The church on top of Mont St. Michel was built in stages
throughout the centuries. The 50 foot tide is one of the most extreme
in Europe and you can see the tide move wave by wave. The night
photo was taken at 11:30pm in 38 degree weather with 20-30mph winds.
The result was worth it.
Views from within the outer walls. We tried to stay
at one of the 6 hotels that lined the main street up to the Abby, but
all were booked. Two of the hotels are in the left photo on the
right side of the street. The other photos are steps leading up
to the Abby.
Most of the parking is under water during high tide.
As the tide recedes, a water truck sprays the sand off the pavement to
reveal the white lines of the parking spaces.
For some unknown reason, we had to park
over a mile away on the mainland during high tide and we not allowed
to park where these cars are. Can you see the cars at the base
of the tree line? We can't either. It took over 40 minutes
to walk with the kids in 40 degree temperatures with 20 mile per hour
winds. So much for making a special effort to beat the crowds.
At the end of the day, Jeff saw a heard of sheep cross
the road by the parking lot that allowed him to get the only picture he
knew he wanted to take months before the vacation started. There
is nothing by flat lands for miles and miles and then there is Mont St.
Michel. We were able to see it over 10 miles away.
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