Walkers and other animals

We had a lovely walk at Carhaix today, with dry weather, perfect temperature, great scenery and ancient buildings galore. There was also a large variety of two and four-footed animals waiting to enliven our route along the way, from geese to goats, and gorgeous horses to a glamorous kingfisher on the river Hy�res.

Thanks to all for a really enjoyable afternoon.

Extremely nice day!

The weather was very kind to us for yesterday's outing, with only a few spots of rain whilst we were travelling from one 'extreme' to another, and even a little sunshine. We sampled local delicacy the Mol�ne sausage in a wonderful restaurant in St-Renan (La Maison d'Autrefois) before visiting the tallest menhir in France and then the very edge of France at the Pointe de Corsen. After a drive through the beautiful old fishing port of Le Conquet, we ended up at the Pointe St-Mathieu to see the ruined abbey on the cliffs, including an ancient fire-tower from pre-lighthouse days. It was a great trip and many thanks to all who participated.

Going to extremes - Tues, 4 October

We have an excursion (in cars) on Tuesday, 4th October, to see some fabulous and extreme sights: the tallest menhir in France, the westernmost point of France, etc. Meet in the centre of St-Renan (NW of Brest), Place du Vieux March� 11.45-12 noon for a quick lunch (probably creperie).
If this weather holds, it'll be perfect for a trip to one of the best coastlines in Brittany.

Looking ahead - spring break

Brittany Walks hopes to organise a spring break (1/2 nights) in the magical Foret de Paimpont (claimed by some to be the Broc�liande of Arthurian legend). Apart from Merlin's tomb, the lake under which Lancelot grew up and the Valley of No Return, there is much stunning walking in the forest, numerous megaliths and many other interesting things to see. The area is situated in Ille-et-Vilaine, NW of Rennes. The programme will depend on numbers, and may combine group walks with time for individual exploration. April is the probable month.
Anyone potentially interested should please let BWs know by email (brittanywalks@orange.fr).

(Red stream in the Val sans Retour, where the fairy Morgane trapped faithless lovers.)

Douarnenez - Tuesday September 20th

On Tuesday, September 20th we have a stroll around Douarnenez and the quiet rural paths of the Plomarc'h. Spectacular sea views and easy walking on pavement/surfaced paths throughout. This is a town with a remarkable history and much of interest to see, including one of the most important Roman remains in Brittany.
We meet on the quay by the boat museum at Port Rhu (just down the hill behind the tourist office, via rue de Port Rhu, where there is a useful car-park) for a 2pm start. At last I am able to say it - Look forward to seeing you all there!

Wet ...

The location was fantastic, but heavy rain prevented the scenic picnic (thank you Denise for a nice dry house to eat in!) and in the afternoon we opted for a visit to Taden manoir and then the port at Dinan, where the weather improved. The energetic strode up the cobbled streets to the famous town, whilst others visited the Maison de la Rance to get a well-presented overview of what we'd missed. We all enjoyed the apr�s-non-walk overlooking the river. Thanks to Lesley for our revised programme, and definitely whetting our appetites for the Rance nature walk at another time.

Brittany E-books finally available!

Remarkable value Brittany E-books are now available on www.brittanyexpert.com.
These cover specifc topics or places in Brittany in depth, with lots of photos and suggestions for visits. Currently on offer are Megaliths, the Nantes-Brest Canal, Food and Drink, Walking in Brittany, History Essentials and Parish Closes. Those to come shortly include Rennes and Quimper town guides and the Monts d'Arr�e. Many others planned. You can buy via PayPal without a Paypal account, cost �2.50 or 3�. All books are well-illustrated.
To get the flavour, download the FREE E-book Brittany Basics directly from the site. This gives a general overview of what Brittany has to offer. It can be used freely as a marketing tool by businesses and B&Bs. Links enable clients to buy specific topic books later.
Comments and suggestions for future titles welcome. Please send the link to anyone you think might be interested: www.brittanyexpert.com

Perfect Walking Weather

Perfect weather for walking in the Monts d'Arr�e. 16 kms will take you right round Lac St-Michel, with wonderful views of the highest hills in Brittany - but there's no need to go all the way.....

Autumnal forest

We enjoyed perfect walking weather for our beautiful stroll in the forest yesterday, including a visit to the menhir at Kerampeulven. Thanks to Judith for the photo. We were pleased to welcome new people and dogs to the group, and a great apr�s-walk was had by all. Thanks to everyone who came and made it such a good afternoon.

Huelgoat walk

We have a walk at 2pm on Tuesday 26th October in Huelgoat. This is mostly a new route (unless you are a very old-time Brittany Walker ;-)) and the meeting place is the large forest parking area on the left on the D769 as you leave the town in the direction of Poullaouen. Good forest paths, but one short section may be muddy in/after bad weather. The forest is spectacularly beautiful at this time of year! The apr�s-walk will be at L'autre rive caf�/bookshop. All welcome.

Lesley's Nature Watch

For the last few years Brittany Walks has benefited greatly from Lesley's wide knowledge of all aspects of the natural world. She tirelessly answers all our questions about birds, butterflies and flowers, as well as illuminating our coastal walking holidays with her astute observations.

We are very grateful for all her contributions, and now Lesley has kindly agreed to post a regular nature watch series on this blog, so keep a look out for her entries in this space.

Outing - Pays Bigouden

We have a day out in Pays Bigouden on Tuesday 21st, meeting at 11 in Pont l'Abbe on the waterfront near the Bigouden memorial (photo). After an easy walk down the estuary and back, we'll move on (by car) to various significant spots, especially the magnificent Atlantic coast. Chaucer wrote about the 'black rocks of Penmarc'h' - here's your chance to see them. Bring food to share for picnic lunch. All welcome.

Cliffs of Plouha

If you enjoy coastal walking, have a go at the cliffs of Plouha (north of St-Brieuc), said to be the highest in Brittany (although they don't feel as vertiginous as the Crozon peninsula's steepest). Start from the delightful Palus Plage (in picture) and head north up the Cote de Goelo. Highly recommended.

Coastal Walk from Plouezoc'h

A group of us aged 8 to .....!, old and new members, left the bourg of Plouezoc'h for a walk along the beautiful Dourduff estuary. In spite of forecasts of showers, the sun shone throughout as we walked alongside the banks of the estuary. The walk was further enhanced by the lovely variety of spring flowers dotted in the woodland alongside the mud flats. We were well rewarded for our efforts in negotiating the undulating river bank when we arrived at Le Dourduff en Mer, where we stopped for juice and homemade cakes. We then continued to follow the estuary into the Rade de Morlaix spotting the Chateau du Taureau in the distance.

On leaving the coast, we began a gentle climb via pretty woodland paths taking us back to our starting point. A perfect walk for a spring day!

Walk on Tuesday at Plouezoc'h

We have a beautiful (whatever the weather) walk in countryside around the bourg of Plouezoc'h, just north of Morlaix, including the Dorduff estuary and the Bay of Morlaix with views out to the Chateau du Taureau. It's just over 8 kms, with a lot of up and down on narrow paths, so a Level 3 walk - some agility needed and faster paced than a stroll - but a very rewarding route. Everyone welcome - 2pm start by church.

Huelgoat walk - Tues 24th March

We have a choice of walks at Huelgoat next Tuesday (meet 2pm by mairie). Either a fairly short leisurely paced stroll on easy paths in the forest, or a longer, faster and more challenging route. Both groups will take in Arthur's Camp and the Mare aux Sangliers (pictured above). Everyone is welcome: we hope to provide an enjoyable afternoon for walkers of all abilities here.

After the walks there will be a short get together for those interested in participating in our Tro Breiz project, which involves individuals or small groups choosing a short section to cover of this 600 km walk between the cathedral towns of Brittany's Seven Founding Saints.

Coastal Walking Holiday

Our annual coast walking holiday is fixed for June 2-5. We will be based on the Atlantic coast west of Brest, with two and a half days of following the coastal path, and a morning of visits to places of interest along the Rade de Brest, including a Vauban fort with WWII additions. There is a great variety of scenery to be enjoyed, from wild cliffs (see above) and sandy beaches to the ruined abbey of St Mathieu and the atmospheric little port of Le Conquet.

Tro Breiz

Brittany Walks association has a new project for 2009. Members, plus friends, are going to walk the 600kms of the Tro Breiz around Brittany. This famous journey, popular in the Middle Ages and revived in recent years, connects the seven cathedrals of the seven founding saints: St-Pol, St-Tugdual (Treguier) St-Brieuc, St-Malo, St-Samson (Dol), St-Patern (Vannes) and St-Corentin (Quimper). Each little group will walk their own chosen section of the route and contribute the fruits of their travels to a joint ongoing blog and a potential future publication. If anyone is interested in getting involved with this, please contact us on brittanywalks@orange.fr with Tro Breiz in the subject line.

We visit some famous Parish Closes

We all met on Wednesday morning at the church of St-Thegonnec, south west of Morlaix, for an educational day, visiting three of Brittany�s famous Parish Closes. These were built mainly in the 16th and 17th centuries and reflect the wealth, particularly in the region of L�on, resulting mainly from the linen trade with England. At that time, personal wealth was used for the benefit of the community, particularly as an expression of faith and local pride. The wealthy peasants, because it was the peasants who benefited from the economic wellbeing of the period, paid for these Closes and competition arose between communities to see who could build the biggest and the best.
A Parish Close consisted of, on the exterior, the triumphal arch entry gateway, modelled on the Roman triumphal arch, the Ossuary (a funeral chapel where bones were kept, often with a scene of sculpted figures showing the �Mise en Tombeau� (Christ being placed in his tomb)), the Calvaire depicting the life, death and resurrection of Christ, the porch with statues of the Apostles and the Sacristry. The interior would contain the Baptistry, Pulpit, Altarpieces, statues of the Saints, the �Poutre de Gloire� (beam of glory), and processional banners for the pardons (celebration of Saints� Days).
We visited three parish closes � those of St-Thegonnec, Guimiliau, and Lampaul-Guimiliau. They are all similar in their constituent parts, but very different in the way in which these are presented. Apart from the coffee at the Salon de Th� at Guimiliau, which was very welcome as the day was quite cold, what was it that struck me most?
The Calvaries were so different. At St-Thegonnec, the Calvary has nine scenes on the main frieze. The one at Guimiliau, by contrast, depicts 200 people in the scenes of Christ�s life, death and resurrection and the carving is spectacular. However, at Lampaul-Guimiliau there was far less decoration, it was a much plainer piece of work. The interior of the church at St-Thegonnec was badly damaged by fire in 1998, but has been wonderfully restored. The door to the ossuary at Lampaul-Guimiliau is quite lovely, depicting the tree of life, but over the door is the usual reminder that we will all die. Inside the church at Guimiliau, the beautifully carved organ was made by Thomas Dallam, an Englishman who fled Cromwell�s England to produce such tremendous pieces of work for the Catholic church abroad. The baptistery at Lampaul-Guimiliau was colourful, as indeed were the altarpieces; the Poutre de Gloire was magnificent. All three Closes were lovely in their own particular ways.
Oh, and you may be asking what has this got to do with walking? Well we did do a walk, albeit short, between eating our picnic lunches and visiting Lampaul-Guimiliau, taking in the Fontaine de Ste Anasthasie, killed by her father because she wouldn�t marry the man he wanted her to! And we had just one canine friend with us today, Merlin.
What did Alan & I take away from today? The desire to see the rest of the Breton Closes � a project perhaps for the coming Spring and Summer.
Liz (and photos by Alan) Quantrell

Parish Close Outing - Wednesday 21st

On Wednesday January 21st we have an outing (by car - sharing if possible) to visit some of the finest parish closes in Brittany. This spectacular form of architectural ensemble is a particular feature of northern Finistere, although there are a few exceptional examples elsewhere. Lots of interesting and amusing details to spot as well as all the historical significance - you won't find more impressive testaments of simple faith in the region.

We meet in St Thegonnec at 11am and will be moving on to several other locations. Information sheets provided. Weather permitting there will be a short forest walk, entirely optional, in the afternoon. Bring picnics, but a nice salon-du-th� in a bakery will be open on our route about lunch-time. Everyone welcome.