And yes on my continuation of my latest road warrior escapades I arrive to the bay of Mont Saint Michel on the Breton side and the coast line towns of Hirel, Le Vivier sur Mer, and Saint Benoit des Ondes !!! I like to tell you about this latest adventures in my lovely Bretagne !!!Finding new places that are nice enough to be in my blog, me think, Here is my testimony to this nice new find, hoping you enjoy it as I.
We rode along the bay into Hirel. The town of Hirel is located in the Ille-et-Vilaine department 35, in my lovely Bretagne region, The town is cited for the first time in a survey of 1181 ordered by Henri Plantagenêt. In 1790, Hirel was erected as a town from the French revolution. On May 7, 1794, it absorbed Vildé-la-Marine, a parish to the west of Hirel also erected into a town, Its inhabitants attempted to secede several times in the 19C and 20C.
The parish of Hirel was part of the deanery of Dol under the bishopric of Dol and was under the patronage of Notre-Dame. The Abbey of Notre-Dame du Tronchet possessed property in the parish: annuities, land, jurisdictions, The Notre-Dame-de-la-Visitation Church built in 1855. A statue of Saint Lunar from the chapel of that name is preserved there.
Again, the beach has lots of grass and low tide me think was not interested here but post for future reference, The plage d’Hirel beach is located in the bay of Mont Saint-Michel. It is a large expanse of sand embellished with beds of small grasses and an ideal place for walking, fishing on foot or practicing sand yachting. Swimming is however not recommended because of the strong tidal coefficients, the water recedes very far, leaving a huge expanse of sand. And dangerous.
For reference as we just passed by and no pictures is the Saint-Louis Church built in 1846,by the inhabitants of Vildé la Marine on the site of the old church dedicated to Saint-Jacques and destroyed in 1793 during the French revolution. The church was completed and consecrated on June 24, 1850, and dedicated to St Louis, King of France. The tower and spire were added in 1865.
The town of Hirel on its heritage : http://commune-hirel.fr/tourisme/historique/
This will add here too as was the next town we rode by along the bay of Mont Saint Michel on the Breton side, This was Le Vivier-sur-Mer , of course ,also in Ille-et-Vilaine dept 35 and my lovely region of Bretagne. We just rode by here as we think nothing much to see unless you stare at the bay of Mont Saint Michel and the small grassy beach.
According to certain historians, it was at Le Vivier that Saint-Samson, the first bishop of Dol and founding priest of Bretagne, landed in the year 548. Le Vivier-sur-Mer developed from the 12C, following the digging of the great Bied. the waters of the Guyoult were channeled from Dol to the sea, through the marsh. The dam, 30 km long, going from the limit of the Manche department (50 Normandie) to Saint-Méloir des Ondes, (35 Bretagne) was built from the 11C by the bishops of Dol. The bridge which spans the four canals was inaugurated in 1817 by Louis d’Artois, Duke of Angoulême, hence its name of Pont d’Angoulême. By 1954, the town set up a new activity in the Bay: mussel farming (breeding of bouchot mussels). It has become the main economic activity of the Bay with oyster farming. This mussel center is the leading breeding center for bouchot mussels in northern Brittany and represents a quarter of French production. Another we did not passed by but here for reference is the Saint-Nicolas Church, in neo-classical style, western massif and tower from 1839.
The town of Vivier sur Mer on its heritage : https://www.le-vivier-sur-mer.fr/a-decouvrir/
And we went to this one before we gas up at a Total station near Saint Malo and headed back home. The town of Saint-Benoît-des-Ondes is located in the department 35 of Ille-et-Vilaine in my lovely region of Bretagne.
The sea once stretched far inland. From the 7C, the formation of sandbanks allowed the establishment of isolated fishing villages at high tide. It was not until the 11C that the Duke of Brittany, Alain V, had the first dyke built. Already a small Benedictine priory, dependent on the abbey of Mont Saint Michel, was established there: the monastery of Saint-Benoît-du-Blanc-Essay. This hamlet was set up as a parish around the middle of the 12C and then took the name of: Saint-Benoît-de-la-Marine. The monastery probably disappeared following the creation of this parish and in the 16C the parish became Saint-Benoît-des-Ondes. The draining of the marshes of Dol and Châteauneuf continued until the 17C, but it was not until the 20C that, thanks to the creation of the polders, the bay took on the state that we know today.
The Church Saint Benoit built around 1550, and it was renovated from 1786 and inaugurated on July 16, 1789. (what a timing!) ,The altarpiece and the painting of the Last Supper were fortunately preserved. The bell tower, stopped at the ridge of the roof, was only finished in 1815. The current church much altered at the end of the 18C. It has a magnificent 17C painting, a copy of the famous Last Supper by Philippe de Champaigne, (1648, kept in the Louvre Museum). This painting can be admired at above the high altar. Restored for the first time in 1874, it was again restored in 1992. It has a beach, but great areas of grass and camping car areas around it, not a good beach me think ,but you stay with clear days views of Mont Saint Michel! However, the picture you see the islands of Rimains, Mouettes ,and Rocher de Cancale, all next to the town of Cancale (see post).
While oyster farming and mussel farming remain important activities, three campsites are now set up by the sea. The construction by the Nazis during WWII of an anti-tank ditch from Châteauneuf to Saint-Benoît-des-Ondes intended to isolate Saint-Malo, after the war ; this work was converted into a “biez” but remains known as the Canal des Allemands or German canal.
The town of Saint Benoit des Ondes and its heritage : http://www.ville-saint-benoit-des-ondes.fr/la-commune/l-histoire/
There you go folks, another nice wonder of my lovely Bretagne, always more always will be more, This was a nice pleasant ride along the bay of Mont Saint Michel into the trio of Hirel, Le Vivier sur Mer, and Saint Benoit des Ondes !!! nice finds indeed. Glad to have stop by, and looking forward to have it enjoy it with my readers.
And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 