Dune du Pilat

Our host family left us a very good list of "things to do" in the Bordeaux area.  Obviously, wine drinking tops the list.  However, once you sober up there are other things to see and do, too.  One of the top places to go is to the Dune of Pilat, the largest sand dune in Europe.

Hiking up the Dune du Pilat

We hopped in the car and could not believe the traffic -- it seemed like all of France was headed toward the Dune du Pilat in the middle of the morning on a Tuesday.  We weren't really sure what to expect, having only seen the dunes down in Yuma on the road to San Diego.  Those are just rolling hills of sand stretching across the desert.  This is quite different - it is bordered on one side by a massive forest and on the other side by the Arcachon Bay leading to the Bay of Biscay.  It is 330 feet high and more than 1.5 miles long, and it's quite a climb to the top.

Renee, Don, and Kevin mid-hike

Every year, the dune advances several meters, swallowing whatever is in its wake -- forest land, buildings, roads.  For the sheer scale alone, it was worth a day-trip, but there's not much else you can say about a huge pile of sand.  We came, we climbed, we conquered.  So now it's back to our regularly-scheduled wine tastings.

It was a pretty scenic view from the top, though.  Here is a photosphere Kevin took (click inside the image for a 360 degree view).

Views: La Teste-de-Buch, France by Kevin Salt