phare out!

Well my dears, the bed at the Family Golf proves very comfortable and it is quite soporific to have the breakers on the beach audible all night: we leave the sliding doors open behind the privacy blind. The new day is cloudless. No hotel breakfasts here for us: we strike out to the port for ours, few folk about at first, cool and very bright. No croissants, it's the baguette and jam again, but no complaints from me. Thankfully,  walking proves to be much improved today. You'll have been concerned. 

After p'tit dej then, and a potter round the marina end of things, we motor via St Palais and La Grande Côte (where we took a singular easter break in 2002) to La Fôret de la Coubre: to the lighthouse, as you’d expect (with full acquiescence from Mme Melling, of course).

I decide not to risk the ascent of the superb concrete phare, I’ve done it in my time, and want to keep my currently uncertain capacity for lighthouse ascending for Cordouan. Mme Melling is not so disposed either. Instead, we inspect the excellent little museum where the former (1905) 1st order Fresnel is available for close inspection (it was still in situ and functioning when I ascended the tower, back in the noughties). Plus lots of other stuff, a dashed good show, and gratis to boot. Bravo, friends of the light.

We just have to relish again the fabulous beach, punctuated by the stump of the former Coubre light, built in error, too close to the sea. Back in the day (our easter visit in 2002) we erected a whole series of timber posts and poles (washed up, presumably off some ship or other) at intervals down this beach, coast art, line of sight sort of stuff. And some arty grouping of same, aussi. I wonder if the son-&-heir remembers doing all that? I’m welling up. 

My pharesighted blog has a post devoted to the Coubre phare and is a gem! Don’t miss out, here’s a link so there is no excuse…… 

Now we drive through the La Fôret de la Coubre on delightful light flecked roads, to La Tremblade and the oyster shacks that line the road down to La Seudre (that's the waterway that drains the vast expanses of pans, lakes and saltings that punctuate this river estuary). It is our target: we enjoy the best seafood lunch in years (or so it seems, we are hungry) at one of the smaller shacks down there. 

We return the way we came pretty much, through La Palmyre, past the zoo, (60th anniversary this year, have patronised formerly) where it is teeming, stop off in St Palais-sur-Mer to walk round once more the Terre Nègre phare, (remember the cranes?) in very warm and brilliant light. This junior lighthouse of course has an entry, blah blah blah, I’ve added to it, visit it on that other blog, at your discretion, given your interest in phares may not be as deep as mine, despite my best endeavours. Shame. I take a snap of distant Cordouan emerging from a sea mist. It features in my Cordouan posting… in this blog.

Upon arrival back at the Family Golf we spend the rest of the afternoon people watching from our exclusive terrace and partake of a hotel pizza too: they don't offer meals but they do offer pizzas, if you see what I mean.  

Altogether a fitting, relaxing end to a jolly good day. Stonking! I could get used to this.