The best traffic-free bike rides around Médis

The carrelets of Saint-Palais-sur-Mer are among the most emblematic elements of the Charente coastline. Their history blends traditional fishing, tourist development, and local heritage. 🐟 Origin of the carrelets Originally, the word "carrelet" referred to a square fishing net used since the 17th century. A precise description can be found as early as 1769, in the writings of the scholar Henri-Louis Duhamel du Monceau, who mentioned this type of fishing on the Saintonge coast. 👉 At that time, these were not yet the current huts, but simply a net operated from rudimentary structures. ⚓ Artisanal fishing structures The first local carrelets were simple wooden platforms, built by the fishermen themselves to stand above the water. They were mainly used to catch shrimp, fish, and crabs near the shore, without going out to sea. 👉 It was a family and coastal fishery, less dangerous than sea fishing. 🏖️ 19th – early 20th century: transition to a leisure activity At the turn of the 20th century, with the rise of seaside resorts like Saint-Palais, the carrelets evolved. Holidaymakers and notable figures adopted this practice: construction of fixed jetties, appearance of huts on stilts. The carrelets then became places for relaxation as much as for fishing. 👉 They already contributed to the postcard image of the coast. 🪵 After 1945: democratization and multiplication After the Second World War, the number of carrelets increased sharply. They became a symbol of popular leisure and conviviality. The transition was gradually made from a means of subsistence to a recreational activity. 🌊 Storms and reconstruction The carrelets are fragile in the face of storms: 1999: massive destruction (up to 90% in some areas) 2010 (Xynthia storm): new damage Many have been rebuilt identically, respecting tradition. 🏛️ Today: protected heritage In Charente-Maritime, there are about 400 carrelets. They are: integrated into the public maritime domain allocated by administrative authorization (often renewed every 5 years) Since 2018, they have been recognized as cultural heritage of the department. 👉 In Saint-Palais, they can be observed in particular: at Pont du Diable at the conche du Concié at the Puits de l’Auture

Here you'll find a romantic little lighthouse, and behind it lies a garden with a bench overlooking the sea, a lovely place to stop for a break. Afterwards, you can continue along the cliff to the right until you reach Euro Velo 1 again.

Easily accessible place, only the last meters are prohibited for cyclists.

The Terre-Nègre lighthouse is a landmark forming a cylindrical tower a little over 26 meters high. Located on the tip of Terre-Nègre, in the commune of Saint-Palais-sur-Mer, in Charente-Maritime, it is intended to mark the southern pass of the Gironde estuary and to signal the presence of a dangerous sandbank, the "Anglais bar". This building forms a tower-column 3.16 meters in diameter and 26.60 meters high. A spiral staircase with a central core of 143 steps leads to a summit platform equipped with a directional light. The tower is painted in two different colors to make it more visible: the upper part is red, the lower part is white. The base of the lighthouse is hidden by a building that once served as the keeper's accommodation. The installation of a beacon at this location was considered as early as 1763. De Kearney took over the beaconing plan four years later. Construction work on the tower began in 1770 and was completed in 1773, probably under the supervision of the Bordeaux engineer Claude Tardy. In 1807, the tower was raised. However, this work was considered insufficient by some of the estuary's navigators. In 1834, sailors from the nearby port of Royan sent a request to the Ministry of the Navy to study the possibility of equipping the tower with a light. However, this request was postponed the following year due to lack of sufficient funds. A new request from sailors prompted the lighthouse commission to experiment with a first light in 1836. Finally, on October 15, 1838, a fixed white 4th order light was permanently installed. The latter was replaced in 1856 by a fixed white light of the 4th order of a small dioptric model with a reinforced sector of the 5th order catoptric. It was equipped with new lights in 1899 and 1904. In 1939, it was electrified. During the German occupation, the lighthouse served as an observatory for the soldiers of the Wehrmacht. Damaged during the fighting of 1945 (presence of breaches at the top of the tower), it was restored in the immediate post-war period. In March 1947, the lighthouse was operational again. A light with 3 occultations — changing every 12 seconds — was installed. Its colors are white, red and green. Its current range is 18 miles. Listed as a Historic Monument since 2011, the lighthouse is not open to visitors. However, it can be admired from the outside and a pretty passage provides direct access to the coastal path.

The 12th century church (the oldest), was raised in the 18th century when the bell tower was transformed into a beacon for navigation. It is known as "Le Vieux Clocher". Saint-Pallais is a saint of the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church. He was in the 6th century, the ninth bishop of Saintes. The history of the Romanesque church and the Old Bell Tower is perfectly summed up on the small information panel placed a few meters from the entrance: "The Romanesque church built under the name of Saint-Palais dates from the second half of the 12th century. At present, all that remains of this remarkable building are the choir, the apse, part of the bell tower and a section of the drip wall of the nave (in a construction, the drip wall is the wall carrying a gutter or a channel ending the roof slope and receiving the water as opposed to the gable wall). "The Old Bell Tower" dominates the tombs of the old cemetery, one of the exits of which opens onto the square on the south side of the new church. This 12th century church is distinguished by its architectural sobriety, a refined style and forms of a very Cistercian elegance. Unfortunately, time and wars have largely amputated the building. The octagonal bell tower is in its lower part authentically Romanesque: a semicircular bay adorned each of the faces, but only two of them have been preserved to the south and east. In order for the bell tower to serve as a landmark, a first raising of more than 2 meters was carried out in the first half of the 17th century. A second, a few years later, gave it its current height. Around 1770, a timber spire was added. The apse, vaulted in a cul-de-four is decorated with five basket-handle arcades resting on engaged columns. 3 bays with deep embrasure and framed by two small columns with bare capitals, provide lighting. A chamfered cord goes around the choir and the apse and delimits the vaults of the load-bearing walls. The climb to the top of the bell tower is recommended to enjoy a superb panorama of the Gironde estuary, the ocean, the Cordouan lighthouse, the residential areas of Saint-Palais, the national forest and the surrounding countryside.

The Saint-Pallais church (the new one) is the parish church of the town of Saint-Palais-sur-Mer. Built at the beginning of the 20th century, it replaced the old Saint-Pallais church, which was considered too cramped at the time. It took the name of the old church, which owes it to a bishop of Saintes from the 6th century, Palladius. This neo-Romanesque church was built between 1909 and 1911 under the leadership of Abbot Léon Gerbier and under the direction of the architect Georges Naud, in order to replace the old church located a few meters further away, which had become insufficient for worship. The sanctuary, very simple, is in the shape of a Latin cross. It has a nave with four bays, a wide transept and a flat chevet pierced by three bays decorated with stained glass windows made by the Bordeaux master glazier Gustave-Pierre Dagrant. These stained glass windows represent Saint Peter and Saint Simon, framing the patron saint of the church, Saint Pallais, twelfth bishop of Saintes in the 6th century. Other stained glass windows of the same design adorn the transepts, while those in the nave bear the signature of master glassmaker Van-Guy. The interior of the building is entirely timber-framed, and some sculptures adorn certain capitals. The façade has a semicircular arched portal with six arches framed by two blind arcades, in a style reminiscent of the Saintonge Romanesque style. The bell tower is limited to an orifice pierced at the top of the façade.

The SAINT-PIERRE church dominates the village from its fortified bell tower. Original in many ways, the Romanesque building houses a holy water font made of a real shell. From the side, you reach the small garden of the chevet, well hidden. Stone sarcophagi (Merovingian or Carolingian depending on the source) bear witness to the archaeological excavations that the church has undergone. There are many stories in Mornac but that of the fire of August 2, 1943 marked the identity of the village. Indeed, the bell tower has not always had this appearance. It had the more traditional shape of a spire until lightning struck it. Many young students come to Mornac-sur-Seudre to participate in the clearing and the excavations that follow. Seduced by the local atmosphere, many of them stayed and opened the first craft workshops in the village, some of which are still present, such as pottery and leather.

This forest path offers breathtaking views of the coast. Bordering the Cambots d'Ansoine forest near La Palmyre, it is a place where nature and the sea meet. From the forest paths, the views open onto the sandbanks that change with the tides.