23 April 2003: Our last day in Brittany – a wander around La Roche-Bernard, where the river is busy but the streets are quiet, followed by a visit to the Arzal barrage. Tomorrow it’s an early start – we’re sailing from St Malo, on the long slow crossing to Portsmouth.
22 April 2003: a drive out the the Gulf of Morbihan. Port Navalo is on the eastern side of the gulf’s mouth, through which the sea rushes in and out twice a day. Nothing so energetic for us – I think our visit may have included refreshments at a local café, which probably involved crèpes…
21 April 2003: We found this site by accident, while studying the Michelin map – “where shall we go today?”. Carnac is well-known, deservedly so. On a scrubby ridge near Saint-Just, a few miles north-east of Redon, the Landes de Cojoux seem to be much less popular, despite the fascinating arrays of megaliths.
20 April 2003: more from Brittany. We’ve driven down to the Brière marshes, hired a boat and paddled ourselves out into this strange waterlogged landscape. Somewhere we can hear a bittern booming, but there’s no chance of seeing him. Afterwards, we head for the little walled town of Guérande, which I’m sure would have been well worth a lengthier stay – on a quiet day… We didn’t hang around.
19 April 2003: still in Brittany, we’re taking a look at Josselin and Ploermel.
19 April 2009: Herefordshire – the chestnuts are certainly ancient (and several are dead, sadly); the woodlands around Fishpool Valley are coming alive.
19 April 2015: a walk from home – there are Soay sheep in the fields near Benthall.
Little in common, apart from their dates – 18 April, and they all involve buildings:
2003 – the splendid market hall at Questembert, Brittany
2004 – John Jacques’ wonderful little museum at Shackerstone station (Battlefield line)
2010 – Hanbury Hall, Worcestershire (NT)
It seems to have been a very productive day over the years:
2003: Malestroit, Brittany
2004: Knighton, Powis
2006: Weston Park – for the miniature railway and a commercial vehicle rally
More recent years have been blogged already, but a couple are worth revisiting:
2016: Wyre Forest, for a close encounter with a heron. See Forest Paths
2019: Staffin, Skye – a couple of old sea dogs at the slip. Staffin Strolling
16 April 2003: It’s a “Petite Cité de Caractère” in the south-east corner of Morbihan, Brittany – an interesting little place to explore, or to sit and enjoy a glass of French beer.
…and here’s the other “Rail Diaries” entry. After our ride to Cayeux-sur-Mer, on the Baie de Somme railway, we’d driven some 60-odd miles to Le P’tit train de la Haute Somme. Visit “Froissy – Cappy – Dompierre” to find out more.
Just posted to Geoff’s Rail Diaries – “Rails around the Somme Bay“, the full account of our visit(s) to the Chemin de Fer de la Baie de Somme, illustrated by 55 photos. Now for the Froissy – Cappy – Dompierre…
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