Dinard, Auffay and home via Dieppe – Days 21 – 23

Mrs B had clocked that Dinard would be worth a look, at the very point we were heading to nearby and similarly named Dinan at the start of the trip. With its Belle Èpoque villas built largely by wealthy Brits, international (British) film festival and its reputation as one of the most desirable holiday resorts in France, it promised to be a destination quite unlike any other on this trip. Plus, it also happened to have an ACSI site right on the beach, Camping du Port Blanc, from where we would be able to explore east into the town, or west further along the GR34.

 

Arriving at the campsite just before it was due to close, we were impressed by the arrangements that could be made if you were to arrive after hours: a wall of key safes that would have your barrier activation card inside – assuming you had paid in advance over the phone/interweb of course! The site has different price zones, so you can imagine our delight when we were allocated a pitch just a couple of rows back from the premium beachside ones. However, what the site map didn’t show, was that although we would be able to hear the sea, we wouldn’t actually be able to see it, as the ground sloped up towards the beach! Still, it was a very pleasant pitch and with the sun shining, we were able to get an aperitif and snack sorted outside – such a treat to be eating out of doors this time of year!

 

 

With the weather set to become unsettled the next day, we decided to make the most of the evening sun and set off to explore our probable route into Dinard the next day – east along the GR34 – what else! It was very easy to access the GR34 as it ran along the back of the beach that the site let onto…

 

 

 

and the walk itself was truly stunning, as the sun started its descent into the sea just along the coast…

 

 

Over dinner that night we did some research into Dinard and decided that we should walk the whole way there along the GR34, which whilst a fair bit longer, would allow us some close up views of a range of the huge villas that are dotted the coast. This would, of course, include the fun of exploring the shoreline with our good friend, the 1,100 mile long distance GR34 path, which, just opposite in St. Malo, has its official starting point. We both agreed that had we had more than the one day to explore, it would also be worthwhile to get the boat across the bay to have an adventure in the old privateer stronghold!

 

The next day the weather was, as predicted, changeable, with rain due as a follow on treat from the dull cloud cover. Undeterred, we set off on the GR34, intending to allow enough time for lunch. We are big fans of the French approach to coastal walking, as in, where there is no obvious access across the cliffs, a concrete path is built to allow hikers to walk underneath the otherwise privately owned cliffs with their amazing villas! Mind you, at times (high tide in particular) the path became more of a physical and mental challenge when the waves would crash over the path – you really did have to choose your moment!

 

 

Whilst it would have been more fun in blue skies and sunshine, we did enjoy our adventure along the coastline, allowing us to see a number of the cliff top villas and their quirky landscaping…

 

 

The town itself was great fun to wander around, with a very helpful and upmarket Office de Tourisme with maps for exploring some of the villas by foot. With the views limited by the low cloud and rain imminent, we focussed on finding somewhere interesting for lunch. And we lucked out with the Oyster Club near the central market; a small bistro that specialised in Breton seafood… and, as we frequently do when we eat somewhere new, we looked around the other tables to see what the locals were eating, and we went with the flow: oysters to start (with cider to drink) and a Breton take on ‘Fish ‘n chips’ which was delicious.

 

We walked off lunch as we took a circular walk around the southern end of the town, returning to the market area for a café allonongé before yomping at pace back along the GR34 before darkness fell. (As experienced travellers we always carry torches if we think we might return in the dark – but today we’d just forgotten – doh! And perhaps our cider goggles had lulled us into a false sense of security over he return time!). Lucky we spotted the alternative route on the GR34 at high tide though, because, as darkness fell, the sea was lapping over the narrow pathway – eek! And as we arrived back at Evie in the dark, we realised it was time to review our torch policy!

 

Having already decided to do the last leg to the port at Dieppe in one go, (to maximise our time in Breizh), we set off on a parallel route to the one we took when we arrived, but this time swerving the multiple giratoires that really slowed us down, as we cruised instead along the autoroutes. Free until we crossed into Normandie and the A84, we decided as we arrived into Auffay later that evening, that the €25 cost was well worth it as the 220+ miles were easily covered at our gentle 50 is thrifty cruising speed!

 

As regular readers may remember, our current go-to Aire for Dieppe on the return leg is at Auffay. There may only be four designated places for camping cars, but there are loads of overspill options in the adjacent station car park – and, to date, we have always managed to get one! Not that lining up to park, in the dark, is any easier in spite of our multiple visits, and we always end up with one of us getting out with a torch to check just where those pesky markers are!

 

Waking up the next day after a very peaceful night (the nearby trains stop between 2200 and 0800) we were pleased to see that we had parked appropriately…

 

 

…and, that it wasn’t raining so we could, at last, do what we always like to do if we stay in an Aire – take a wander and have a coffee/croissant as a small way of thanking the municipality for the use of the Aire (free). A quick stop at the Office de Tourisme gave us plenty of food for thought for a circular walk; confirmation that the café next door would of course be fine with us taking our pastries that we could buy in the boulangerie opposite in to eat; and, for Mr B, yet another chance to practise his French. This, as usual, takes up so much concentration that the arrival and departure of a group of children dressed up for Hallowe’en completely passed him by!

 

The café (and freshly purchased croissants) did not disappoint, with its authentic rural French 60s styling and the all male clientele giving us the once over as we sat at what was obviously a regular’s special table! Settling up as we left, Mr B’s frequent confusion of 80 and 20 in fast spoken French almost led to us walking out without paying enough (he thought he’d left a small tip) but luckily he had an epiphany just in time! Interestingly, we doubted the barkeep would have said anything…

 

Armed with our info for a circular walk, we enjoyed the local church and its (in) famous jaquemarts that strike the bell on the church tower…

 

 

 

(The legend has it that two Huguenots who offended local Catholics during a procession, were made to pay for the building of the church tower, condemned to strike the bell on every hour until their death, at which point they were replaced by wooden figures) These original wooden figures are in the town hall…

 

 

which, unfortunately for us, was just locking up for lunch as we approached. The circular route then took us back to the Aire via a small park (complete with info about a local French astronaut, Thomas Pesquet) in time for us to pack up and drive to Dieppe for lunch and the ferry later that evening.

 

And our good luck in not having rain in Auffay was enhanced further, as the sun broke through the clouds and we were treated to a very unusual opportunity to have a stroll around Dieppe in the sun, and see our ferry arrive!

 

 

We have only stayed in the seafront Aire a couple of times as it is very noisy when the ferry arrives in the wee small hours. Plus, since it has been toshed up, it is incredibly busy…

 

 

as well as leaving a lot to be desired for access to hook up – which  is included in the fixed rate (€xx) but not per pitch – which leads to situations like this…

 

 

We found it hard to believe that the three weeks had come to a close so quickly – but were of one voice in agreeing that we had lucked out in finding a bit of France that we had driven past on so many occasions, which delivered so much in such a short space of time. There is just so much more to see and do in Breizh – and if, like us, you enjoy exploring regional cuisine (especially butter of course!) as well as stunning locations, amazing walks and a sense of ‘otherness’ that comes with a distinct history and language, it is definitely a camper-van friendly place to visit. We would love to come again in warmer weather (whist avoiding the super busy summer) and explore further…

 

Watch this space!

 

S&J

(covering 28^th – 30^th November)

The Valley of the Saints Day 20

After the by now obligatory stop at a Super U on our way south, and with a fresh stash of Beurre Bretonne crisps in the cab, we enjoyed a pleasant drive heading south, stopping at a lovely lakeside Aire at Plouighnou to stretch our legs…

 

 

and then, without a single yellow ‘route barée’ sign in sight, we made good progress on the fairly brief onward drive to Carnoët, the largest town near the Valley of the Saints sculpture park Mrs B had spotted earlier in the trip as we compiled our collection of places we’d like to visit in Breizh.

 

Situated on land that comprises an historical monument, a listed chapel, a feudal motte – and the sculpture park itself, our visit promised to be action packed! Since 2009 sculptors from across the world have spent time here slowly crafting (we are talking taking a chainsaw to granite here…) images that represent (in a wide variety of ways!) the early Breton saints that came to France largely from Wales and Ireland in the middle ages. Averaging 4m in height, the intention is to create, over time, up to 1000 sculptures on this theme. There were about a couple of hundred there when we visited and we could have spent much longer than we did exploring them. The site is fabulously atmospheric.

 

This is the construction area...

 

The saints in situ...

 

The motte...

 

 

Two saints for the price of one...

 

Mrs B's famous headache cure...

 

 

No saint - either of them...

 

 

The ancient church...

 

 

Time to go...

 

 

 

As darkness was not far over the horizon, we headed back to Evie and plotted our route to an Aire that Mrs B had spotted on P4N not far away in the countryside. It is possible to stay overnight in the car park for the sculpture park as it’s included in the fee and in true French style, there were segregated bays for camping cars, but, as they were almost all sloping and the spaces were pretty close to one another, it took very little effort for us to head off to what looked like a much more relaxed option!

 

Indeed, as we arrived into the small hamlet of Plourac’h, and we pulled into a large open square opposite the busy Marie, there were no other vans in sight and we had the place to ourselves!

 

 

Until that is, a lovely old French camping car pulled up almost adjacent to us! It’s a funny thing, parking ‘etiquette’ on Aires. We like to give other campers plenty of space where possible, but others, like our new neighbours, like to get cosy; perhaps it’s a safety in numbers thing? In the colder weather however, when everyone has their windows closed or pulled to and no one is outside, there is usually very little sound, as proved to be the case with our new neighbours. Who, without realising it at the time, we had bumped into as we wandered around the hamlet looking for the bar/tabac and bakery we thought we’d read about! Asking a couple walking a dog whether they knew of the said locations, they explained they were visiting but had been told that the ‘depot de pain’ was closed the next day, and had no idea about the bar. It was only as Mr B was laboriously explaining that we too were visiting, in a camping car, that we learned they were our neighbours and on the same mission!

 

We spent a very quiet and very dark night there, only to be woken by the local municipal workers arriving the next day in their trucks and vans, but, at a very civilised 0800 hours which suited us, as we needed to plan our route to head back north to Dinard on the coast somewhere we were tempted to visit on our way into Breizh, but had decided to press on further west. With its reputation as a magnet for the wealthy in the 1800s and beyond, and complete with spectacular villas, it promised a very different type of destination to everything we had experienced so far!

 

S&J

(covering 27^th October)

Brignogan Plages – beaches galore; lighthouses; pumpkins; onions; fish and more… Days 14 -19

 Day 14

 

After the by now regular ‘deviations’ en route, we arrived into the small town of Brignogan Plages with plenty of time to spare before reception closed, which was just as well, as the ACSI description of the location was as good as useless, as the yellow ‘route barrée’ signs that greeted us, directed us back into the countryside and away from the coast! Luckily we managed to check the route on Apple Maps (we have given up on Google with its high count of mistakes) and before long we were pulling into the site.

 

After what seemed like a very long time with Mr B in the reception office, he returned all smiley-faced, complete with loads of useful leaflets, recommendations on where to eat and what to see, the news that we could choose our pitch (including those right on the beach/coastal path), bread and pastries ordered for collection the next day, and, the enjoyment (for him at least) of practising a bit more French!

 

Bearing in mind the advice from reception that tonight was an exceptionally high tide, and that some people camped away from the beach because of the loud noise, we were delighted to find a spot right down at the front of the site where we would be able to hear the sea – 

 

 

 

something we love to experience rather than avoid. So, parked up and plugged in, we decided to use the campsite gate near us to get onto the coastal path and have a wander before dark, admiring on the pitch opposite the imaginative terraced outdoor seating at one of the rental lodges…

 

 

The gate opened straight onto the GR34 (of course!), and we were greeted by the beautiful horseshoe bay of Brignogan Plages, complete with lots, and lots, of beached seaweed – luckily not the sea lettuce type with its attendant risk of death by rotten egg gas! After a quick wander towards the town, we agreed we had lucked out with the ease of walking in all directions, and we returned intent on planning some adventures without needing to drive Evie anywhere. And, at last, it looked as if we would be able to go out to eat within easy walking distance – and maybe more than once - woohoo!

 

 

 

 

Day 15

 

The next day we woke to more sunshine, so we decided to combine eating out with a coastal walk. Mr B had discovered in reception that we were close by somewhere that served a Breton treat that he had read about – Kig ha Farz, a mixed meat concoction with a buckwheat flour ‘pudding’ that’s famous in the Finistère department we were now in – yum! (Editorial note here – Mrs B was perhaps less enthusiastic, after discovering it was a hefty and pretty basic boiled meat and dumpling version of the more widespread Pot au Feu…)

 

But nonetheless we set off mid morning, with a couple of emergency Karg crackers in the rucksack just in case, and we were soon enjoying the fascinating coastline with its many rocky features…

 

 

 

Our destination was the restored village of Meneham, complete with its interesting history. The village has a story set over 300 years, ranging from a watch/guard house (smugglers and state enemies) nestled in the rocks…

 

 

…to Coastguard barracks and family cottages (in support of the above)…

 

 

…to being rented to fishing families and seaweed gatherers, eventually abandoned and then restored into what we see today – a mix of craft workshops, restaurant, tourist accommodation and, at the time we visited in the run up to All Souls, an amazing and imaginative display of pumpkin art!

 

 

Unfortunately for us, although the restaurant was open, there were no tables available and so we had to make do with our emergency crackers, followed by an equally pretty walk back to Evie – where we had a late lunch/early dinner!

 

We also discovered that we were now in French half term, meaning that although places were busier, more of them, like La Corniche (see below), were open during the week, which isn’t usually the case in October.

 

 

Day 16

 

So, not to be caught out twice in a row, we booked lunch at the seafood restaurant recommended by the reception staff, which meant we had a lazy start to the day, followed by a 30 minute walk along the coastline and the village harbour to La Corniche – which whilst not busy when we entered, soon filled up – so we were super glad we had booked.

 

 

 

And what a treat it turned out to be, as can be seen in this pic of the menu, as we had clearly lucked out for local seafood…

 

 

…as well as the satisfied look on Mr B’s face! You can probably see it’s also tinged with relief that the oysters, which were served looking like they needed shucking, just had their lids on!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Leaving La Corniche with the idea that we might also want to go back for dinner one evening before we left, we waddled off our luscious lunch via a circuitous route that took us to see the local Menhir de Men Marz, the largest ‘christianised’ Menhir in France (the practice of carving crosses on the rock, and/ or putting crosses on top)…

 

 

 

…and the famous elephant rock…

 

 

…which we couldn’t see at first…

 

 

until we went around the side! Lucky for us the sunlight was clearly at the right angle to allow the eventual epiphany…

 

 

 

Day 17

 

The next day we decided to get ourselves out in Evie for an adventure to the westernmost town in France – the fishing port of Le Conquet. And after the usual, and this time multiple, deviations, we arrived into the town to park up in its free Aire and gather up the by now obligatory info leaflets from the Office de Tourisme, conveniently right by the Aire.

 

Which is where we saw that we could do a circular walk out to the lighthouse on the northern side of the estuary (we do love a lighthouse!). In winds that must have been close to gale force, we braved the precipitous walk and were rewarded by a bracing and beautiful view up and down the coast as we approached, and then we circumnavigated the lighthouse – a very elemental experience!

 

 

Arriving back at Evie thoroughly windblown, we realised we had enough time to press on further south to see another lighthouse, this time, and in very French style, built inside the ruins of an Abbey!  The 6^th Century Abbaye de St Mathieu stands in ruins with the current lighthouse (built in the early 1800s to replace a much older one) soaring through the roof of the Abbey…

 

 

It’s an incredible place, and we would have stayed longer to see it in the dark, had storm clouds not started to gather out at sea, so we wandered over to see the very moving monument to all French sailors (military and civilian) who have perished at sea and have no known grave. We didn’t have time to do the 4km circular walk that commemorates the lost ships and sailors, but with the darkening sky, it was easy to stay for a quiet and respectful introspection before legging it back to Evie before the rain arrived.

 

 

 

Day 18

 

With the site starting to feel very much like a second home, we decided to have a ‘van day’ to catch up with washing and odd jobs, before a short walk to the east of Brignogan Plages. Driving Evie a short hop along the coast to the other side of the bay, and still on the GR34, the terrain was suitably different for us to feel that we had in fact gone much further!

 

 

 

Day 19

 

Our last day at Camping de la Côte des Légendes and we thought we should explore one of the many ‘abers’ we were surrounded by. With obvious similarities to Welsh (the closest of the Gaelic languages apparently) and thinking of the many coastal abers in Wales, we set off in Evie to explore the nearby town of Guissény. Parking up in the convenient free Aire, 

 

 

 

we couldn’t help but wander around the very typically Breton church, complete with its incredible display of graveside flowers ready for All Souls…

 

 

…dropping into an amazing Boulangerie/Patisserie to stock up on buttery delights for lunch (we had thought of eating out but decided to make the most of the weather and explore more GR34!) whilst taking in the vast scale of the vegetable growing in the area (Breizh is the region for supplying most of France’s veg as well as a huge amount of its seafood)…

 

 

We then used P4N to find a parking spot that was right on the beach and the GR 34 – but it took a while (the scale sometimes defeats us in really rural areas) and we were further delayed when we were flagged down by an elderly French woman, clearly in distress. Noticing that all the cars in front of us had just ignored her and driven on, Mrs B suggested we pull over and see what she wanted. On hearing that her husband had taken a tumble and couldn’t get up, Mr B was dispatched to offer what help he could. With his limited French and the woman’s non existent English, it soon became clear that Mr B needn’t rush back for the First Aid Kit, he just needed to help an old chap get back up off the floor into a chair – him being too heavy for his wife to lift him. After helping him back into his chair, and making the most of references to the entente cordiale, Mr B beat a hasty retreat and declined the kind offer of a drink and a bite to eat!

 

We eventually found the P4N location and, after munching our buttery delights in Evie, we set off on the GR34 for what looked like a very interesting and pretty walk up the estuary to the headland.

 

The pictures hopefully speak for themselves, but we were of one mind that we’d love to come back and explore the area in more depth in the future…

 

 

…especially as we came across this amazing free camper van parking area, complete with its own beach…

 

 

After returning to Evie and having failed to eat out for lunch, we dropped into the SuperU to stock up before tomorrow’s departure. Whilst Mr B phoned the seafood restaurant back in Brignogan Plage to see if they could fit us in for dinner on our last night (they could!) Mrs B stocked up on local fare, which included some new to us fish ‘Julienne’ or ling in English, 

 

 

 

as well as some ‘Johnnies of Roscoff’ onions, learning on the fly that the stereotype black bereted, blue and white stripy jumper chap selling onions on a bike that we could both remember from childhood, was, in fact, related to a real and direct trade between Breton French onion sellers and buyers in the UK! 

 

 

 

Possibly dating back to the 1820s, and then declining by the 1950s, the ‘brand’ has been resurrected since the 90s – although this was the first time we had seen any in all our trips to France – another example perhaps of the very regional nature of some French cuisine and goods. (And also, Mr B wondered, perhaps the origin of the phrase ‘Johnny Foreigner’ in colloquial English?)

 

Feasting on a simple dinner of Moules à la Brettone (cider and bacon – yum!) back at La Corniche, we reflected on just how much we had enjoyed our time on the north coast, and how different it had been to our expectations (as in much more varied and interesting!). The good weather had no doubt helped, but, as we started to plan our return to Dieppe via a trip south to the excitingly named Valée des Saints in Carnoët, we were both certain that we would be exploring this bit of Breizh again for sure!

 

S&J

(covering 21^st – 26^th October)