A few days ago we left Pontivy and the Nantes-Brest canal and headed directly south to a small town called Crac'h near the Gulf of Morbihan. We made this our base for a couple of days to explore the various prehistoric sites in the region, including the large stone alignments near Carnac. The area is also a haven for all those who like sailing and the outdoors as there are numerous ports, lots of sandy beaches and sheltered waters in an area that has few signs of commercialism. We cycled down quiet lanes to look at dolmen, menhirs and other stones that seem to be scattered practically everywhere. Lots of families were camping in the area and in the early evening, when the tide was out, they were all over the sand flats digging for shellfish and collecting oysters from the exposed rocks. The standing stone alignments north of Carnac are really amazing as there are over three thousand of them spread over 4km. The experts still do not know why they are aligned in such a way, but it must certainly have taken a lot of effort and planning.
Our last day on the Nantes-Brest canal was a rainy one, but the flowers at the locks were very beautiful.
This photo was taken in Aurey, just north of Crac'h, on our way down from Pontivy. It is taken from the castle walls on the other side of the inlet. We took our bikes down a steep path, across a bridge and had some ice cream at the cafe on the right.
This incredibly large stone weighed around 280 tonnes and was transported from a site 12km away over 3000 years ago. The experts say that it must have also been carried over water. On land they think it was dragged along ditches greased with animal fat. An earthquake is the most likely reason that it fell, breaking apart, as the fractures are clean. The was an earthquake recorded in a nearby town that destroyed many buildings over 500years ago.
Some more photos of prehistoric sites in the area:
Boats and harbours
Oyster farming
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Location:Rue du Stade,Crac'h,France
No comments:
Post a Comment