On the road to the lighthouses
Discover my latest photos taken during a two-days photo trip on the south coast of Finistère (France), by a month of September unusually rainy.
Day 1
The first stage of my trip begins in South Finistère with a curiosity: the "Roche Percée" located not far from the beach of Kerveltrec and accessible via the GR34, also called the path of customs officers. To prevent the "Roche Percée" from deteriorating over time, it has been consolidated, so its appearance is no longer entirely natural...
This coastal area also has many coves of white sand and turquoise waters such as the beach of Bot-Conan and its kiosk of the Castle of the same name.
Heading west along the coast, I reach the town of Bénodet and its iconic lighthouse of the pyramid, which dominates the bay. Built in 1872 in the town, and 48 metres high, this lighthouse can be seen from the Glénans archipelago, more than 20 km from the mainland!
On the opposite bank, at the mouth of the Odet river, stands the lighthouse of Sainte-Marine. Built on the tip of Combrit" in 1885, its square tower is 13.20 metres high.
I continue my journey, still further west, towards the Eckmühl lighthouse, located at the tip of Penmarc'h. Inaugurated in 1897, it rises 65 metres above sea level and requires to climb 307 steps to reach its lantern. Visitors have the opportunity to access the platform, 290 steps however, which offers a breathtaking view of the entire Bay of Audierne.
Its walls are built entirely of Kersanton stone, and the inner wall of its staircase is covered with plates of opaline, superb!
Every year, in August, the Bigouden Athletic Club organizes an unusual event: the world championship of the climb of the lighthouse of Eckmühl. It is a race against the clock, with one start every minute.
Last stop of the day, The lighthouse of Raoulic, proudly standing on the dike called "Môle du Raoulic", and located at the mouth of the Goyen. The dike is a 215 metres long jetty that marks the entrance to the port of Audierne. The lighthouse, commissioned in 1856 is a cylindrical turret of granite 9.20 metres high.
After the beautiful late afternoon lights, I return to the dike after dinner to capture the superb colors of the golden and blue hour. Definitely the best photographic spot of the day...
22h00: the moon rises, the day ends after having walked 12 km of GR and coastal trails.
Day 2
6:30 am on the dike again... this time to seize the blue hour of the morning by a very cool temperature for the season, 6°! The dike is deserted, with only the sound of a few fishing boats outgoing at sea to break the silence... The bay of Audierne awakens in a blue azure full of serenity. Time marks a pause the space of few minutes.
9:00 am: I'm the first and only one at the "Pointe du Raz". The place is feared by sailors and famous for its spectacular storms, as evidenced by the nearby Bay of Shipwrecked. The sea is calm, visibility good and I can easily see the lighthouse of "la Vieille" in the foreground and the island of Saint and its lighthouse of Goulenez in the background.
I'm now heading north towards the "Pointe du Van". I have to take the coastal paths to access the chapel Saint-They, on the edge of the cliff. The chapel, overlooking the Bay of Shipwrecked, was entirely rebuilt in the 17th century and restored in the 19th century.
The Saint-Mathieu fountain located a little above the chapel was built in 1757, but destroyed during the 1960s land consolidation, it was rebuilt in 1992.
Brittany being a land of legends, and the Saint-They chapel has its own...
It is said that the bell of the Saint-They chapel rang itself to warn boats in danger to place themselves under the saint's protection.
I follow the coastal path to the "Pointe du Van" and discover a superb view of the "Pointe de Castelmeur".
I continue further east to discover the beach of the tip Beuzec-Cap-Sizun. The place has to be deserved... difficult to access. You have to take a path where the trees form a natural canopy so low that you sometimes have to bend down to move forward... then go down a path on the side of a cliff. But the effort is rewarded when you reach this natural setting. Here again... turquoise waters, white sand and a magnificent view of the Crozon peninsula on a clear day.
My last stop of the day, and the final point of my trip to South Finistère, is the Millier lighthouse. It's about a 20-minute walk from the car park to get there. This lighthouse, commissioned on 15 March 1881 and built on the edge of the cliff, is in the form of a half-tower embedded in the keeper's house. The lantern is perched 34 metres above the sea.
My trip in the south of Finistère ends after walking almost 26 km of coastal trails in two days. The Finistère is definitely an extraordinary land of play for a photographer.