Day #: 24-25

Date(s): 19MAY – 20MAY2025

Location(s) Visited: Hillion, Ploumanc’h and Roscoff

Overall Impression of Location(s): Hillion = 3, Ploumanc’h = 3, Roscoff = 2.5

4 -added to our favorite list and we would return again
3 – a great place to visit
2 – OK for one visit, but we would not return again
1 – we wish we hadn’t wasted our time here  

Distance Driven on Leg/Trip (km): 204

Weather/Temperature (°F): The hot/cold cycle continues but we are not complaining and just bring layers with us wherever we go. Overall, the weather remains sunny with daytime temperatures in the high 60’s and nighttime lows in the mid-40’s. We are in Tony’s perfect weather zone.

Road Conditions: Lots of skinny French roads with a few N roads mixed in. We took our first “C” road while in Brittany. There are no tolls in Brittany and according to folklore this is because in 1532, Anne de Bretagne abdicated Brittany to France through her marriage to King VII under the condition that no toll shall be levied on any road or bridge in Brittany. Whether true or not, we appreciated the buttery, smooth roads without having to pay any tolls.

Chickpea Mechanical Status: We are back to full functioning status. We picked up our Thetford part from an Amazon locker and our Sanitation Engineer (i.e. Tony) had it fitted on the cassette in under 90 seconds. It was an easy fix for once.

Highlights:

• We stopped in Hillion for a proper 6-mile Breton coastal hike which is also a segment of the GR34 (which is a long-distance French coastal trail). We have learned the trails are more rugged in Brittany so we came prepared for this hike with proper footwear and extra water. It was a beautiful hike leaving from the town of Hillion before arriving at the steep cliffs above the water where we mainly walked but the trail did ascend several times to allow us the opportunity to walk along the sandy beaches. This trail was certainly a local trail with mainly trail runners and dog walkers. We may have seriously been the only tourists on this trail. We found a small beach cove and decided to go for an impromptu swim. We stripped down to our undies but only made it in up to our mid-thighs as the water was very, very cold. We sat on the rocks to dry off for a bit before getting dressed and continuing the hike. It was a nice anti-inflammatory cold plunge stop. Overall, a great midday hike to stretch our legs and see the Breton coast. We would love to further explore some of the trails in this area.
• We camped near Ploumanc’h as there was another hike named the Pink Granite trail which Tracey was most interested in. The reviews all said to go early and we are glad we heeded this advice. We were able to walk to the trail from our campsite and set off around 8 AM. The pink granite was massive, smoothed edge boulders reminiscent of what we have seen previously in Joshua Tree NP. The boulders were stacked in all kinds of crazy and gravity defying ways. We spent quite a bit of time trying to determine what animals some of the rocks most resembled. We are glad we set on this trail early as by 10 AM large groups of people and tour buses began turning up, changing this serene and peaceful place into a zoo. We are very glad to have had the chance to do this hike as it was amazing, but doubly glad we did it early and got the soft morning light without so many people.
• We have finally found the right mix and type of travel for us in Europe. We initially planned 50% cultural and 50% outdoorsy activities but we have found we are happier with 20% cultural and 80% outdoorsy. We feel better physically and mentally when we get in a good hike and/or bike ride each day. Many of the tour guidebooks are focused on the cultural stops and we felt like we needed to see all of them, but in doing so we were missing out on hikes and bike rides we also wanted to do. We have decided to slow our pace a bit but focus on getting outside everyday as our priority. In following this rule of thumb the last few weeks, we have really enjoyed our time in France.
  
  Lowlights:
• The trusted navigator (aka Tony) and our normally trustworthy Waze app misled the van and we ended up in another historic Old Town near Roscoff, but this time on market day. This meant the streets were full of tents and vendors and we were somewhere not meant for campervans. We made it through without running over anybody or damaging Chickpea, but it was not an experience the Driver (aka Tracey) would like to repeat.
• We were booked at our 2^nd Sandaya RV resort in Ploumanc’h. These types of places are what we call our personal hell as they are massive in size and geared towards young families on holiday as they are kitted with water parks, numerous pools, playgrounds, etc. No offense, that is just not what we are looking for at this stage in our life so we typically avoid these types of places. We only picked it this time as it was the only campsite that was within walking distance of the Pink Granite trailhead. For being a 5 star resort it was OK at best but we took advantage of getting several real showers and even did a bit of laundry. We are also glad we only paid the ASCI off-season price!
• OK, our smoking soap box continues. At the Sandaya resort, the campsites are packed tightly together with just a small hedge separating the sites. We had several “neighbors” who would sit outside and chain smoke (one person cigarettes and another person cigars) for hours on end. It was too hot to keep all the windows closed so we had to just endure the smell for much of our stay which resulted in us being a bit cranky during our stay here.
• The showers at the Sandaya resort bordered on ridiculous. Many campsites have buttons which we push in the shower and then 15-20 seconds of hot water comes out. It is annoying to keep pushing the button for more water but it is a terrific water-saving strategy and we completely understand why campgrounds do this. At this Sandaya resort, when we pushed the shower button literally 1 second of water would come out. After his first shower, Tony came up with a strapping system to override the need to continually push the button for water which made the showers much more enjoyable. We hate to have to game the system but for the prices these campsites and cottages cost and for being a 5-star resort, more than 1 second of water would be expected.
  
  Up Next: 14-hour ferry ride on Brittany Ferries before we arrive in Cork, Ireland. We will be touring Ireland and Northern Ireland for the next 5 weeks. We are so excited but a bit nervous about driving our left-hand drive van on the “wrong” side of the road.
  
  Onwards! Vorwärts immer, rückwärts nimmer! Allez on y va!