The railway

In September 1863, the railway arrived in Gestel with the opening of the Lorient-Quimper section of the Savenay - Landerneau line. Passing through the town, it gave Gestel a railway station.From then on, farmers of the area used it to supply the markets of Lorient with fresh produce: butter, eggs, apples, etc. The single-story building is in keeping with the style used in sixteen of the line's stations, alternating red brick and white tufa stone. It also has a goods shed and a platform shelter built with the same materials.

During the Second World War, a second track was created to transport construction materials to Kerlin Bastard airport, now known as Lann Bihoué.These additions were spared by the Allied bombing. The track to Lann Bihoué, repaired urgently and then restored in 1955, was removed in the 1980s and redeveloped as a hiking trail, the one you are on now. The arrival of the TGV Atlantique and the electrification of the line in 1991 and 1992 also brought much change. The overflow tracks were removed, the station and its hall destroyed, and all freight traffic has ceased. Gestel is now a small SNCF stop served by the local TER Bretagne train.