Inguiniel Circuit by Lann Bourgeol

Welcome to Inguiniel, a rural commune of 5,140 hectares, home to 2,200 inhabitants. Not so long ago, Inguiniel boasted four elementary schools, two in the village (private and public) and two on the road from Plouay to Bubry. While the Notre-Dame school in Poulgroix has closed, the Plumes school in Locunel continues to welcome children. The local authority, the parents' association, the children and a group of graffiti artists from the Lorient region have joined forces to create a vast mural on the school's buildings. A great idea that has led to other works of art springing up on houses between Poulgroix and Bubry.

This wide road, partly created during the 1967 land reforms, crosses a stream at the bottom of the valley. Emerging just above the village of Croaz en Du, it feeds the Cabrec mill stream. Here, in the 1960s, there were only fields and pastures surrounded by wooded embankments. As in most areas, the slopes were then planted with softwoods, while the abandoned wet meadows were naturally reforested.

As you pass through Le Guern, on your right you'll see two ashlar stable dwellings dating from the 18th century, as indicated by the date 1731 or 1737 on one of the upstairs windows. Although upper floors were subsequently added to the buildings, the fireplaces, bays and staircase against the façade, reveal the meticulous workmanship of this farmhouse's builders. 

Inguiniel is a rural parish with a strong agricultural identity. The landscape is largely dominated by farming, with more than half of its 5,140 hectares cultivated or grassed. Some sixty farmers and employees perform a wide range of activities: dairy workshops, cow, pig and beef farms, broiler and cockerel farms, cereal and forage production, and orchards.

This promontory offers a view over the surrounding countryside with its vast fields. The 1967 land reforms led to fields being joined and many embankments eliminated. Here and there, portions of these embankments can still be seen, as well as some apple trees.  Once planted in open fields to produce cider and eau de vie, they are now planted at the edge of the fields.

Welcome to the forest of Lann Bourgeol. This former moorland, common land now belonging to the village, was planted with conifers during the 1968 land reforms, with the help of the European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund. This 70-hectare site, managed by the Office National des Forêts, is ideal for outdoor activities, with its lake, paths, orienteering course and hiking trail.

In 2013, following an invasion of the mountain pine beetle, an insect that attacks Sitka spruce, 30 hectares of forest were felled as a preventive measure. The land cleared was replanted between 2015 and 2016 with 30,000 seedlings: 56% Douglas fir, 28% Scots pine, 6% Laricio pine and 10% hardwoods, hornbeam and beech. These hardwoods are ideal near wetlands, as they acidify the water far less than softwoods.

The Cabrec mill stream flows along the bottom of the valley. Fed by streams rising near Guern and Poulgroix, it created the water reserve for the forest upstream. Here, lined with characteristic wetland vegetation of sedges and rushes, it once fed the Cabrec grain mill 800 metres below. A sub-tributary of the Blavet, it mixes with the Moulin de Tallené stream at Grand Plessis, then with the river at Sebrevet, between Lanvaudan and Quistinic.

You can't help but admire the patchwork of colours and curves of the bocage landscape from this high point, where moorland still stretched around 1850. In the spring, the landscape undulates, changing from bright greens to soft greens, from blond to russet. The last embankments and woods add a dark green note beneath a vast blue sky punctuated by clouds.  The path, which already existed in 1850, leads back down to Locunel, passing near the “Bois de Taratata”. A curious name that probably has something to do with the French expression taratata, to express negation or doubt. Maybe its owner used the word extensively? Not impossible when you know that nicknames are very popular locally. When it originated in the 19th century, “taratata” imitated the sound of a bugle, announcing the arrival of a regiment. Its current meaning only came about during the 20th century.

Here you are in the heart of the village of Locunel, where the Plouay-Bubry road used to run before it was straightened out in the 80s. At the side of the road, you can see a monolithic cross, clearly dating from the Middle Ages. It may have been a crossroads cross indicating the route to Lochrist chapel to the north. Oral tradition has it that there was once a chapel here too. The recent discovery of a tombstone and cross in a village garden seems to corroborate this hypothesis. In 1843, on the Napoleonic land registry, the village comprised around thirty buildings: longères and cottages, barns and stables around courtyards and gardens, i.e. around ten farms, as well as two bread ovens and three fountains. At the far end of the village, stone dwellings and barns dating from the 18th and 19th centuries give an idea of the quality of Inguiniel's rural architectural heritage.