The Golfe du Morbihan is intimidating at first. It is known for its strong currents, tides and tricks. But in fact, as I asked my neighbours in the Le Crouesty marina, you just need to let yourself flow by the current in order to avoid obstacles.
One of the first island you encounter when entering in the Golfe du Morbihan is Er Lannic, on starboard. This uninhabited island is very particular has it has a cromlech (megalithic stone circle) which is partially submerged. The most commonly accepted explanation is not that the water level has increased, but rather that the land level has decreased 5 to 8 thousands years ago, when the ice cap on the north pole started to melt. As a result, the land level in Scandinavia has been uplifting since this period and is still today at a rate of 1 metre by century in the north of the Baltic sea, and in turn, the land in the area around it (the UK, Netherland, Brittany) to sink under water of a few metres, resulting in several of these observations of prehistoric sites being nowadays flooded. Fascinating connexion with our Baltic experience! See our uplift stories in the post on Stenskär or Rödkallen in Northern Baltic.
At the entrance of the canal leading to Vannes, there is a pink house that has become the landmark for its entrance.
Close after the pink house, are moored the famous sinagots "Joli vent"and "Les Trois Frères". A sinagot is a local fishing boat with sardine boat rigging consisting of two lugsails held by two masts with no shrouds as sinagots usually do not venture in open sea. They used to be 10 to 12 metres long with a low draft allowing to sail in the Golfe du Morbihan.
Vannes is certainly a city worth spending a few days exploring. Unfortunately, this time, we did not have enough time and we decided to depart for Houat before heading south to Rochefort where Belisama will spend the summer. Yet we could still experience the old streets of the city centre and the good friends we were meeting there...
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