After a few days in Roscoff and Morlaix, boats repaired or at least seaworthy, the weather had calmed enough to allow us to continue our journey. The first part was to navigate the narrow channel between the mainland and the Ilse de Batz, this must be done with precise timing, because not only is the channel narrow, the current is very strong. Knowing that there would not be much wind inland, and that we would be sailing very close hauled, Erik decided to sail the long way round the iles de Batz to get a better angle for the rest of the sail, a decision that proved to to be a good choice. Lily & Shades of Blue motored the channel set their sails when in open water and slowly made their way to L’Aber Wrach. Erik on the other hand, further out to sea, appeared as a small dot on the horizon, but with far greater wind, was sailing at over 7kts and catching up fast. On arrival at the river for L’Aber Wrach I’m sure that Erik had a better sail that day.
L’Aber Wrach
When sailing along the Brittany coast, to make the journey more comfortable in one tide L’Aber Wrach is a convenient place to stop for the night. There is not an lot there, a tabac, a few restaurants and bars, one bar in particular caught my eye, so I dragged Erik into it to investigate (didn’t take much dragging). The shops are about 1 1/2 miles up a hill, so unless you are desperate for something not really worth the trouble. Finally the semaphore, half way up the hill with the most amazing views of the river.
It is around this time of year that you notice the flowers in the area, especially the hydrangeas, which are everywhere.
Gear test
Having done the British fast food after a sail meal, I thought it was only fair to review the French equivalent.
Cassoulet au Canard
Well to start the tin is a more convenient size, and has a ring pull opener.
Cooking instructions were in French so I put into a saucepan and heated it up,(I’m still alive). on the side, haricot vert and a bottle of French red wine, what else…
Verdict
well you get a nice duck sausage, a bit of a duck thigh, and an awfully large amount of beans, taste great even before I delved into the bottle of red. I must say though, this is the perfect meal for a solo sailer, if there were anybody else on the boat it may cause a few problems.
Whilst the weather was in our favour, we carried on the next day to Camaret, with the wind forecast to be behind us, it was just a matter of moving on. At 0700hrs we cast of our lines, set our sails and had a great sail back down the river, as soon as we turned south to follow the coast the wind went behind us and made the journey slow, and the boat waddle for the next hour or so. when we reached the channel du four, at least the current helped speed things up. After we left the channel and turned towards Camaret, the angle of the wind changed for an exhilarating sail to our destination.
what can I say about Camaret, it is a pretty tourist town, with it old fishing boats left to decay along the harbour wall, the Vauban Tower, and restaurants all around the marina. It has a supermarket a good Saturday market, and a few rather good fish shops, which you have to walk all around the marina to find out the time the boats are coming back to unload their catch, before you can buy any fish. But it is a crucial place to stop for our next journey, the Raz du Seine, where timing and wind direction are all important.
Cruising to Brittany 