Rob McCabe takes a look at the world of caravanning If you’re a Caravan Club member and are planning to visit London next summer to soak up the Olympic atmosphere, you may not have thought about using the caravan.

But the club has revealed that it’s setting up and operating a giant temporary site for the duration of the Games (and of the Paralympics, too).

By coincidence, the site will be at Old Farm in Chigwell, Essex – which was the childhood home of none other than Olympic gold medal hurdler, Sally Gunnell.

The 1300-pitch site opens for business on July 25 and closes on September 12, giving plenty of opportunity to use it for non-Games-related visits, too.

Given the eye-watering cost of hotel accommodation during the Olympics (assuming you could find a room in the first place…), the cost of £30 per pitch per night, including hook-up, looks like a real bargain.

If you don’t need electricity, it’s £25 per night.

A free coach transfer whisks you to the nearby Underground station for the 15-minute ride to the Olympic hub at Stratford.

There will be food and drink outlets on site, but limited toilet facilities and now showers – so, own sanitation essential, as the saying goes. Club members can book now at caravanclub.co.uk, and by phone – 01342 336666 – from June 13.

Head for the pass

While chatting to a caravanning neighbour the other day, he mentioned he was heading to Scotland with the van in the summer – and I extolled the virtues of some of my favourite sites in the Highlands.

“Ah, no good because of all the single-track roads up there,” he retorted. “You can’t take a caravan along these.”

Blimey, talk about a misconception.

Never mind the fact that supermarket delivery trucks, livestock trailers and petrol tankers trundle along these roads day-in, day-out – my experience is that caravanning on single-tracks requires no more effort and concentration than if you were driving a solo vehicle.

Regardless of what you’re driving, the rule is that you must use the passing places to let following traffic past: just indicate left, slow down and cruise into the passing place if it’s on your side of the road or stop opposite it if it’s on the right.

You’ll generally get a friendly toot or a wave for your trouble, and it adds nothing to your journey time.

It’s a long way to the Highlands for most of us, but it’s worth it for being able to experience some of the wildest, most breathtaking scenery in Europe – and, as I was telling my neighbour, there are some fantastic sites to enjoy.

Small wonder

How’s this for a cute profile? It’s the new Bailey Orion 400-2, which I’ve just been tasting.

It’s a superbly built, well-equipped (microwave, stereo radio/CD, hitch stabiliser) two-berther with good kitchen and washroom facilities that tips the scales at just 1076kg even when fully laden – so it’s an easy match for such as a VW Golf.

Well worth a look at £12,540 on the road.