Ile d’Aix - What a Wonderful Find

Travelling through France with my sister and her hubby, we wanted to show them some nice places we’d previously been to without them. So, our itinerary took us to the wonderfully sunny Chatelaillon Plage. I’ve blogged about this west coast seaside town previously, so I won’t dwell on it, other than to say that it’s in a lovely area and is well positioned to get to the islands of Re and Oleron, and the port city of La Rochelle, with the latter being especially easy to visit by bike or train.

Getting There

During our stay we cycled all over the local area and day tripped via train into La Rochelle, but we were determined to finish off with something none of us had done before. After a bit of studying the map, hubby realised that it was possible to get to the tiny island of Ile d’Aix, which nestles between the two larger islands and the land.

To get there, you have to travel to Fouras, which appears to be a lovely little seaside town lying at the tip of the peninsula, opposite Ile d’Aix. Approximately 9 miles from Chatelaillon Plage, it takes 20 minutes by car, or an hour by bike. As we planned to have a long day exploring the island, I opted for the car on this occasion.

The ferry makes the short trip across the bay several times each day during the summer. When we arrived at the port (ample parking for cars and motorhomes), we realised many, many more people had had the same idea. Having had no luck with buying the tickets online, we got in the queue for the ticket booth. We nervously watched as the ferry appeared in the distance and got closer and closer, whilst the queue wasn’t reducing at the same rate. The ladies behind the counter seemed unflustered and we took that as a sign that there either wasn’t a problem, or they didn’t give a flying ferret! After a bit of hubby flapping, we eventually got to the front just as the ferry docked, so all good, you might think!

We bustled down the quay to the ferry with 200 other people to find the usual orderly French way of doing thing, in other words, there was no order! People were charging on to the boat before it had unloaded its passengers and vehicles, and the ship’s crew were giving it the old shoulder shrug. There was no front ramp, so everything and everyone had to go on a ramp over the side and there were several vans and a petrol tanker to get off.  It would have caused my old works safety rep to have an aneurism and how no one got crushed, fathoms me.

 I should say that my big sis suffers from crushing seasickness, so by this time she was Quelled up to the hilt for the 20-minute boat trip on the flattest sea seen by man, and thought it was all rather comical (other seasickness tablets are available!).  On the sail over we had a nice view of Fort Boyard, the Napoleonic fortress used to defend the area against naval attacks in the 19^th century and latterly used a few years ago as the basis of a C4 TV quiz show of the same name.

Ile d’Aix

Ile d’Aix is a tiny island, with only a couple of hundred residents and only service vehicles and horse and carts are allowed. There are no cars other than the 10 vehicles used by the islanders, so everyone moves around on foot or by bicycle and it’s possible to walk around the perimeter of the inverted L shaped island in two to three hours.  We opted to walk as it was a lovely day and only a 3-mile or so round trip and it was lovely with a good path underfoot all the way.

The ferry docks at the southern end of the island, where you are greeted by various nic-nac shops (the hubby calls them ‘tat’ shops) and places to hire bikes. The passengers seemed to make a beeline for the latter and the queues soon built up. Hubby had other ideas though, he figured that if we went on foot, we’d beat the majority of them to the fishermen’s restaurant he’d been eyeing up. So, we put our flip flops into turbo drive and yomped it down the dusty road like a speeding bullet.

The Restaurant – Chez Frank

As is my nature, I always like to be early and at the front of the queue for anything, so we arrived at Chez Frank whilst the restaurant was still being set up. Well, “setting up” is a loose term, these were real fishermen cooking that mornings catch, so setting up involved putting out a few mismatched plastic chairs to mismatched plastic tables on a dusty outside area. If you imagine a crab shack, this was it, all bleached wood and tarpaulins, set amongst the boats and crab pots.  Not really a restaurant per se, more of a very rustic shack, but it served amazing food on a very limited menu at great prices, yippee from me!

Obviously, the choice was shellfish or shellfish, so we went whole hog and ordered oysters to start, followed by a mahoosive portion of moules frites each (mussels and chips), downed with their house wine. We then sat back and watched the fishermen cook their catch in the open kitchen, chuckling as the hordes arrived on their bikes and fought over the remaining tables. For once the hubby’s planning and my OCD had paid off!  As for the food, it was fresh and tasty, and my brother-in-law couldn’t stop talking about his curried mussels for days after.

The Walk

Suitably full, we set off on our stroll around the island. The dusty path weaves its way around the island, taking in sandy coves, rocky outcrops, lighthouses and just the odd house here and there. Occasionally it weaves inland, and you get chance to visit the fortifications built on the island during various Franco/British wars. I was surprised to find it had been a British island for short periods in the past.

As we meandered round, we came across something I’ve never seen before, a strawberry tree. It’s an evergreen which is totally unrelated to the strawberry bush, but the fruit has a strong resemblance to a strawberry. It is edible but has a bland taste and is mostly used in jams.

The heat was sapping, so we were glad to eventually get back to the port and have a sit down for a drink, before getting on a much quieter boat back to the mainland. I will say this, I’m really glad I then didn’t have to get on my bike and cycle back to our campsite!!!

Summary

We thoroughly enjoyed our day out on the Ile d’Aix. It has a sun kissed feel about it that is very relaxing and chilled. We loved the hubbub of the boat, the back-to-basics restaurant, the stroll along the meandering pathways, finding hidden coves and dramatic views across the bay. Also, the lack of motorised vehicles and bicycles everywhere appeals to our green leanings. If you want a tranquil, peaceful day out this island is really worth the trip. As for Fouras, it looked lovely, and we will go back to explore it properly one day.

 One Final Thing

Chatelaillon Plage faces west with the three islands just off the coastline. The sea goes out a long way quickly, leaving behind a very wet beach, and is well known for a good sunset. On the night I took these pictures, we were having a steady stroll on the prom when I realised that the setting sun was about to go all dramatic. We weren’t in the best place to get a good shot, so I set off with flipflops again on turbo charge. The hubby says the last time he saw me run that fast was when the ice cream man failed to stop on our street and left me with my empty bowl in hand! I’m sure you’ll agree the pics were worth running (or maybe fast shuffling in flip flops) for!

 Enough waffle from me, if you have been to the area, please drop me a comment on the blog letting me know what you thought of it.  If you enjoy reading my blogs, please like and subscribe to my website so you get notified when the next blog is published.  It’s completely free, I don’t fill your inbox with unwanted spam, and it really means the world to me to know my experience has helped someone else.

Happy Travels