Heritage along the river, through the woods and countryside from Loctudy to Pont-l’Abbé

Start at the car park on Place des Anciens Combattants in Loctudy.

No signposting

(S/E) From the car park, head towards Saint-Tudy Church and turn right into Rue Sébastien Guiziou. Walk past the church, go through a small roundabout, continue along Rue du Général de Penfentenyo and reach Rue de Pen Allée (note the Manoir de Kergolven on the left).
Follow it to the right, cross the roundabout with care and take Rue de Kerilis opposite to join the^GR®®34.

^GR®® signposting (white and red)

Continue along this narrow street, which leads into a wide lane called Hent ar Meilhou; walk alongside the imposing wall of Briémen Castle, which can be glimpsed in places, and head down towards Pen ar Veur Cove.

(1) Cross the cove via a sea wall (note the remains of a tide mill on the right), climb up to the other bank, ignore a small road on the right and reach the entrance to the Domaine de Loctudy (private property).
Go round it on the right via a small road, pass a cluster of bungalows in a sorry state on your left and take a path on the left to reach the River Pont-l’Abbé (beautiful views to the right of Île Garo, Île Chevalier and Île Queffen, and to the left of the Château du Dourdy). Continue along the^GR®® to the Dourdy tidal mill.

(2) Walk past the mill, pass a first chicane (off-limits to cyclists), continue along the^GR®® and pass a second chicane (also off-limits to cyclists). Turn right to cross a stream over a stone slab, continue along a narrow path, climb a few steps and join a gravel path.

(3) Follow it to the left and join the Route de Quéffen. Follow this road (note a small menhir on the right) until you reach a junction where the road meets two footpaths. Take the footpath on the right through the woodland, turn left to cross a stream via a footbridge, and rejoin the Rivière de Pont l’Abbé near the ‘Menhir mouillé de Penglaouic’.

(4) Continue along the Rivière de Pont l’Abbé, reach the towpath and turn right onto an old jetty (beautiful views of the river and Île Tudy, whose bell tower can be seen in the distance).
Retrace your steps, then continue straight ahead along the towpath, crossing three small creeks via dykes (withbeautiful houses and old mills on the opposite bank) until you reach Quai Saint-Laurent.

(5) Walk along the quay, past the open-air theatre and the Church of Notre-Dame des Carmes (note its curious bell tower shaped like Darth Vader’s helmet and the decapitated bell tower of Lambour Church on the opposite bank) and reach the inhabited bridge.

No signposting

Continue straight ahead along Rue Jean Jaurès, pass the Château des Barons du Pont and turn left into Square de l’Europe.

(6) Cross the square, head up towards Rue Burdeau and follow it to the right until you reach Place de la République. Walk along its left-hand side, then take Galerie Les Arcades opposite to reach Place Gambetta. Walk along its left-hand side until you reach the small Place des Echaudés (note the fountain on the left).

(7) Take Rue Jean-Jacques Rousseau opposite. Follow it until you reach Rue du Château, turn right for a few metres, turn left onto Rue des Carmes, then continue along Rue Jules Ferry. Walk past the school of the same name until you reach the start of a path on the right.

(8) Follow this gently ascending path behind the open-air theatre, cross Avenue de Kerarthur and continue along a small street. Turn left into Rue du Penker, pass a nursery school and take a path on the right before a roundabout. Follow it, pass a playground and reach Rue Laennec.

(9) Cross the street and take Chemin du Guerdy opposite, between Collège Saint-Gabriel and the back of a housing estate. Follow this path to the end, ignoring all the paths branching off to the left or right, until you reach the Résidence de la Rivière.

(10) Turn right, then left, then right again to reach a path leading to the Manoir de Trévannec and a beautiful group of historic buildings (note a fountain and a dovecote on the left before the manor house).

(11) Walk past the manor house and turn right onto a wide path leading to the D2 (after the manor house, look out for an old house and its bread oven on the right).

^PR®® signposting (yellow)

Cross the D2 with care, then take a grassy path opposite, slightly to the left, and turn right at the next junction.

(12) Follow this path, which runs alongside the D2 before veering off into the countryside and continuing almost in a straight line for over 2 km. Pass the Kerlagadec farm (Angus cattle farm) and continue along a small road until it meets a footpath.

Unmarked

(13) Continue to the left for about 1 km until you reach a roundabout at the entrance to Loctudy. Turn right and head towards the Croaziou Chapel (note the Celtic cross on the wayside shrine).

(14) Turn right into Rue de Kervéréguen and follow it on the left-hand side via a paved path (note the Manoir de Kervéréguen on the right, which can be glimpsed through the foliage). Turn left just before a boat mooring site, turn right into Rue Maurice Denis, cross Rue du Général de Penfentenyo with care and continue straight ahead into Rue des Primevères.

^PR®® signposting (yellow)

(15) Take a path on the left through a housing estate, cross a small road and continue straight ahead along a wide, shaded avenue. Ignore all the paths branching off to the left or right, pass a small square featuring a beautifully restored fountain and cross a car park to reach Rue de Poulpeye.

(16) Follow it to the left and turn right to enter the churchyard of Saint-Tudy Church. Walk round the church on the right (note the graves of varying ages that have been preserved following the reorganisation of the cemetery, including the one bearing the recumbent effigy of a child). Leave the churchyard via a flight of steps on the left, turn right onto Rue Sébastien Guiziou, then left to return to the car park where you started (S/E).

Between (11) and (13), the paths can be very muddy or even barely passable in winter or after heavy rain. High-top walking boots are strongly recommended.

The towpath can be busy during the summer months. It is much quieter along the rest of the route.

Market at Place des Anciens Combattants every Tuesday morning in Loctudy. It can be difficult to find parking there at this time.
Market at Place de la République every Thursday morning in Pont-l’Abbé. This is the largest market in the Pays Bigouden.

There are numerous information boards along the towpath, in Loctudy and Pont-l’Abbé.

Alternative starting points are available at the numerous car parks in Pont-l’Abbé.

Toilets at the starting car park, near the Church of Notre-Dame des Carmes and the Town Hall in Pont-l’Abbé.

Picnic tables at the starting car park, near the Dourdy tide mill and the Church of Notre-Dame des Carmes.

The churches of Saint-Tudy, Notre-Dame des Carmes and Saint-Jacques de Lambour. They are usually open and well worth a visit.
The Croaziou Chapel is open in July and August.
The Château des Barons du Pont, which houses Pont-l’Abbé Town Hall and the Bigouden Museum.
The castles of Briémen and Dourdy, which are privately owned.
The manors of Kergolven, Trévannec and Kervéréguen, which are privately owned.
The Dourdy tide mill (restored in 2011) and the ruins of the Pen ar Veur mill.
The Pont-l’Abbé Habité Bridge.
The ‘wet’ menhir at Penglaouic and the small menhir on the road to Quéffen.
Beautiful views over the Pont-l’Abbé River and its small islands.
The old Rosquerno jetty.

A wealth of small-scale built heritage (bread ovens, calvaries, crosses, wells, fountains and wash houses) around Loctudy and Pont-l’Abbé.