24th – 26th June – Iles de Glenan
This was a bit of a random decision. Before setting out the plan was to get to South Brittany. Having made it here I did not have much of a plan beyond Benodet and Concarneau before two crew members joined me on 6th July. Looking through the pilot book – Atlantic France I noticed these low lying islands off the coast of Benodet – about 12 miles away. There are 3 major islands – Ile de St Nicolas, Ille de Penfret and Ille du Loc’h. ‘Major’ still being small – it would take you 15 minutes maximum to walk around them. Care did need to be taken on navigation amongst the islands and specifically depth. I was visiting on Springs which ruled out St Nicolas where there is a small bar and restaurant. If you want to eat in the restaurant you need to have booked a number of days before going. In hindsight I am glad I did not go there – it was a magnet for tourists, motor boats and yachts. I went across to Penfret where there is a famous sailing school Centre Nautiques des Viannay. It was founded in 1947 by Helene and Philipe Vianney, former members of the French Resistance and is one of the first and largest sailing schools in Europe.
I dithered as to where to anchor. First choice was on East side of Penfret but the pilot mentioned this was open to the brise de terre which started around midnight. I thin looked at the West side of Penfret and there was a recommend anchorage in about 3m to the SW.
I spent the first night here – anchor bit first time and I laid out about 25m of chain. This allowed for rise of tide of around 3m. The pilot did mention that the stream ran swiftly through this area – and it did. A lot of seaweed with it. The night was not too uncomfortable but I did not find it an entirely pleasant anchorage. The next morning I moved to the NW of Penfret. This is not marked on the chart or in the pilot as an anchorage but it was clearly popular with the French. Finding enough depth was a bit of trial and error. The Navionics chart is not precise in this area. I did find 3m and was pleased I hunted for it come the night. Again the anchor took first time in shale/sand.
I had been told that the water was very clear in these islands and it was ideal for swimming. The waters were crystal clear. I could watch the anchor all the way down and even when the chain was laid out (23m) you could see it snaking around the boat. I put the swimming platform down and the ladder and whilst I did not have the confidence by myself to swim around the boat it was lovely to hang onto the bottom step and cool down with temperatures probably around 28deg.
Quite a few yachts left that evening but there was still 10 of us in this spot – well spaced out. I was expecting a stronger wind that evening and had calculated maximum depth at top of tide to ensure I had a minimum of x3 chain. It proved to be a very uncomfortable night. The wind came in from the North and with the flow of tide created a lot of movement. I had laid out the bed in the saloon as the most comfortable place at anchor and glad I had. A couple of the boats left in the middle of the night – I suspect they did not have enough chain to compensate for the swell. I was also pleased that I had chosen a spot with a minimum of 1.5m under the keel at low tide to take account of the swell. I cannot say that I slept particularly well – not from worry – just uncomfortable as well as trying to get the temperature just right in the cabin.
Morning came and we had not budged an inch which was very reassuring. I can highly recommend the Islands but choose the right weather and spend time on tidal height calculations!
Purrfect Tale 