Day 15 Early departure for Grand Phare de Las Baleines (whales),where I lunch with the tour leaders. The bus driver gets us lost amongst thesand dunes searching for Pointe de Chauveau Lighthouse and Phare de Chanchardon, both seen from a distance. Not only that, we nearly get stuck in the dunes as we head back to La Rochelle. I envision a night on the bus, butwe get unstuck and drive on to see Phare de Saint Martin de Ré.
We also view the Tour de la Lanterne from across the harboras our local guide tells us about it. A big day!
#39 The Grand Phare de Las Baleines (whales) was first establishedin 1682, the present lighthouse was lit in 1854. The 196 foot octagonal limestone tower is one of the highestlighthouses in France. The Lighthouse Shop offers many objects inspired by themaritime world as wemany specialized books.
#40 Another view of the Grand Phare de Las Baleines.
#41 The Old Tower LesBaleines proved inadequate in reducing the number of strandings because it was not high enough. Thus, it was replaced by a new lighthouse in 1854.
#42 The 1825 Pointe de Chauveau Lighthouse was built to signal dangerous rocks not shown on the maps. Keepers and their families were housed on land and they could access the light on foot depending on the tide. Chauveau was the first French light to be built in the open sea.
#43 Despite the presence ofthe Pointe de Chauveau Lighthouse, many strandings took place on the Chanchardon reefs. Finally in 1919 the 66 foot octagonal granite Phare de Chanchardon was built off shore. The original lantern was replaced in 1969 by a wind-powered light, but the lantern room now seems to have gone missing.
#44 First established in 1826, the current Phare de Saint Martin de Ré dates from 1867. It is an active ATON and sits near the 1600s Citadel de Saint Martin de Ré a well preserved fortification.
#45 The 180 foot Tour de la Lanterne was established in 1209 and first used as a lighthouse. In the1500s it became lighthouse and a prison for priests, later sailors and finally prisoners of war. The tower was used to watch the Aunis coastline during the Middle Ages. In 1789 the French government declared it a Monument historique. The Tour de la Lanterne was fully restored in 2015 and is one of LaRochelle’s major tourist attractions.
Day 16. Another day in the very hospitable town of La Rochelle.It’s midsummer day. La Rochelle Feu Anterieur (front) can be seenfrom the hotel deck. We cruise to see Fort Boyard, Phare de L’île D’aix,and Phare au Boute du Monde (at the end of the world). Some of usUber to the boat launch to escape the long walk.
#46 The 46 foot LaRochelle Feu Anterieur (front) aka Phare du rouge (red) peeks its lantern above the townscape in La Rochelle.
#47 The original efforts to build Fort Boyardwere abandoned and taken up again in 1801 by Napolean. However, due to a battle with the English which destroyed the French fleet, progress was halted for 30 years. It was resumed in 1842, the fort was finally completed in1857, but by then, the development of artillery made it completely useless militarily. It became a prison in 1870 and was used as such for 41 years. It was put up for auction and purchased by a dentist who was daunted by the challenges of restoration and put it up for sale for 1.5 million francs. It was purchased in 1982 by a production company who restored the fort. In the1990s, the filming of the TV game/show Fort Boyard was launched. Now in its 35th season and very successful, it has made Fort Boyard the most famous fort in the world. The light—yes, this is a story about lighthouses—is mounted on the side of a square platform of the old fort and was probably established in the 1870s. It is still an active ATON.
#48 In 1821 a 56-foot tower, the Phare de L’île D’aix (island of Aix), was built on the walls of a fortress at the southern tip of the island to help with difficult navigational challenges. But, because navigation remained difficult due to the many rocks, a twin tower was built 65-ft from the first one in 1906. They are nicknamed the ‘Giants of the Island.’
#49 An interesting ATON inthe Rochelle harbor.
#50 The Phare au Boute du Monde (at the end of the world) is a replica of a lighthouse located in Patagonia in the extreme south of Argentina. It was put in service in 2000 by Andre Bronner and is an active aid to navigation at the entrance to the maritime channel of the La Rochelle marina.
On the way back to the hotel, Jeremy and I guzzle a beer while I sketch the Phare La Rochelle Feu Postérieur (rear).
#51 The Phare La Rochelle Feu Postérieur aka Phare vert (green) du quai Valin is nestled amongst ordinary buildings in La Rochelle. This 75 foot lighthouse, along with its counterpart, the Phare rouge, was constructed in 1852 and can be found on the quai Valin in the city's historic harbor. The pair are range lights.
After dinner several of us ride the ubiquitous Ferris wheel to celebrate the summer solstice.
This La Rochelle tower looks like, but is not, a lighthouse…
Day 17 At our farewell dinner I win a stuffed sea gull which I name Ida—short for Idawalley Lewis, the famed keeper at Lime Rock Lighthouse in Newport Harbor, Rhode Island. Carolyn wins a copy of my book, Lighthouses of the Great Lakes: An Architect’s Sketchbook. The Queen of Lighthouses,Darlene, a veteran pharologist who’s photographed 4,500 lighthouses, wins a framed sketch of Pointe de la Coubre.
There are also some corny limericks to honor our leaders and our guide:
There was a young woman named Marge, who thought she was really in charge.
When we need help, she didn’t give us a whelp, ‘cause she was no Madame La Farge.
There once was a gal named Wanda, who read stories we were kinda fonda. If we needed a joke, it was she who bespoke. So caring and sweet was our Wanda.
There once was a young man called Al*, who guided us ‘round like a pal. When we needed some care, he was right there, but to swim was escape for our Al.
*Alex is too much of a challenge for rhyming.
Me in my Vincent van Gogh hat with my dear friend Ida.
Day 18 We sightsee in Paris on our own. It is refreshing to connect on a more personal level. I have a couple beers with Tom and Stacy, lunch with Marge and Wanda, out of their leadership roles, and a final dinner with Jeremy at Thai Kok where we share Thai rolls, scallops, and sticky rice. Jeremy had taken the train up to Britany and a boat out to see the 271 foot Phare de Île Vierge the tallest in France, in Europe, and in the world!
Rendering of the 1902 Phare de Île Vierge with the 1845 tower in the background.
Colonne Vendôme sits in a large square of the same name in Paris. The column—obviously in the shape of a lighthouse—was completed at Napoleon’s direction in 1810 to celebrate the victory of Austerlitz. Under the direction of sculptor Pierre Nolasque Bergeret, it is encased with bas relief bronze plates made from cannon captured in that battle. A statue of Napoleon by Antoine-Denis Chaudet tops the column. Napoleon is depicted in Roman attire, crowned with laurels, holding a sword in one hand and a globe surmounted with a statue of Victory in the other.
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