Eastwards round the Island

Hired the scoots this morning -50 cc jobs that will just about make 50kph with a following wind and a good run up. But as that's the speed limit on most of the island, then it really doesn't matter and nobody seems to speed anyway. 

So we headed east along the southern cost road towards Gorey and Mount Orgueil castle. It's one of those spectacular ' come on then, attack me if you dare' type castles, imposing and right on top of the cliff.  Costs a shed  load to get in though for not very much, so we didn't bother, just walked along the harbour wall and looked back at it.

After that, it was a quick nip northwards up the coast to St Catherine's and the breakwater, a bit of a naval white elephant. It was started in 1847 as a base for the Royal  Navy but after a few years, work was halted because ship design had changed and the would be harbour would not be deep enough for the new design steam ships. So the 750 m already finished breakwater, complete with those big bollard things you tie ships up to, was no longer required and hence never used. However, the sheltered water it now creates makes a great paddle area for the Jersey Canoe Club. And it's a great place to fish from.

Just as you leave the breakwater is a WW2 German bunker that is now a fish farm. It was closed today though. 

However, in front of it was a sand artist and some if his sand creations. He often sculpts stuff on the beach but he's here now, and his stuff is impressive. We did wonder whether they were actually wood covered in glue and sand but apparently not.

The eastern side of the island is quite pretty, with cliffs and small bays. And the  water is crustal clear. Bouley Bay is one of the prettiest, and we stopped there for a light lunch at a cafe overlooking the whole bay. There was a party of trainee scuba divers there, probably going out to one if the purposely sunk boats aisle off shore. These were sunk to create diving interest and also so sealife habitats.

 We did think we'd seen a big fish not far off the beach but then realised it was in fact one of the divers. Just as well we didn't spear him then.

Bonne Nuit Bay just to the west is another of the little coves. The tide was full in when we got there though.

We rode there via Egypte. Amazing where these scooters can go.

 

Final stop on the coast was Sorel Point. A sea mist had  rolled in and it got quite cold so we didn't stay long. It wasn't windy today but it often is up there, so the motor cross track often gets shut as riders have been known to get blown off course as they ride off the jumps and land off the course on the adjacent road.

We also found out today that Jersey is the only Channel Island to have red squirrels. According to the warning signs, they also have flame throwers for tails.

As we rode back to St Helier, we looked for the Island Centre Stone, assuming it would be some impressive and obvious thing but it turned out to be a giant pebble of indeterminate origin, at the entrance to a driveway. Oh well.