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Day 3 on the GR34: walking from Pointe de Brézellec to Port du Loch (Brittany, France)

July 3, 2018 by Maria Fernandez

GR34 coastal path - Pointe du Raz - www.simonking.bike

Day 3 on the GR34: map & data

© OpenStreetMap contributors
Total distance: 12.53 mi
Total climbing: 653 m
Total time: 07:38:09
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Average speed 1.6 mph, including stopping for lunch

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We left our cosy B&B after having a typical French breakfast. That’s a couple of croissants and little more. In this part of the world they don’t serve the energetic breakfast we usually get when we’re out and about.

On our way to Cléden-Cap-Sizun

To make up for it, we decided to get some goodies for lunch, which meant we had to walk to Cléden-Cap-Sizun, the only place within miles with a shop.

That’s what happens when you stay in an idyllic place away from civilisation.

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GR34 coastal path - Pointe du Raz - www.simonking.bike

9.25 – Idyllic view from our B&B rooms

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Click to see the photo gallery
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In Cléden-Cap-Sizun we made sure we had a look around. And, of course, we found the biggest church.

This was going to be a great day for chapels, crosses, virgins, and other religious curiosities. Our faith, though, was mostly on the weather forecast, which was predicting a dry day.

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GR34 coastal path - Pointe du Raz - www.simonking.bike

9.50 – Church of Saint Clet in Cléden-Cap-Sizun

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Rather than heading straight for the coast, we did like on the previous day: we first explored the nearby villages and farms.

All was quiet and peaceful, like presumably it always is around here.

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GR34 coastal path - Pointe du Raz - www.simonking.bike

10.23 – The village of Lézanquel

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The sky wasn’t as threatening as the day before but, just in case, we put the covers on our rucksacks. Simon was unmissable in his 100% orange outfit.

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GR34 coastal path - Pointe du Raz - www.simonking.bike

10.29 – On our way to the GR34

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The village of Trouzent was well worth visiting. It had a WWl memorial, similar to the ones we’d seen in other Breton villages.

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GR34 coastal path - Pointe du Raz - www.simonking.bike

10.48 – WWI memorial near Trouzent

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It also had an elegant chapel.

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GR34 coastal path - Pointe du Raz - www.simonking.bike

10.49 – Chapel of Saint Tugdual, Trouzent

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Plus the quaint streets and houses we’d become accustomed to. Bretons are very practical people. They know that fighting Nature is never a good idea, so they build their villages to stand against all kinds of weather.

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GR34 coastal path - Pointe du Raz - www.simonking.bike

10.54 – The village of Trouzent

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But, for me, the most impressive of all is the Breton language. Nostalgic, defiant, impenetrable and, at least on this sign, admirably concise. The translator must have been in a hurry.

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GR34 coastal path - Pointe du Raz - www.simonking.bike

11.51 – I admire the Breton brevity, and the Great National “Sight”

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This is where we joined the GR34, at the Baie des Trépassés. Here we faffed around for a bit by the beach and then pressed on.

The bay lies half way between the Pointe du Van and the Pointe du Raz, as you can see on the map above.

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GR34 coastal path - Pointe du Raz - www.simonking.bike

11.57 – The Baie de Trépassés

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We were heading for the Point du Raz and could just make out the lighthouse in the distance.

Like on the two previous days, we walked along the narrow path by the cliffs. Fortunately, there was hardly any wind, and the views were spectacular.

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GR34 coastal path - Pointe du Raz - www.simonking.bike

12.16 – More cliffs & the Pointe du Raz in the distance

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The semaphore is part of the military post, so you can only admire it from outside.

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GR34 coastal path - Pointe du Raz - www.simonking.bike

12.38 – The Pointe du Raz ship semaphore

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But there’s plenty more to admire here. We walked past the semaphore and stood here, contemplating the rocks, and wondering how anyone managed to build a lighthouse out there.

There were also quite a few boats around. If you look closely at the water, you can see them sailing by.

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GR34 coastal path - Pointe du Raz - www.simonking.bike

12.45 – The Pointe du Raz

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The sea around here can be extremely dangerous in rough weather. That’s why Our Lady of the Shipwrecked is facing the Point du Raz.

It may only be a statue, but it’s a beautiful and humbling one.

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GR34 coastal path - Pointe du Raz - www.simonking.bike

12.54 – Notre Dame des Naufragés (Our Lady of the Shipwrecked)

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You can get a better idea of just how dangerous the Point du Raz is when you look at it from a distance.

From here you can also see the path we walked on. By the way, around this area is where we saw the largest number of people in our four walking days.

Most of them, though, only walked a few hundred yards on the path, and then back to the car park. We continued on the path and caught up with a couple of long-distance walkers, but we were soon once again on our own.

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GR34 coastal path - Pointe du Raz - www.simonking.bike

13.42 – Looking back at the Pointe du Raz

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Throughout the Breton coast you can feel the force of Nature, and you can also see proof of the remarkable human ingenuity. Look at this awesome port and those walls.

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GR34 coastal path - Pointe du Raz - www.simonking.bike

13.52 – The port de Bestrée, an engineering marvel

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I couldn’t see any frogs on the path, but I spotted this superb caterpillar that was minding its own business in the middle of the GR34.

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GR34 coastal path - Pointe du Raz - www.simonking.bike

14.11 – A very attractive & terribly hairy caterpillar

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The two previous days we’d seen some spectacular cliffs, but the ones today made your hair stand up. And the thunderstorms roaring in the distance certainly helped.

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GR34 coastal path - Pointe du Raz - www.simonking.bike

14.17 – Vertical cliffs next to the GR34 path

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Soon we got to another port.

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GR34 coastal path - Pointe du Raz - www.simonking.bike

14.52 – Port de Feunteun Aod

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There are thousands of miles of GR footpaths throughout France. We’ve realised we’re going to have to take quite a few more holidays in the near future, if we want to do even just a small percentage of them.

I can live with that.

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GR34 coastal path - Pointe du Raz - www.simonking.bike

15.49 – Getting to Pors Loubous

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Here we left the GR34 and took the path to Pennéac’h, a village a hundred yards from the coast and the coolest of names.

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GR34 coastal path - Pointe du Raz - www.simonking.bike

16.24 – The village of Pennéac’h

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From there we headed for Toramur where we found a most memorable chapel.

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GR34 coastal path - Pointe du Raz - www.simonking.bike

16.45 – Chapel of Notre Dame de Bon Voyage, near Toramur

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On the walls, you can see half a dozens boats, and there are scores of anchors painted on the ceiling. It’s the Chapel of Notre Dame de Bon Voyage, Our Lady of a Safe Harbour.

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Inside the chapel of Notre Dame de Bon Voyage

16.47 – Inside the chapel of Notre Dame de Bon Voyage

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At this point Simon had the genius idea of taking a shortcut through a forest. At 6′ 2″ it was OK for him, but I was basically lost in the bracken, with vegetation above my head and no idea of where I was going.

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GR34 coastal path - Pointe du Raz - www.simonking.bike

16.51 – Forging through high bracken

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Somehow I managed to follow him out of the maze, and we got to Toramur, a small village with a pretty cross.

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GR34 coastal path - Pointe du Raz - www.simonking.bike

16.59 – Cross just outside Toramur

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In the end, as the forecast had predicted, we got no rain all day, but we did get quite a dramatic sky from time to time.

But, by now, there was a more pressing thing on our minds: what was dinner going to be like?

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GR34 coastal path - Pointe du Raz - www.simonking.bike

17.00 – The village of Toramur

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Our hotel near Anse du Loc’h was nothing to write home about, so we left our rucksacks and went back out for a walk, hoping to find dinner somewhere.

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GR34 coastal path - Pointe du Raz - www.simonking.bike

17.13 – Anse du Loc’h, our destination

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Fortunately, we were out of luck. At the supermarket we bought next day’s breakfast, and returned to the hotel not too sure what to expect dinner-wise.

We had been most unimpressed by our room, so we had little hope of a gourmet meal.

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GR34 coastal path - Pointe du Raz - www.simonking.bike

18.24 – The last supermarket before America!

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As it turned out, that’s exactly what we got. The French really know how to prioritise things in life.

And so, we went to bed happy, and ready for our fourth and last walking day.

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Our 2018 holiday in France

A week in Les Sables d’Olonne (Pays de la Loire): from 22 to 29 June, 2018.

Cycling to the salt marshes north of Les Sables d’Olonne (Pays de la Loire): 24 June, 2018.

Cycling from Les Sables d’Olonne to Sainte Foy (Pays de la Loire): 28 June, 2018.

Walking around Douarnenez (Brittany): 30 June, 2018.

Day 1 walking on the GR34 (Brittany): 1 July, 2018.

Day 2 walking on the GR34 (Brittany): 2 July, 2018.

Day 4 walking on the GR34 (Brittany): 4 July, 2018.

A visit to Quimper (Brittany): 4 & 5 July, 2018.

A tour of Nantes (Pays de la Loire): 5 & 6 July, 2018.

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I took all the photos with the Panasonic.

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Filed Under: Abroad, Blog, Walk Tagged With: France, GR34, Walking

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