The Walks

• 1. In the Forest of Fougères Distance: 5km (3 miles)
• 2. History and legend at le Châtellier Distance: 7.5km (4¾ miles). or 2km (1¼ miles)
• 3. Around the Pointe du Grouin Distance: 6km (3¾ miles)
• 4. Locks on the canal at Hédé Distance: 6km (3¾ miles)
• 5. The Megaliths of St Just Distance: 13km (8 miles) or 10km (6¼ miles)
• 6. Brocéliande – The Val sans Retour Distance: 5km (3 miles)
• 7. Brocéliande – The Château de Comper Distance: 10km (6¼ miles) Côtes-d’Armor
• 8. Rocky shores at the Lac de Guerlédan Distance: 6km (3¾ miles)
• 9. Bon-Repos and the Gorges du Daoulas Distance: 5.5km (3½ miles)
• 10. The Pink Granite Coast at Perros-Guirec Distance: 14km (8¾ miles) or 6km (3¾ miles)
• 11. Woods above the estuary of the Trieux Distance: 12km (7½ miles)
• 12. Cliffs and coves around the Cap d’Erquy Distance: 9.5km (6 miles)
• 13. In the valley of the River Arguenon Distance: 9.5km (6 miles)
• 14. Dinan and the banks of the Rance Distance: 14km (8¾ miles)
• 15. ‘Chaos’ in the Gorges of the Corong Distance: 5km (3 miles) Morbihan
• 16. Beside the River Ellé at le Faouët Distance: 12km (7½ miles)
• 17. The Golden Cliffs of Pénestin Distance: 13km (8¼ miles)
• 18. Guéhenno and the mills of the Sedon Valley. Distance: 5km (3 miles)
• 19. A tour of the Île d’Arz Distance: 16km (10 miles) Finistère
• 20. The enchanted forest of Huelgoat Distance: 14km (8¾ miles) or 9km (5½ miles)
• 21. With the Painters of Pont-Aven Distance: 11km (7 miles) or 8km (5 miles)
• 22. Coastal scenes at Carantec Distance: 10km (6¼ miles) or 16km (10 miles)
• 23. Rough seas off Porspoder Distance: 11km (7 miles)
• 24. Climbing Ménez-Mikel Distance: 16km (10 miles) or 12km (7½ miles)
• 25. Camaret and the alignments of Lagatjar Distance: 12km (7½ miles)
• 26. Around the Pointe du Raz Distance: 8km (5 miles)
• 27. Wildfowl on the river at Loctudy Distance: 11km (7 miles)
• 28. Ménez-Hom – a hill with a view! Distance: 13km (8 miles)
  

Contents | Brittany | Sample Walk | Brittany Web Sites | Other Books in the Series

Location

Contents | Location | Sample Walk | Brittany Web Sites | Other Books in the Series

Brittany brings to mind many images – cliffs and seascapes, fishing villages and forests, folk-lore and festivals, religion, legend and pre-history. It is a land almost separate from the rest of France, temperamentally as well as geographically; a land jutting far into the Atlantic Ocean, with many miles of coastline. The unspoilt and beautiful beaches are well-known to British holiday-makers. Very much less well-known is that Brittany has more waymarked paths than any other region of France and that every Tourist Office is stocked with a good supply of maps and routes. Add to this the mild climate of Brittany – in winter, temperatures are close to those on the Côte d’Azur – and you can see that it is the ideal destination for a vacation on foot! But whether you are considering a full walking holiday in Brittany, or just want to escape from the beach for a few hours, this book should have something to offer you.

Contents | Location | Brittany | Sample Walk | Brittany Web Sites | Top of the Page

Introduction There is an old saying that the tide comes in across St Michael’s Bay faster than a horse can gallop. Perhaps it was originally meant as a warning to wandering equestrians but it nevertheless creates a dramatic picture of what happens here. At high tide, there is a bay of sparkling blue water; at low tide there are grey mudflats as far as the eye can see, broken only by the posts where mussels are cultivated and the dark rectangular oyster beds. The region for mussel farming is in the south of the bay near le-Vivier-sur-Mer, while Cancale, just below the Pointe du Grouin is the centre for oysters – although the young ones, the spats, are actually imported from near Auray in the Gulf of Morbihan and only ‘grown on’ here. Cancale is a fascinating place. Below the main town is the port area where you can watch the comings and goings of the oyster farmers at low tide and survey the plethora of stalls laden with gnarled crustaceans. The air smells of salt and iodine and fish, and chippings of more shells scrunch beneath your feet. Oysters, it seems, are not simply oysters – there are bélons and creuses and pieds de cheval, the latter being huge and very expensive. If you are not a do-it-yourself oyster-eater, the town sports a mere fifty or so restaurants that will serve you with the delicacy – although, surprisingly, the prices here are often as high as you might find in Paris. There is a good coastal path all the way from Cancale to the Pointe du Grouin, but in order to provide a circular walk, this route starts from Port-Mer, a very pretty little village up the coast. Port-Mer has no port, but boasts a fine sandy bay between rocky headlands – and, of course, a few restaurants serving oysters. The path from here is a Grande Randonnée that hugs the cliff-face all the way and has fine views across the bay. Before you reach the Point, there is a restaurant and parking area – with the result that, at least in summer, you are unlikely to have the place to yourself. Farther along comes a signalling station, and then the Point itself, a long, rocky promontory of wild moorland, some 40 metres above the sea. Beside it is the Île des Landes, a long bare outcrop now a bird sanctuary, and beyond this, a lighthouse clings to yet another rock. On a clear day, the views are superb and there is a toposcope to help you pick out the various features. Out to sea are the Îles Chaussey, farther over is Granville on the Normandy coast, and behind is the bay, across which can be seen the well-known outline of Mont St Michel.
On the west side of the Point is the Brittany coast, sweeping in rocky curves past St Malo to Cap Fréhel.On this side, the path is at times even more precarious as it threads its way along steep slopes of gorse and bracken high above the sea. Arriving at civilisation in the form of another sandy beach, it is time to return to Port-Mer. This short – but exhilarating – walk should leave you with plenty of time to try out the oysters.
The Walk 1. Walk along the promenade heading north (sea on the right), and at its end, begin the climb uphill on the tarmacked road. Very soon the white on red waymarkings of the Grande Randonnée are directing you to turn right on to a little path running around the cliffside. As you go you will notice several World War II German blockhouses set in the rock beside the path –some are now used as bird-watching hides.
The path leads out to a headland known as the Pointe de Barbe Brulée, from which there are good views out into the bay. Ahead of you the Pointe de Grouin can now be seen, and beside it, the tip of the Île des Landes. Continuing from here, the path skirts a camping site and continues through the gorse and bracken alongside the Vieille Rivière, the channel between mainland and island. Keep ahead below the old signalling station to reach paths leading to the Point itself. The whole area is a nature reserve and you are asked to keep to these paths to reduce erosion and preserve the delicate vegetation.
2. The toposcope close to the tip will give you an idea of what can be seen from here. If the day is reasonable, you should at least be able to pick out the Îles Chaussey off the Normandy coast, Granville on its headland opposite, and Mont Dol and Mont St Michel across the bay.
When you are ready to return, walk back past the signalling station and again pick up the GR as it leaves the car parking area. The path now runs along the west side where rough moorland covers steep slopes down to the sea. Ahead of you, the point of land is the Pointe du Meinga before St Malo, and beyond it you can see Cap Fréhel, some 35km away ‘as the crow flies’. The path is easy to follow, and at one time, comes up to join the road for a few metres, before descending again into the bracken. At length you arrive above a sandy beach, the Plage des Saussayes.

3. Do not go down to the beach, but instead, bear left uphill to pass a car park and reach the road. Cross this road and continue down the Rue des Tintiaux opposite. From here, turn left into the Rue de la Vielle Rivière, and then cross the main road directly to head downhill to the beach at Port-Mer.

More Walks in the Area
This walk has given you just a taste of the GR 34, the coastal path that runs along the north coast of Brittany to Finistère. That may be a bit far for you (it’s about 300 miles!), but consider just the section from Pointe du Grouin to St Malo, a distance of about 24km. This really is a most attractive coastline, with opportunities for swimming and plenty of interesting places to visit en route – see Rothéneuf below. Moreover, the whole route is covered by a summer bus service between Cancale and St Malo. It is perfect for walkers! Enquire at the Office du Tourisme in Cancale.
Of course, the GR continues also in the opposite direction along the shores of the bay towards Mont St Michel. Le-Vivier-sur-Mer (a very interesting place – see below) is about 15km away, but sadly there is no direct bus route and you will need a taxi.
For another circular walk, you could return to the Plage des Saussayes and follow the north coast along to the Plage du Guesclin. Opposite the fort here, another Grande Randonnée, the GR 34a, heads south to cross the peninsula. At Terrelabouët, it reaches the coast again, and you can follow this north past Cancale to Port-Mer – a round trip of about 17km (10½ miles). These GRs are marked on the IGN map of the area (see above), which you should be able to obtain from the Office du Tourisme in Cancale, or any newsagent’s shop.
For an excursion that is really different, join one of the guided walks out into the bay arranged from the Maison de la Baie at le-Vivier-sur-Mer. There are several different routes – you can visit beds of mussels or oysters, or wade out to a sand bank or a bird reserve. Forget about the galloping horses – the guides know the tides and also carry radio and mobile phones.
Places of interest nearby
You must surely visit Port de la Houle, the port of Cancale with its oyster market – even if you cannot bring yourself to buy any for supper. On the edge of the town (continue along the harbour road) is la Ferme Marine, the oyster museum. Here, displays and films will tell you all you ever need to know about ostréiculture. There are guided tours, some of which are in English, possibilities of tasting (if booked) and a shop full of oyster memorabilia.
15km along the coast is le-Vivier-sur-Mer, where the Maison de la Baie has a lot to offer. Apart from the already mentioned walks in the bay, it is also possible to take a train ride out on the mudflats to visit the bouchots (posts) of mussels. The mussels here have an excellent flavour due to the high concentration of plankton in the bay water. There are plenty of opportunities to sample them.
On the north coast, towards St Malo, the village of Rothéneuf makes an interesting visit. Here, in the 16th century, lived Jacques Cartier, the discoverer of Canada. His now restored house – the Manoir de Limoëlou – is open to the public and you can see charts, video recordings and other details of his voyages. The village also boasts some extraordinary rock carvings, made by a retired priest in the late 1800s, the Rochers Sculptés. There are more than 300 carvings of bizarre monsters and rather surrealistic figures on the cliff-face, high above an azure sea.

Contents | Location | Brittany | Sample Walk | Top of the Page

Mallorca - Graham Beech

Dordogne - Norman Buckley

Normandy - Judy Smith

Loire Valley - Judy Smith

Alpujarra - Jeremy Rabjohns

Tuscany - Norman Buckley

Provence - Judy Smith

Costa del Sol - Matt Butler

Publication Date	ISBN	Pages	Price
February 2001	1 85058 733 7	187pp	£9.95

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