Baie des Trépassés

Plogoff (et Cléden-Cap-Sizun)

At the western end of the cap Sizun, between the pointe du Raz and the pointe du Van, a long sandy beach opens onto the Atlantic: the baie des Trépassés (Bae an Anaon in Breton, the bay of the dead). Its name feeds sombre tales. According to traditions reported by Wikipedia EN, dead druids were embarked there to be buried on the île de Sein; another, very widespread, sees in it the place where the waves cast up the drowned. Linguists propose a simpler explanation: the original name would be Bae an Avon, ‘bay of the river’, since a small coastal stream flows into it, and a translation error would have produced Bae an Anaon, ‘bay of souls’, then ‘Trépassés’. According to the website Journée mondiale, which refers to the old land register, this legend of death developed mainly in the 19th century under the influence of Romantic writers. The bay is a tectonic depression of the Stephanian (about 290 million years), bordered by plateaux 70 to 80 m high. It is now known to surfers. The legend of the city of Ys, often linked to the region, is cited by none of the sources read for this specific place.

Getting there: Free access all year. No danger or ban reported by the sources read (open ocean: caution at sea, not documented here). Coordinates: Wikidata (precision about 10 m), Wikipedia EN.

Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.

Ambient sound