Return to Photos Page

Brittany Tour Group photo at St. Mathieu.
+ view
Our tour began waiting for the first of many ferry rides - this one to Ile d'Yeu
+ view
Arriving at Port Joinville on Ile d'Yeu
+ view
The Pointe des Corbeaux lighthouse was built in 1950 to replace the earlier tower destroyed during WWII
+ view
A stop at the Port de la Meule provided evidence of the extreme tidal ranges along the Brittany Coast
+ view
Ile d'Yeu or La Petite Foule lighthouse, our first climb, was another lighthouse destroyed by the Germans at the end of WWII and rebuilt in 1950.
+ view
Semaphore of Point Saint Gildas. One of the 19th century Napoleonic semaphores - the world's first telegraph network.
+ view
A semaphore telegraph is a system of conveying information by means of visual signals, using towers with pivoting shutters, also known as blades or paddles.
+ view
Our first gift shop. We overwhelmed the staff with our purchasing power!
+ view
Pornic Lighthouse
+ view
Waiting in the shade at the Pornic Lighthouse
+ view
Crossing the Loire River on the Saint-Nazaire Bridge.
+ view
We saw a very interesting monument to the abolition of slavery in Saint-Nazaire.
+ view
Saint-Nazaire is a major ship building center - We passed the almost completed Celebrity Edge
+ view
The Tour du Commerce & Phare de Kerlede completed the lighthouses visited on our second full day.
+ view
Our second ferry ride took us to Belle Ile and Port Maria
+ view
Ladies enjoying the great weather on the way to Belle Ile
+ view
The granite tower at Phare de Goulphar on Belle Ile was designed by Augustine Fresnel
+ view
Lots of steps, almost 250, provided our first challenging climb at Phare de Goulphar
+ view
The Needles of Port Coton make for an interesting interpretation of rock shapes - See Louis XIV?
+ view
We had a great lunch break in Port de Sauzon at low tide.
+ view
You can't see it from this angle, but the roof of the Pointe des Poulains lighthouse on Belle Ile is covered with solar panels.
+ view
Returning to the mainland, we stopped by the Phare de Kerbel and Phare de Poulfanc before heading to Lorient.
+ view
No one on the tour will forget where they were the day France won the world cup
+ view
World Cup aftermath outside our hotel.
+ view
Fire Tower of Sts Peter;s Chapel next to a Navy Signal tower
+ view
Day 5 begin at the massive Grand Phare d'Eckmuhl lighthouse with a climb of over 300 steps.
+ view
From the top of Phare d'Eckmuhl you see the 1835 tower and the 15th Century Fire Tower of St Peter's Chapel
+ view
Mary & Sheila take a break after climbing Phare d'Eckmuhl
+ view
Betty & Peggy at the top of Phare d'Eckmulh
+ view
Brian climbed to the top of Phare d'Eckmuhl and hugged the top in thanks!
+ view
The second lighthouse in Benodet was the Phare de la Pyramide
+ view
Point du Coq was one of two lights located in the town of Benodet.
+ view
This was an unscheduled stop at a bakery. Not the first, nor the last.
+ view
Wanda found ice cream at the bakery.
+ view
The hike to Pointe de Combrit (Phare de Sainte-Marine) was just around the corner and a short walk - NOT!
+ view
For those who made the long hike, this was at the end - Pointe de Combrit.
+ view
This was at the end of a long day!
+ view
Another ferry ride took us to Ile de Sein for a yet another hike to the lighthouse.
+ view
Interesting rock formations on Ile de Sein. What do you see?
+ view
Peggy and her "heavy" heart!
+ view
Many of the Brittany lights had their name painted on the tower.
+ view
We saw a whole lot of Hydrangeas on this trip.
+ view
Bob, Elinor & John resting after walking to the Ile de Sein Lighthouse.
+ view
The only other lighthouse on Ile de Sein was the Men-Brial Lighthouse.
+ view
It was tough to get close to the Scarweather Lighthouse. A small group took a pretty long walk to try and get closer.
+ view
Point du Raz provided a great view of La Plate and La Vieille lights
+ view
Our Lady of Drowned Souls statue at Point du Raz
+ view
In addition to lots of Hydrangeas we saw quite a bit of Heather.
+ view
Crepes were popular fare for lunches along the way.
+ view
Street vendors dominated our visit to the medieval town of Locronan.
+ view
At this point, our coach (and driver) were very lost. Not the only time this happened!
+ view
Dinner entrees in France refers to the course before main course. Many of them were small meals in themselves.
+ view
One of the many great deserts - a Paris-Brest
+ view
Not enough room on the couch? No problem for Marge.
+ view
Another wonderful light station - St Mathieu, its auxiliary light and semaphore.
+ view
Mary Lee, Dianne & Leann (and Bosley) at the top of St Mathieu Lighthouse
+ view
The Trezien Lighthouse walkway was, or course, lined with Hydrangeas
+ view
These two shells were taken from two bombs that fell at the Trezien lighthouse, but failed to explode in WWII
+ view
Many signs we saw were in both French and Britton.
+ view
The USLHS Society beautiful line dancing gals! You're hired!
+ view
This is a group of pathetic Society line dancing guys! You're fired!
+ view
This is what a 3 salumi (Italian cold cuts) French pizza looked like.
+ view
Another boat ride, this one to the Bay of Morlaix and Ile de Batz. There's David giving directions on what to do.
+ view
Two tour children enjoying the ride to Ile de Batz
+ view
The Chateau du Taureau (Castle of the Bull) was built as a defense and lookout, then became a prison and then a holiday home and sailing school.
+ view
Another great day for a boat ride.
+ view
Lots of folks tried the bikes instead of walking to the lighthouse on Ile de Batz. For some bikers, the walk would have been safer.
+ view
David relaxing with Betty.
+ view
David really relaxing. He worked very hard to keep us in line and on the right road.
+ view
Gimme your money or I'll shoot!
+ view
Ile Norie (Black Island Lighthouse) Bay of Morlaix
+ view
Another tall light to climb (about 200 steps). The down side was it was a "bit of a walk" from the ferry dock.
+ view
Phare de I'ile Louet in the Bay of Morlaix
+ view
Concrete pier disappearing into the water becomes more useable at low tide.
+ view
Last light of this day was the Roscoff Lighthouse, just a short way from the ferry dock in Roscoff.
+ view
Day 10 began with photos of two discontinued range lights in Aber Wrac'h
+ view
Several folks has a nutritious lunch in Aber Wrach comprised exclusively of ice cream. Derrith managed to consume two banana splits before our ferry ride.
+ view
Several folks has a nutritious lunch in Aber Wrach comprised exclusively of ice cream. Derrith managed to consume two banana splits before our ferry ride.
+ view
Darlene, Linda, Mary & Betty on the boat to Ile Vierge
+ view
Here John gets into and then out of trouble.
+ view
The first Ile Vierge lighthouse (102 feet tall) is dwarfed by the 253 foot tower built in 1902.
+ view
Everyone who made the attempt to climb the 378 steps to the top - made it!
+ view
This numbered step just told you that you still had a ways to go to get to the top.
+ view
The small landing area at Ile Vierge and the rapidly changing tides explains why they gave us only 45 minutes for the group to climb the tallest traditional lighthouse in the world/
+ view
View of the old Ille Vierge lighthouse from the top of the new one.
+ view
Marge arrives at the top of Ile Vierge
+ view
Mary and Phil pose on the gallery of Ile Vierge
+ view
With the fog gone, we got a good view of the Ile Warc'h Lighthouse with Ile Vierge in the background.
+ view
One of our rewards for climbing Ile Vierge was a yummy dinner of pork cheeks!
+ view
A nice view of St Mathieu from the ferry to Ouessant
+ view
Big day of lighthousing begins with yet another wait for a ferry - this one to the Ouessant
+ view
First two lights we passed on our way to Ouessant - Petit Minou & Pointe du Portzic
+ view
The highlight of the museum of lighthouses and beacons was the original lens from the Cordouan Lighthouse.
+ view
Ouessant has some very interesting rock formations.
+ view
Lunch on Ouessant introduced some of us to a Breton Salad.
+ view
The light of Phare du Creac’h is made up of four lamps which provide a luminous power of 20 million candelas and extends to an average range of over 60 km.
+ view
Very interesting style of lighthouse at Le Stiff, side by side towers.
+ view
Nividic Lighthouse with German cable towers built to bring electricity to the lighthouse but never completed
+ view
Kermorvan lighthouse, just one of 13 lighthouses viewed on Day 11.
+ view
La Jument was calm - nothing like the famous photo by Jean Guichard.
+ view
All in all, the day on Ouessant was one of the very best days of the tour.
+ view
The last lighthouse in France we would climb was at Cap Frehel
+ view
The original 17th century lighthouse at Cap Frehel
+ view
Cap Frehel - One of the very few lighthouses in the world with an elevator
+ view
Leaving St Malo provided a great view of its range lights - La Balue Rear and Les Bas-Sablons front
+ view
Colorful Rochebonne Lighthouse near St Malo
+ view
The walled city of St Malo had a long history of piracy, earning much wealth from local extortion and overseas adventures.
+ view
The only place to sit and wait out the ferry delay to Jersey was on the floor.
+ view
After several hours of delay, we finally arrived in Jersey!
+ view
Here's something you don't see every day - 142 brands of gin displayed at the Savoy hotel on Jersey.
+ view
The Corbiere Lighthouse definitely made the trip to Jersey worthwhile.
+ view
When the tide goes out, Corbiere sits on an island.
+ view
Lots of remains from the German occupation of Jersey remind us of the role the Channel Island played in WWII.
+ view
This Noirmont Tower was part of the original three tower building scheme during the Napoleonic Wars.
+ view
Every morning we had a "full American breakfast." For Stan this meant finishing with a piece of cake!
+ view
He ain't heavy, he's Bill!
+ view
Another great dessert - Berry and Mandarin Pavlova
+ view
Another great view of the Corbiere Lighthouse - this one from the ferry on the way to Guernsey
+ view
Guernsey statue commemorating its liberation from the Germans in WWII.
+ view
Happy Hour at the Duke of Richmond hotel
+ view
A great place to find lunch was the Central Market in St Helier, Jersey
+ view
A scene repeated many times - Mary Lee counting heads.
+ view
The Maritime Museum on Jersey had something for everyone, including Stan & Skip
+ view
Waiting for ANOTHER ferry - this one to Guernsey.
+ view
Wanda comes in from the wind!
+ view
White Rock Pier light at the entrance to St Peter Port, Guernsey
+ view
Bob, Leann and Marge on another short walk, this one to the Sark lighthouse
+ view
Climbing down to the Sark lighthouse
+ view
Queen Elizabeth was moored near Guernsey. Note it is registered in Hamilton (Bermuda). This allows them to host weddings on board.
+ view
Sark Lighthouse a "rock" lighthouse, but one where the keeper could walk to a pub when off duty!
+ view
The island of Sark transportation is only by horse or tractor!
+ view
Group 1 to Hanois Lighthouse
+ view
Group 2 to Hanois Lighthouse
+ view
Last group at Hanois Lighthouse
+ view
Hanois Lighthouse. A great way for the tour to end.
+ view
Waiting for one last ferry - this one back to France.
+ view
This toilet in Rennes gave a whole new meaning to "unisex."
+ view
Saturday marking in Rennes.
+ view
Interesting historic half timer houses in Rennes.
+ view
Tour of Rennes included the Parlement of Brittany.
+ view
Another sight in Rennes was the city hall.
+ view
It has been a great ride. Wouldn't trade the last 7 years as tour guides for anything. Thanks for all of the memories! Skip, Mary Lee & Bosley.
+ view