France Special
In the north, the spots of the North Sea on the English Channel and Normandy, in the north-west the rugged peninsula of Brittany and the extensive sandy beaches of the Atlantic west coast with the island of Ile de Ré. Beyond the Pyrenees, there are the speed slopes on the Spanish border, the mistral gusts around Marseille with its Mediterranean climate and finally, as a parole d'honneur for surfing connoisseurs, the surf and thermal spots off Corsica. Rien ne va plus! So: Off to France! On y va!
"One would have to have a great desire to kiss an old woman to know a virgin," wrote Christopf Lehmann in his Political Flower Garden. France's flower garden, including the Ile de Beauté, the island of beauty, Corsica, has an impressive 6500 kilometres of coastline. Countries such as Spain and Greece surpass this figure thanks to their rugged coastal geography and many islands. But no country combines the northern climate of Europe with the Mediterranean southern climate. Two worlds and France has everything and more: the North Sea à la Holland, the surf like in Ireland, Atlantic lows from the west in the Bay of Biscay. But also the Mediterranean in the south, from the mouth of the Rhône, which splits the country like two halves of a face: To the west, the rather barren lowlands of the Gulf of Lion, whipped by the Tramontana, and to the east, the foothills of the Alps - from the realm of the Mistral in Provence to the subtropical Côte d'Azur. Five hours south of Nice by ferry, the island of Corsica is like a chambre séparée, the icing on the cake for water sports enthusiasts - vive la Corse!
France is our neighbour. Our good fortune. For southern Germans, the journey to France's wind-blessed Mediterranean is par distance shorter than to the northern coasts at home. It's not just the south that beckons in the land of the tricolour: the charm of the north in Normandy or Brittany is not to be sneezed at. Of course, the weather doesn't always play ball. On the other hand, the costs are lower (your wallet will thank you), the streets are emptier and theft is not an issue. But the same applies to the whole of France in July as it does to Italy in August: travelling is a faux pas for surfers due to the low wind yield and the overcrowded spots.
For travel planning, the website www.viamichelin.com very helpful. All telephone numbers in the spot section are given without the French dialling code (0033). Bon plaisir!
All spot briefs are available as free PDF downloads.
Calculated driving hours (kilometres) from Frankfurt/a.M.: 1. Wissant: ca 5 h 43 (612 km) 2. Le Crotoy: ca 6 h 09 (663 km) 3. Le Havre: ca 7 h 02 (771 km) 4. Ouistreham: ca 7 h 30 (822 km) 5. Siouville: ca 8 h 57 (947 km) 6. St. Malo (Spot Le Sillon): ca 9 h 01 (982 km) 7. Le Dossen: ca 10 h 22 (1124 km) 8. Crozon (Spot Plage de l'Aber): ca 11 h 09 (1152 km) 9. Audierne (Spot Kersiny): ca 11 h 08 (1171 km) 10. Kerhilio: ca 9 h 49 (1059 km) 11. Penvins: ca 9 h 42 (1045 km) 12. La Baule (Spot Casino): ca 9 h 15 (1017 km) 13. St.Jean-de-Monts (Spot St.-Jean): ca 9 h 30 (10118 km) 14. La Tranche (spots Le Phare, l'Embarcadière): ca 9 h 36 (1041 km) 15. Ile de Ré (spot Diamon Head): ca 9 h 43 (1058 km) 16. Hourtin (spots Le Port, Piqueyrot, Hourtin Plage): ca 11 h 17 (1185 km) 17. St.Cyprien (spot Cypriano): ca 10 h 19 (1168 km) 18. Leucate (spot Le Coussoules): ca 9 h 50 (1119 km) $image_right_0 19. Fos-sur-Mer (spot Le Cavaou): ca 9 h 05 (1016 km) 20. Le Prade (Épluchures Beach): ca 9 h (1010 km) 21. Brutal Beach: approx. 9 h 25 (1064 km) 22. L'Almanarre (Giens peninsula): approx. 9 h 50 (1095 km) 23. Cannes (Palm Beach spot): approx. 10 h (1039 km) 24. Calvi (Club Olympique spot): approx. 15 h (1300 km) 25. Bonifacio (Santa-Manza, Piantarella spots): approx. 17 h (1400 km)
