Day 5 North and West Jersey
Today we set out in the car to explore the North West and West of the island. Being a Sunday we found the roads full of cyclists, motorcyclists, hikers and horse riders which slowed us down considerable as you cannot overtake on very narrow roads. There was also a fun-run taking place along the north coast and when walking on the coastal paths we were constantly having to move aside to make room for the runners.
We started out at Bonne Nuit Bay, which was about 5 miles due north of our hotel. We were surprised to see so many locals swimming in the sea. It seems to be a favourite spot for the locals as we were the only non Jersey registered car there.
We then moved west and stopped at various other view points on the north coast where there was some spectacular cliff scenery. This included Sorel Point (although on one side there is a massive ugly stone quarry), Greve de Lecq and Plemont Point. All have some form of bunkers or concrete buildings left after WW2. There must have been a shooting club near to Greve de Lecq as there were continuous very loud gun shots. We had heard this at Sorel Point and wondered what it was and we could still hear them at Plemont Point. Not good for those wanting to relax on a Sunday.
At Plemont Point there were some birds of prey hovering (but not like kestrels) over the sea and land. I didn’t bring my bird book with me and haven't been able to identify them through the RSPB site. Local wildlife centres say there are a lot of marsh harriers about so maybe that is what it is..
We then went to Grosnez Castle, a ruin originally built in the 1300s situated right on the north west corner of the island. It was nice except for the fact that the fun run ended there and everytime a runner crossed the finish line there were rapturous rounds of applause. It was lunchtime but we decided to find somewhere quieter to eat.
We made our way down the west coast and stopped at La Saline at the north of St Ouen’s Bay where we had lunch and Paul had a sleep. St Ouens bay is a mixture of sand and black rocks and runs all the way along the west coast and there were plenty of areas to park all along the bay. We stopped again at a National Trust nature reserve which included St Ouens Pond, a lake with a hide. There were a lot of geese and one exciting moment when one of the afore mentioned birds of prey hovered over the lake and caused all the birds to go into a frenzy. It did swoop but went off empty handed (or empty clawed).
Our last stop of the day was at Corbiere Point which is at the South West corner of the island. We had passed this point on the ferry and seen a lighthouse on a little islet out to sea but were pleased to find that as it was low tide, we could walk over the causeway right up to it. The shoreline here is very rocky.
We then went back to the hotel and found somewhere to eat and then had a drink in the bar while listening to the nightly entertainment.
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