A few images from the States:
14th June 2018 - Montreuil
Becoming a regular stop off travelling to and from Calais. Finally, they have completed the repaving of the main square, it has a history like York Place in Edinburgh, endless roadworks over the past four years that I have stopped! Quick circuit of the ramparts in the evening.
15th June 2018 - Cleres
Travelled on to about thirty miles east of Rouen, to stop off at a pleasant aire at Cleres that I discovered last Autumn. Arrived about lunchtime, wanted to follow a signed walking trail about 13km long in the afternoon. As I always seem to manage to get lost I went to the TO and asked for a map. No problem, except I didn't have any change (35c) to pay for it. The nice lady told me not to bother about paying and sent me on my way with the map. Can't imagine anyone being so helpful in the UK.
16th June 2018 - le Sap
Passed easily through Rouen and parked up at the aire, adjacent to a small lake, in the slightly dilapidated town of le Sap. The sign that described it as 'un petite citie de charactere de France', seemed somewhat optimistic. Although, the cider museum and specimen apple orchard held some interest on the other side of the town.
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| Museum and Church - le Sap |
17th June 2018 - St Leonard-des-Bois
A few kilometres further west into a hilly area with deep wooded valleys called la Suisee Normande, hardly the Alps but some pleasant stone villages as the geology changes from the limestone plateaux of the Paris Basin into the older igneous and metamorphic rocks of Brittany. Roadside aire, very quiet after 9pm, next to a very swollen river on the edge of the village. Evening stroll over the hills behind the village on a warm summers evening.
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| St Leonard-des-Bois - Evening stroll Screes on the far slope were formed during the last glaciation |
18th June 2018 - Val d'Ize
Further west into Brittany through Mayenne and onto a small village aire at Val d'Ize. A cloudy and damp morning became a blistering hot afternoon when i followed a 16km trail through country lanes, green lanes and footpaths. An english guy, retired copper from Croydon, called in the next morning. He had lived there for five years and just got French citizenship.
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| Val d'Ize - I don't recall school deinners being like this! |
19th June 2108 - Lizio
Initially headed for the town of Josselin on the Nantes-Brest canal with its impressive chateau and old town centre. The parking area was huge, but very busy packed with mainly French vans. Very hot in the town so I headed off to a nearby village aire, next to another pond, at Lizio. One of those unexpected gems - with historic small church and stone houses in the centre. Only one other van turned up.
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| Josselin - Chateau and Nantes-Brest Canal |
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| Lizio - Village Street |
20th to 23rd June 2018 - Plage de Kaolin, l'Amour Plage
Looks like some warm sunny weather for the next few days so headed to the coast to a free parking area a few kilometres west of l'Orient for a few days. Only issue was that the nearest boulangerie was 8km away, but green cycle track all the way. Followed a couple of trails as well as not doing much on the beach.
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| Kerroc'h and Ile de Groix on the horizon |
24th to 25th June 2018 - Audierne
Avoiding the more popular spots on the south coast of Brittany drove across to the resort and harbour of Audierne to stop at a river side aire on the edge of the town for a couple of nights. Interesting riverside walk to the nearby village of Point la Croix at the head of the estuary. Met up with an interesting guy from Devon, enyed moules frites together one evening, among other things had been chairman of Devon CC for thirteen years.
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| Audierne - Harbour and town |
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| Pointe de Croix - from along the riverside walk |
26th to 28th June 2018 - Pointe de Van
Now at the western end of Finisterre, on the southernmost peninsula, parking up in the free parking area for motorhomes at the Pointe de Van. Oddly you have to pay 6.50 euro a night at the adjacent Pointe de Raz. Good cliff top walks, lots of windmills and a nearby sandy beach to pass the time even a pleasant wee cafe for at the car park to people watch from.
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| Pointe de Van - Coastal walk to the north |
29th June 2018 - Gelden-Cap-Sizum
Spent the night at the large aire in the nearby village aire at Gelden-Cap-Sisun stopping at the services in Plogoff on the way.
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| A restored windmill |
30th June to 1st July 2018 - Plonevez-Porsay
After a very hot day on the beach and walking along the cliffs towards Douarnenez, based on at a great little parking spot, adjacent to the river and beach on the coast at Trefeuntec Plage, went to the nearby aire at Plonevez-Porsay to use the facilities late in the evening and spent a very lazy Sunday there - lively and busy market in the village in the morning.
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| Trefeuntec - More cliff top walking |
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| Ponevez-Porsay - pinnacled church tower typical of this part of Brittany |
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| Trefeuntec - Smashing parking in a landscaped area adjacent to the beach |
2nd July 2018 - la Fret
Drove around to the Crozon Peninsula on the south side of the Rade de Brest, after an afternoon wandering around a very misty Cap de la Chevre headed to the aire at la Fret, adjacent to the nuclear submarine base at Isle de Longue, for the night and an evening's stroll. Surprised to be faced by a guy with a huge submachine gun getting out of the back of a transit van; but only a casual 'bon soir' required. presumably part of the 'security'.
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| La Fret - Harbour |
3rd July 2018 - Locmaria Plouzanc
Around to the main Finisterre peninsula to a small landscaped aire at the village of Locmaria-Plouzac. A short cycle ride down to the beach at Tregana and a potter around the fields and hedgerows along a blazoned trail in the evening.
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| Locmaria Plouzanc - Another church with decorated tower |
4th July 2018 - Bourg Blanc
Had intended to park up at the aire in the small harbour town of le Conquet, but complicated daytime parking rules fro motorhomes made this difficult so headed inland to the large landscaped aire at Bourg Blanc on the edge of the village adjacent to large lakes that were formed following the hydraulic mining of placer deposits of tin in the 1970's.
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| Bourg Blanc - Restored Tin Workings adjacent to the Aire |
5th to 8th July 2018 - Pointe de Corsen
A few nights parked up at the coastal aire and campsite at Ruscumunoc, cliffs and sandy coves with the nearby Pointe de Corsen being the westernmost point in continental France - a bit like Lands End, except the car park is free! Two very misty cloudy days followed by sunny ones.
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| Pointe de Corsen - north |
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