thanks Val A. we have been down that way in December ,normally departing from Calais and going around Paris perique , and across the high bridge at the Milau gorge ,as you say you can get snowed in , when we went a few years ago we had light snow ,and temperatures of minus 7 crossing the pyrinees , some friends of ours were snowed in for 2 days in the services ,so we thought we would try an alternative route to Vilanova park ,and try and keep the toll charges down