Marseillan to Frontignan – 24 km

Enough of all this boating. Let’s get in a bus and go to the beach! So we did. The bus ride took only 25 minutes, and as you can see, other people had the same idea.

It got busier by the minute as people poured out of the adjacent campsites. All the same, the water was refreshing, and seemed reasonably clean, and we enjoyed our swim. The sands stretch for about four km, with a post-war little holiday town and lots of campsites behind.

Although we had a beer while waiting for the bus back to Marseillan, we were not tempted to linger long.

This was one view from the bus through the window.

The many vineyards in the area are more inspiring.

In fact they inspired us to have another good lunch before leaving this oyster paradise. This is the after, not the before, by the way.

Then with the wind quite light from the south, we headed out into the lagoon for the 18 km open-water voyage to the mouth of Canal du Rhône à Sète. We treat the Étang de Thau with considerable respect after our previous experiences, but today was delightful, a few waves to rock us, but nothing nasty. Even the wash of passing speedboats was not a problem.

Navigation can be a bit of a challenge because the shoreline looks much the same and there are few distinctive landmarks. Or it would be without our GPS navigation system, which showed us the way very accurately. Even so, it was a relief to pass the light on a rock.

We reached Frontignan half an hour before the afternoon bridge opening. More than a dozen boats were waiting on our side, and more on the other. So it was a bit of a mad rush when they finally lifted the bridge. We decided to moor up just the other side, and tomorrow we will after all venture up to Montpellier. Further research has persuaded us that it might be worth a visit. We will see.