Author Archives: admin

This immediately demands explanation … The litoral translation of Thumb-foots  in French is    “Pousse-pieds”  ….   but the actual translation  is ‘Goose Barnacle’.     A couple of years ago I remember Bill Odie wandering along a British beach and coming across a … Continue reading →

With the current unseasonally mild weather, an opportunity was seized to paddle along the Côte Sauvage at Le Croisic. We left from Le Pouliguen situated at the western end of the Bay of La Baule. It was a fine paddle … Continue reading →

For white water I have a pair of Lendal kinetic XTi which are now in their third year. They are Fantastic blades and in CF pretty much indestructible ……..   but dont run them over ! The carbon shaft snapped … Continue reading →

The Glénan archipelago is  an enchanting group of islands off the Southern shore of Brittany.  it is now home to the famous Les Glénans sailing school where a number of record breaking yachtsmen have learnt their trade. There can be … Continue reading →

Continuing from the previous post on mapping, an explanation follows for the coordinate system used on French IGN maps.  l’Institut   Géographique  National (IGN)  is charged with carrying out functions similar   to the  Ordnance Survey of UK. The 1:25000 Série … Continue reading →

As kayakers, we use multiple navigation aids to plan our varied passages. We enjoy the land detail on ordnance survey maps, but we also like the navigation detail found on Marine charts, then we often search Pilots, cruising guides and … Continue reading →

This small island sits close to the southern shore of mainland Brittany. Whilst it is easy to imagine that Groix is just a small chip of rock from the mainland it is in fact structured very differently geologically. Some 300 … Continue reading →

For over a decade I have been regularly travelling between the UK and France, mostly by ferry but also by rail and air. As a paddler I invariably have at least one kayak, often several on the roof, and this … Continue reading →

Blue sky, flat water and no wind, throw in a dash of bright afternoon sun with midday temperatures of 14°C  …  It’s hard to believe it is the middle of December ! Coming over the next few days are some … Continue reading →

A sobering video for all users of the sea The music full of feeling by Denez Prigent, used in “Black Hawk Down”