The sea

At "Bruyères du Mont", you are at the forefront to enjoy the bay of Mont St Michel.

 

 

At the bottom of the Normandy-Brittany gulf, between Brittany and the peninsula of Cotentin, the bay opens wide onto the Channel in an immense and moving expanse ... This is where the magical spectacle of the high tides takes place there. transforming the landscapes twice a day.

 

Three main rivers flow into the Channel in the Bay of Mont Saint-Michel: the Couesnon, the Sée and Sélune, a coastal river rich in salmon. These three rivers hunt the sediments brought by the tide towards the open sea around Mont Saint-Michel. In fact, the Couesnon does not separate Brittany and Normandy but the saying goes: "The Couesnon in his madness has put the mountain in Normandy."

 

This beautiful natural site is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and offers you an incredible diversity of landscapes: cliffs, beaches and dunes, wet meadows or quicksand ... Not to mention the famous saltmarshes or "herbus", these vast spacious pastures covered with halophilic plants which support the salt. These meadows are covered by the sea during high tides and are home to a great biological richness. It is there that the famous sheep graze the pre-salt or 'grévin', small woolly figure indissociable of the bay.

 

 

The bay is also home to a variety of flora and fauna, including thousands of water birds: avocet elegant, wader, sandpiper, oystercatcher, silver plover ... It is also one of the rare bays of the French coasts where the seals of the sea-calf live permanently: a colony has taken up residence there and shares the waves with schools of dolphins. About a hundred species of fish frequent these waters; migratory fish such as salmon or eels, or sedentary fish such as mullet.

 

To learn more about this incredible ecosystem, you can visit the Eco museum of Mont Saint-Michel Bay in Vains, a picturesque village less than 30 minutes away by car. The permanent exhibition of the museum "The men, the nature and the landscapes of the Bay" is presented to you in a farmhouse type building, one of the old traditional farms of the region.

 

Nearby, further up the coast, the Bec d'Andaine awaits you with its beaches and sand dunes. It is the main starting point for crossings of the Bay of Mont Saint-Michel, a magical and unforgettable experience. Accompanied by a guide, you can make the trip on foot or horseback, enjoy a magnificent view of Mont Saint-Michel, and satisfy your ornithological inclinations by observing all kinds of birds.

 

On the way to the Mont, a desert granite island stands out on the horizon: it is Tombelaine, the wild brother of Mont Saint-Michel. Its access is regulated. Indeed, this isolated island does not welcome humans but a lot of seabirds who have chosen to make their nests there. From the top of its 45 meters, the Peak of Madness you see ... Tombelaine, besides its legends, also houses the ruins of a fortress. At the end of the crossing of the bay, of course, you will find the "Wonder of the West", one of the most beautiful monuments in France and Europe, Mont Saint-Michel.

 

But the coast offers many more surprises and visits ... How about an offshore getaway? With less than an hour’s drive, Granville may well become your port-stage before the islands. What will your mood be?

 

Jersey, its charming villages and so British, its cliffs, beaches and trails?

 

Guernsey, the green island for a stay out of time, its English gardens and the famous "Hauteville House" where Victor Hugo lived during his exile?

 

Sark, small in size but big in botanical richness, serene and green, in the words of Victor Hugo "the most wonderful stone poem that emerges from the surface of the waters"?

 

Or finally Alderney, the island of pastel houses and wild landscapes that will charm nature lovers?

 

You can also choose to embark for the Chausey Islands, a unique archipelago in Europe. It counts 365 inlets at low tide and 52 at high tide, which are bathed in transparent water: unspoilt nature, beaches inviting relaxation, towers and fort, chapels, fishing villages ... It is now a holiday resort and a popular excursion destination.
 

Our guide "1001 treasures" (more)...

In order to discover ALL tourist activities and visits to our beautiful region, Les Bruyères du Mont invites you to read the OTHER pages "tourism" below...

Your desires	Your destinations
The sea Countryside The heritage The Mont St Michel Sports and leisure Unusual activities Restaurants within 20 km	The City of St Malo The city of Avranches The city of Granville Villedieu Les poêles Fougères, between art and history Cancale, on the Emeral Coast Dinan, medieval city Dinard, a seaside resort

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Photos credits :

Mont Saint-Michel: Wikipédia

Sheep in the Bay of Mont Saint-Michel: Wikipédia

Jersey Coasts: Pxhere