Mont Saint Michel.

Thursday 2 June.

 

It rained during the night and it was still coming down heavily when we woke up. It didn't look like we were going to get out today so after breakfast we downloaded the 'Telegraph' and spent the morning reading it. I finished the crossword and also finished the book I was reading before lunch. Another motorhome arrived and parked next to us, the aire is huge with plenty of empty spaces I don't know what was so special about the spot next to us.

 

Mont Saint Michel in the distance

The rain had gone off and it was beginning to look more promising, so after lunch we decided to go for a walk. I intended just to walk along the path in the direction of St Michel but cross the bridge we could see before the Mont, there we would cross to the other side and come back along the opposite bank. We were walking at a brisk pace and feeling all right though Moira had started coughing again earlier and was choked up. When we reached the next bridge we found that it was a barrage to control the water level in the canal. On the other side of the barrage it was fairly dry and the sands stretched all the way and around the Mont in the distance. It had taken just over half an hour to reach the bridge so there was plenty of time to go further and we headed for St Michel.

The start of this year's Tour de France

 

Just a short distance from the barrage there were hotels, restaurants and souvenir shops. On a wall there was a notice saying that Mont Saint Michel was the 'Grand Depart' (the start) for this year's Tour de France beginning on July 2. We will be home in time to see that on the TV. From that point no cars were allowed and there was a large carpark, from there a shuttle bus ferried the people to the Mont, or they could take a horse drawn carriage or like us walk.

Horse and cart shuttle.

 

We came off the traffic free path and along the side of the road for about 1/2 km then it was a board-walked bridge across the sands to the entrance of the Mont. All the way we had views of the Mont and the church on top with its tall steeple but now as we got closer we were able to see more of the detail. The lower parts were a walled fortress with a walkway round the ramparts where we could see people walking. The entrance was arched with a portcullis and drawbridge then the narrow street wound its way upwards to the church at the top.

 

Entrance with portcullis.

Closer view of the Mont

There was an information office just inside the entrance and we went in for maps and I waited to get some info about St Michael's Mount in Cornwall. The woman didn't have a clue and told me to wait for the man who was busy on the phone. Eventually he finished and told me that it was the same order of monks that started both places and was about to tell me about pilgrimages when someone came in and wanted an ambulance for a stroke victim.

 

The church spire on top.

The ramparts.

 

The guy was back on the phone summoning help so I gave up and we continued with our visit. The street was lined with souvenir shops, restaurants and hotels, all very expensive, this was a true tourist trap. One example of a high price was a simple thing, a fridge magnet; on the cruise I had been buying them at places where we stopped, the price ranged between €1 and €2, here they were €5. We just looked in windows and weren't tempted to buy anything. It was a nice walk all the way up to the church at the top but to go any further it was €9 each. As we had been to the church last time we were here so decided to give it a miss this time. We came down round the ramparts and got some fine views out over the sands to the sea. There were a number of groups treking over the sands round the Mont, that was another thing we did last time but gave that a miss as well; it is a bit wet underfoot and you either wear Wellingtons or walk in your bare feet. When we reached the crowded street again at the bottom we had had enough and began making our way back.

The surrounding sands.

Moira on the ramparts.

There were lots of people waiting for the shuttle buses as we made our way to the board walk. Now we seemed to be feeling very lively as we set a good pace into the little shopping area. I was looking for a loo but couldn't find one but made use of a thicket of trees. Another thing we wanted was an iced cream but couldn't find any of the shops selling them. Instead we made our way back to the canal path and it was another brisk pace to Beauvoir. At Beauvoir we went through the village streets to the aire. The windows of the shops and restaurants were painted with cartoons of cyclists taking part in the 'Tour'. These must have been done today as we hadn't noticed them when we walked into the village yesterday.

 

The Tour is coming!

It was just about dinner time when we got back to the 'van. It had been an hour's walk each way and quite an enjoyable visit to the Mont. I put the radio on while Moira made the dinner. After washing up it was nearly a repeat of last night's TV except we watched 'Mash' on the Entertainment channel instead of the news on Channel 4. I managed to stay awake until the end of this evening's 'Springwatch' but it did finish earlier tonight, at 10:00 pm.

 

 

 

 

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