Channel Adventure Day 11

Day 11 - Wednesday, April 18, 2018 – Drive to Granville, Explore Fort; Journey to Nez de Jobourg, Hike the Granite Cliffs, Lunch at Cherbourg

We began our day with clear skies and 51 degrees and a new adventure ahead. Lovely Danielle, our hostess took time to give us a suggestion for our travels this morning. Her recommendation was to travel north and east to see the sites that are not on a regular tourist agenda.

We set the GPS for Granville but used Danielle’s Michelin map to verify our route. Although the GPS has been very helpful and gotten us out of some tight spots, the hand held map was a benefit as we traveled to parts unknown and not previously researched before we left Colorado.

We left Brittany and drove north from Beauvoir to the nearby province of Normandy. Our first stop was Granville where we drove right to the old fort on the English Channel. We found a place to park the car and then climbed the steep steps to the top of the fort and the upper city.

The day was beautiful and it was so clear, we could see many of the Channel Islands out on the horizon. In 1066, William the Conqueror, awarded this land to the Grant Family and the port was established. Cod fishing, shellfish, and tourism sustain the town now. It was also the birthplace of Christian Dior and a museum in his honor was located in the town.

After a visit to the bank and a cheese shop, we continued north to Coutances, the home of a huge cathedral. Our goal was to go where tourists seldom go and where we could drive the back roads and see farms, small towns, and views of the steep cliffs along the Channel.

We drove as far as we could along the western shore to Nez de Jobourg. We parked the car and then took the hiking path to the end of the point for spectacular views of the crashing waves and Goury Lighthouse.

There were a few hearty hikers and some rock climbers, but we had the whole point to ourselves. We had truly taken the road less traveled. By the time we left the Nez de Jobourg, it was 2:30 and we were thinking of lunch.

As there were no places to eat in this remote land, we drove another 30 minutes to the city of Cherbourg right on the tip of the Cotentin Peninsula. We enjoyed a ground beef and Camembert cheese sandwich as we sat by the port in the warm sun.

A city originated by a Roman garrison, conquered by Danish kings, and fought over during the 100 Years War; Cherbourg was held by the Germans and was a strategic fortified coastline during World War II.

Because the port was the only deep-water port in the area, it was important for the Allied troops and the invasion of Normandy in 1944. The city is now a very peaceful fishing port.

After our lunch we drove back to Portorson, a village nearby our Bed and Breakfast and got gas and washed the bugs off of the car. Who washes a rental car, you might ask? With all of the flowers and blossoming trees, it was amazing how dirty our windshield got on this drive.

It was almost 6:00 when we arrive at our B&B and began the journal and started to look at the photos. It was a very long day and a long drive of 242 kilometers, but well worth the effort to get off of the beaten path and do more exploring.

It is not down in any map; true places never are.

Herman Melville

Accommodations: Les Vieilles Digues B&B - - - Meal: B