Fun in The Spanish Sun

What does a person do after running one of the UK’s best-known international family haulage firms? What does a person do when they are a genuine, committed truck spotter? And what does a person do to satisfy a lifelong romance with the open road?

The answer, in this case, is a place in southern Spain — and a determination to drive there rather than fly.

The outbound crossing

Driving down to a holiday home in Spain is a pleasure in itself, particularly when the journey runs from the north of Europe to the south and you are free to stop whenever the mood takes you. This particular trip follows the regular route of one retired operator who has earned his own small oasis in the Spanish sun.

There is none of the Dover–Calais routine on this run. Instead, the preferred and rather more enjoyable option is the ferry from Portsmouth to Bilbao. The truck spotting begins before the ship has even sailed: pulling into the dock at Portsmouth brings the sight of a very clean and tidy Jan De Rijk outfit carrying a well-sheeted load. Alongside it sits a smart race transporter pulled by a Renault Magnum — a truck that seems to grow in popularity as the years pass and fewer of them remain on the road. Then it is on board, and a beautiful sunset closes out the first day.

Bilbao and the road south

Arrival in Bilbao reveals a dock filled with LKW Walter trailers, and a quick fuel stop turns up a tidy 6×4 Globetrotter pulling a double stack of four-axle trailers.

The route from the UK via Bilbao runs loosely through Burgos, Madrid, Albacete and Murcia before the final leg to home. The second day ended south-east of Madrid, with plenty of abnormal loads on the move — among them a great many LASO transport vehicles carrying wind turbine components.

A Spanish truck show

Towards the end of the journey came a stop at a Spanish truck gathering at Torre-Pacheco, near Cartagena. Events like this are a gem to stumble across, and by the look of it, a decent show. The photographs make one thing fairly clear: the Spanish have quite a fondness for Volvo, and a classic example in concours condition is not an uncommon sight among the vehicles on display.

The romance of the road

The romance of the open road never really leaves anyone who has spent a lifetime in transport, however long that lifetime has been so far. No matter what anyone says, it stays with you.