So let me bring you “home” OK not the city I live or had lived but the one I work on the outskirts in a castle ruins from 1504! Yes!!! However, other than the usual wonderful monumental things to see here in my beloved Vannes or Gwened in the Breton language, there is history that I like.
I have told many many posts on Vannes and deservently so, however I feel this important historical spot deserves more , besides it is now my favorite hangout with my dog Rex!
In addition a great walkers, bicycle trails into the Pointe des émigrés, bordering all the Gulf of Morbihan area around Vannes starting from the Parc du Golfe to Conleau peninsula along the promenade Paul Chapel. This is a very nice nature walk and you see plenty of people here including dog walkers like me! But it has more.
The Pointe des Émigrés is a natural site in Vannes. In the 18C, Pointe des Émigrés was called Pointe Kérero. The name of Pointe des Émigrés recalls the execution of the Émigrés or immigrant Bretons who came to fight the French revolution from England and executed at Vannes in 1795 after the unsuccessful landing of Quiberon.
A sad story to finish as the above name or the Pointe des émigrés is due to the atrocities of the French revolution ,when in 1795 , 748 immigrants who came to fight for the King were taken prisioners after the failed expedition of Quiberon, and shot to death in various parts of the Morbihan. The head of the expedition was executed on July 28 1795 in Vannes on the site of the Garenne today. 374 others were shot around town with many at the site of the Ermitage. As a symbolic souvenir of this event this tip of land was renamed the Pointe des Émigrés. The remains of these 748 are now resting at the Chartreuse in Auray, (see post) very near me.
For the nature lovers nowdays, the Pointe des Emigrés with the banks of the Vincin river forms a peri-urban protected area of more than 70 hectares. A former agricultural hotspot, this area has been protected by the Conservatoire de l’Espace Littoral et des Rivages Lacustres since 1986. It is characterized by a succession of original facies (marshes, Atlantic moors, pine forests and salt meadows) sheltering a rich avifauna (heron ash, snipe; etc). More in French on the webpage of the Conservatoire du Littoral and the Pointe des Emigrés: Conservatoire du Littoral on the Pointe des Emigrés
This protected green space of about 30 hectares (including 10 hectares of marshes), is located in the district of Conleau, along the Marle river. It rises to 11 meters. With the banks of the Vincin, a neighboring site located on the other side of the Conleau peninsula, it forms a protected area of 70 hectares. The Pointe des Émigrés is crisscrossed by several hiking trails totaling approximately 3 kms. It is made up of several landscapes: marshes, moorlands, pine forests, salt meadows, mudflats, meadows and there are many species of birds: gray heron, common snipe, etc. The characteristic plants of the site are St. John’s Wort, musk mallow, marsh buttercup, wild orchids, rush, willow, etc.
Here is the webpage of the Morbihan tourist office in English on the Pointe des Emigrés: Tourist office Morbihan 56 on the Pointe des Emigrés
Now for those who think walking is best like me ,to see places, nature or cities once you get there the best way possible often a car and/or a plane for these; let me show you a walker’s paradise here.
Departure from the Vannes Tourist Office at Le Port by the marina. Along the port, on the right bank, walk along the old houses from the 17C, with the half-timbered floors and the 19C bandstand. At the pont de Kérino bridge, cross the pedestrian crossing and continue opposite, direction Pointe des Émigrés. Walk past the Multiplast shipyard, then follow the coastal path, can’t missed water is on your left hand side.
You can take the dike which gives you access to the Conleau peninsula, which you will walk around. The path passes under the pines then bypasses the point, passes in front of the beach, the pier for the Ïle d’Arz isle ,and the seawater basin or pool (see post). You can see the boats, anchored in the channel, without tidal constraint. You take the dike in the opposite direction, but not taken this one. Turn left after the bridge as soon as you find the coastal path also called Chemin de Bernus. It follows the meanders of Vincin river, in a rural and green landscape, with steep banks.
At the end of a cove, take the path that goes right and ends near the houses of district of Cliscouët. Walk along the football field. The path leads to rue de Ty-Coët, then chemin des Aubépines which goes down to rue François-de-Surville. Turn right until Avenue du Maréchal-Juin. Take the rue des Salines opposite, pass the Maison de la Nature and the municipal greenhouses gardens. After the dike, take the coastal path on the right then at the first crossroads on the left, the Chemin des Salines. Follow through the woods along the houses towards Parc du Golfe then La Rabine by the same path as on your way in or start. Not difficult and beautiful seas of nature and water, Rex love it!!
And there ,hope you enjoy the walk and a bit of history which often by victors is not usually told, but I know it. The Pointe des Emigrés is a nice park now good for the whole family.
And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all!!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 