Almost a year to the day since visiting the Ecrehous, the reef to the north east of Jersey, we made a visit to the reef to the south of the Island which is known as the Minquiers. ("Mink-ees").
About 30 minutes by high speed rib from St Helier harbour, the Minquiers is an area of rocks and reefs, sandbanks, beaches and sandbars covering an area of around 50 square miles mid way between Jersey and France. Interestingly, it is supposed to be the only significant marine area in Western Europe that has not yet been formally charted and it's easy to understand why. Navigating even the smallest vessel through the myriad of channels is something of a nightmare and should be left only to those experienced mariners who know the area well.
Our first stop was at the main islet, the Maitresse Isle. Although uninhabited on a permanent basis, there are a number of small fishermans huts which are used nowadays by the few families which own and maintain them for "get away from it all" summer weekends. Also established on the Isle is the most southerly building in the British Isles, a public convenience! (See picture).
There are many seabirds to be seen and at this time of year, their young are still being fledged whilst the parents are noisy and protective. We also spotted a solitary North Atlantic seal during our approach to the landing jetty.
Having explored the islet, the second stop was a large, horseshoe shaped sandbank, one which was rapidly increasing in size as the tide dropped. It was the quintessential desert island if you will, but without the palm tree. Our 10 fellow rib passengers and ourselves stepped ashore and whilst some opted to tuck in to their sandwiches, we donned our swimsuits. I would add that the previous day had been the hottest June day on record at 33C and today was forecast to be only a couple of degrees less, so a swim appeared very inviting. Claire went for a refreshing (if that is the right word) swim, whereas I ventured no further than my knees before my toes began to turn blue. The high air temperature certainly did not reflect in a high sea temperature!
All too soon it was time to return to the rib for our return journey and the end of a fascinating and fabulous day out.
As an aside, the reef has been at the centre of a number of territorial disputes between the UK and France over the years. My mother would often say with some pride how she was an assistant to the Jersey legal team which successfully won a ruling at the European Courts of Justice in the early 1950's that the Minquiers should indeed be part of the Crown.
