Walking around Huelgoat – France Day 4

posted in: France, Home | 0

The day dawned reasonable and so we set off to walk around HuelgoatBut first a coffee, and in the bar we picked up a leaflet and set off with said leaflet and Carte de Randonnée 0617OT. It was tricky – we should have used Wendy Mewes’ book, Walking and Other Activities in Finisterrewhere Walk 13 describes the walk clearly – 12 kms, 3.5 hours.

The sunshine didn’t last – throughout there were rain showers, but we had packed umbrellas (!) and somehow, miraculously, were always sheltered by trees when the rain came down.

Alongside the canal in Huelgoat
Alongside the canal in Huelgoat

There was a brief open area before we plunged into the trees again. Lead and silver were mined in this area by the Celts, and then the Romans, with activity peaking in the 18C and 19C and ending in 1866.

Walking the canals in Huelgoat
Walking the canals in Huelgoat
Walking the canals in Huelgoat
Walking the canals in Huelgoat
The canal to the mine at Huelgoat
The canal to the mine at Huelgoat
The mine at Huelgoat
The mine at Huelgoat
Bridge over Fao River, Huelgoat (http://www.cpa-bastille91.com/cartes-postales/femmes/)
Bridge over Fao River, Huelgoat (http://www.cpa-bastille91.com/cartes-postales/femmes/) c.1900?

Down a road, over the river, and then we were heading back towards Huelgoat alongside the river this time, rather than a canal.

Chaos of rocks outside Huelgoat, on the Argent River
Chaos of rocks outside Huelgoat, on the Argent River
The Fairies' Pool
The Fairies’ Pool
Chaos of rocks outside Huelgoat, on the Argent River
Chaos of rocks outside Huelgoat, on the Argent River

And once off the road this sad sight around a bend in the path, seen so often on walks in lonely places. These young men were shot one month before the liberation of Huelgoat by the Americans.

 A lonely spot outside Huelgoat

Resistance fighters from Huelgoat (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_Resistance)
Resistance fighters from Huelgoat (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_Resistance)

And then we were back in the town. Wendy Mewes tells us that the lake in Huelgoat and the two canals were made in 1760-74 to supply water to the mines’ hydraulic machinery.

I popped into the little supermarket and then we set off for Commana and Mougau Bihan.

You may be interested in
Walks in Brittany – Huelgoat
Canal superior, Huelgoat
The mines of Huelgoat – very interesting article with photographs
The Liberation of Huelgoat

 

 

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