The Calvados area of Normandy has some local produce that we had hoped to stock up on, the local brew of Calvados (apple brandy) and Pommeau (apple juice mixed with apple brandy) seemed inviting, however our route south towards Rennes we inadvertently bypassed places to buy from. Not to worry - we'll stop on the way back north ....hopefully!
So off to Rennes we go, the capital of Brittany.
The route to the south west took around 3 hours through Avranches, (its Notre Dame church spire a notable landmark along the way) the rest of the journey was mostly forgettable, dual carriageway and rather uneventful compared to the pretty roads and villages we had left behind in Normandy.
Arriving at the campsite, fortuitously it was close to the town centre, yet we found it to be in part forest part park land.
Our given pitch we found to be on the perimeter of the site backing onto woodland..it was ideal - only disturbed by a number of rabbits bounding about, guessing the grass quite tasty around our camper van.
The site was great, many cycle trails and walks on our doorstep, as well as a short walk to the local bus stop to get into the centre of town about 3km away.
Before arriving at the campsite, we had visited a local supermarket, where Jo spied a thing she had mentioned a few times previously - the "Religieuses au Cafe" a throwback to her many family caravan holidays in France in the 80's. Also known as a "Nun's Hat".
When in Rome and all that - we made a purchase - well these choux buns with cream are not for the faint hearted, there is an awful lot of crème deceptively hidden within.
Time was needed to walk off the Nun's Hat, rather timely, the sound of what seemed a music festival came from nearby, so off we went like pied pipers in search of the source.
This took us into the large public park around a lake via a gate from the campsite, taking all of 5 minutes, lo and behold we came across a free daytime park rave... it would be a shame not to partake ... so duly we did... little did we know that we would soon be swaying to random french beat music with a beer in hand .. now we were...hippies on their holidays!
After spending a few hours with our 'new mates' we departed back to Tassie.. day time rave drinking brings on the munchies .. so time for dinner... unsurprisingly for those that know Jo .. the bbq was up and running in no time!
The following day we opted for a trip into town by bus, a reasonable 1.80 euro each, the 20 minute journey into the Rennes city centre on a bendy bus was made all the more interesting by the driver probably about to finish shift, his cornering and pace akin to a F1 driver around Monaco.
Rennes is a pretty town, but closed on a Sunday... not that it was an issue as we went for a lovely saunter around town, finding it rather empty, not many people about, making it a lovely walk ....Sundays seem to be religiously observed, as the only places open were the street cafes.
Twinned with Exeter since 1956, and with 2 regional languages spoken (Breton & Gallo) it mattered not one jot as school level french and google translate were up to the job when asking for coffees, pastries and of course une baguette!
We had a lovely afternoon strolling the city taking in the sites and generally mixing it up between pottering and ambling about.
The following day it was time to move on, we were heading south, more specifically to Les Sables D'Olonne, (french for "the sand of Olonne") a town on the Atlantic coast.
The town may have entered the consciousness of others back in 2001, when Ellen MacArthur came 2nd in the 'Vendée Globe' the round the world 45,000km yacht race, usually held every 4 years, with the next one scheduled to depart on 10th November 2024.
Our camp site was just 7km south of town, along a lovely coastal path, so with the sun shining we got the bikes out, and with the sea to our left we headed north into town.
The coastal route started with lovely rocky outcrops before settling into a 3km expanse of soft golden sand, we stopped regularly along the way, mostly to admire the views and watch the sail boats out in the bay.
Arriving at the marina in town, it was clear a few boats had arrived early for the start of the Vendée (this year there are 3 British skippers taking part) one of them is Pip Hare.
Pip used to live opposite Jo in a village outside Cambridge, Jo being friends with Pip's sister Katy at the time, the family also used to own a brown donkey, kept in the field behind Pip's house.
After a wander around the pontoons, we noted the boats already in port - most likely getting prepped ahead of the 40 boat race.
Guyot Water family - Benjamin Dutreax (Fr)
Teamwork SNEF - Justine Mettraux (Suis)
D'Ierteren - Denis Van Weynbergh (Ger)
Fun Fact: Les Sables D'Olonne is twinned with Worthing... given its sailing credentials I was expecting Cowes or Dartmouth!
Along the route to town roughly 50m out from the beach on the rocks between Les Roches Noires and Tanche is a 10ft statute of Ulysses, representing the mythological marine hero, it can be approached at low tide and can easily be seen from the embankment at high tide.
The walk out is quite tricky over slippery rocks..... but hey..... anything for photo of a mythical creature of the sea!
Crepes (one sweet one savoury) and a beer later it was time to cycle back to the camp site..
Sables D'Olonne .. what a fabulous little grown up seaside town.
We are following the sun...further south we venture - now off to Ile D'Oleron ...
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