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Les Yeux Bleus
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To visit nearby
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Page design © Patrick Archambeaud
Aerial view of the Island
Very nice video on the island of Noirmoutier, the beaches, the Bois de la Chaise with the pier of the Plage des Dames and the lighthouse of the Dames, the ports of Noirmoutier and L'Herbaudière, the salt marshes, the oysters, the castle and the Church, the old historic quarter of Banzeau.
Commissioned by the Community of Communes, the shooting was carried out by means of a camera on board a remote-controlled drone.
Le Marais des Angibauds
The basis of the salt harvest is to remove the water by evaporation because the salt is dissolved in the sea. The sea enters by high tide in the first basin, the reserve. The purpose of this basin is to rid the seawater of its mud. The water then passes into the second basin, the quick one, where most of it evaporates. Then the water arrives in the third basin, the amettantes parts. It is then slowed down by narrow clay paths. Finally, it completes its journey in the fourth basin, the eyelet, where the salt is collected ... To do this, the salt worker uses specific tools: the rouable (to bring the salt back to the path), the lousse (to collect the fleur de sel on the surface), spread it (to collect the coarse salt at the bottom).
On site in the small calorge retail sale of products from the marsh: coarse salt, fleur de sel, flavored salt, salicornia.
The Castle and its Museum
In 830 Abbot Hilbold of the monastery of Saint-Philbert built a castrum to defend the monks and the population of the island against the Vikings.
Rebuilt in stone in the 12th century by the Lords of La Garnache, the keep is lined with an enclosure which surrounds the poultry yard. In 1690 a house was built within the walls of the castle, the Logis du Gouverneur, today the seat of the Association of Friends . During the Revolution, the castle was used as a military prison: General d'Elbée was imprisoned there before being shot in the place of arms by the republican troops, seated in an armchair kept in a room of the castle.
Since 1993 the castle has hosted a theatrical and musical festival every year in August.
Visits to the Château Museum every day from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Phone: 02 51 39 10 42
Saint-Philbert Church
Near the Castle, the church was built at the end of the 11th century on the foundations of the old Benedictine abbey (year 675) of Romanesque style in the choir and Gothic in the nave. The crypt under the choir, listed in the inventory of historical monuments, is the only vestige of the Monastery founded by the monk Saint Philbert around 674. A relic of the Saint is venerated there. In the center, an impressive empty tomb, built after the body of Saint Philbert was transported to Tournus during the Norman invasions in the 9th century. Inside the church you can admire the altarpieces of Sainte-Marie and Sainte-Anne, the remains of two children, the baptistery, located in the "ballet" (covered exterior porch) of an old entrance, a Christ in carved wood, a Miraculous Peach by Jouvenet, a painting from the Spanish school representing Saint-Maur and the very beautiful model of a frigate of Lieutenant Jacobsen.
Visit of the church and the crypt every day from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
O'Abandonado, sea trips
In 1916 in Sétubal, Portugal, the boat was launched at the Francisco d 'Ajuda Shipyard on behalf of the Mesquita fishing company under number 487. It is one of the many "galèaos" built to transport wood, cork and especially salt.
In 1968 the boat took part in the last Galèaos regatta then, to avoid annual taxes, the boat was sunk in an arm of the Rio Sado. It follows 15 years of abandonment in the mud.
From 1982, purchase and restoration of the boat.
Luc and Isabel Archambeault offer you outings or fishing trips in Bourgneuf Bay, a discovery of the Île du Pilier or a complete tour of the Île de Noirmoutier with a hot meal served on board.
Phone 02 51 39 89 57/06 80 72 25 61 - Website
Le Bois de la Chaize
This national forest is a symbol for the island, known for its holm oaks and mimosas as well as its beautiful semi-shaded beaches!
The lovers were strolling Allée des Soupirs (sic). The walk on the Anse Rouge corniche is superb, it goes from the Plage des Dames, its lighthouse and its landing stage for the Pornic-Noirmoutier sea link, to the Plage des Souzeaux, its sea wall and its Cobe rock. It inspired the greatest impressionist painters.
On the beaches, we find the famous bathing cabins at the time compulsory to put on a swimsuit, this gives a real cachet to the landscape, charming and obsolete. If you are in the area in August, stop by because it is the essential place for the Bois de la Chaise regattas, one of the most important gatherings of classic and traditional sailing boats on the Atlantic coast.
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Sébastopol and Müllembourg
The last hold on the sea, the creation of the Sebastopol Polder, was completed in 1856. The Müllembourg dates from 1810.
The birds are innumerable there: caugek terns, common terns, little terns, spring wagtails, rush cisticola, whitethroat, mocking gull, melanocephalic gulls, black-tailed godwits, common terns, common harriers, bronzed plover, silver plover.
Opposite the elegant Sebastopol Tern
Useful links
In addition, we have selected some useful services for the interest and the quality of your stay!
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