After more than twenty years of working in the City in London, I decided to change my life and return to my family roots in Audierne in Cap Sizun, Brittany. At the tip of South Finistère, it truly is the edge of the world, and this region is one of Brittany's little-known treasures. I was keen to help people discover it by offering an exceptional house to rent. Since I was a child, I had known of this magnificent semaphore station perched on a cliff at the tip of the peninsula with a panoramic view of Audierne bay, but I never imagined that I would one day own it. When I saw it for sale five years ago, I didn't even hesitate. It was the perfect property for discovering my little piece of Brittany.
The house is was once a semaphore station of the French Navy and dates back to the 19th century. It has a characteristic T-shape with a large watchtower at the tip made up of seven windows facing all directions and offering a panoramic view of the sea. The Sémaphore de Lervily was unique as it had a watchtower attached to the house. This tower was transformed into a lighthouse in 1960 by the Phares et Balises, they installed a light in order to aid navigation in a particularly dangerous area. The semaphore stations were functional buildings and the architecture is therefore somewhat sober. They do, however, benefit from magnificent views and exceptional settings.
Built under Napoleon III in 1862, the Sémaphore de Lervily was part of a line of semaphore stations established along the French coasts to ensure communication between land and ships. The stations were equipped with masts with articulated arms that enabled communication with the ships through telegraph signals. They remained in use until the eve of the Second World War. The Sémaphore de Lervily was abandoned after the war and fell into disrepair. It was then sold by the Navy in 1968 and bought for the first time by a private owner who saved it from a certain end.
The Semaphore boasts a simply magnificent view of the ocean. All the rooms have a sea view and the lookout room offers panoramic views. It will almost have you believing you are on a boat. The surroundings have also been remarkably well-preserved and the property is neighbour to hundreds of hectares of wild moors protected by the Coastal Conservatory. With it's south-facing and exposed position at the end of the peninsula, the Semaphore de Lervily allows you to admire superb sunrises and sunsets. The sea is just at the end of the garden and the coastal path (GR34) passes in front of the house.
Les Bouchons in Audierne is great for foodies and is located in an old 17th century building - both the food and the service are exceptional. L’Étrave, with its famous lobster dish, is just a few minutes from the magnificent Pointe du Van. Monsieur Papier, a stationery shop and tearoom at the edge of the world just before the unmissable Pointe du Raz, is a small, magical place with an extraordinary view of the sea that serves delicious cakes and plates of smoked fish. The Ty Forn bakery in Audierne is also worth a visit, everything is excellent but we particularly recommend the Kouign-Amman. Sports enthusiasts can try surfing in the Baie des Trépassés with the Audierne surf school - it is in an exceptional spot with a view of the Pointe du Raz, the Pointe du Van, the Ile de Sein and extraordinary sunsets. Take a trip to the Ile de Sein, a small strip of land that is barely six metres above sea-level, but has more than one hundred inhabitants. You can also rent kayaks to see seals and dolphins up close.
The Sémaphore de Lervily is spread over two floors. On the ground floor are two large bedrooms, one with an en-suite bathroom, a large, fully-equipped kitchen, a dining room, a large living room equipped with a wood stove with panoramic views of the sea and a toilet. Upstairs are two other bedrooms, a large bathroom with a free-standing cast iron bath, a second mezzanine living room with a large glass roof and sea view, and a toilet. The layout was designed to accommodate couples of friends and multigenerational families.
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