Through the woods

This is part of my walk with Tasha when we "go through the woods," as I call it. It's the Artsy Organized Neighbor's little road to nowhere. He'll probably use it when he takes out all the wood he cut last winter and spring. The wood, cut into neat one meter lengths, is stacked here and there along the path. The canopy of oak, chestnut, and hornbeam filters the light in different ways depending on the time of year.

The autumn sun lights up a clearing along our leaf-strewn path.

Most of the walk is along our normal route either on the tractor road or along the edges of the vineyard parcels. One option takes us on a little path into the woods, then on to the dirt road in the photo, before we emerge on the other side.

Smoldering

Remember those big piles of grape vine trunks in the vineyard parcel that was recently dug up? Well, Tuesday was the day they burned. The morning was so foggy that we didn't even notice the smoke, let alone the flames, until the fog lifted. The piles are still smoldering out there and will continue until they're reduced to just ash.

One of six piles of grape vine trunks burned on Tuesday, still smoldering at sunrise on Thursday.

Ken talked to one of the guys working out there yesterday. He said he thought the parcel will be replanted next spring. That'll be cool. And he said that another parcel a little farther out is next to be dug up (probably next year) and replanted (a year or so later).

As planned, I got the chainsaw out and cut up a couple of large branches in the back yard yesterday. One was a dead branch on an apple tree (that was still attached to the tree), another was a linden branch, also dead, that came down in a recent windy rain storm. Then I cut some of the birch branches from the three trees we had taken down last year. I have more of those to do. All the wood goes into the wood pile for burning this fall and winter.

Hôtel de l'Iroise

This unassuming little hotel sat out on the Pointe du Raz in Bretagne until it was closed in 1997 and subsequently demolished as part of a plan to restore the natural state of the area*.

L'hôtel de l'Iroise, Pointe du Raz, Bretagne. Digitized color slide, January 1992.

Yesterday I got my second covid booster. In other words, my fourth shot. So far, just under 24 hours later, I have a little soreness in my arm, but nothing worse. I was surprised when the woman who gave me the shot placed it way up, almost on top of, my shoulder. I hear that now they're talking about recommending a fifth dose and maybe an annual dose, like a traditional flu shot. My first two shots were Astra-Zeneca, the third was Moderna, and this last one was Pfizer, in case you were keeping track.

Today's supposed to be a nice day weather-wise. I want to get the chainsaw out and cut up some dead and downed limbs (birch, apple, and linden) for firewood.

* Source: https://lecomptoirdetitam.wordpress.com/2009/09/12/lhotel-de-liroise-et-la-pointe-du-raz/

Chapelle Saint-They

The internet is a wonderful thing. I was able to use Google Maps and Images to identify this photo. I had a general idea of where I took it, but wasn't sure. And I certainly didn't know the name of the chapel that sits out toward the end of the point. I was on the Pointe du Raz looking across the Baie des Trépassés toward the northeast. The land is the Pointe du Van and the lonely chapel is called Saint-They.

La Pointe du Van and la chapelle Saint-They. Digitized color slide, January 1992.

The chapel was built in the seventeenth century on the ruins of a much older chapel. Visitors can drive out very close to the chapel, but we didn't. We wanted to see the Pointe du Raz (the second most western point in mainland France after the Pointe du Corsen to the north) and then head south again.

Breton houses

While driving out to the Pointe du Raz in Brittany, we saw many examples of typical Breton coastal houses. They're essentially white with slate roofs. Inland, the styles vary with many houses made of stone, but on the western coast, we saw a lot of these whitewashed houses with chimneys at the gable ends. They certainly stand out against the landscape.

Houses overlooking a cove on the Pointe du Raz. Digitized color slide, January 1992.

We're in a warm spell right now. Relatively warm. And it's been wet, so not very good for getting outdoor chores done. That may change this week, and there's no shortage of things to do out there. Ken wants to clean out the greenhouse and prepare it for bringing in plants for the winter. I've got some birch branches to cut for burning this winter. And then there's the vegetable garden to deal with.

That's amore

Saturday was pizza day! I made a very simple version this time. It's close to what's known in France (and in Naples where it originated) as une pizza Margherita. Just tomato sauce, basil, and cheese. I used fresh tomatoes in place of sauce and French comté cheese in place of mozzarella. I added some black olives for visual interest.

The second pizza with basil on top. That's amore!

The first pie (to hit my eye) had the basil baked in under the cheese, but on the second pizza (shown here), I put the basil on top after the pie came out of the oven. I think we both tasted the basil more on the second pizza, but they were both good.

Douarnenez

Once a thriving fishing port, the city of Douranenez has seen better days. Sardines, anchovies, and mackerel made up most of the catch before the decline. Once in port, the fish were prepared and canned. The canning plants have all but disappeared, owing to the dwindling supply of fish offshore.

The église Saint-Herlé de Ploaré dominates the skyline at Douarnenez. Digitized color slide, January 1992.

I took the photo from across the bay on a rather hazy, misty morning. We had left Crozon earlier, heading out toward the Pointe du Raz farther west, so we didn't go into Douarnenez at all.