Sailor sails a sailboat

[Sailor]

I've just got back from delivering my friend's boat to La Rochelle. The lucky people who are now taking it for a cruise along the northern Spanish coast will soon be eating the best seafood in western Europe.

Here's the boat, a J160:-




Our first stop was in Concarneau, two and a bit days from the Solent. There's been a walled town there since Moses was in short trousers.





Some of the wall is overgrown these days.



The part inside the citadel is small, but picturesque ...




... but even outside, there's lots of evidence of a civic pride we seem to have lost in much of Britain.

[toadster]

Lo
Boat and place look beautiful
Cheers for posting the pics
Toadster

[PreludePete]

Hi,

So you really are a Sailor!

Stayed in Concarneau many years ago, reminds me how nice it was. Happy memories.

Thanks Sailor!!

Pete

[Sailor]

I've been lucky enough to sail for years, mostly with three other chaps as a sort of 'core' crew. We used to charter in the 80s, then one of the others made a bob or two and bought his first boat. The one he owns now, the J160, is getting on for 20 years old (I can't remember ...) and often does more miles in a year than many cars.

To continue.

We left the floating pontoons of Concarneau …




… and sailed round to La Trinité, on an estuary just to the east of the Quiberon peninsula.



It’s a sailing Mecca of sorts; there are loads of boats:-




The town itself has charm …





… and surprises




The marina is clearly built for monsters




Yet it’s a working port and still has a role to play in the fishing industry

[Sailor]

Next to La Trinité is Carnac, famous for its 3000 or so megaliths.






Two of the crew walked there. The skipper and I took a mode of transport I have always refused before:




We sailed on. We would not normally want to cross the bows of a ship this close …



… but it was doing zero knots, waiting to get into St Nazaire, and held off lifting its anchor until we’d passed.


L’Herbaudière is a small port on the northern end of Noirmoutier. The entrance is via a narrow channel where depth is a concern.



You have to go slow, which makes it good for drying your laundry on the way out.




The place feels like somewhere south.




And behind the pretty flowers lurks a gem





Apart from the aftermarket exhaust tips, it looked like a real one.


Oh, and just to prove we really were in France …

[Sailor]

Finally, after a breezy night at an island anchorage, we approached La Rochelle.
The boat in the picture had no trouble with the bridge to Île de Ré, but we had to pick our way under one of the four central spans. I was at the helm at the time and concentrating – why didn’t I hand the camera over to someone to show how tight it felt from underneath? (In truth, we had 5m to spare, but it didn’t look like it.)




The city has six different locations for leisure craft and can take more yachts than anywhere I’ve ever been. This is the inner harbour.



The old lighthouse is still in superb condition.




Pleasingly, classic yachts are invited to moor by the maritime museum.



There’s even Bernard Moitessier’s Spray-inspired Joshua [see http://joshuagg.com/ for the new boat and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spray_(sailing_vessel) for the original]




And when the night falls, there’s plenty of scope for a beer before you wander back to your bunk.






All in all, it was great sail. What a pity, then, that my flight home was cancelled ...

[firstlude]

well thank you sailor for making me feel really jealous of your lovely travels

[prelude91]

And I always thought Honfleur was the best place for a Fruit de Mer, ha. Glad to see your latest exploits, hope you are keeping well. regards to you all, old and new, no 'lude for me these days, but still pop by from time to time.