C016-STANDARD  Pink Granite and heather

The pink granite coast stretches 30km from Perros Guirec to Plestin les Grèves, studded with granitic chaos, huge rocks in extravagant forms sculpted by wind and water. The excise men’s path leads you from small beaches to rocky clusters with fantastic views of the Archipel des Sept-Iles (the Seven Islands Archipelago). You will climb back up the Léguer valley to reach Lannion and its historic centre. You will reach the Yaudet archaeological site that looks over the Lannion bay, then pick up your walk on the coastal path towards Saint Michel en Grève, St Efflam and Locquirec, a small port hidden at the end of a bay. Past this haven of peace and quiet, you will find a wild, unbridled nature where the sea crashes against the cliffs and rocky clusters that border the coast. You will appreciate the calm of St Jean du Doigt’s long beach and push on to the village to admire a very beautiful parochial enclosure. From the Primel headland you will discover the magnificent Morlaix bay, stand in admiration before the more than 5000-year-old Barnenez Cairn, before reaching Morlaix, a small historic town that invites you to stroll around and discover its past.

Itinerary

Day 1 – Arrive at PERROS GUIREC – In the heart of the Pink Granit Coast, Perros-Guirec offers you a protected natural site whose beauty is exceptional, an unusual and imposing landscape where pink granite rocks have been carved out by winds and waves into varied shapes and patterns. Facing the bird sanctuary of the Archipelago of Sept-Iles, three sandy beaches are three large sandy beaches suitable for families and tourists – Night and breakfast in a 2-star hotel on the port.

Day 2 – PERROS-GUIREC port – TREGASTEL (Coz-Porz beach) – (18 km). You will leave in the direction of the Pointe du Château, following the coast and crossing a residential zone, where villas built at the beginning of the last century compete with one another for ‘best in show’. You will continue this walk on the beautiful Trestignel beach, then the large beach at Trestaou, edged with palm trees! You will then take the excise men’s path that runs the length of the coast among the pink granite rock clusters to get to the Ploumanac’h lighthouse, the St Guirec beach and oratory (on the sand) before reaching Ploumanac’h port. Next you will visit the tidal watermills built at the mouth of the Traouiero valley. Their history goes back to the 14^th century, but the actual building dates from 1735. On the coastal path, you will walk around the Ste Anne bay to reach Ile Renote where you will explore the impressive chaos of pink rocks and a Neolithic tomb (allée couverte). Finally, you will reach Coz Porz beach and your hotel. Night and breakfast in a 3-star hotel.

Day 3 – TREGASTEL – TREBEURDEN (22 km) – From the hotel, you will follow the beach and reach the end of Kervalos bay. There, you will leave the seaside to take the Kerguntuil covered pathway (a burial place dating back to more than 2,000 years BC and more than 9 meters long) and the Kerguntuil dolmen, one of the most impressive in Trégor. You will continue your journey across the Brittany countryside towards the St Uzec menhir, then towards the Notre-Dame-des-Citeaux de Penvern chapel, founded around 1300 by the Bégard Cistercian monks, making it one of the oldest chapels in the region. The adjacent fountain was said to be able to cure many ills. You will return to the sea to visit and walk around the Ile Grande (Big Island), a landscape of moorland bordered by numerous shores, coves and marshes, with a beautiful covered pathway. You will then reach the market town of Trébeurden via the Quellern ponds, where wild Camargue horses roam. Dinner, night and breakfast in a 2-star hotel.

Day 4 – TREBEURDEN to LANNION (16 km). You will go down towards Trébeurden port, climb up onto the Castel that looks out over the port to say hello to Père Trébeurden (Father Trébeurden), famous rock resembling a human face. If the tide allows, you will be able to explore the Ile Millau with its moors, magnificent views and covered pathway. Once back on the mainland, you will reach the Pointe de Bihit via the large beach at Tresmeur. On the coastal path, along beaches or across moors and through bracken, you will walk around Lannion bay to the Pointe Servel, marking the mouth of the Léguer. You will get to Lannion centre first along a pathway that overlooks the valley, then the towpath. You will find old Lannion has a rich historical and architectural heritage. Night and breakfast in a 3-star town centre hotel.

Day 5 – LANNION to SAINT MICHEL EN GREVE (19 km) – From Lannion you will reach the banks of the Léguer and the small village of Loguivy les Lannion, which boasts a very beautiful 16^th and 17^th century church. You will follow this other riverbank to the hamlet of Yaudet, which looks out over the sea. A Roman stronghold, then Episcopal see during the first centuries, this hamlet boasts a very beautiful richly decorated chapel. Then you go along the coast to Locquemeau, an old sardine fishing port with a 15^th century church. You will pass the Pointe du Dourven and Pointe de Shar and carry on along the coastal path that runs along the cliffs to reach the Saint Michel shore, a vast expanse of fine sand. Taxi transfer at Plougasnou where the hotel is. Dinner, night and breakfast on a 2 star hotel

Day 6 – SAINT MICHEL EN GREVE to POUL PRADOU Beach (23 km) – Taxi transfer at St Michel in the morning. From St Michel, you will follow the route along the beach and, after passing the base of the Grand Rocher (Great Rock), which rises to 70m, you reach the hamlet of St Efflam. You will follow the coastal path along the Pointe de l’Armorique and discover some beautiful fine sandy beaches. You will cross the Douron estuary to reach the village of Locquirec, a former Gallo-Roman seaside resort which boasts a beautiful, richly decorated church, a former Chevaliers de Malte (Knights of Malta) chaplaincy. You will pass the Pointe du Château and Pointe du Corbeau headlands before walking along the Sables blancs (white sand) beach. Via alternating beaches and cliffs you will reach Poul Rodou beach where a taxi will collect you in front of the beach bar to take you to your hotel in Diben. Dinner, night and breakfast in the same hotel.

Day 7 – POUL PRADOU beach to DIBEN BEACH (Plougasnou) (25 km). A taxi will drop you off near Poul Rodou beach where you will pick up the coastal path. You will follow it to Vilin Izella beach where you can leave the coastal path for a brief detour to the Trobodec watermill with its giant bucket-wheel that worked until 1950, and then the Trégor rural museum at Prajou that houses a rich collection of more than 2,500 agricultural and maritime tools. Once back by the sea, you will climb the cliffs and cross this undulating and winding rocky coast before reaching the beautiful beach at St Jean du Doigt. You will leave the coast to visit the Saint Jean du Doigt church and parochial enclosure built in 1440 to house one of the Saint’s fingers. This sanctuary became a major pilgrimage site and history recounts that Anne of Brittany walked from Morlaix to Saint-Jean to benefit from the Saint-Jean relics’ properties. You will reach the market town of Plougasnou via the Notre Dame de Lorette oratory, a unique Brittany monument, then rejoin the coast to admire the large Trimel-Trégastel beach. You will walk around the Pointe de Trimel headland before reaching the Diben cove and your beachfront hotel. Dinner, night and breakfast in the same hotel.

Day 8 – DIBEN to MORLAIX (27 km) – Still on the coastal path, you will continue to discover this wild coast with its wonderful landscapes and beaches interspersed with rocky cliffs and islands. You will walk along the Ténérez cove to visit the Barnenez Cairn, one of the oldest monuments in Europe, its construction pre-dating the Egyptian pyramids by around 2,000 years. Built between 4500 and 3900 BC, this dry-stone edifice covers megalithic tombs. The scale of the monument is surprising – 72 meters long, around 20-25 meters wide, and 9 meters high. The monument is made up of 2 juxtaposed cairns covering 11 funeral chambers (dolmens) whose corridors open onto the monument’s south façade. You will continue your walk along the shore of Morlaix’s natural harbor to the village of Dourduff en Mer, at the end of the bay. Then you will reach Morlaix either by following the river or cross-country. Night and breakfast in a 2-star hotel on the port.

Day 9 – MORLAIX – End of the tour after breakfast

Best Season

From April to middle of October but be careful this area is very crowded in summer time and we recommend you (if you can) to come outside this period.  Nevertheless this area attracts a lot of tourists and you have to reserve earlier to get the best rooms.

What’s included?

• 8 nights’ accommodation in 2-star hotels or charming B&B with breakfasts
• 4 dinners
• Hotel to hotel luggage transfer along the trail.
• Taxi transfers : Plage de Poul Rodou–Diben (x2), Dourduff en Mer-Morlaix
• A set of maps (1/25 000 scale) with the route marked on and detailed route notesdescribing the trail.
• A daily itinerary together with information about facilities and places of interest along the trail.
• Emergency assistance

Visa fees – transportation fees to and from the walk area – Insurance (strongly recommended on all trips) – Transfers except those mentioned above – Drinks – Entrance fees – Additional meals – Spending of personal nature e.g. laundry, souvenirs, phone calls, are not included

Getting there and away

To Perros Guirec port

By train:  The nearest rail station is Lannion. Several TGV or fast trains from Paris-Montparnasse station to Plouaret or Guingamp (on the Paris-Brest rail line) and change to Lannion. Taxi to go to the hotel at Perros or bus to Perros Guirec port.

By car: Drive to Rennes along A11 and A86 motorway. Continue on the speedway RN 12 to Guingamp and along D767 to Lannion and Perros.

Where to park : several unsupervised free car parks at Perros Guirec port by the hotel.

From Morlaix

Rail station at Morlaix.

You can return to Perros Guirec by bus with a change at  Lannion.

Walk difficultyang

Grade 2 – walks of 4 to 6 hours a day. Some stages could be more 20 km (13/15 miles) and rolling uplands. You often will walk in flat ground but some steep ascents when you walk up a cliff. An average level of fitness or some experience with walking is recommended.