European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - March 19, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse                                A House squeezes in Between Rock formations along the coast. Below the rising tide brings the surf thundering in dangerously close to a couple of visitors. Wild wind swept and weathered by the seas amps photos by Bill Walker by Bill Walker european editor the Premier attraction of Brittany France s most rugged maritime province is its wildness. Almost 800 Miles of Rock strewn sparsely settled Shore make up the country s westernmost Region. In Brittany storms appear suddenly on the horizon boiling in from the sea sweeping a line of whitecaps ahead of Black Clouds. Torrential Rains quickly drench everything then almost As rapidly dazzling sunlight often accompanied by blustery winds literally explodes through the retreating Clouds. Brittany s tides Are the most powerful in Europe. At Low water the Ocean ebbs As much As 1 2 Miles. Great expanses of Sand and mud Flats Glisten As far As the Eye can see. As the tide begins to Rise the water climbs deceptively fast often trapping inattentive vacationers scavenging the exposed Bay Bottoms. Near the old sailing port of St. Male the Power of the tide in the Ranee River Estuary is used to produce electricity. In the Spring at the time of the Vernal Equinox the tides in the area Rise As High As 47 feet in a few hours. On the map Brittany juts like a dragon head splitting the Waters of the English Channel on the North and the Atlantic on the South. Brittany s Border with its sister province of Normandy is at be Mont Saint Michel the Island monastery which h is the top tourist attraction in France. The Southern Border is at the City of Nantes where the Loire River runs into the Atlantic. High season in Brittany is july and August when the coastal resorts overflow with Sun seekers. In August particularly the roads Are jammed with the travel vans and cars of native frenchmen and Cross Channel britons who also have an Affinity for Brittany. An Ideal time to visit is May when hotels Are half empty and the beaches deserted. On a memorial Day weekend at Sables a or Les pins one of the most noted resorts on the North Brittany Fiore a it couple had i halt mile Long Stretc h of Sand to themselves. I he temperature was 58, the Sun Brilliant. Be other c a stopped during the course of an hour on that saturday Brittany particularly Western Brittany Lias an it on tuned on  a March 19, 1992 stripes Magazine