Baie de Somme: The Marquenterre, the Seals and Saint-Valery
Hauts-de-France, France
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300
XP
+100 France
= 400 total
1 day
Baie de Somme: The Marquenterre, the Seals and Saint-Valery
300 + 100 XP
The Baie de Somme is a wide estuary of sand and saltmarsh on the Picardy coast, between the pointe du Hourdel to the south and the pointe de Saint-Quentin-en-Tourmont to the north. On its north shore the Parc du Marquenterre is a bird reserve whose trail is strung with thirteen observation points; off the Hourdel, harbour seals form the largest colony in mainland France, with grey seals alongside them, and both are there all year. A steam railway runs round the head of the bay between Le Crotoy and Saint-Valery-sur-Somme, the port where William the Conqueror's fleet sheltered from contrary winds before sailing at the end of September 1066.
Required Activities
1
of 4
Walk the Marquenterre trail from observation point to observation point — there are thirteen — and get three of the park's breeding birds in the glasses: spoonbill, avocet and white stork, with little egret in the shallows
2
of 4
From the shingle at the pointe du Hourdel, pick out hauled-out seals on the sandbanks with binoculars from at least 300 m away, and tell the two species apart — harbour seals, which pup in high summer, and the larger grey seals, which pup in midwinter
3
of 4
Ride the Chemin de fer de la Baie de Somme from Le Crotoy round the head of the estuary through Noyelles to Saint-Valery-sur-Somme, a two-hour return behind a steam locomotive, and watch for the salt-marsh sheep from the window
4
of 4
Climb from the quay into the walled upper town of Saint-Valery-sur-Somme, stand where the Norman fleet lay waiting on the wind before it sailed at the end of September 1066, and find the medieval gate that Joan of Arc was brought through in December 1430
Walk the Marquenterre trail from observation point to observation point — there are thirteen — and get three of the park's breeding birds in the glasses: spoonbill, avocet and white stork, with little egret in the shallows
From the shingle at the pointe du Hourdel, pick out hauled-out seals on the sandbanks with binoculars from at least 300 m away, and tell the two species apart — harbour seals, which pup in high summer, and the larger grey seals, which pup in midwinter
Ride the Chemin de fer de la Baie de Somme from Le Crotoy round the head of the estuary through Noyelles to Saint-Valery-sur-Somme, a two-hour return behind a steam locomotive, and watch for the salt-marsh sheep from the window
Climb from the quay into the walled upper town of Saint-Valery-sur-Somme, stand where the Norman fleet lay waiting on the wind before it sailed at the end of September 1066, and find the medieval gate that Joan of Arc was brought through in December 1430
Before you go
The steam railway runs 4 April to 1 November on the Le Crotoy–Noyelles–Saint-Valery line, and April to mid-September on the Saint-Valery–Cayeux legs, so neither runs in winter — check the operator's circulation calendar before planning the day round it.
The Parc du Marquenterre charges admission and shuts for its annual closure through January, reopening in early February; from 2 November to 20 December it opens at weekends only, then daily over the Christmas holidays.
Stay at least 300 m from hauled-out seals: a disturbed female will abandon her pup.
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XP Breakdown
Challenge XP
300 XP
France country bonus
+100 XP
Potential total
400 XP
Country bonus earned on completion of your first challenge in France.
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