I'll put a few final pictures on here and then say cheerio till the next time.
On Thursday at Douarnenez rain was forecast so it seemed the perfect day to get a bus to Quimper and then another on to Brest to collect Victoria's lorry. The rather grey view below is from the bridge in Chateaulin. With hindsight not the best route to take with a truck so we decided not to drive this way with Victoria on the back.
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| Chateaulin from the truck |
Yachts come up to Chateaulin and we made a mental note to perhaps try this on a future visit.
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| Proof of yacht life inland at Chateaulin |
We parked the lorry where marina staff had suggested and returned to the festival. Luckily something inspired us to go and check on our vehicle a couple of days later and we found this cheery note from the town advising us that due to the setting up of a circus we'd have to move - great!
Pinder's Circus did indeed turn up on Monday morning and set up an enormous Big Top. By mid-afternoon where we had been parked there were 2 elephants munching on whatever elephants munch - in this case including the handbag of a woman who got too close. (The keeper helped her get it back but probably only because leather and lipstick were not to Nellie's taste - wrong colour perhaps?).
We were amazed that after 2 performances that same day the circus started packing up again and in the morning they were gone - so much work for just one day!
Moving on from the circus which is not really the point of this blog - back to boats and their folks. We were pleased to meet unexpectedly some old friends while in Douarnenez and in both cases the encounters took place near the toilet facilities - not sure whether that is significant but have made a note for future.
When in France in 2011 for the Semaine du Golfe de Morbihan we made friends with a couple of Frenchmen called Ronan and Yves. They were sailing Ronan's small working boat and as such were in the same "fleet" as we were with Victoria. I have Ronan and Yves to thank for what little traditional boat vocabulary I have which was gleaned from amateurish sketches on paper serviettes at various crew functions - topsail (fleche) and bowsprit (bout dehors) have stuck, the rest is lost. We thought we might see them again here and at Brest I did in fact bump into Ronan again although I didn't recognise him. He helpfully supplied the entry code for the loo block and only after I'd disappeared inside did he realise he knew me. Too late! At Douarnenez we finally met up and renewed our acquaintance (nearer to the bar than the loos you'll be glad to hear).
Second encounter took place in a pub in Dz (hope you don't mind if I abbreviate, everyone else does). Howard met (by the gents) an ex-colleague from the workboats who has returned to working on tall ships and was here in command of the lovely Kaskelot, a wooden 3-masted barque built in 1948 and one of the largest wooden ships to remain in commission. Later in the week Keith gave us a full tour and I took this photo of the rigging against the blue sky whilst they inspected the engines.
Our crew wristbands allowed us free entry to the Maritime Museum which seemed as good a way as any of keeping out of the sun (or the bar) for a while so we had a look around.
I was mesmerised by Viviane - for being so old (built for racing in 1860), for her riveted sheet metal hull and for such ridiculous clouds of sail - there were lovely photos of her sailing.
We are in no particular rush to finish our holiday so once everything has been made secure we enjoy an aperitif and a dinner nearby and spend the night on board on the lorry. We then set off on Tuesday and travel for a few hours each day making 3 hops to get to Calais for the ferry.
We were unaffected by the long delays which have plagued some travellers heading the other way in recent days although every security check we went through involved detailed searches and questioning (of course the dog can smell "people" on the boat - that's cos we've been sleeping on it for over 3 weeks!).
Looking forward to our own bed at home and some good English beer.
That's all folks - many thanks for following our travels!
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| Quite polite but firm |
We were amazed that after 2 performances that same day the circus started packing up again and in the morning they were gone - so much work for just one day!
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| Big Top |
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| Down it all comes again the same day |
Moving on from the circus which is not really the point of this blog - back to boats and their folks. We were pleased to meet unexpectedly some old friends while in Douarnenez and in both cases the encounters took place near the toilet facilities - not sure whether that is significant but have made a note for future.
When in France in 2011 for the Semaine du Golfe de Morbihan we made friends with a couple of Frenchmen called Ronan and Yves. They were sailing Ronan's small working boat and as such were in the same "fleet" as we were with Victoria. I have Ronan and Yves to thank for what little traditional boat vocabulary I have which was gleaned from amateurish sketches on paper serviettes at various crew functions - topsail (fleche) and bowsprit (bout dehors) have stuck, the rest is lost. We thought we might see them again here and at Brest I did in fact bump into Ronan again although I didn't recognise him. He helpfully supplied the entry code for the loo block and only after I'd disappeared inside did he realise he knew me. Too late! At Douarnenez we finally met up and renewed our acquaintance (nearer to the bar than the loos you'll be glad to hear).
Second encounter took place in a pub in Dz (hope you don't mind if I abbreviate, everyone else does). Howard met (by the gents) an ex-colleague from the workboats who has returned to working on tall ships and was here in command of the lovely Kaskelot, a wooden 3-masted barque built in 1948 and one of the largest wooden ships to remain in commission. Later in the week Keith gave us a full tour and I took this photo of the rigging against the blue sky whilst they inspected the engines.
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| Kaskelot sails under the red ensign - here you see her French courtesy flag |
Our crew wristbands allowed us free entry to the Maritime Museum which seemed as good a way as any of keeping out of the sun (or the bar) for a while so we had a look around.
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| Old fishing boats and some fabulous old photos taken in 1907 |
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| Viviane claims to be the oldest racing yacht in France |
I was mesmerised by Viviane - for being so old (built for racing in 1860), for her riveted sheet metal hull and for such ridiculous clouds of sail - there were lovely photos of her sailing.
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| Hard to fill sails indoors but the display looked striking |
We didn't spend all our time ashore, we went out sailing a few times making sure to show off to the crowds on the quaysides along with the other boats. After one such display Alistair skipper of Witch reported that he'd been watching from the grandstand when he realised the commentator had nothing to say to the crowd about the little English boat sailing past. He rushed up to give the man a few details and found himself on the microphone giving a quick potted history of Victoria - in French. Thank you Alistair!!
All good things must come to an end and soon enough the time comes for our lift out. The 40 tonne travel hoist at Brest cost €196 but this little crane at Dz did the job in reverse for just €22 (special festival rate of course).
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| Howard positioning the strops, I'm up by the crane interpreting (and taking pics) |
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| Out she comes |
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| First stop is campsite near Cancal |
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| View of the campsite from the coastal path |
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| Green cockpit cover as windbreak and picnic blanket - BBQ on the grass |
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| Easy! |
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| Second stop at St Valery en Caux where Victoria goes hedge sailing |
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| No BBQ here - we walk into town and eat mussels (again!) |
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| Cosy interior - it's nothing but beds (and plate box in the middle) |
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| Open hatch covered for the night |
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| Last stop Gravelines then it's time for the ferry home |
Looking forward to our own bed at home and some good English beer.
That's all folks - many thanks for following our travels!
