During our stay at Belle Iles we all took buses to explore the island, Suzanne and I took a bus to Locmaria.
This is a small fishing port (now tourist destination) on the east of the island. The views were fabulous, we took a walk along a coastal path to the small resort of Port Andro, because of the heat we stopped for a drink and an ice-cream at Bar Mabalulu, with plenty of time before the bus would arrive, of course this being France the buses don’t stick to time tables. I had just paid the bill when the bus drove past the cafe, a mad dash 100m to the bus stop, luckily there were a few other people waiting and we made it onboard, the bus then left 10 mins earlier than listed on the timetable. When we returned to Le Palais Erik said the same had happened to them.
Le Palais is the main port for Belle Iles, so there is a regular ferry. There is also a market everyday in the Town Square which obviously pleased us all. Here we found some reasonably priced Lobsters, some of which were incredibly large.
Needless to say we all chose our crustacean for supper. That evening all you could hear was the smashing of juicy lobster claws.
There is a large citadel overlooking the harbour which houses a museum and a rather expensive restaurant and hotel that vets all visitors… However in the evenings the gates are left open so that you can walk the walls and take in the beautiful views.
On our second day there was a large stage being erected, this was for Fete National (Bastille day.) Now there are normally fireworks all over France on this day, but because of the beautiful setting in the harbour the fireworks would be let off next to the citadel so we decided to stay and watch from our boats in comfort.
Great party, music, food ( merguez sausages and frites – two helpings…), fireworks and great company. What more could you ask for…
15th July
With the lock opening at 1100hrs we were all prepared for a quick getaway, if life could be that simple. Just as the lock gates opened the harbourmaster told us to wait until a barge had moored up, this happened to be right in front of us.
with a meter between it and Escapade it stopped and tied up. Luckily they have a skilled person at the helm.
With light winds again forecast, the old iron sail was put into use and we all motored of to the small gap between Quiberon and Ile Houat, Passage de la Teighnouse. Once through because the journey was only 15nm we turned our engines off, as usual we caught lots of rays in the scorching sun but alas no fish….
Our destination was the port of Le Crouesty, by far the largest marina we have entered, with 6 basins of pontoons, which struggled to find room for us, But at least now we were in position to enter the Morbihan Gulf with it incredibly strong tidal currents.
Cruising to Brittany 