Benodet – Another short hop around the coast. The beaches here were (in our opinion) nicer than Concarneau. As per our recent luck, we did not have the opportunity to use them. Rain stopped play AGAIN. A lighthouse fix at long last! Two in Benodet & one across the estuary. The boardwalk was lovely along the main beach with a few nice restaurants. Alongside the beach are beach cabins, however they looked utilitarian rather than “pretty”. Walked all the way up to the port before heading back through the town however the clouds were forming overhead so headed back before we got drenched. The next day we had planned to cycle around the coast to Fouesnant, this was a sixteen mile round trip, but we were ready. Set off in eager anticipation, however within thirty minutes we were absolutely soaked after the rain caught us out. With still five miles to go, then the eight back we cut our losses & cycled back. When we got back to the van, we realised that we had gone out without cash or cards! Imagine if we had ordered food/drink with no means to pay. Later in the day, it cleared a little, so we walked along the beach, up to the marina & back through the town. Enjoyed our stay but would have been much better if we’d had sun rather than rain.
Pont L’Abbe
The first inland stay for a while! We hadn’t researched the place but it was in a good position for a stopover. We made a quick stop off in Loctudy in the morning as it had been on the “shortlist” to visit, had a wander round the coast, found a beachside caravan selling crepes & cider, fuelled up then drove over to Pont L’ Abbe. A good choice! Lots of independents shops, riverside walks, flowers everywhere. The church has a beautiful “Rose” stained glass window. Over the other side of the river was a 13th century church that was destroyed by the red bonnets back in the 16th century. The local commune are trying to get the church roof reinstalled, with lots of red tape & bureaucracy, it’s going to be a while. Across the river is one of a few inhabited bridges in France. Unfortunately the chateau had recently closed for renovations & was covered in scaffolding.
Locronan Via Quimper
Next up, Locronan another inland destination. On the way we dropped in to Quimper for a quick look as we were passing by, had we not it would have been on the regret list. Parked in an incredibly tight parking spot & due to the timings we ended up paying 40 cents for two hours parking. Picked up a “pavement picnic” from the boulangerie then took a wander. Nice compact city, with stunning architecture, a massive square filled with bars/restaurants & the cathedral looming over it. However by this time it has started to rain, so we headed back towards the Ranch. We has satisfied our itch for Quimper. Onwards to Locronan which was a short drive. Two reasons for choosing, 1st – it was on our route & 2nd it is a Petite Cites de Caractere – our fave! By now the sun was shining, so we wasted no time getting out to explore. Again another stunning picture postcard place. We then spotted directions to a chapel & viewing point on the top of “the mountain” so off we went. Great big views over the coastline towards Douarnenez & Crozon beyond. That kept us busy for a couple of hours & increased our step count for the day. On the way back down, we spotted an artisan ice cream shop. All the ingredients are grown on their farm locally. G opted for a rhubarb sorbet & M chose a white cheese with red fruits. Absolutely delicious. We were eating dinner a little later onat the Ranch, when a man knocked on the door. He was selling the juiciest looking organic strawberries, so we bought a punnet & enjoyed them doused in sugar, we didn’t have any clotted cream with us.
Quimper
Locronan
Crozon
It rained & rained & rained, we put on our raincoats & wandered in to the small town of Crozon. We had unfortunately chosen the wrong location for our overnight, as it was over a 40 minute walk to the beach/coast. As the rain had eased off we went for it! Halfway there we got a good old drenching & by the time we had reached the coast there was almost zero visibility & nothing there! We walked back up the long hill back to the Ranch. The weather wasn’t kind & Crozon didn’t hit the spot for us.
The next day with improved weather, we headed back down in the Ranch & drove along the coast towards Morgat (which is a part of Crozon) Now that was more like it & we should have stayed there. Lovely harbour, we spent an hour wandering around, pit stop for a coffee & a crepe whilst enjoying the sun & people watching. We’d spotted a sign for the Cap de la Chèvre, so drove down there. The headland was a mass of colour with the granite rocks & heather, we took a short walk along the GR 34 to admire some of the big views. Next stop Camaret-Sur-Mer
Camaret-Sur-Mer
Arrived mid afternoon & weather was turning cloudy again, so instead of rushing out to explore we did the boring & mundane washing. G watched the football & M updated the website. We’d sit it out until the morning & hopefully improved weather.
Now this was more like it! Camaret-sur Mer – the place that kept on giving! The harbour has the Chapelle Notre Dame de Rocamadour, simply decorated with a nautical theme. 17th century altar is still in the church after being replaced, it was restored in the 90’s. Just along from the harbour is the Tour Vauban, (UNESCO world heritage site) built at the end of the 17th century, it’s part of a coastal battery defence system to protect the port of Brest. Unfortunately it was undergoing renovations, so we were unable to visit. Another striking feature of the harbour is the “Ship Cemetery” a striking collection of abandoned & decaying fishing boats that have been left to water by the sea. The town was pretty small & quiet apart from the seafront that had lots of restaurants & bars. There are a lot of artists in the town & their studios are built around an area known as St Ives Square. We then found ourselves on the GR34 coastal footpath to head round to the Pointe du Fouliguet. Everyway you looked there were stunning views. We reached the dunes before the pointe & it started to rain. Fortunately the site was only a 5 five minute walk away, so we headed back to shelter from the rain. An hour later the rain had passed so we headed back towards the pointe, however we couldn’t get near the lighthouse as it’s behind the wall of the military property there. Back down towards the beach of Pen Hat & the clouds were starting to form overhead. We headed back over the dunes, taking a stop at a derelict manor house with a sad story – https://www.glauqueland.com/saintpolroux/ – You’ll need to translate from the webpage. On the way back down the hill we then found the Menhirs of Lagatjar, the ancient stones have a astronomical character connected to the constellation of Pleiades. We were rewarded with a really low rainbow over the sea. A perfect end to our C-S-M adventure.
Before leaving the next day, we drove up to the Pen-Hir headland to see the rocks known as “stack of peas” Massive views again from up there & we could see the headland we had visited the day before one way & the headland we planned to visit the following day in the other direction
