For the last week or more the Azores high has sat serenely over NW France giving rise to the sort of summer weather we can normally only dream about – calm nights , warm mornings and delicious sea breezes in the afternoon and evening. If there is a nicer place to take advantage of this weather than the little inland sea that is the Morbihan , and outside it , Quiberon bay , then we have yet to come across it anywhere in our travels. Every day we take a trip of , oh let me see , at least 3 miles (!) , to anchor behind a different island with a different view . Some are deserted , some have little villages with cafes for an evening beer or perhaps Moules Frites, and the contrast between the whales and waves and wide horizons of the Atlantic could not be more striking. Nevertheless our little voyages require almost as much seamanship to negotiate the tide rips and eddies , and avoid the myriad traditional sailing craft that are out enjoying the same waters . Here we cannot set up the rig and steering gear , and leave it undisturbed for hours at a time. Every few metres the wind or current changes , or the depth shoals , so our small voyages are packed with incident.
If it all becomes a bit claustrophobic , we can take the 9 knot ebb racing out through the entrance channels and sail the 10 miles or so out to the sandy islands of Houat or Hoedic . Out here the sea breeze is fresh and the swimming bracing so after a day or 2 we sail back in ( with the huge tide under us ) and spend another 2 days exploring one of the rivers in the canoe or frightening ourselves ferry gliding across the huge tides in the narrows whilst Festina is anchored snugly further in.
Various people have been asking us when we are coming back . In fact , we have been asking ourselves the same question and then studiously ignoring it! No doubt the weather will come to an end soon and home will begin to seem more appealing , but for now Festina and her crew are living the life of Riley , completely un-blobbed – somewhere on the Atlantic coast of France.
As one who will, unfortunately, not be there to welcome you home, I’m all in favour of unlimited continuance. What, do you suppose, is a Morbihan Christmas like?
Happy cruising
John
Funny you should say that john – in fact it appears the parisiennes have discovered the Morbihan – house prices have rocketed and the local kids cant afford to buy. So nor could we , otherwise we might have seriously considered it!