©Milliau Island view Simon Pouyet|Simon Pouyet

A family picnicon Milliau Island

Milliau, an island in Brittany at low tide

Since the start of our holiday in Brittany, this is the first time that the children have been ready before us in the morning, and they’re highly motivated. Playing robinsons on a desert island gives our budding explorers wings! The island is an ideal playground.

Getting there

Family picnic on Île Milliau

Head for Trébeurden on the Pink Granite Coast, and Ile Milliau in particular. This pretty confetti is home to a thousand treasures jealously guarded by the Conservatoire du Littoral. To get there, you don’t need a pier: just take the timetable for the walk and a good pair of trainers! With clear skies and a tide coefficient of 100, we’ve got over 3 hours to make the most of today!

Timetable for walking to Ile Milliau

©Balade en famille à Trébeurden|Emmanuel Berthier

10:15 – Waiting for the island to become a peninsula…

From the Castel, our team descends a few rocks to reach sea level. While we wait for the passage to be dry, we observe the little creatures in the puddles between the rocks. Fishermen on foot are already ready to search the foreshore.

10:40 – The passage to Milliau Island finally opens up

Around a hundred metres separate the island from the mainland, and in the middle there’s a rocky chaos to climb. The children are happily climbing, the older ones helping the younger ones. ” Be careful of the seaweed,” says one of the regulars. It’s a good thing we’d been warned to wear the right footwear!

©Pique-Nique à l'Ile Milliau|Yann JOSSELIN

©Ile Milliau - Trébeurden|Thibault Poriel

11am – The island is ours, time for low tide

A short climb through the undergrowth, and we’re in the heart of the island. We catch sight of a few rabbits hopping about on the moor. The landscape is breathtaking! The golden gorse, the paths winding between the pink rocks, and above all the view of the sea all around… The others climb the rocks, improvising a game of hide-and-seek. It’s great to see them running around with such a sense of freedom. We end up finding them under a dolmen behind the island’s stopover gîte.

12pm – 360° picnic

Our strolls take us to the top of the island, where the house of Lucie Jourdan, Aristide Briand’s companion, once stood. The 360° panorama is breathtaking: the ideal spot for a picnic! You feel almost alone in the world, and what a pleasure it is to feel the spring sunshine beating down on your face…

13:20 – Exploring the maritime side of the island

Following the random paths, we continue our visit to the wilder western side of the island. The wind-beaten vegetation forms veritable tunnels of greenery. We walk on a carpet dotted with triquettes garlic and wild hyacinths. Rejuvenating.

2pm – It’s only goodbye!

After this 3 km walk, we’re back at the top of the slipway, just in time to cross the passage before it is submerged.
Back on the Castel, as we wave to Father Trébeurden who watches over the station, a little hand slips into mine: “Say, can we all spend the night on the island together next time?”