Mountains, moors and myths
From its peak of 385 metres, Roc’h Ruz is Brittany’s highest mountain, surveying a wild and unspoilt landscape. As their Celtic name suggests, the Arrée Mountains are a natural frontier… natural and at times supernatural. This is a surprising and mesmerising landscape of moorland, woodland and rocky peaks.
Created in 1969, the Armorique Regional Natural Park reaches from Brest to Carhaix and from Le Faou to Landivisiau, sheltering a whole host of natural and cultural heritage. This landscape is typical of what the Bretons called ‘Argoat’: with few trees, you have a 360° view across mysterious moorlands, dotted with rocks. Many rivers can be traced back to their sources here – it’s rather like Finistère’s natural water tower! Ancient chapels and flamboyant parish churches provide a contrast to the heathers and gorse bushes, and from the top of Roc’h Trevezel, the views across the area known as ‘Léon’ are captivating. Enchanting in a different way is the nature reserve for beavers at Brennilis Lake and nearby there are marshes and peat bogs, the swamp-like Yeun Elez, and the unbelievable Huelgoat Forest with its giant-sized boulders and hidden, fairy-tale spots with names like the Devil’s Grotto and the Silver River.
