Mudpie Fridays >> Brittany >> Rockpooling in Brittany France

Rockpooling in Brittany France

Rock pooling in Brittany. At the end of the Summer holidays, we spent two weeks in Brittany. Staying in Benodet for the first week before exploring the River Vilaine and the Canal de Nantes a Brest with Le Boat on the second. On the first day we arrived in Benodet we headed to the beach to explore and spotted some fantastic-looking rock pools as it was low tide. Needless to say that put rockpooling in Brittany straight to the top of the boy’s must-do list.

Table of Contents

Where to park in Benodet

If you are not staying locally to Benodet, in Southern Brittany then you will be pleased to know that it is possible to park centrally to this popular spot. Even when we visited in August there were plenty of parking opportunities down the roads close to the beach. Although these filled up as the day went on. Or head to the main car park which is only a short walk and also free to park. Alternatively, you may choose to visit by going on boat trip which will bring you into the harbour. There is a tourist office located at the top of the town and worth stopping in the car park there to pick up a map of the town.

If you arrive to go rockpooling in Brittany and have not got a net and bucket then it is possible to buy these in town. However, Benodet is quite spread out. So we struggled to find many shops when we visited. We only found two that sold buckets and spades one of these was opposite the port great if you are arriving by boat. Right next to where you can buy tickets to Isle de Glenan the Archepeligo with the white sand beaches. The other is by the wooden boardwalk near the main beach. Located on the opposite side of the road, if you have gone as far as the pine trees you have walked too far.

Where to rock pool in Benodet

Benodet is a great place known for some of the best beaches on the North Coast. A popular spot it is situated on the Odet estuary and is often referred to as the Brenton Riviera. The seaside resort is an ideal place for a family holiday. At high tide, you could be forgiven for thinking there is not much to the fine sandy beach made up of golden sand. Which swoops around in a gentle curve although the long sandy beaches attract many holidaymakers. With a range of water sports, surf school and even the opportunity to learn to sail.

Towards the port end of the beach, as the tide goes out it reveals rocky inlets and it is here that the boys enjoyed rock pooling. It is a great spot for adults if you do not want to join in the treasure hunt. As there are some pine trees for shade at the edge and stones to sit on. As well as a wonderful view of turquoise waters and enjoying the natural beauty of the Atlantic coast.

There are plenty of rock pools to explore some quite deep meaning it’s a good place even during high season. The rocky outcrops are covered in oyster shells and mini mussel beds. Making water shoes a necessity.

What did we catch?

When we visited low tide was around lunchtime. The boys loved looking in the clear water pools to see what they could find. We did make a little bit of a schoolboy error in as far as our rock pooling nets had quite big holes. So they quickly discovered that many of the small creatures would swim right through. Shrimp in particular were difficult to catch although Harry soon found that he could catch them in his hands as long as he was patient enough. There were also a number of small fish and mud skippers as well which are super fast and can camouflage with the best of them. Making it all the more enjoyable when you manage to catch something.

There were also lots of winkles in a variety of different colours, as well as hermit crabs and also other crabs. Being big fans of going crabbing at home the boys were delighted with their crab finds. However, we did find that the really small ones got eaten by the slightly bigger ones. Which we have never found before and stopped us from catching any more! Although there were plenty and they had unusual markings and were lots of different colours. There were also lots of sea anemones, some in rock pools and others that had already been stranded without water. And so we had an impromptu science lesson on what happens when the tide goes out.

Rockpooling in Brittany Conclusions

We have visited a number of different seaside towns along this stretch of coastline. Benodet is the best place we have found so far for rock pooling in Brittany. There are also some further rocky outlets further along the coast in the opposite directions but we did not test these out. As the ones we discovered were relatively flat and easy to navigate making them suitable for the whole family.

Have you been on a seaside holiday in Brittany have you tried rock pooling in Brittany? I would love to hear about your experiences in the comments below.