Loc Envel

I suppose it was the description in my trusted Michelin Guide that made me want to see this chapel. I was determined to go there.

The distance from Guerlesquin to Loc Envel was short, but not easy. There were two routes: one through main roads that were out of the way, or one through back roads which we took. That took us through farmland with an occasional house, and a forest whose Breton name I could barely figure out – sounding like Cotano, but spelled Coat-an-Noz. The forest provided income to artisans using wood in their trade; today the town attracts artisans of a different kind.

There was only one village along the way and, since a pretty church tower rose in our path, we stopped to see it. It turned out that it was a private chapel for the lords of Le Dresnay built in the second half of the 16th century. Le Dresnay was also the name of the town. An information panel near the church explained that the bell tower was completed in 1588 by a family named Quelen. The chapel remained in the family until 1748 when it was sold to a certain Yves Joseph Thibaud whose daughter married the Marquis de Lafayette. Their son, the famous general of the American Revolution, was born in 1757 and inherited the estates and title of his father. I was delighted to learn that this town was connected to the United States, even by so fine a thread – a silk one, at that.

The arrival at Loc Envel was impressive. We rounded a curve to see the town just below the roadside and, in the distance, the church perched on another hill and surrounded by trees.We entered the village and followed the curved road which led directly to the church, Saint-Envel. The church is in flamboyant gothic style. On the right part of the façade there are three open windows that allowed lepers to view the church services without having to enter the church. Inside the church ceiling is covered with wood planks. Small, painted wooden of figures, heads, animals, or flowers hang from the beams and decorate the crossings.
Figures of angels or saints appear in unlikely corners of the church. Carved animals and faces in full color stare down from the moldings. We might as well have been on a farm. (I looked up the population of the town: 81 people.)

Another treasure of the church is the rood screen that separates the chancel from the nave. This one is made of wood carved in flamboyant gothic style with arches and lacework forming floral and decorative motifs.



Returning home, we stopped at Menez-Bré, an isolated summit about 1,000 feet high which affords a 360 degree panorama over the region.

Even with cloudy skies and the late afternoon, it was possible to see the English Channel about 12 miles away. I could see white wind turbines and the general location of some of the places on the orientation panel.

I was tired when we got home and I would have gone to bed after dinner, but I wanted to wait for Georges-Edouard who was scheduled to arrive just before midnight. Colette insisted I go with Christian to meet Georges-Edouard at the station. When we came back, there was a surprise birthday celebration for me.