Approaching the harbor of Frioul
|
|
Approaching the harbor of Frioul |
On this second day of our two-day photo excursion (see this page for photos of the first day), Didier and I visited the Frioul archipelago in the bay of Marseille. It comprises 4 islands; in order of decreasing size they are Pomègues, Ratonneau, If, and Tiboulen. The first two are connected by an artificial dam and form what one usually means when one says one is going "to Frioul". The boats take off from the old harbor in Marseille, and the ride takes either 30 or 35 minutes, depending on whether one stops at If on the way. This island is just large enough to accommodate the castle that was made famous by Alexandre Dumas in his novel The Count of Monte Cristo.
We began by exploring Pomègues with its craggy coast line and various fortifications. There were impressive numbers of seagulls. It was nesting season, and while the females sat on the eggs, the males were a short distance away, ready to intervene should someone get too close. Often, as we approached, the female would leave the nest for a short period of time, but Didier was attacked when, trying to photograph the eggs, he got a little too close! We were back in the harbor of Frioul just in time to have lunch. We then explored Ratonneau and walked to the Hôpital Caroline, a hospital that was built in the 1820s to accommodate travelers who had to be quarantined. During the liberation of Marseille in 1944, the hospital was destroyed by aerial bombardments; at the moment, it is being restored. We took a boat that got us back to Marseille in time for Didier to drop me off at the station and comfortably make my 6 p.m. TGV back to Cannes.
Click on any image to see a larger (2100 x 1400 pixel) version!
|
|
The pier in Marseille from where the boats for Frioul leave |
Sailing past the Mairie (City Hall) |
|
|
At the harbor entrance: Center for underwater archeological research |
We're on our way! |
|
|
Passing the Château d'If of The Count of Monte Cristo fame |
We have arrived in the harbor of Frioul |
|
|
Frioul, Château d'If, and Marseille's Notre Dame de la Garde |
The northwestern shore of Pomègues |
|
|
Fauna meets flora |
The Digue Berry connects the islands of Pomègues and Ratonneau |
|
|
Starting the walk down the island of Pomègues |
Looking towards the southwestern tip of Pomègues |
|
|
The southeastern shore of the island |
The vegetation hugs the ground; nothing tall grows here |
|
|
The old Port de Pomègues |
Fish farm |
|
|
Rusted buoy |
La roche percée, the pierced rock |
|
|
The rugged beauty of the Frioul archipelago |
Seagull |
|
|
Le sémaphore de Pomègues |
The outrageous colors of the Mediterranean |
|
Pomègues flowers |
|
|
Fermale gull siting on her eggs |
The Batterie de Cavaux |
|
|
Looking to the northeast towards the harbor of Frioul... and lunch! |
One of many rocky inlets |
|
|
Looking towards Ratonneau island and the port of Frioul |
The colorful buildings emerge between the rocks |
|
|
We are about to cross from Pomègues back to Ratonneau |
Abandoned building on the way to the Hôpital Caroline |
|
|
Red Valerian (a.k.a. kiss-me-quick, fox's brush, and Jupiter's beard) |
Quiet inlet on the southern shore of Ratonneau |
|
|
Looking towards Marseille in the distance |
St. Estève beach |
|
|
The Hôpital Caroline is being restored |
Roots breaking through a rock wall |
|
|
When we got close, the female moved and we could see the eggs... |
...but the male gull made sure we didn't get too close! |
|
|
View of the Château d'If from Ratonneau |
Pilot boat |
|
|
This is where the Marseille harbor pilots are trained |
Heading back into the harbor of Marseille |
The photos on this page were taken on April 22, 2016.
See this page for day one of this two-day photo trip.
Home | Site Info | Family | The Area | Trips | France | Work | Rants | Photography | Odds & Ends
This page was last modified on August 1, 2016
Send feedback about this page to feedback@kiechle.com
https://www.kiechle.com/trips/frioul/index.htm
(optimized for Retina display)
All contents © 1999-2024 The Kiechles