Jersey's North West Corner

As the wind swings to the south east and the North Atlantic swell drops off any self respecting sea kayakers thoughts will turn towards the north west corner of Jersey.  Although there are many interesting areas to paddle around the Island this stretch of coast is as fine as anywhere.

Physical features set against an historical backdrop which stretches back tens of thousands of years, in relation to La Cotte a la Chevre, create a sea kayaking playground second to none.

 Le Pinacle, seen just after leaving Stinky Bay.  A stunning physical feature, a cave, whose entrance is seen just above the bow of the kayak, runs underneath the stack.  On the col at the base of the stack are the remains of the only Roman building on Jersey.

 Slightly further north the history is far more up to date.  The German tower was built during the occupation, which lasted from 1940 to 1945.  There are a number of these towers dotted around the Island.

 Grosnez is the north east corner of the Island is exposed to the full force of the winter storms.  Notice how little vegetation is growing on the cliffs, it is hard to imagine how far up the cliffs the waves break.

 There are a number of large caves between Grosnez and Plemont, which we were able to explore. They were largely sheltered from the low swell which persisted throughout the day.

  The north facing gullies and cliffs receive very little direct sunlight at this time of the year.  La Nethe Falaise, the largest cliff in the area will not see the suns rays until next June, when the sun sets far enough to the north to light up granite.