Facing the dune : 5000 km of ocean
After a painful ascent by sand or by stairs, you are there: a invigorating landscape is offered to you. As far as the eye can see, the ocean, which, depending on the tides, discovers the sands of Banc d'Arguin and Banc du Toulinguet, the passes of the Arcachon basin, the long sandy spit of the Cap peninsula -Aglet. Further on, you can see the Bassin lagoon.
The Banc d'Arguin National Nature Reserve
Made up of several uninhabited islets, the Banc d'Arguin is a nesting, wintering and migratory stopover area for many species of marine and coastal birds (oystercatcher, dobby sandpiper, ring-necked plover, etc.). In the spring, thousands of Sandwich Terns settle each year on this site of international importance for the conservation of the species.
In summer, SEPANSO ecovolunteers welcome and inform visitors about this fragile natural environment.
Cap Ferret lighthouse
The Lighthouse, as you see it today, dates from 1947.
The very first lighthouse, built in 1840 was destroyed by the Germans deserting the place ...
You will also see on the site a bunker at the foot of the lighthouse.
The tip of Cap Ferret
It is here that the calm water basin and the Atlantic Ocean meet. On the beach, a large group of bunkers is being buried.
The Arcachon Basin and its passes
The Arcachon basin forms a bay, into which the ocean enters and leaves twice a day.
At each tide, 200 to 400 million m3 of water rush through the passes, the only access for boats. Navigating there is very difficult and can be dangerous.
Around this round mirror of water, the Bassin d'Arcachon, a sinuous cirque profiles its edges of pines and sand, swollen with dunes, some wooded with a bronze green, others wildly bare, with crests of dunes. 'silver rose, desert color.
Everywhere an ocean of silence and solitude. The small fishing villages look like flocks of sea birds perched on the beach (Jean Balde)1.
1 Jean Balde (1885-1938) - Bordeaux writer
