© Aurelie Polvet Tourist Office Broceliande
Brocéliande is a part of Paimpont forest . The misty lakes and bubbling ponds of Les Forges and Perray and the castles of Trécesson and Pas-du-Houx are straight out of the pages of literary romance . The forest contains what many believe is the fountain of Barenton , where Merlin sat on his perron and conjured up a storm .
Golden trees and a lover ’ s bridge
In 1990 , the woods burned for five days . As part of a massive re-plantation scheme , artist Francois Davin created his “ L ’ Arbre d ’ Or ”, a chestnut tree covered with gold leaf and surrounded by five blackened trees .
Our walking tour led us to the Val sans Retour ( The Valley of No Return ). It ’ s said the witch Morgane lived here and punished knights who were unfaithful to their ladies .
Surrounded by rocks which - to the guide ’ s eyes resemble the backbone of a sleeping dragon , we looked into the Miroir-aux-Fees ( faerie pool ) and sat on Merlin ’ s seat , a rock formation where he reputedly watched sunsets thinking up new ways of enchanting the world .
A bridge over a river called Pont du Secret is where Queen Guinevere told Sir Lancelot she loved him .
“ Faithful lovers like Lancelet who avowed a perfect love for Guinevere can cross it without risk ,” my guide explained with a sideways look . “ The unfaithful remain as prisoners encaged by invisible walls .”
The church at Tréhorenteuc celebrates