Excursion to Dinan & Cap Fréhel. Viking Mind, Medieval Soil: Chronicles of a Chronotophile

Driving into Dinan you quickly are transported to a different time. Modern modes of transportation weren't made for the cobbled roads. We have notably stepped into a window of medieval Europe. Once you traverse the bridge over the Rance river, you can imagine stepping off of a carriage or a boat into the busiest part of town. 

During my excursion to Dinan and Cap Fréhel, I couldn’t stop thinking about the past; how people’s everyday life looked, how an average person passing through town must have felt, how the town operated, and how organized the town was. As one of the only towns left with most of the rampart walls standing, it's a testament to how important the town was strategically in terms of elevation and defense, and as a hub for traders and artisans. 

“Let's take a voyage to medieval Dinan, you arrive by barge along the waters of the Rance river. After having traveled 104 km, the river leads to the port of Dinan, which cuts through the lower part of town. Stepping off the barge, you suddenly become overwhelmed with the bustling market and business of artisans, barters, fishermen, and other figures. As you approach the Rue du Jerzual, a steep inward sloping cobbled road that leads to the upper town of Dinan slowly reveals itself tucked away between two rows of houses. Beginning the walk, you pass several medieval timber framed houses, which serve as homes for the many artisans and laborers of the lower town. After continuing up the road, you greet more and more people walking up or down going to and from the river or the town to contribute to the wellbeing of the town. Progressing towards the top of the Rue du Jerzual, the cobbles slowly revealed themselves. At the top of the street the main entrance connecting upper Dinan with the lower town is framed by the ramparts and a large metal gate. The feeling of being watched is inescapable. You can see evidence of archers and guards in the main tower ready to draw any second through the slits in the walls. 

You realize you're a bit hungry and decide to enter the upper town and just as you start the sound of the bells indicate its time for a snack and you follow the sound to get you to the center.”

The clock tower is an imposing structure that is hard to miss, which internally consists of many wooden ladders and one large spiral staircase to get to the look out all the way at the top where the bell is rung. The bell is crucial to the work schedule: which determines when the workday begins, the break for lunch, and when the day ends. The whole town listens for the sound of the bell to mark each part of the day. The centralization of the tower grants a tactical viewpoint of the streets below, carefully organized by profession: fishermen sell on the road named “Road of Fish” in French while the bakers would sell on “Road of the Baker”. The tower likely also serves as the upper town's warning system. I highly recommend visiting the tower and going all the way up is quite a challenge but totally worth the view. 

Back to the present, the next stop on the itinerary was a stop at Cap Fréhel. The cliffs of Cap Fréhel were what I was most excited to see. The cliffs are just as breathtaking and envying. Having a view of the ocean stretching as far as the eye can see, with very square-shaped sea stacks, reminds me of the scenery from a particular animated film featuring a Viking and a dragon perhaps, in particular, a Night Fury. ;)

Upon reflection even if only in my mind I was able to embody my inner Viking. With dreams of freely exploring a new land that extended beyond the horizon through sea stacks with only the promise of open ocean ahead and the certainty of finding land fading in the background alongside your best friend. This was my favorite area to explore: the ground was filled with a sea of grass clumps that appeared fluffy, reminiscent of the Scottish highlands. 

However, the evidence of fall was visible in the grass that had begun turning shades of autumn green, mustard yellow, burnt orange, and a beautiful rustic red. The contrast of the rocky edge and the Emerald green ocean, as well as the white waves crashing against the shores brought me joy as I witnessed mother nature’s process of sculpting a landscape. 

“Continuing your trip to Cap Frehél as a Viking traveling with your fastest dragon. You have traveled across the ocean and are looking for a place to land and you are guided in the distance by a constant light appearing and disappearing. You decide to approach the light growing as you get closer and land suddenly comes into view. Astounded by the large cliffs and sea stacks that would pose a fun challenge for flying practice and climbing practice. Looking past the cliffs the tall spire suddenly comes into view and the tower becomes more evident that it’s a lighthouse. As you land in the fluffy appearing plains that span as far as you can see, you dismount to explore the paths to take around the cliffs. You set up for the night ending with the sun setting over the ocean. To then be followed by the sunrise that reveals the approaching ships moving toward the coast. The benefit of living on the cliffs is the added time to strategize your escape. You descend weaving through the sea stacks to fly away from the approaching sailors or climbing down the sides of very steep cliffs to get back to your barge. Ending the day with your four legged friend.”

Back to reality, Cap Fréhel was the best way to end the day walking around on paths that had been created by previous travelers in between the scraggly bushes that misleadingly appear fluffy. The paths would allow you to reach the cliffs and view the ocean, the lighthouse, and wind back around inland toward civilization.

I personally had a great day imagining the lives of the adventurers that came before me, whether an adventurer, an artisan of medieval Europe, or a Viking. Minus the logistics of having a dragon as a pet in modern day, a girl can dream can’t she? The best I can do is have the next best thing that would have made it better is sharing it with a 4 legged companion that could explore alongside me. I strongly recommend ending the day with a well-deserved ice cream, a treat after a long day of adventure.

Alex Georgas-Wilson 

Furman University

CIEE-Rennes Liberal Arts Fall 2026