Quiberon and Carnac 2024

[kerouac2]

Quiberon is one of those places that attracts the wandering traveller, just from looking at the map.

Of course, it is just a tiny thing dangling under southern Brittany.

I knew it was a very popular summer resort, but was there really much to see there?  I needed to find out.

[kerouac2]

My first thought when I saw the hotel was that the people in the neighbouring houses must wish that the person who sold that piece of land will burn in hell forever.



It was only about 200 metres to the town centre so I went to explore a bit.





The church is considered to be the central point, here and in just about every small town in France.



The shopping area was very tidy.





Blue and white is the constant theme in Brittany, just like Greece.

[kerouac2]

Obviously, being on this tiny peninsula, I needed to see the ocean as quickly as possible.

[kerouac2]

Places like this always make me crave seaweed salad.





The rocks, the seaweed, the seashells -- everything fascinates me along the ocean, even though the water scares me.

[htmb]

Looks like a wild and wooly place.

[lugg]

May 27, 2024 10:26:34 GMT kerouac2 said:

Obviously, being on this tiny peninsula, I needed to see the ocean as quickly as possible.

And how stunning it is

[kerouac2]

Next I went to see the touristy sea front where you even have to pay to park. There was a crap market in progres, sure to be worse in summer.









too early in the season for beach weather in Brittany



Some people are always desperate.



the usual tourist shops



lizarding up against a warm stone wall





I took a brief look inside the new ferry terminal. In a week or two it should be bustling.

[bixaorellana]

How beautiful! Yes, yes -- I see all the tourist tat & that the ferry terminal is an early warning sign of visitor onslaught, but the pictures of the water's edge with the tide out are just wonderful.

The hotel could at least have been painted white & had the balcony glass tinted blue instead of green. humph.

I guess the people "lizarding up against a warm stone wall" are a better indication of the temperature than the die-hards on the beach.

Looking forward to more.

[kerouac2]

These people were going to take a ferry to one of the islands.  Considering their baggage, I would suspect an extended stay.





All of these streets will be teeming in July and August.









I briefly found myself fascinated just with the plants hemming in the central car park.













Back at the hotel, I had to go and take a look at the jacuzzi and the sauna, since they are such a rare feature in this category of hotel.



When you open a sauna door, you have about one quarter of a second to take a photo before the lens is fogged.



My very last view of Quiberon was of the street under my balcony. I found the municipal method of making a school zone clear both effective and ugly.

[kerouac2]

I had not been to Carnac for 30 or 40 years, so I couldn't be so close this time without going again.



Back in the old days, there was no fence around the menhirs. You could walk anywhere through the fields. Not anymore.





Even though they have been there for 6000 years, they needed protection from modern times.



The sheep do not destroy or vandalise, so they can still graze in this area.





There are more than 3000 menhirs in Carnac alone with plenty more in the surrounding area. In this zone, they stretch 4 kilometres.



If it hadn't been raining, I might have gone looking for dolmens, tumulus and cairns but I kept it simple today.



The sheep do sometimes leave a bit of wool behind in the briars.
*




This house was inappropriately built in the middle of it all.



It is now empty and probably awaiting careful demolition. There will still be a few menhirs missing.

[htmb]

Excellent report. Any idea how wide the peninsula is at Quiberon?
It looks very narrow at Penthièvre. I’m guessing that part is very low, too.

[kerouac2]

Obviously I could see the ocean on both sides of the road there. It is just 22 metres wide there. In fact, Quiberon used to be an island. Sand and silt and pebbles put an end to that when the locals cut down all of the trees after the 11th century. I'm not sure exactly how wide the town itself it, but it covers 9 km².

[kerouac2]

How on earth did those people 6000 years ago manage to do this stuff?



I guess they didn't waste their time on social media.











There is what appears to be a very nice visitor centre, but it wasn't open yet.



My car was very lonely in the car park.

[cheerypeabrain]

This is such a lovely report, I've really enjoyed it. The seashore pictures are especially beautiful..and the seaside town reminds me of some of the UK ones that I've visited over the years. The ancient stones too. Are they henges?. Thank you Kerouac.

[htmb]

I had no idea there were that many stones in the area. If I had to guess I would have said five to ten.

[kerouac2]

It kept raining on and off.



The fields of menhirs varied in size from XXL to M.







I just didn't have time to go everywhere that was proposed.



Maybe this is where the children trained before going on to bigger stones.





We will never know what possessed the people of the Neolithic era to do this.



And then it was destination Paris, still a long way to go. Saw a big crash along the way. Not much left of the car.



I thought this was a great idea, to offer free compost (and bags) made from the coffee grounds and other organic debris at the service station.

[bjd]

What a great idea that compost is!

[bjd]

May 30, 2024 9:42:50 GMT kerouac2 said:

It kept raining on and off.

You were in Brittany! It's known for its rain.

[whatagain]

Reminded of our trip there about 20 years ago.

I am surprised you don't know the reason for the alignements. It is explained in a scientifically book : Asterix and Obelix.

Obelix gave menhirs to à cousin who didn't know what to do and store them in his field.

[fumobici]

It's all quite pretty to look at and Quiberon is charming but those megaliths I find utterly fascinating.

[lugg]

This report has brought back so many happy memories for me , thank you K2 .