St Jean de Monts to Pornic
Friday 11th June.
9 Months since we left home today. We never thought we would last this long!
After a perfect evening sunset the rain began at about 3am and kept it up until morning. In fact it was still raining when we left at about 10.30am. We are heading towards Pornic but rather than follow the very soggy sandy bike path we went inland across the Marais which was probably the best decision we could have taken. The rain clouds followed us all the way and there were moments in between village bus shelters where we were really exposed, but the wildlife we saw made up for every drop of rain.
Avocet parent keeping an eye on it's feeding baby.
A feast here for someone.
We were so wet when we arrived in Brouin that we had to stop in a bar to get out of the rain and of course for a refresher. The opening ceremony of The ‘Foot Mondiale’ was on the telly so we watched spellbound as dancers cavorted in the blazing sunshine and wondered whether it would make any difference to the games if they just played football and skipped all this.
Although we are traveling on ordinary roads the ones we select are the smallest available and for the majority of the time they are completely traffic free. The silence apart from the sounds of the birds is all we could wish for and will be one of the aspects of this trip we shall treasure the most. When a vehicle does pass, unlike the other Mediterranean countries the drivers usually make a concerted effort to slow down and give one plenty of space – even the lorries.
Later in the afternoon we went back to the coast and followed the cycle route from the little river port of Bourgneuf-sur-Retz
through Les Moutiers-en-Retz where last time through we were staggered by the beauty of the inside of the church but intimidated by some pikeys hanging around outside of it. We had been disappointed to see that the church was suffering from considerable neglect so were happy 9 months on to find it covered in scaffold and a complete refurbishment in progress.
The last stretch into Pornic was up and down steep little hills along the coast which were quite tiresome at the end of a long day and we were glad to arrive. We decided that we had liked the Beau Soleil Hotel on the harbour last time, so we booked in there again. It has a great situation and for a small 2* is very comfortable. We did manage to go to a different restaurant however.
Friday 11th June.
9 Months since we left home today. We never thought we would last this long!
After a perfect evening sunset the rain began at about 3am and kept it up until morning. In fact it was still raining when we left at about 10.30am. We are heading towards Pornic but rather than follow the very soggy sandy bike path we went inland across the Marais which was probably the best decision we could have taken. The rain clouds followed us all the way and there were moments in between village bus shelters where we were really exposed, but the wildlife we saw made up for every drop of rain.
The Meteo do a very good job at telling us what will happen in the morning or the afternoon but we are getting very good at knowing what is going to happen in 20 minutes!
The aerial activity around us was staggering, with kites and buzzard and harriers all quartering the ground to our left and right and an owl obligingly sitting on a telegraph pole. Herons scavenged for frogs in the ditches
and lots of Avocets who were teaching their young how to feed themselves. There are also a great many turtle doves around which is nice, as they are scarce at home now. I was always told that they were dying out as the French ate them all, which doesn’t seem to be the case at all!
Avocet parent keeping an eye on it's feeding baby.
We even saw deer, hares, water rats, ragondins and a hen pheasant with eight well grown chicks. How come with as many seagulls, magpies, crows and rats as we have at home a pheasant can do that?
Furthermore this being oyster, moules and clam country the by product of which is their shells we found that their obvious solution is to use them as ‘hardcore’ for filling soft patches in the Marais tracks – most ingenious!
Furthermore this being oyster, moules and clam country the by product of which is their shells we found that their obvious solution is to use them as ‘hardcore’ for filling soft patches in the Marais tracks – most ingenious!
A feast here for someone.
We were so wet when we arrived in Brouin that we had to stop in a bar to get out of the rain and of course for a refresher. The opening ceremony of The ‘Foot Mondiale’ was on the telly so we watched spellbound as dancers cavorted in the blazing sunshine and wondered whether it would make any difference to the games if they just played football and skipped all this.
Although we are traveling on ordinary roads the ones we select are the smallest available and for the majority of the time they are completely traffic free. The silence apart from the sounds of the birds is all we could wish for and will be one of the aspects of this trip we shall treasure the most. When a vehicle does pass, unlike the other Mediterranean countries the drivers usually make a concerted effort to slow down and give one plenty of space – even the lorries.
Later in the afternoon we went back to the coast and followed the cycle route from the little river port of Bourgneuf-sur-Retz
through Les Moutiers-en-Retz where last time through we were staggered by the beauty of the inside of the church but intimidated by some pikeys hanging around outside of it. We had been disappointed to see that the church was suffering from considerable neglect so were happy 9 months on to find it covered in scaffold and a complete refurbishment in progress.
The last stretch into Pornic was up and down steep little hills along the coast which were quite tiresome at the end of a long day and we were glad to arrive. We decided that we had liked the Beau Soleil Hotel on the harbour last time, so we booked in there again. It has a great situation and for a small 2* is very comfortable. We did manage to go to a different restaurant however.
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