E5 Days 21-25

Monday, March 25th 

The Pizza vending machine

• Our path leads past the stonehenge like formation back to the Etang de Neal.

• Pipes are currently being laid there in a complex process.
• Our route today takes us mostly along country lanes and small roads and through some idyllic little villages, the beauty of which never ceases to amaze us.

• Through fields and orchards where the first flowers are already tentatively emerging.

• At one point, we pass a huge solar installation that almost looks like a very large satellite dish – the kind that can receive signals from outer space.

• We cross a Voie Verte, but unfortunately we don’t walk along it.
• The absolute highlight today is when we start to get hungry and actually reach a small village (normally we are in the middle of the forest far away from any civilisation at this point).

• The only problem is that there is nothing that remotely looks like a café or restaurant.
• So you can perhaps imagine how happy we are when we suddenly discover a pizza vending machine! We let out cries of joy and do a little happy dance – as best we can with our already tired feet.

• Equipped with two gloriously warm pizzas, we sit down on a bench that is available – today really is our lucky day! – We eat blissfully and agree: this is the best food we’ve eaten in France so far!

• Our path continues along a lake towards a canal, which we follow for the rest of the day.

• For our next break, we discover a cosy tree trunk with a fork where we can both lean back and stretch out.

• Two fellow hikers pass by and say, nodding appreciatively: “Ah, votre fauteuil!” – Exactly!
• As we walk on, we see animals swimming in the canal: “Look, beavers!” I say to Matthäus, but when one of the animals comes ashore, it turns out that it’s not beavers, but muskrats.

• We pass a mill, a kind of castle, an artists’ park and donkeys (in that order).

• A fallen tree across the path makes progress difficult.

• We meet a cyclist who overtook us earlier and now, as he had to dismount anyway, has a snack by the tree.

• Below Dinan lies the small town of Lehon, which takes us completely by surprise.
• There is an old abbey here, which we discover by chance.

• It is beautiful and we take a tour of the cloister, where we immediately feel the peace and quiet that often emanates from cloisters.
• We plunge back into the hustle and bustle of the alleyways of Lehon, which are surprisingly busy, only to walk towards the town shortly afterwards on an avenue-like path along the shore below the cliffs on which Dinan lies.

• On the other side of the river, we spot a group of tourists racing along the shore on Segways.
• To get to Dinan, we have to climb up the rock and use a small path that almost looks like it’s closed off.
• We ignore the sign and scramble up anyway, only to find it closed off at the top as well – and arrive in style in the town of Dinan- climbing over a fence.

• Dinan is beautiful, but strangely deserted and to our astonishment it looks as if all the restaurants are closed today!?
• The only people we see are other tourists who are also desperately searching for an open restaurant (in vain).

• Snacks it is and good night!

Tuesday, March 26th

Tidal power station and movable bridges

• There is a café downstairs in our hotel where we get a great breakfast and very good coffee.

• We stroll through the medieval and fortified town of Dinan before descending from the hill.
• Here we find the town’s harbour on the canal, which is equally beautiful as the town itself.

• Instead of following the river, which makes a thousand loops, we take the shorter option through the valley along a railway line.
• We walk along small roads and paths that eventually lead into larger paths that remind us of the Voie Verte.

• Suddenly we see a switch that is apparently, or hopefully, no longer in use and from which a Voie Verte actually leads away.
• We can even see old station buildings along the line.

• Through smaller paths across a not so idyllic village, we reach the river again, which leads us to the large canal – towards the sea.

• Here we reach a bay which – as we only now find out – can only be crossed at low tide, as it is under water at high tide.

• We’re lucky, it’s low tide and so we get through without any problems – phew!
• The route is beautiful, with the sand and the sea gently lapping the beach far out to sea.

• Finally, we reach a large bridge, or rather a lock with a tidal power station, which we cross over to the other side of the canal and with it the city of Saint Malo.

• Just as we are standing on the small pedestrian bridge admiring the huge lock system, a voice sounds from a loudspeaker: “Please keep walking, don’t stop on the bridge!”
• “Do you think he is talking to us?” asks Matthäus slightly worried. “Naah, surely not!” I assure him.
• Still, we keep walking a little further, just in case and as soon as we have taken the last step off the bridge, loud flashing and beeping starts and the lock gate slowly opens as the bridge begins to turn.

• “So much for that,” comments Matthäus dryly, “‘he surely isn’t talking to us’.”
• Apparently it is a spectacle that takes place every hour, and I overhear a few German tourists say that they have travelled here especially for it.
• It’s also great to see the mighty installation set in motion.

• No less impressive is the tidal power station behind it, which we see up close as we cross it.

• We soon reach the outskirts of Saint Malo, a fortified town by the sea.

• On the way we discover a Sacré-Coeur school (just like the one I went to).

• And we come across a second movable bridge, which of course is open when we reach it. We patiently wait in front of it along with many other people.

• The city is impressive with its thick city walls, which are still completely intact. It is not for today, however, since after our hike the only thing we want to do is lie down in bed and not get up again. So we check in at the hotel and order poutine (!) for dinner – nice!

Wednesday, March 27th

Saint Malo and its Media centre

• Break day 🙂
• We therefore decide to pay a detailed visit to the city of Saint Malo and walk around the city walls, as the GR would naturally like to do.

• It pays off – it is impressive to see how the mighty walls rise out of the sea and how the waves crash against them.

• Within the walls, we find lovely tiny stone houses build in rows along the walls.
• Of course, there are also the old cannons, set up every two metres, and the tourists taking selfies in front of them.
• My travel diary is slowly running out of pages, so I’m looking for a new one and take this as an opportunity to take Matthäus to all the bookshops in the city (to his relief, there are only two plus a comic shop).

• I enjoy the extensive search for a new travel diary, during which I also take a look at one or two books and really enjoy holding real books in my hands again (I only took the e-reader with me for the hike).
• Much to my delight, Matthäus then agrees to pay a visit to a café – the day is perfect!
• Finally, we walk past the harbour to the media centre, where you can use computers for free, and use one to do organisational things and I write a bit of a blog.

• Finally, we pick up our rucksacks from the hotel and set off on today’s stage: about three kilometres along the beach of Saint Malo to a hotel at the other end of the beach.

• There’s a lot going on on the promenade in the sunny weather and we let ourselves drift through the crowds, totally relaxed today and in no hurry.

• The further we get away from the city centre, the less busy it is and we enjoy the walk along the beach/quay in the fresh breeze that blows in from the sea.

• Here, too, there are very beautiful parts of Saint Malo and we find our hotel “La Rotonde” straight away.

• Directly opposite we discover a launderette!

• And that’s after I looked this morning and said to Matthäus: “I can’t find a launderette in Saint Malo.”
• Well, of course Matthäus only discovers it, when we just have finished washing everything by hand. “There is no launderette in Saint Malo?”, he asks, clearly not amused, “And what is that right over there?”
• Our hotel is somehow Italian, so we treat ourselves to delicious pizzas for dinner and then good night!

Thursday, March 28th

Coastal paths and the first view of Mont Saint Michel

• The coastal paths are back: uphill and downhill, the little path leads along the coast and wants to take every loop, no matter how absurd.

• This is understandable when you consider that these paths were once customs routes and the customs officers could hardly have missed a loop.

• However, we are cutting corners where we can today – partly because we are still a bit tired, but also also due to my very fluctuating but generally not so good mood.
• But still: The paths and the weather are beautiful and a real experience!

• The small paths lead along concrete footbridges, over rocks and across extensive sandy beaches that are under water at high tide.

• Incidentally, the tidal fluctuations here are among the highest in Europe.
• At one point along the route, Komoot informs us: “Caution, dangerous spot!” and adds: “Equipment may be required!”

• It’s actually a bit of a climb up the rocks, but fortunately we manage it without any equipment.
• At another point, we once again wish Komoot had a “tide warning” function, because while the path over larger stones through the water would not be a problem at low tide, now that the tide is slowly coming in, some of the stones are already under water, which not only makes the crossing very slippery, but also makes for wet shoes.

• We cross the slippery stones anyway, but behind us, hikers turn round at the sight of the incoming tide.
• In some places, the coast looks almost Mediterranean: Cedars line the shore and exude the typical coniferous smell associated with holidays on the Adriatic.

• Otherwise, the coastal paths remind us very much of the GR 34 sections at the beginning of our long hike (see here).

• The highlight is when we turn round a bend just before Cancale and the bay of the legendary Mont Saint Michel monastery lies ahead of us and indeed: in the distance in the huge clouds we can already see the outline of the monastery island.

• There are many oyster farms off and around the town of Cancale and we can see them stretching far along the coast.

• Cancale has a small lighthouse, which we are delighted to see when it finally appears.

• I looked up when Maundy Thursday mass would be, but I accidentally looked for “Carrouges” (we won’t be there for about two weeks) – there’s a very beautiful cathedral there and mass would be at 8pm, by the way.
• That’s rather a moot point anyways, because when we arrive, we don’t want to go anywhere except to bed!

Friday, March 29th

The 24/7 Oyster vending machine

• Breakfast at the accommodation and off we go – along the coastal path.

• The coast here is very flat and some of the land is flooded and regularly submerged by the tide.

• It reminds us very much of the Dutch dune landscapes and alternates with sand and pebble beaches.

• There is one oyster farm after another and we are thrilled when we discover a 24/7 oyster vending machine – but unfortunately we don’t fancy oysters at the moment – and especially the detour there…

• Our route finally takes us away from the coast, as today we are making a detour to Dol de Bretagne, the town that is best known for its huge cathedral.

• We reach the foot of Mont Dol via country lanes. Mount Dol is a 400m “mountain” – an elevation that can be seen kilometres in advance, as it is the only elevation for miles around.

• We climb the “mountain”, of course, and proudly take a “summit selfie”.

• A pretty little village lies just over the hill, which we pass through and continue towards Dol de Bretagne.

• We have accommodation in the town, but on the other side of the motorway in a place that is not easy to reach on foot.
• After an adventurous walk along a large road, we reach the accommodation and it is really nice – run by a young couple with five children.
• We check in and then set off to attend Good Friday mass in the cathedral.
• However, it’s still about 2km to the centre of the town and not an easy walk, we realise, at least if you want to avoid the main road.

• We reach the village via muddy roads and a slightly flooded subway and have a very special encounter on the way there:
• We see an animal in a fenced-off pasture: “Ah, an animal,” we both think, until we take a closer look and see it: It’s a wild boar!

• We find out that Good Friday mass lasts forever(!!), well over an hour, but the cathedral is beautifully Gothic and great to look at.

• Finally, we eat a sandwich from the bakery, illegally in the room, and then fall asleep immediately.