I wasn’t going to go. I had slept in. It was after 11 before I even got off the ship and I still had the tender ride to Cannes ahead of me. Plus it was our last day in Cannes and I never got my picture on the red carpet- maybe I should just go there instead. But I’ve been there. I haven’t been to the Lerins Islands. Finally, I decided to catch the next ferry out there and have a look.
I took the noon ferry to Ille Sainte-Marguerite to see what I was missing. I only had two hours before I had to get the ferry back so I had to hurry.
The thing I really wanted to see was Fort Royal. This fort was at one time a prison and it is the place where the Man in the Iron Mask was imprisoned. The fort was only about a 5 minute walk from the ferry pier. I decided not to go in as I had so much more of the island to see and so little time.
The island is now a nature reserve. It is governed by the Forestry Department as was very similar to State and National Parks that I’ve visited in the US. There is an extensive hiking trail system across the island and it only takes about 15 minutes to walk the width of the island (probably about an hour to walk the length, but I didn’t have time to try that). I loved being out there. I was quite sick when I visited- congestion, coughing, etc- the unspoiled air did wonders for me. So did the walk. I love walking. It clears my head, inspires me, makes me breathe easier- I love it. I walked around the fort, into an old cemetery, to the rocky shoreline, through the center of the island to the opposite rocky shoreline and a look out point over another of the Lerins- Honorat.
Below the look out was a cannonball furnace. When the island was still being used as a military fortress, there were several operational cannonball furnaces in place. Soldiers would heat the cannonballs up until they were red hot and then fire them. As if having your ship hit by a cannonball wasn’t bad enough. I think there are still 2 cannonball furnaces on Marguerite and only 8 remaining in all of France. I was surprised by how large it was- I was thinking they would only heat 1 or 2 at a time, but instead they would put upwards of 20 in the furnace and each would roll down closer to the heat when one was removed like a red hot cannonball vending machine.
After the cannonball furnace I wanted to see the small lake, but I had to hurry. I only had about a half hour to make it back to the ferry pier. If I missed that ferry the next one wouldn’t be for another hour and once the ferry got back I still needed to take a tender boat back to the ship before All Aboard time. So I set off…
The lake was only a couple minutes from the furnace. I walked out on the boardwalk and took some photos. I considered walking along the banks, but I figured I would end up wasting time taking photos and the main path would probably be faster. I was making good time and I was so happy that I decided to come out here instead of going into town again. “What a great day,” I thought. It was one of the best I’ve had on this ship. I absolutely loved this island and I was thinking about when I could return to see the rest of it. Then it happened….
I heard a noise beside the trail and I looked over. I didn’t see all of it, but it was snake! I’m not afraid of much and I’m very used to being outside and in the woods, but I HATE snakes- it must be my love of Indiana Jones. By the time I saw it, its head was hidden from me so I can’t tell exactly how long it was, but here’s what I know: The part I saw was 5-6 feet long, a bright lime green color, and at least as big around as my fist. I had never seen a snake this large in the wild. I freak out over the little 1 footers I’ve seen in my yard at home. I wanted to cry, I wanted to scream, I wanted to run so….I froze. Yep. Froze. Just stood there in the middle of the path 3 feet away from the sighting and contemplated what to do. The snake was moving parallel to the path I was on and in the same direction. Therefore I wanted to turn around and head the opposite way. Unfortunately the ferry pier was the direction I was heading and I knew there was another way there, but I didn’t know how long it would take me. If I missed this ferry I would be stuck on this island with this giant snake for another hour. I had to carry on. I picked up the pace and kept my eyes to the ground- no more enjoying the amazing French Riviera scenery. I was on permanent snake patrol. It took me about 15 minutes of brisk walking and jumping at every stick in the path thinking it was a snake to get to the pier. Once at the pier I breathed a sigh of relief, but I still couldn’t relax thinking a snake could slither out of any of the rocks nearby so I waited on the pier thinking I would be safest here.
I met a couple of friends from the ship- the ones who recommended this place to me actually. I recounted my tale of horror and they laughed. However, it is worth noting that he is afraid of birds and she is afraid of bugs- this island is full of both. Apparently whatever you are afraid of this island has. Welcome to Terror Island.
