Drive down the west side of the île d'Oléron just a couple of miles south from La Menounière, where we stayed for a week in May 2008, and you come to the village called La Cotinière. It's the busiest fishing port in the Charente Maritime département, which includes the city of La Rochelle, and it's one of the ten busiest fishing ports in France.
One tourist site I've looked at says of the village:
« A tout moment de la journée La Cotinière est en mouvement et animé par les bateaux y entrant ou en sortant au rythme des marées. »
Well, that wasn't quite the case when we were there, because all the commercial fishermen were on strike and the ports were quiet.
« A tout moment de la journée La Cotinière est en mouvement et animé par les bateaux y entrant ou en sortant au rythme des marées. »
Well, that wasn't quite the case when we were there, because all the commercial fishermen were on strike and the ports were quiet.
Fewer than a thousand people live in La Cotinière, but people come from all over the island and from nearby mainland areas to buy fresh seafood.
Mornings, there's an open-air market set up at the edge of the harbor, and we were able to buy oysters, clams, and shrimp there despite the commercial fishermen's strike.
A fleet of about 30 trawlers operates out of the port. Catches of sardines, soles, bars (bass), lottes (monkfish), and other fin fish are brought in daily and sold at auction (that's called la criée...)
Besides the morning market, the numerous village fish markets are open afternoons, selling the day's catch. Shrimp (crevettes) are one of La Cotinière's mainstays — it's one of the top five French shrimping ports.
Do people have to hop from one boat to the other to reach their own? I can almost notice the marine smell!
ReplyDeleteNo, there seem to be floating pontoon docks that the boats are moored to and that people can walk on to get to their boats.
Deletechm, note the gangways in the first and last pictures: Those docking places rise and fall with the tides, and the blue poles look like their moorings. In climates where winter is extreme, those can be hauled out of the water. I don't imagine they'd have to do that in the C-M, but they might haul during big storms.
DeleteThe water level at high tide might be as much as 10 or 12 feet, maybe more, than at low tide. So floating docks...
DeleteIt's really cool to see these photos. I bet that if you asked most Americans, they would say that these aren't the kinds of images that they associate with France.
ReplyDeleteThat's the thing about France. It's a whole world, really diverse and varied. It's not all Camembert, snails, and red wine.
DeleteI need to see the south, those warm ports.
ReplyDeleteI had to look up "plongée bouteille:" scuba diving!
ReplyDeleteYes, France is a whole world; I can't imagine getting tired of it.
Yes, thank you, Ken, for continuing in depth about the fishing industry in and around Oléron! What a terrific place to spend a few days and "normally" enjoy fresh fish! That is one of the joys of visiting the Oregon coast - we, too, have many small little "shops" that in-season one can purchase fresh fish right off the boats or directly from the fishermen/fisherladies! There are also well-known restaurants that specialize in clam chowder. In the future, I will want to enjoy that in France, as well!
ReplyDelete