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2005 is upon us and I need to get the list of things to do, and things to buy, sorted, both my batteries are due for replacement as they are 10 years old. --:-- My new spray hood has large pockets on the inside, zips on the frame poles for easy assembly and removal and a roll down centre window to get air flow through when its hot, and it does get hot out in France.
I have only one problem to solve that is to keep the fridge running from a 12v supply without going through the batteries, anyone know the answer as the manufacturer does not recommend a direct 12v supply??? At Last, I have received an email from Isotherm saying you can run the fridge directly from a transformer as along as it produces 15 amps, so I will try this next year. Back in La Roche-Bernard 17th May. Boat was ok over the winter, just needed a good clean which was undertaken on the second day. Within the first week 10 other crews had arrived from the UK so our community was growing fast. David, who had been working on his house he had purchased the previous year came over for supper and of course he had to earn it by going up the mast to retrieve my spinnaker halyard and take out the anchor bulb. The weather up till now had been ok a few showers and the temperature around 20c during the days and 17c during the nights. La Roche was awakening for the spring season start.
The boat was ready to go, we had our last day on the river and were intending to go south to the sun! The day before we were leaving the rain started during the previous night and did not stop until 21.00 the next, so everything up top was wet, including the "conservatory"
Piriac Sur Mer (15 Euros) We left the Vilaine 11.00 lock on our way to Piriac Sur mer 20 miles along the coast, however the wind was well over the forecast so we had a very quick sail, I had to adjust my speed by taking in most of the jib to keep station with Bill on Virginia R (an Island Packet.) We arrived just before the minimum sill height for me so alls ok for the first sail of the season. Piriac is a beautiful small seaside town that gets very busy in the high season, they have just enlarged the harbour to accommodate twice the boats. We had a walk around the village in the evening and took in some on the sights before an early night and start for Ile D' Noirmoutier about 35 miles down the coast.
Ile D' Noirmoutier I'Herbaudiere Harbour but they are in the middle of major development and the pontoon we tied up on had no walk to shore, so we did not see any of the village or Island and left at 0900 the next day for Ile D' Yeu. Ile D' Yeu. (15 Euros) Not much wind so motored for some time before we managed a little engine less travel. We arrived just on lunch time (2.5 hours lunch here but late closing 7 or even 8.00pm) the sun was out and it was hot I have sunburn on my forehead. Port Joinville is very nice but small, this island is a must for anyone who can ride a bike, the island is flat and is set up to handle bikes by the thousand as it is the major tourist activity on the island, the French come over on the ferry and hire bikes for the day, whole families ride off around the cycle routes. We are into the "red tile" part of France, this is when it gets hot and the beaches are beautiful.
Just a wonderful Island to visit, tranquil and unspoiled. And always time for a beer. The typical thing in France is even the smallest of villages has enormous churches. We stayed an extra day here and found it very relaxing riding around the Island roads and beaches.
Les Sables D'Olonne (16 Euros) Left at 10.00 for Les Sables D'Olonne the wind was on the quarter and an Atlantic swell, so, not the best of trips as we rolled our way along for the 30 miles or so. I had to take the wheel as the auto helm was going manic trying to keep on track and I felt sorry for it working so hard, not so bad as I wedged myself into the corner of the cockpit and steered with my foot on the bottom of the wheel. The 2 big cardinals came up and we headed into the harbour entrance, past a long harbour wall both sides and onto the waiting pontoon. You have to register at the office to get a pontoon for the night. The waiting pontoon is on the left as you go up through the entrance, it also contains the fueling berth with the capitainerie situated above, you need your SSR registration here.
We had left D'Yeu with 2 other boats "White Lady" and "Virginia R". On arrival as soon as we had sorted the boat out we all made the trip to the supermarket a little walk away to stock up for the weekend just in case we decided to move on. Good job we did as we left for St Martin De Re on the Ild de Re' the next morning. This marina is well supported with good chandleries and a number of eating places just off the pontoons. However the town "Les Sables D'Olonne" is good walk away around the edge of the marina. Ile de Re'(20 Euros) expensive! We left at 11.00 the next morning, the weather was sunny and warm but not much wind. However we motored on and a little way down the track the wind piped up and we managed to knock the engine back and sail, I made lunch, cheese baguette, wonderful with a beer. Checking the progress it became obvious that we were going to arrive too early for the lock, (St Martins Habour is a port that is built into the village and is a tourist area for the French) there are two ports one which drying and the other is the "wet basin" which is the one we are going into. The decision was made to slow down and go fishing for our supper, to catch anything we find you must not go faster than 3.5 knots. I have 2 fishing lines one is a rod and line the other is a more heavy line on a large reel with a paravane to take it down. It was not long before Linda had the first 2 mackerel in and before long we had 6 ready for tonight. We were the first boat through the lock gate that tide so we were lucky and got given a finger berth number 9, the harbour master stands on the lock and tells you where to go when you come in, fingers to the left and down and rafting to the right, rafting can be as many as 10 boats in the summer, getting a finger was a bonus.
St Martin is a "chic place" for the French holiday maker the town is packed with tourists the weekends and during August, the prices in the shops reflect this. However the Island is a must, it is very attractive like Ile De Yeu only bigger and is linked to the mainland by a very large bridge. A place for the "velo" (bike) there are cycle paths all the way around the Island that are an easy ride even for the beginners, plenty of bike hire shops at 7 euros a day. We took off on our bikes and met up with "Virginia R (Bill And Jacky) who were staying further up the coast in a smaller harbour. We had a great lunch (as you do) in a local village before cycling back another route into St Matins, a cup of tea was very welcome when we got back.
Decided to go to the top of the church and look out over the harbour, the stairs up were what you would call rustic, and probably the original, not for the faint hearted. (P.S. do not go up on the hour, its very noisy) great views of St Martins, and down to the bridge we will be going under to get to La Rochelle.
La Rochelle (36 Euros for 3 days) Trip to La Rochelle was not far but the wind was 5/6 and on the nose so reefed the main and got wet. As we approached the bridge which dominates the area we needed to find the channel marker buoys. Coming from the north we found them and they dog legged to the left as you go through and the channel markings are also on the bridge supports, but soon through. As soon as we passed under the bridge the wind disappeared and we shook out the reef and had a quiet sail the rest of the way tacking into the channel leading up to Minimes the larger of marinas. It is reported as the largest marina in Europe with over 3700 berths. We arrived the 11th June and had trouble finding a pontoon, if its like this in June what will it be like in July / August? The capitainerie was very modern and had free internet access plus pay for 2 and the 3rd day is free. so we booked in for 3 nights and wondered what was the catch? Its great here, very quite, and a nice area of town, we could have gone up into the "old port" town marina's but I think its better to be in Minimes then go to the town by water taxi which has been running every 1/2 hour for 1.5 Eros, or go on your bike.
A trip around La Rochelle town is a must to see the architecture alone, but there are lots of markets on the go as well, however, all shopping is very expensive here. Typical France with the cafe's on the pavements watching life go by, so we had some of that as well. A place for the artist, lots of them painting, for the tourists, but others are very serious painters, like the one here painting the cafe. Oh, by the way, how do you like the free transport from the Port to the supermarket. 3 of these by each pontoon, you get them by registering at the harbour office.
Ile D'Oleron Port St Denis (30 Euros for 2 days plus 1 day free) Another beautiful Island that gears itself up for 2 months per year when the French come on holiday. The entrance was difficult to see and needs to be carefully navigated as it is very shallow for some way out to sea. The harbour has a fixed sill that leaves 2 metres of water in some parts of the harbour at low water and there is a height marker on the left side as you enter that gives depth over the sill. When you go in look out for the signs saying restricted water as some berths only have 1m of water, the further up you go the more water there is.
First job was to go shopping and look at the local architecture, the churches on most of the Islands go back to the 10th century and later the kings of England owned the lands here. Out come the bikes again and off to look around the sights, including the light house at the point of the Island. Gorgeous beaches all around the Island more tide on the Atlantic side as you can see from the photos.
This is the farthest point of our first cruise of the season we have to be back in La Roche-Bernard by 25th June for friends to visit from the U.K. The weather is starting to get very hot now, 35c so we are economical with our movements. Back through the Arzal lock into the Vilaine and our home port; La Roche-Bernard
We left LRB on the 27-5-05 and returned on 25-6-05 11ports and 3 Islands, and of course 3 cycling days around Islands. Going south first thing in the season was a good idea, as it gets packed in the July / August, French holidays, plus the prices go up by 100% . My thanks to Bill and Jackie on "Virginia R" for showing us the places we would not have found without them. --:-- Boat goes to sleep for July.
Back in La Roche -Bernard we have friends coming to see us, and to entertain so going by road is the next stage of the adventures. A trip to Rochefort en Terre to see a complete very old town a must for anyone in the area.
Another must is the unique market place in Questembert which is covered and still in weekly operation, the timbers are magnificent.
Invited to a "Fete" ( or Linda's birthday party as I called it) at Arzal Barrage next to the lock that we came through on our way up to L.R.B. It was a great day with a group of friends. So you think you have big B.B.Q's how about this:-
Typical French hospitality village style, it was a great day. Half way through the season now and my "TAX return form" is calling, I have to be back in the UK by mid July so hitched a ride with friends back to the UK via other friends who have a cottage in the Mayenne, a quick stop and then the ferry.
Back in La Roche-Bernard Second part of the year sailing started from LRB to Quiberon bay area including the Morbihan inland sea. We left the river on the 15th Aug sailing to the port le Crouesty-en-Arzon, nice easy entrance a very nice port man made on the entrance to the Morbihan, Linda liked it here because of the shopping, lots of shops all around the port. When we went ashore the port was full with people visiting for the day, a very French day trip port. We met up with "Virginia R" who had been in Vannes and decided to go across to Port Haliguen after a 2 day stay, on the way across I caught dinner again, 2 very nice mackerel. Le Crouesty
Port Haliguen The weather was getting windy so "Virginia R" left a day early going back to LRB. After our 2 free days in port we moved on to the next port on the other side of the bay, we came in here before on our way down to LRB last year, a tidy and organised "boat park" with a visitors pontoon running the length of the breakwater, its better if you aim to go behind the pontoon run as only one other boat can raft out, in the season there can be as many as 5 out on the other side. The port is on a small strip of land with a very nice walk into to town, lots of shops and two supermarkets. On our way over I caught 2 very nice mackerel which we had for supper saved going up for food that night. The next day we discovered the fisherman's friend and why he is looking so intensely. (see photo below)
Morbihan The next trip was going to take us into the Morbihan, first to the Auray river, then to Vannes via the Islands. We entered the Morbihan 2 hours past low water as the tide is still rushing out during this lag in time, up to 9 knots of tide at springs. The water is very turbulent at the entrance and in a number of other parts as well. As soon as we entered the mouth the buoys are very clear after you recognise and digest them, remember you are "speed over the ground" at up to 14 knots so things happen very quickly in an unfamiliar and dangerous area. Do your "homework" and things are fine. We went up the river as far as we could, 2 mtrs keel and 15 mtrs mast (if the mast does not stop you the depth will) to the port of Bono a very small harbour which dries so we picked up a buoy just off the village, but we had to move on later that evening because the coefficient was very high (120) which meant not enough water at low for us to stay. The harbour master came out to tell us, and gave us another buoy which still had 6.5 mtrs at low water.
Arradon After our 4 days stay up the river at Bono we came back down going aground on 2 occasions as it was still a very high coefficient and stayed on a buoy at Port d'Arradon which is a summer season small village used by French holiday makers, camping, small boat sailing and about 100 buoys for keel boats. The port has a "Rade de port" a free water taxi to shore. The water is a little unsettled during the day with all the "Tripper" boats up and down the channel, but as the sun goes down things go quiet. Eating or drinking ashore is expensive. We walked up to the village to get the vegetables from the market that was on that day and then another 2 kilometers to the "super U for the rest of the food and wine.
Vannes This is the major town of the area and is beautifully kept with lovely gardens and the architecture is stunning. We had to get to the lock for 10.30 as it was only opening once and 21.00 hr that night and as rain was forecast for the evening we decided to go in the morning. The trip up the river was beautiful and magnificent houses built along the shore lines. We stayed for 4 nights and enjoyed the town.
After the rain over night the sun reappeared and we are back to normal, sunny and warm. We stayed in Vannes alongside "Comet" a westerly Falcon, she can be seen here leaving the lock on the way out. Ile Aux-Moines We stopped off in a small bay on the island and had a quiet days rest, next year we will come back and explore more of the Islands as they have good cycle tracks and there is lots more to look at in the area. Port Blanc is just around the corner of this bay but I would not recommend it because of the wash from the "day tripper" boats constantly in and out of the landing area, it makes for an uncomfortable time. Le Crouesty Back out of the Morbihan to Le Crouesty for our free 2 days, and then we had a period of returning to local ports staying for the free time and moving on:- Le Crouesty, Port Haliguen, La Trinity, meeting up with other boats returning to the north from the Islands. After this it was time to make our way back to LRB in the Vilaine, we left Le Crouesty at 10.00am with the wind on the nose until we rounded the point then, as the wind picked up to 5 gusting 6 we had the best sail ever in the boat, never going below 6 knots and for good periods we cruised along at 8 knots. This made us early at the entrance to the Vilaine so not much water there, us going at this stage 7.5 knots and 2.2 metres of water, but on a rising tide. Back in LRB we met up with a number of boats returning for the winter as they now go off to Spain by road for the next 3 months as its too cold in the UK. Paul and Gloria have arrived to winterise "Bridie" so we go out on day trips inland to look at some of the well known villages, like Gacilly which is full of flowers and is at the end of a canal which runs up from Redon.
Before Paul and Gloria go home we have a meal out in the local fishing village, the catch is landed 20 metres from the restaurant, cannot be fresher than that, the pots contain a kilo of very large mussels.
Our friend Paul off Bridie, Etienne and Anne Marie local French people who keep their boat on our pontoon, an evening soiree, as Mrs. Bucket would say.
The end of the season has arrived and I cannot put off the winterising of the boat any longer, we have only one week to go before returning to UK, as you can see from the photos the weather in France is particularly stable and pleasant. We have made friends with the boating community which crosses country boundaries, French, Dutch, Irish, German, and American. All have been friendly and enjoying life in their retirement. Odysseus put to bed for the winter of 2005.
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Front
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David
& Penny cottage
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Virginia
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Piriac
Village
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extended Harbour 
Port
Joinville
Cycling
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Mackerel
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