We went into the islands off the continental France , hugely popular and lovely; it was like been born again for me! I like to update this posts from 2017 with links,text using same pictures. There are several posts on the island and a lot more pictures in my blog. Hope you enjoy it as much as I ! This one is Ïle de Noirmoutier , part IIII !
And the saga of Noirmoutier continues with this the 4th version. Read on;;;;;
As said, it is a very nice island off the continent of France link by two passages via road. One is a big bridge or pont de Noirmoutier since 1971 ;which was nice. The next one is the one we took on the way back, and it is at water level well underwater lol!!
On the way back we took the Passage du Gois which is a submersible road located between the bay of Bourgneuf that link the island of Noirmoutier at the town of Barbâtre with the continent on the town of Beauvoir sur Mer in the department of the Vendée No 85. The crossing can be done in voiture, bike or on foot only in low tide because at high tide is completely covered by the sea! It is a bit over 4 kms long (about 2.4 miles) and water can be as much as 4 meters deep (about 13 feet).
During the high tides, the place is known for fishing on foot and you can see the folks doing that while crossing it. In the Bay around it you can harvest clams, cockles, and oysters. The oysters are ,also, developed ,because the Gois allows access at low tide to the oyster locations. You see the cages as you drive by too!. Paving of the road has been made between 1935 and 1939, in a time of two hours at low tide twice a day. At the end of this work, the Gois passage became passable. Even today, one observe this paving characteristic on a large portion of the passage even if a part has been paved. The ride can be bumpy to some. Official webpage of the passage du Gois: https://www.passagedugois.com/
The road is part of the road D948 but the passage is known as far back as 820 when texts mentioned of the difficulty of passing due to dead water or high tides! It was heavily guarded by the Nazis who controlled it in WWII guarding the mouth of the bay of Saint Nazaire. There is another bridge here that we took on our way in call the Pont de Saint Nazaire and below it are the shipyards of the big cruise ships such as Harmony of the Seas.
You must adhere to these hours religiously as the crossing is considered dangerous, the high tide comes in rather quickly and once in the crossing there is no way out. Lately, there has been no deadly episodes but many rescues with cars lost ! The reason is there is only a narrow road each way and there is lots of traffic, very popular and you cannot drive fast but only at 50 kph or about 35 mph.
The tourist office of ïle Noirmoutier on the passage du Gois in English: https://www.ile-noirmoutier.com/en/gois-passage.html
This is the tourist site of the area and Beauvoir sur Mer on the passage du Gois: https://www.challansgois-tourisme.fr/a-decouvrir/le-passage-du-gois/
This is the above tourist site showing the low tides for 2021 in the passage du Gois: https://www.challansgois-tourisme.fr/vie-pratique/horaires-des-marees/
There is,also, a famous running/walking course call the Crowds of Gois that will be done in June, Les Foulées du Gois; webpage in French: https://www.lesfouleesdugois.com/les-courses/
It’s an experience and for the road warrior like me it was wonderful to have the feeling of cutting the ocean driving on land that can submerge under the sea! Love it:: recommended! Enjoy the ways of my belle France and my road warrior experiences of an unique way of travel!
And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all!!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 