A week in Brest

[Lehaut]

 

Having only visited the port several years ago for a week’s sailing, we never got to visit the city.  Last week we drove the 305km there on the motorbike to spend some time in the city itself.  Perhaps because we were blessed with excellent weather, we had a really good time.  There is only one tram line, a good bus service and a bit bizarrely a  téléphérique across the river.  We had not realised how hilly the area was.   I was particularly impressed by the conversion of the old Les Ateliers des Capucins, the biggest covered public square in Europe.  Not only does it look spectacular, they have retained some of the huge old machinery used in the construction of ships, stuff you never get to see.

The coast roads are fantastic, the sunshine made the scenery particularly photogenic.   It is really the end of the world though, winters must be quite challenging.

 

 

[menthe]

Lehaut, thank you for describing your trip and your wonderfully interesting photos.

Our travelling days are more or less totally over.  So it's great "see" Brest.  Did you go for a walk on the canal banks?

[flober]

did you visit oceanopolis?

[Lehaut]

Thanks menthe for the reply.  We did not walk along the canal, however two weeks ago we cycled 20 km along part of the Nantes-Brest canal just up from where we live in Nantes - if that counts!

In May/June this year we did another motorbike trip, 5500 km across to the UK, Lands end to John o' Groats, via Wales, the pennines the West Coast 500, then back down the centre of Ireland to Cork and back to Roscoff.  Hard to imagine after the summer we have had that it was 6°C with sleet in the Pennines and 4°C with pouring rain and thick fog at the top of Applecross in Scotland.  My long suffering wife is Scottish, but even she was not pleased with this view:

 

 

Contrasted with this, 8 days later on the Island of Colonsay.  We stayed with relatives there for a couple of days, the weather and views were spectacular, the water gin clear - but cold.

[Judith]

Your pic of the lighthouse reminds me of our holiday in Lewis, at the top, cliffs even more spectacular, beaches just as you show on Colonsay, but the winters must be quite dreadful that far north! We were there in September in the 70's, weather very tolerable, but everything shut up entirely on Sundays.  Only thing open was church.  We went to Callanish, the real reason for the trip, which was open as nothing to stop entry.  Restaurants only served cold food!  Those were the days!

[menthe]

Lehaut, I don't know how you  ride these long distances.  I can see you have a hugely impressive bike but didn't the vibrations get to your wrists?

What I most remember from riding a (tiny engine) bike when I was young was how tough it was on the wrists!

[Lehaut]

Good question menthe.  Things might have moved on a bit!  First, its a Honda, they know how to build quality machines, its a V4 engine, silky smooth, nothing like the big vibrating lumps that are popular in American bikes.  Also, the handlebars are mounted on rubber, so there are no vibrations in your hands.  However, all these things do not stop the problem of an aging butt!  A few years ago, 800 kms in a day was possible, however the "derrière" makes its objections long before that now! 

[Lehaut]

Judith, one thing has not changed much since the 70's and that was things being open that for north.  We met French bikes high up on the west coast.  They were complaining about how difficult it was to find places to eat and stay during the week.  It was a major headache finding accommodation and eating places.  When we talked to owners it was the same story, no staff.  When we were up that way pre Brexit, its was the east europeans that were working there in droves.  Now all gone.

Winters in Scotland are mostly wet now.  I spent 8 years living and working on the east and west coasts.  Diving under frozen sea lochs (for fun) when we had winters so cold the mooring ropes for the ships and submarines I worked on were frozen solid and could not be bent - happy days!

[AnnaDavid]

Thanks for taking me to this place through your photos!