Isles Chausey 48 52N 1 49W
Gryphon II
Chris and Lorraine Marchant
Mon 22 Sep 2008 20:48
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These are a collection of rocks just south of the
Channel Islands which the English forgot to keep from the French. It is neaps at
the moment so it means the tides are a bit less fast and furious than normal. It
is therefore a good time to visit. It also means that the anchorage does not dry
out as it would under spring tides.
The island is an in important tourist destination
with over 200,000 tourists visiting each year. However at the moment we are at
the end of the season and we saw very few people this afternoon. Although the
main island is only about 3/4 mile long there is a permanent population of
about a 100, making a living from tourists and fishing. In the past there was a
lot of quarrying of the granite which apparently has a bluey colour that used to
be highly prized.
The scene is completely transformed at low tide.
Apart from the main island there are few pieces of dry land at high tide but as
the tide recedes the rocks uncover and awash rocks become large islands whilst
new rocks break the surface to replace the old ones. It would be a magnificent
place for sea kayaking given the right conditions. Needless to say even with the
smaller tides we are experiencing now, navigation is critical. There are many
routes through the rocks, some marked by pillars but many more relying on a
knowledge of leading lines which might be as simple as a whitewashed boulder or
an unusually shaped rock. We toyed with an anchorage under one of the smaller
islets but decided to play safe by picking up a mooring in the "Sound". Even so
we were still concerned that we woud run out of water at low tide. I am
pleased to say it is past low tide now and we are still upright!
Tomorrow we hope to do some low tide fishing of or
own and see if we can find some oysters again.
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