the main road due to an accident so we thought we would detour via the smaller mountain road. What a mistake that was - it turned into a 2 hour 'worlds most dangerous roads' in the dark, with no passing places. That's quite enough adrenaline for one day thank-you 😬Read more

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    Detour to Perast

    October 8, 2025 in Montenegro ⋅ 🌙 14 °C

    Yesterday was a chill day as we are the only people on the campsite - not as nice as it sounds as it was blowing old boots & about 8 degrees! Today in search of some warmer climes, we drove to Kotor bay, hoping to visit Kotor itself. Unfortunately it really is as busy as they say and we couldn't find anywhere to park - there were long queues for all the car parks and nowhere to park outside the city & walk in. We nearly left the car on the pavement in a residential area as all the locals do but then a kind lady warned us that if we did that, we were likely to return to slashed tyres so we gave up & turned round. Instead we went just along the coast to Perast, which I also wanted to visit anyway. It's a pretty old Venetian town overlooking the Lady of the Rocks. I'm sure we probably could have got a water taxi to Kotor from there for an extortionate amount but by the time we had wondered about, had a fishy lunch & ice cream we were done & ready to face the drive back, contending with all of the crazy local drivers overtaking on blind bends 🫣🤣Read more

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    Hiking the Mrtvica Canyon

    October 9, 2025 in Montenegro ⋅ 🌙 12 °C

    We still haven't got the hang of getting up early so we didn't start our hike until lunchtime! The drive there was stunning, one of Montenegro's four panoramic routes. The walk was also fantastic despite it being a 'there and back' route. We walked as far as the 'Gate of Wishes' (I won't say what I wished for 😉) and the narrowest part of the canyon. The trees with their covering of moss made it look like a fairy forest! We arrived back at the car park to be greeted by a local who told us it was his carpark and we needed to pay him. It seems to be a theme here that all the carparks are owned by locals and not the authorities 🤔 As this guy was only charging 3 Euros and offered us a swig from his bottle of plum brandy, we didn't think it was worth arguing 😄Read more

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    Tara River Canyon & Ostrog Monastery

    October 10, 2025 in Montenegro ⋅ ⛅ 8 °C

    Today we drove north via panoramic route 1 to the Durmitor National Park and the Tara River Canyon which, at 1300m, is apparently the second deepest in the world after the Grand Canyon. After our epic walk yesterday, we cheated and drove to the tourist car park so that we only had to hike up the last kilometer to get to the view point. It was warm and sunny at the bottom but unfortunately, as we ascended, the cloud got thicker & it started to drizzle. We couldn't see perhaps as clearly as we would have liked but certainly got the wobbles when standing next to the edge! Next, we were intending to drive the 'Durmitor Ring' which is another panoramic road around the national park but by the time we had descended down Nigel's 'short cut' route, we were running out of time. Instead, we drove back to the campsite via the Ostrog Monastery which is built 900m up into the side of the mountain in the valley where we are staying. We have been looking at it from the caravan all week so figured we ought to go and see it! It was yet another white knuckle drive to get there and just as we were leaving, the bell started ringing and we knew it must be beer o clock 😉Read more