Guided walk in Biscarrosse: between well-being and local botany in the Landes

Barely equipped with his walking poles, Ghislain Berthelemy approaches the canal where our 7 km walking loop begins in Biscarrosse-Lac, to showcase the typical flora of the wetlands of the Born and Buch regions, the ones that the untrained eye perceives without actually seeing. "Do you see that yellow flower? It's the marsh iris. They're everywhere! We're in a Natura 2000 area, an ecosystem with native and exotic plant species." The dashing 70-year-old retiree picks up an elongated, slightly serrated leaf from the bank and lets us smell it. The scent, minty and peppery, is very pleasant. "That's the Myrica gale. We also call it royal pepper. In fact, it's the marsh myrtle. It's an excellent mosquito repellent!" "With the tip of his submerged stick, he now shows us a formidable species because it is very invasive: the water primrose. "It harms other native species and navigation. On the water, it blocks everything!"

The grandson of a resin collector from Biscarrosse, specializing in electronics for the army, the self-described "repressed teacher" hasn't always been able to decipher nature. "For a long time, I consumed it without seeking to understand it." From now on, the silver birches, alders, and willows we encounter on the peaceful path leading to the shores of the "northern lake" (the Cazaux and Sanguinet pond) no longer hold any secrets for Ghislain Berthelemy. After passing through a lock, passing cyclists and fishermen, we reach Navarrosse beach, "very popular with tourists, it's like a large swimming pool, the kids can swim up to 200 meters from the shore." At the end of a narrow strip of land surrounded by water, our guide for the day reveals "his little secret corner." A 360-degree view of the lake, nose in the wind.