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Brest’s International Maritime Festival

Brest’s International Maritime Festival

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We arrived in Brest after our Biscay crossing on Bastille day totally by accident.

Delayed due to COVID-19 Brest’s International Maritime Festival was also happening at the same time after being delayed by a few years.

This meant that not only was the marina in Brest quite full, but also the whole harbour area was extremely busy with classic yachts, ships, music, food and drink.

A tall ship in the harbour of Brest during the festival

As we were walking around the festival we kept hearing bagpipes in the background and wondered where they were coming from.

We ended up at the music stage, but there were no bagpipes to be seen initially.

It turns out they were warming up around the corner, but of course quite loud as bag pipes generally are.

When they came to perform, the band was not only made up of bagpipers, but also people that seemed to be playing what looked like a small clarinet, but it turned out to be (we think) a set of practice chanters.

All quite loud, but also enjoyable.

We walked past what seemed like hundreds of food establishments, all of which were jam-packed.

Eventually, we settled on a pizza place right next to the marina jetty that Hannah was moored up on.

They let us know that firework would be happening at around 11pm, so we set on a bench across the road, and waited both for the fireworks and our pizza with some drinks in hand.

We captured the climax of the fireworks display for you to enjoy.

The restaurant forgot to bring our pizza out (probably distracted by the fireworks) but we collected it shortly after they finished, and headed back to the boat, warming it slightly and then devouring it at about midnight.

A walk around Tresco island

A walk around Tresco island

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Tresco is one of the many islands that make up the Isles of Scilly. On Day 21 we anchored up just north of Tresco in St Helens Pool.

Heading to shore, we landed the dinghy on the northeastern side at Old Grimsby.

Desert

The first thing on our minds was a spot of lunch, and the closest place (also quite expensive) was Ruin Beach Cafe, very yummy. We ended up having a full 3-course meal for lunch, see our deserts to the right.

We started exploring and headed for a big walk counter-clockwise around the island without much planning about what to see, except for some greenery and the open ocean on the far side.

There is lots of green space on the northern side, with great views of the open ocean, and views of the other Isles.

As you make your way around to the western side you find a couple of castles / forts providing a little history lesson and some more good views, such as New Grimsby.

New Grimsby

We stopped off at the supermarket in the middle of the island for some icecreams and drinks because it was around 28 degrees C.

Continuing south, we planned on visiting Tresco Gardens, but unfortunately due to our late planning, they were closed. Nonetheless, our adventure to the south let us relax while watching lots of rabbits and pheasants frolick in the grass.

Rabbits frolicking in the grass

It was low tide when we got back to Old Grimsby where we had left the dinghy.

We spent a little time in Ruin Beach Cafe once again making full use of their WiFi to download the latest Stranger Things season, as well as updates to our navigational charts.

Finally, it was time to carry the dinghy, engine and all, back down to the water (now quite the trek).

Dinghy at Old Tresco

A short walk around Great Ganilly

A short walk around Great Ganilly

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On Day 20 we arrived in the Isles of Scilly, amidst the Eastern Isles, right next to Great Ganilly.

We were only a short distance from Great Ganilly Island, so figured we had better replace our outboard engine oil (a job we had been putting off), and explore the island!

We took the dinghy a short distance to shore and carried it over a bit of rocky ground so it wouldn’t drift away as the tide rose.

Heading counter-clockwise around the island we first found ourselves on a little beach with a webcam (we guess for seals).

There was quite a bit of fishing tackle, ropes and things caught in rocks and on the beach, including this box that said Lowestoft! It’s a small world, as Lowestoft is Kathryn’s mums home town.

The island had a few paths carved out from where people had visited before. But the main inhabitants seemed to be hundreds of sea birds, all of which were flying around keeping an eye on what we were doing…

As we came back around to the western side of the island we got the opportunity to take some nice pictures of Hannah from the shore.

Instagram Post (July 9)

We weren’t ready to head back to the boat, so we relaxed on the beach until sunset.

From the beach, we could see a rock that looked a lot like what Grace described as a giant slug, but we were thinking of a crocodile. So of course, I (Adam) had to go and see what it would look like if I tried to ride it.

Meanwhile, Kathryn was once again getting artsy in the sand.

On the way back to the boat, we could mostly have the dinghy engine off and drift downwind, which was perfect as the seals were out and about.

Instagram Post (July 12)