We had a great sail from Binic to the Trieux river but just after the Bridge above the Marina we found the river blocked by loads of green weed. As the speed limit is 3 knots we made our way up river only to find that we had a blocked water intake just before the lock. after trying to clear the filter we managed to get into Pontrieux alongside the quay. The next day I removed the intake hose to find a piece of wood stuck in the tube. I fitted a new tube a checked the rest of the water ways in the engine and all was OK but a good lesson learned to carry some spare hose. once alongside we had the usual welcome we have come to expect from Stephan. Nothing is too much for him a truly great port captain. We went to Paimpol on the early train to find that nobody was there to get a ticket from so had a free ride down the river. We went to the market for meat and veg and were pleased to see the prices have come down some. After a nice lunch in our favourite restaurant we caught the train home. We saw George and Trudy Shannon, friends who live on the river and spent some time with them. We were invited to an exhibition of Trudie's paintings and met some more friends while we were there so it was a good day and some fun. We are staying here till the 12th Aug as we have just heard from more friends that wanted to catch up with us so are coming here then its back to Guernsey as Sal's mum needs some help at home. We have been asked why we spend so much time on this coast and can only reply that it is a lovely part of Brittany that so many yachtsmen just pass by to get to the south and miss all that it has to offer. So next time you leave for L`aberwrach why don't you change your mind and give North Brittany a look you will be pleasantly surprised

binic

We arrived in Binic to a wonderful welcome from Yann and his crew a given a quiet place on the visitors pontoon. After a wash and brush up we went out for dinner at one of the many restaurants in the town on the quay. As usual we had mussels and chips, one of our favourites. after a week here we had to do the usual shopping trip so decided to take the bus to the Super U up the hill. The bus driver was a bit grumpy but the trip was quick. After getting all we wanted we thought it would be nice to walk back to the harbour (why do I always pick the hottest time of the day) 36deg sunny but all down hill. It was a lovely walk and we saw some beautiful houses on the way. As we were so hot we sat at a roadside cafe and had a coffee and watched the world go by. (Well someone has to do it) We used some of the time while the port was so quiet to give the hull another coat of varnish and polish the topsides so Feels Good is looking her best again. The lock gates in Binic must be the only ones that really are on time. We asked Yann if he opened them at 3 am as the timetable said and he said that they open all through the night or day at the times on the timetable. As you can see even at night people come and go. The locals tend to go out in the morning do some fishing and come back at night so there is quite a bit of movement in the harbour. If you are a beach person there is the sandiest beach in Brittany flat and safe to swim. There is even an outdoor swimming and a paddling pool for the kids. We watched the volley ball championships on the beach but decided it was too much exercise so went off for a beer. After 3 weeks in Binic which we really loved we left for the rising tide to go to Pontrieux as we had friends to see.

the credit crunch

Well once again the banks have decided that they will use our money but give us nothing. So this year we have decided to stay on the North Brittany coast but it is no hardship as we love it here. We headed of for Guernsey to see Sal's mum and all our friends there. We had some really great news as a friend who had been in hospital many times over the past 10 years had a final operation that has now given him a new lease of life. He also got married so we had plenty to celebrate. We saw Sue (Sal's cousin) and Claude for a BBQ and a chat about their plans to go off for a year around Europe in Pet Claude's 106 year old Pilchard Driver. We intended to stay for a week but this stretched to a month as we were having such a good time. It came time to move on so filled the tanks and headed to Binic somewhere we had not visited for quite some time. We left on a beautiful sunny day with just the right wind for a quick 9hr sail.