Le Mont-Saint-Michel

Le Mont-Saint-Michel is a 247 acre island community (population: 44) in the Normandy region of France. The island has been inhabited since ancient times, and has been home to a monastery since the 8th century A.D. From Wikipedia (because I cannot say it better myself): “The structural composition of the town exemplifies the feudal society that constructed it: on top, God, the abbey and monastery; below, the great halls; then stores and housing; and at the bottom, outside the walls, houses for fishermen and farmers.” The island is accessible by foot during low tide but is completely surrounded by water at high tide. There is a 46ft difference between high and low tide. Le Mont-Saint-Michel is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is visited by 3 million people each year.

One convenient thing about the main highways in France is that there are many signs for common attractions, so we always knew whether or not we were going the right direction.

Road Sign for Le Mont-Saint-Michel

As fans of Band of Brothers, we were excited to see a sign for Saint-Lô, a town mentioned in one of the episodes.

33 Miles to Saint-Lô

Wagon & Flower Pots

Pretty, Yellow Flowers

To get to Le Mont-Saint-Michel, you park your car in one of the many, huge parking lots and can either walk over a pedestrian bridge or take a shuttle to the base of the island. We opted to walk, which gave me the opportunity to photograph the island as we were approaching it.

Le Mont-Saint-Michel

The pedestrian bridge (which is the same bridge that the shuttles drive on) starts on the right side of this photograph. It’s a bit of a walk, but the view of Le Mont-Saint-Michel is definitely worth it.

Le Mont-Saint-Michel & Pedestrian Bridge

Le Mont-Saint-Michel

The building with the light blue shutters stood out among the other buildings and quickly became my favorite.

Buildings on Le Mont-Saint-Michel

Pink Flowers & Rocks

The island is a rocky outcropping and today is a combination of rocks and buildings. Pretty plants and flowers are able to grow in the rocks.

Rocks, Buildings, & Plants

This cat seemed interested in us but took off before I was able to pet it (probably a wise decision since many people are unkind to cats). We saw several other cats on the island.

Black and White Cat

The businesses all had illustrated, medieval-looking signs similar to this one. I enjoyed looking at them.

Poste

Pink Flowers, Rocks, & Moss

We didn’t find out about the tours of the mud flats surrounding Mont Saint Michel at low tides until we were already there, and we were a bit disappointed that we didn’t get to participate in this adventure. The mud can quickly turn to quicksand, so they strongly recommend that you don’t trek out into the mud unless you’re with a guide. This is a pretty interesting article about the tours.

Mud Flats Tour