Two Go Back For More Cheese

[DBK]

We're now sitting in the queue for the 22:00 sailing from a damp Plymouth to Roscoff.

The weather forecast for northern France has improved a bit for this week but it won't be warm so we are committed to Plan B now and will head south, but not with any haste.

Anyone who has arrived in Plymouth on a ferry may remember the reception arrangements were a bit sketchy. In the last few weeks they have opened up a new set of booths for checking passports etc. Cars are still queueing though. We will find out for ourselves when we return here in six weeks time.

 

[DBK]

And we're off. Admittedly we are going backwards but we did board through the bow doors. I'm not sure if the ferry (the Amorique) has a problem with the stern doors as we drove on to be find lots of cars facing us, which isn't normal. We then drove down the left side of the car deck and did a U turn at the end so we are also now facing forward. Curious, although we have done this before on a BF ferry.

 

[mikebeaches]

I've always thought loading vehicles on ferries, especially BF, is a bit of a dark art.

Have a great trip.

 

[DBK]

I've always thought loading vehicles on ferries, especially BF, is a bit of a dark art.

Have a great trip.

It does appear completely random at times although I understand they take into account the weight of vehicles and load so the vessel isn't listing too badly.

On a vaguely related note I was looking at the Marine Traffic app and it showed the Amorique have a gross tonnage of about 30,000 tonnes but a deadweight of 4,200. I had to look that up and discovered deadweight is the total cargo it can carry. Every day a school day as they say.

 

[Jo662]

Have a great trip,looking forward to seeing where you end up going to

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[jumar]

Bon voyage, we wish you many Kms of safe driving and many tasty servings of cheese..hope the sun shines nicely.

 

[MR BLO]

Safe travels DBK and have a great holiday seeking sunshine and fromage in France

 

[FIDGET]

Hope you have a safe and enjoyable trip ,
Enjoy !!

 

[MichaelT]

Safe travels, we may see you in a couple of weeks when we start coming back up.

 

[Grianan]

Have a wonderful time … looking forward to reading all about it.

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[chaser]

We're now sitting in the queue for the 22:00 sailing from a damp Plymouth to Roscoff.

View attachment 800368

The weather forecast for northern France has improved a bit for this week but it won't be warm so we are committed to Plan B now and will head south, but not with any haste.

Anyone who has arrived in Plymouth on a ferry may remember the reception arrangements were a bit sketchy. In the last few weeks they have opened up a new set of booths for checking passports etc. Cars are still queueing though. We will find out for ourselves when we return here in six weeks time.

View attachment 800366

Have a good trip , will be following you on here but doesn't look like we will be interrupting you tour in the flesh this year for various reasons

 

[scousebird]

Have a lovely trip.

 

[3DOM]

Have fun, looking forward to you journey

 

[Just smiffy]

 

[Jo662]

Have a good trip , will be following you on here but doesn't look like we will be interrupting you tour in the flesh this year for various reasons

That’s sad to hear,I always learn good places to stay from you chaser

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[Figaro]

Enjoy your trip, I'm in Vendee now and weather is pleasant 22c sunshine and cloud. Chilly overnight though, heating needed in the morning.
A week ago it was 35+ here someone was telling me, I know which I'd prefer.
Looking forward to your travels

 

[Kurt and Ko]

Have a great trip. I’m looking forward to reading about your adventure.

 

[DBK]

Disembarkation this morning went ahead smoothly and we were soon on our way to the supermarket at Cléder a little west of Roscoff. After stocking up on the essentials (wine, beer and some food) we headed for the nearby CCP aire on the coast at Poulennou.

We've stayed here several times before but it was nice to be back. Having been woken this morning at 06:50 French time which was 05:50 UK time (!) it was tempting to go back to bed as soon as we arrived but instead we went for a walk of about an hour along the coast with a bit of a loop inland to avoid retracing all our steps.

Typical coastal scenery here.

When we first saw this circular structure a few years ago I thought it must be a swimming pool. But I have since read it is actually a fish trap.

I think it is of relatively recent origin but they have found traces in Brittany of stone fish traps or fish wiers as I think they are more correctly called going back a few thousand years.

After lunch I took Charlie for a short walk in the other direction along the coast and was surprised to find these.

They are the Autumn Ladies Tresses orchid. The Latin name describes their form very well: Spiranthese spiralis. I wasn't expecting to find a orchids on this trip so I haven't even brought an orchid book but it was an interesting discovery. Barely 6" high they aren't the most impressive orchid but nice to know they are growing here. Sadly, I forgot to take me binoculars so the two birds which might have been whimbrels will have remain in the "might have been" bracket. They looked like curlews but the bills were noticibly shorter but without binoculars to see the distinctive dark eye-stripe I couldn't be certain. I will try and find them again.

Tomorrow we will visit a local open-air market and no doubt do a bit more walking.

 

[DBK]

Postscript to the above. I went back to the beach to see if the two birds were still there. They were and with binoculars confirmed my initial suspicions were half right. One of them was a curlew but the other, which was noticeably smaller, was a whimbrel. The dark eye-stripe was very easy to spot and the end third of the bill was turned down fairly sharply. This is mentioned in a few descriptions and it was very easy to spot on this bird. I don't recall ever seeing one before despite always looking for them whenever I see a curlew.

How to tell the difference between curlews and whimbrels

The curlew and whimbrel are both large, brown waders with long, downcurved bills. Distinguishing them can be tricky at long range, but if you've got a good view and know what you're looking for, it shouldn't be too hard.

www.discoverwildlife.com

 

[DBK]

We are not yet flying the Yellow Jack* from the 'van today but it was a close run thing. We have been feeling a bit rough the last few days but last night was uncomfortable for both of us, especially Mrs DBK who had a bad cough.

So our first actions this morning were to take a covid test. I'd forgotten how unpleasant they are - think sword swalling with a cotton bud. But both our tests came back negative. I'm slightly disappointed by this result in a curious way. If we have to endure the coughs and sneezes I would prefer it if at least my covid anti-bodies were being topped up.

There is some scuttlebuck on US medical websites whether lateral flow tests pick up the latest variants but the UK Gov site says they are still good. Who to trust? There's a good question!

But we decided to visit an open air market today anyway. As long as we didn't sneeze over the produce no one would know.

The market at Guissény, 40 minutes drive west, is only held in July and August. There is an aire in the town but unfortunately the market had plonked itself in the way Google Maps wanted to take us there. It then suggested a route through a car park then down a one way street the wrong way, which, this being France where such signs are only considered as suggestions I tried, but I was thwarted by a narrow corner and bend. Subsequently I discovered we probably could have got through if I had bothered to get out and recce on foot.

Instead Mrs DBK broke out the red flag and walked behind as we reversed out.

We parked at the aire after a further diversion around the market. Water available with a jeton obtainable from local shops according to CamperContact.

It doesn't look a bad place and though beside a road it should be quiet at night, but it isn't big - RVs stay away!

The walk to the market took us past this sign which expanded my knowledge of French yet again.

I recognised "hebdo" as it means weekly, but "hebdomadaire" was a puzzle. According to Google Translate it also means "weekly" as well.

The market was worth visiting. I feared it would be full of folk selling plastic shoes etc but it was much more a farmers' market with only food related products on sale. Not big but worth a visit.

We bought a big yellow tomato from here, slightly smaller than the one you can see below. It will be sliced with mozzarella, olive oil and basil for a lunch with crusty bread.

The church was interesting.

A wooden ceiling giving the upturned boat look so often seen near the sea around here.

A sign in the churchyard was intriguing.

It talks about "zero pesticides" in the cemetery. An interesting phrase it uses is "des défunts" which does indeed mean "the deceased".

We did a bit of unsuccessful geocaching after lunch. The first cache we couldn't find and a check revealed no one else had either for a while. The solution was revealed in the most recent entry which was from the cache owner. This said the cache had indeed vanished and they would replace it in a week. This entry was dated today!

There was another cache a little further on but access seemed to involve climbing into low, man-made cave. We gave it a miss.

Nearby was a cross.

There were signs it had once had explanatory labels but these had vanished. I would like to think it marked a wreck but I'm not sure. Would these poor communities have gone to this expense for a ship-load of foreigners?

If we have recovered enough tomorrow we will try for a serious cheese hunt.

* Showing a vessel with disease/plague

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[Just smiffy]

Hope you both feel better tomorrow…

 

[scousebird]

Hope you both feel better tomorrow…

Ditto.

 

[Jane And Rog]

I think hebdo is just an informal shortening of hebdomadaire. Looking forwards to tales of cheese!

 

[Marmanlady]

Bring on tales of cheese please.

 

[bobandjanie]

A little is OK because I love cheese but it doesn't agree with me, especially when it's melted the lactose intolerance is far worse .
Hope you both feel better soon, I felt cr@p two weeks ago but persisted with our daily life, had a covid test that was fine the coughing was annoying but feeling almost back to normal now.
Already loving your trip safe journey . Bob.

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[DBK]

Just a short entry for today. Our colds are doing well and seem to be thriving.

After a stop in the supermarket at Cléder to stock up on Kleenex Supersoft Tissues we drove south to the Gulf of Morbihan. Shown by the blue blob.

Zoomed in.

If we're feeling better tomorrow we will go for a walk!

Happy sneezes!

 

[Grianan]

Hope you’re both on the mend soon …

 

[Mr porky]

We are not yet flying the Yellow Jack* from the 'van today but it was a close run thing. We have been feeling a bit rough the last few days but last night was uncomfortable for both of us, especially Mrs DBK who had a bad cough.

So our first actions this morning were to take a covid test. I'd forgotten how unpleasant they are - think sword swalling with a cotton bud. But both our tests came back negative. I'm slightly disappointed by this result in a curious way. If we have to endure the coughs and sneezes I would prefer it if at least my covid anti-bodies were being topped up.

There is some scuttlebuck on US medical websites whether lateral flow tests pick up the latest variants but the UK Gov site says they are still good. Who to trust? There's a good question!

But we decided to visit an open air market today anyway. As long as we didn't sneeze over the produce no one would know.

The market at Guissény, 40 minutes drive west, is only held in July and August. There is an aire in the town but unfortunately the market had plonked itself in the way Google Maps wanted to take us there. It then suggested a route through a car park then down a one way street the wrong way, which, this being France where such signs are only considered as suggestions I tried, but I was thwarted by a narrow corner and bend. Subsequently I discovered we probably could have got through if I had bothered to get out and recce on foot.

Instead Mrs DBK broke out the red flag and walked behind as we reversed out.

We parked at the aire after a further diversion around the market. Water available with a jeton obtainable from local shops according to CamperContact.

View attachment 801142

It doesn't look a bad place and though beside a road it should be quiet at night, but it isn't big - RVs stay away!

The walk to the market took us past this sign which expanded my knowledge of French yet again.

View attachment 801143

I recognised "hebdo" as it means weekly, but "hebdomadaire" was a puzzle. According to Google Translate it also means "weekly" as well.

The market was worth visiting. I feared it would be full of folk selling plastic shoes etc but it was much more a farmers' market with only food related products on sale. Not big but worth a visit.

View attachment 801149

We bought a big yellow tomato from here, slightly smaller than the one you can see below. It will be sliced with mozzarella, olive oil and basil for a lunch with crusty bread.

View attachment 801147

The church was interesting.

View attachment 801146

A wooden ceiling giving the upturned boat look so often seen near the sea around here.

A sign in the churchyard was intriguing.

View attachment 801145

It talks about "zero pesticides" in the cemetery. An interesting phrase it uses is "des défunts" which does indeed mean "the deceased".

We did a bit of unsuccessful geocaching after lunch. The first cache we couldn't find and a check revealed no one else had either for a while. The solution was revealed in the most recent entry which was from the cache owner. This said the cache had indeed vanished and they would replace it in a week. This entry was dated today!

There was another cache a little further on but access seemed to involve climbing into low, man-made cave. We gave it a miss.

Nearby was a cross.

View attachment 801151

There were signs it had once had explanatory labels but these had vanished. I would like to think it marked a wreck but I'm not sure. Would these poor communities have gone to this expense for a ship-load of foreigners?

If we have recovered enough tomorrow we will try for a serious cheese hunt.

* Showing a vessel with disease/plague

I love a fresh produce market.
Plus a tomato salad with sea salt, nothing better

 

[DBK]

We are still taking thing easy. Mrs DBK had a rough night, coughing most of the way through it. I don't seem to have caught the cough, my symptoms are concentrated at the other end of the digestive tract. Can a cold give you wind? Readers of a sensitive nature may wish to stop here but I've been producing the most explosive f*rts. Fortunately, to use a description normally used about coughs, they are "dry and unproductive". I'm sure you will be re-assured by this news!

After a drizzly morning we went for a wander this afternoon. A lot of new geocaches have appeared since we were last here and we even managed to find a few of them!

Random photos from our walk.

We have a wisteria growing on our house but it is only a few years old. This monster is astonishing. I suspect it carries on around the house to the left. The trunk on the right is probably two feet across.

We've seen some impressive village laundries in Spain and this French one isn't in the same league. The lack of water doesn't help. Note the angled tops to the blocks around it.

Just in front was this picnic table. Mrs DBK spotted the curious feature of a cantilevered section. It is for wheelchair users. Very clever and not something I've seen in the UK.

And that's about it for today I'm afraid. Hopefully things will be back to normal tomorrow as we seem to be both on the mend this evening.

The wine helps...

 

[suavecarve]

Just a short entry for today. Our colds are doing well and seem to be thriving.

After a stop in the supermarket at Cléder to stock up on Kleenex Supersoft Tissues we drove south to the Gulf of Morbihan. Shown by the blue blob.

View attachment 801725

Zoomed in.

View attachment 801724

If we're feeling better tomorrow we will go for a walk!

Happy sneezes!

We had st armel in the satnav for today.

Weather pushed us further south

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