Pointe du Raz (Nearby Viewpoint)

The Pointe du Raz is the western tip of the Cap Sizun, a peninsula in the far west of Finistère, and it is one of the best-known headlands in France. It lies near Plogoff, and the place is a rocky promontory about seventy metres above the sea, with sheer cliffs of dark rock that drop into a tumult of waves. It is classed as a Grand Site de France, a national label for protected landscapes with heavy visitor numbers, and the work done under that label has restored the heath and limited the damage from the crowds.

The sea here is dangerous. Off the point lies the Raz de Sein, a narrow channel between the mainland and the Île de Sein, a low island about eight kilometres out, where the tidal currents run very fast and clash with the swell to create heavy seas. Sailors have feared the passage for centuries, and the Breton saying holds that nobody passes the Raz without fear or grief. Lighthouses stand on rocks offshore, among them La Vieille, built in the nineteenth century on a reef at the entrance to the channel, and Tévennec, a solitary tower on a rock that was said to be haunted. At the end of the headland a statue of Notre-Dame des Naufragés, Our Lady of the Shipwrecked, was erected in 1904 to watch over those at sea, and a nearby cleft in the rock called the Enfer de Plogoff, the Hell of Plogoff, booms in rough weather as the waves are driven inside.

Local legend places the drowned city of Ys in the Bay of Douarnenez, to the north of the point, a Breton story of a rich city with a king's daughter, Dahut, that was swallowed by the sea. On stormy days the story is easy to believe, and visitors often say that the setting is among the most atmospheric in Brittany.

The visit starts at the visitor centre, which gives information about the history and environment of the site and has luggage storage and facilities, with the car park beside it. The walk to the end of the headland takes around fifteen minutes on a path across the heath, and an electric shuttle also runs over the eight hundred metres between the centre and the point. A seasonal shuttle links the Pointe du Raz with the Pointe du Van, a quieter headland to the north, and the coastal path, the GR34, can be followed in either direction for longer walks. The car park charges a fee in the main season and is free in winter, and the shuttle charges a small fare. Paths are marked, and visitors must stay behind the barriers as the cliff edges are unstable and the wind is strong, so wear windproof clothes and stout shoes.

The best conditions come on a clear day or in a storm, and the light is best late in the day. The headland suits walkers, photographers and anyone who wants to see the wild Atlantic coast of Brittany.