Mouillage

Baie du chapus

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Shelter: W, E, SW, S, SE
Seabed: mud
Anchoring: Allowed

Shallow mud anchorage in the channel between the mainland at Bourcefranc-le-Chapus and the south-east coast of Île d'Oléron, crossed by the viaduct to Oléron.

Beach

Guide

Approach and anchoring

Approach through the buoyed channel of the Coureau d'Oléron. Strong tidal streams run through the pass under the Oléron bridge. Mud bottom with good holding once set. Protected from W, SW, S, SE and E, open to N. The bay dries extensively at low water of springs and is full of oyster tables marked by withies.

Practical

No facilities at the anchorage. The port of Chapus is primarily a professional oyster and fishing harbour. Saint-Trojan-les-Bains at 2.3 nm W and Château-d'Oléron at 2.3 nm NW both offer visitor berths and shops.

Ashore

Fort Louvois, a Vauban-era sea fort built from 1691, stands on its rock off the Chapus jetty and is reached on foot at low water. The village has oyster tasting huts along the quay. Château-d'Oléron, a short drive away, keeps its Vauban citadel walls and painted oyster cabins of the Port des Salines.

History

Fort Louvois was commissioned by Louvois to close the Pertuis de Maumusson together with the citadel of Château-d'Oléron. The Chapus channel has been a centre of flat and hollow oyster farming since the 19th century.