Fickle Winds & Faithful Engine
It's a sure sign of older age if someone harks back to the good old days, when winds blew steadily from abeam, not too strong, not too weak. So let's just say that I've been finding the weather a bit strange and sometimes quite tedious! Things are not helped by a big Atlantic swell and waves from the bad weather further North, which are much larger than the wind might suggest. I do hate it when the rolling slams the wind out of the sails, which can be a problem around here.
However, we left Brest in a fresh WSW breeze (right on the nose) and beat down the "gullet" the few miles to Camaret. Here we found a special sign for visiting foreign yachts.
Now Where?
The reason for this was clear. The local defensive tower, Tour Vauban, was completed at the end of the 17th century, just in time to repel an Anglo-Dutch attack. They seem to be still nervous, although the recent rioting in Brest was nothing to do with us.
Tour Vauban, Camaret
Camaret Old and New
[Rosie: I was sitting in our cockpit in Camaret, moored as we were on the slightly unkempt wave-break pontoon, when I heard an altercation between two gulls next to me. One was pecking some goo out of a filthy looking black sac and the other was trying to get a look in. After a while, the larger, black-backed gull won and had the sac all to himself. This was about 6 inches long and hollow. The gull was slamming it down onto the concrete pontoon and soon a white plate shot out of it. No sooner had this been done when the gull swallowed the sac whole and flew away satisfied. It was amazing to see such a large object gulped down in one! Must have been a Cuttlefish I reckon.]
Our progress South is now being hampered by very light winds, so we are taking it in small bites with lots of motor-sailing. However, we did make it through the Raz de Sein with a decent breeze for a while.
Camaret to St Evette, where we anchored for the night, was a puny 27 miles. Audierne was close by but too much of a narrow, silting channel on a falling tide. Old age again, or just common sense?
Starfish in St Evette Bay, all safely returned to their home.
After clearing the starfish from our anchor, we headed SE along the coast again, firstly motoring, then managing the cruising chute for a while before arriving at Concarneau, goose-winged, in a good following breeze.
Ghosting Along
Concarneau is a lovely place, with old citadel and fancy restaurants. It was one of our more expensive meals out, last night, very fine.
Rosie before supper, Concarneau
Only one night in this lovely (but expensive) place? Yes, we must move South!
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