La trinite sur Mer/ Carnac

We left Belle Ile early, the forecast was for light winds from the north which were perfect for our planned trip to Periac sur Mer. As we got all sail up it was obvious that the wind was in fact from the SE and was blowing directly from where we wanted to go. Not for the first time that day I did a bit of navigation " on the fly " and decided to head for the Teighnhouse passage between the Quiberon peninsular and the several small islands including Houat and Hoedic. This has a reputation for being rough in any swell but there didn't seem much chance of that in the light easterlies, however as the wind increased to a force three Dark Tarn was sailing along at a respectable 5 knots. The passage was as flat as a stamp.

My plan was to get north of the island chain and then to see if we could lay a course to Periac sir Mer. As we approached the rock littered passage the wind became fitful and died away to a force one again from the SE. We would never cover the twenty miles in a month of Sunday's without resorting to the engine. I considered alternatives and Lynne studied the pilots, the only two places we could actually sail to were La Trinite and Port Halguen on Quiberon. I hardened the sails in the light airs and we could just make a course for La Trinite, it was a place I had considered in the past few weeks as I had always wanted to visit the standing stones at Carnac which was just next door. We drifted in the right direction only making three knots or so but we weren't in a hurry. The bay was full of yachts all enjoying the splendid sunshine and attempting to get the most out of the light airs. Some more successful than others. We resorted to the engine as we approached the outer marker buoy for the river off the Pointe de Kerbihan. I knew the channel was narrow even though the river appeared wide it was in fact very shallow on our port side. We were met by an inflatable and after the usual faffing we were found a berth. The marina is truly enormous and we were a bit shocked at the price but it seems that the prices everywhere go up in August as its holiday time.

The local guidebook says to be sure to admire the road ridge so we spent some time doing that, but in actual fact despite being very busy La Trinite sur Mer is quite a pretty place.

We acquired the necessary bus timetables and after a bit of a walk around retired to bed, however the band in the local bar played until after 1 o'clock but it was all stuff we like so it was no bother.

The following morning was begun with the usual hunt for fresh croissants, and we prepared to catch the bus to Carnac. So far we have been well impressed with French buses and today proved no exception, for very little money we travelled in comfort the few miles to Carnac passing the impressive beaches of Carnac Plage on the way. It is but a short walk outside of the town to discover the first of the ' Menirs ' .

 The stones are arranged in rows called ' alignments '

It's really very impressive, to think that 30,000 years ago Neolithic people had enough leisure time and could cooperate together to create something is quite staggering. Some of the Menirs obviously weigh some tens of tons and the effort involved must have been enormous because there are literally thousands of individual stones in many groups of alignments, usually east west. I'm guessing that this may explain the several theories extant suggesting that a religious significance based on the Suns path, the stones being some kind of giant celestial observatory are based. The truth is no one knows what they were built for.

 Lynne and I had a very nice lunch looking at the Menirs as we eat our sandwiches under the shade of some scrubby oaks and pine trees.

It really is a beautiful part of the world and as we had a look around the information centre I suggested we go and have a look around the museum of pre-history in town as the stones were a little bit ' touristy ' now, it's not possible to wander about at will you need to pay to go on a guided tour.

We walked the short distance back into town and found the museum which is housed in an imposing building just outside the town centre.

The exhibits depict life in the Neolithic, the period of the Menirs, and also the bronze and Roman ages. There was also an exhibit about some famous local amateur archeologists who had been involved in extensive digs and discoveries on the islands of Hoat and Hoedic that we had sailed past the day before!

 

After all that history we were in need of a coffee, so we wandered into the town centre looking for a cafe. I remembered that the pilot book had suggested that the church was worth a visit.

We tried an obvious door beneath the church tower which had a statue of St Cornely in a niche above it. Sadly it was locked, luckily I decided to look around the corner and found the proper entrance.

As entrances go it was pretty majestic, however nothing prepared us for what awaited inside.

The church dated from the 1600s although there was a church on the site from much earlier. The original building was extended in the late 15th century and in 1717 the vaulted ceilings were covered with wooden wainscotting and painted by a man named Le Corre. They are the largest covered and painted vaults in Brittany and depict various scenes from the Gospel or representing scenes from the life of St Cornely.

Lynne was particularly taken by a small chapel that was painted in a type of Trompe l'oeil.

Again these are from the 1600s.....and very fine.

A beautiful church and a real surprise.

Eventually we did get our coffee, rather later than we had planned, we also explored a little more of Carnac and as well as discovering a Lidl supermarket we also came across a charming antiques and curio shop.

This was full of essential items such as boat rudders bronze horses heads, glassware and statues, a wardrobe I was convinced had Narnia on the other side, and all kinds of interesting stuff.

Lynne decided she wanted to stay another day so the following morning on our way to the supermarket for bread ( the local boulangerie had proven a disappointment ) we discovered it was market day.

We love French markets!

Of course it made us hungry but we did manage to buy a ' flute' from a stall holder that was much better quality so that was lunch sorted.....

A day at the beach seemed in order so after consulting our maps we decided to walk to the beach at Plage de Paulbert, after retracing our steps to the market ( which had now gone ) we climbed a little up the hill behind town and before long had plunged into some lovely countryside.

The path cut through some woods of oak pine and alder and it was easy to see why the area was so attractive to our ancient ancestors as there were berries and fruit in abundance, when you also consider the rich food supplies available from the sea ( several French people would be harvesting cockles on the beach today) it was a very easy place to live.

We soon arrived at the beach and had yet another lazy day however we struggled to swim as no matter how far out we walked the water never got any deeper, however being shallow it was at least warm! We also walked out to a small island called isle du Stuhan which was joined to the mainland by a sandy causeway.

Lynne is beginning to cope a little better with the heat, but we are now being a little more sensible about the amount of time we are exposed to the sun, lathered in factor 30 and Lynne wears a sunhat.

The Quiberon peninsular always reminds me of pine trees and sand. I think because it seems to consist largely of those two things, that's not to say they don't present a pleasing aspect but It was nice on our return to see some variety in the woodland, an extremely pleasant day.

Still loads of pine trees though!

P.S.

On a sad note I have to report the demise of " lettuce" we bought it in April and our everlasting lettuce has been doing sterling service and providing salad leaves for lunches and teas ever since. However lettuce as well as Lynne has not been coping with the heat so as he was obviously wilting we decided to consign our friend to the deep just after the Teighnhouse passage. Sadly missed.