Port la Foret

We've just discoved that the marina at le Foret Fouesnant, where we are at the moment, has wireless internet access. So I am sitting here in Kalessin's cockpit, under our canopy, looking out at the brilliant blue water in the marina, for the latest blog update. Which is nice.

This is an enormous purpose-built complex, where all the buildings and surrounding houses are all part of the marina. It's a bit soulless, but is also very sheltered, and has every possible facility on site including two large chandleries.

After some discussion it looks unlikely that Mark, my brother in law who hoped to do the Biscay crossing with us, will be able to join us. We're still hoping, but in the meantime we will pootle down towards La Rochelle from where we can make a shorter crossing to Santander (200 miles as opposed to around 300 from here to Gijon). It feels easier and more comfortable to stay in France, where we do at least understand the basics of the language and are getting to know the drill in the marinas, than to venture 300 miles across open sea to a country we don't know very well.

In the interests of doing this more successfully I have just invested 60 euros in the French edition of an English pilot book which covers the whole of this Atlantic coast much more effectively than the pilot book we already have. If I could have got the English language version I would have done, but sadly it looks as though I'd need to order it and then wait 10 days in the same place for it to arrive...

Guy heads home in just four days and I think his patience with us and the boat is running out. He is very cross with us all and spends a lot of time in his cabin growling. He is normally very dependent on the company of his peers so has done superbly to put up with us for all this time. Perhaps we have done superbly to put up with him too. We'll be taking him to Nantes airport from the station at Lorient but hope to spend a day or two n the Ile de Groix before we get to Lorient, which is another post WW2 bombing concrete city like Le Havre and Brest. Churchill has a lot to answser for.