Bretagne - the great trip this year, where to park, what to photograph

Hi after a very very long break. I was for some time focused on my new Instagram account mummy_has_a_hobby. It consumes already much of my time, but I have decided to get back to my internet page and blog.

  

The big event this year, the Brittany round trip. The family trip. Combining family holiday with my photo destinations. But if landscape photographer offers some points of interests on the way, the trip should be just impressive easily for anyone. There are some exceptions, like teenage kids, they have just another idea for spending holiday. Beach and laze around. But mummy had another idea. The small daughter didn’t complain. She was just enthusiastic about all the staff. So we started in Paris, with obvious things. And after two nights in the capital city we drove west. To start by the Mont Saint Michel.

1. MONT SAINT MICHEL

My first impression when I saw The Abbey, was just an exclamation because it was stunning . From the speedway it looks really huge, although it is not a small distance.

So first evening at the abbey. The famous serpentine small river view… you can forget it in summer. It is dried out. The best time for this location is either spring or autumn. So needs to be done again ;). 

A little bit further you reach some small ponds with a hills just nearby with some strange facility. There you can shoot calmly, without crowds. The strange facility is a hideout for ducks hunters, which I could realize the next morning, when I came for sunrise. I heard a lot of gun shots and I had to just disappear. But good place anyway, with no parking problem by the way. By Auberge de la Baie there is a small shoulder on the side of a street.

By the famous area, when the bridge to the abbey starts you can expect just a swarm of a photography fanatics. So install yourself in time, before you have to fight for some place for your tripod ;).

We left our car far away by the small Auberge restaurant, on the street side. Afterwards all of the area was under water. So calculate this on your way back.

The next day, after my unlucky sunrise with gut shots (anyway the sky was just gray), we drove to Genets to get our mudflats tour, with a guide of course. Luckily the one I found was a german spoken guy. You should do it with a guide. My husband and our guide had to rescue one woman, lonely stuck in a mud till her hips. She was exhausted, could hardly move. Her friends were waiting for her already on the shore. But no one dare to get to her. So really you have to know the area, all the streams and mud spots.       

Very interesting tour, even for teenagers. And of course unforgettable view from another side of the abbey.  You park your car in Genets, on the parking lot by small bakery.

     2. CôTE DE GRANIT ROSE

Our next stop was the Red Granit. A very good Golf Hotel De Saint-Samson, as a start point for our small trips and photography excursions for me. We missed on our way the Cap Frehel and Fort La Latte. But everything was not possible to get in our plan. For kids it was anyway a little bit overload. Fortunately the Golf Hotel had a pool, so that gave them some summer, beach feeling ;).

So firstly I went alone to the Phare de Ploumanac’h for a sunset. Parking a little bit full at the evening. For sunrise almost empty. In summer there was always high tide at the evening. That’s why sunset was more interesting and of course with a lot more photographers. But luckily not so full and you could install yourself in some interesting spot.

And another sunrise spot, where I was completely alone, as a photographer, I mean, not counting some runners and strollers, was a Le Gouffre – the old lady’s house, The House Between Two Rocks.

And parking possibilities. The big, free parking lot just couple of steps away.

    

  3. FINISTERE

My actually last photo stop was the Finistere. On the way to Brest we got the short stop at Phare du Pontusval.

But in the day light with no water because of the low tide it was just a next stop. More interesting place was the Meneham. Historical place, showing the way of living in the past. Everywhere you can park easily

Our small hotel we booked in Brest. Actually a good start point for some trips.

The real highlight was for me the evening at Kermorvan.

From the parking area it is a bit to walk to the fence. At the beginning I wasn’t sure what should I do, but then I saw some guy jumping over the fence. So I did the same and afterwards surprise or not. Quite a lot of photographers. They didn’t probably hesitate so long about that fence, but I am kind of fraidy-cat.

There was some organized photography group from Germany with their tutor, like 5 people. Some Spanish teacher and his young student. The interesting spots were already taken, but the place is big, so even if you have to be careful not to get in someone’s frame you can get something out.

Next morning I drove to Phare du Petit Minou. I didn’t’ have that spectacular light. But I was alone and this is already an achievement in such popular photographic spots. After scouting out some corners there I had to get back so we could get some breakfast, visit the Oceanopolis, a highlight for small and big ones and then driving east to next stop at Carnac. A big staff for me as a history fun.

What I didn’t really photograph here was the big area of a Point Saint Mathieu, we went there just touristic. But just nearby a very interesting touristic spot the II World War fortifiaction. With the museum and one hidden room - shelter pretending being under air raid. And I miss as well a Pen Hir, amazing rocky shore south of Brest. But anyway I was lucky that the kids did this trip, lots of driving, not very exciting for them and we had anyway a lot of memories to really go through them. More places on the list would be just too much.

The weather was perfevt. But sea is not that warm for us as for the locals who bath just as if it waa the Mediterranean :).

Last stops just for touristic and to see as well something really monumental for this big peninsule was CARNAC and holiday area, Morbihan. There is absolutely not so easy to park :)