It's the beautiful story of an old man who will soon have a second life.
The superb Lopérec oak (Finistère), 22 m high with a trunk with a circumference of more than 4 m, a great witness to the history of this rural commune nestled in the heart of the Armorique Regional Natural Park, will survive its way to storm Ciaran.
At the Pen-ar-Voas manor, a 16th century building that became a Gîte de France, the four-hundred-year-old tree, which was already 200 years old at the time of the French Revolution, literally bent under the force of the wind during the recent storm Ciaran , with gusts of more than 210 km/h.
“It fell very early in the night of November 1 to 2, 2023,” says Aude Sengélé, owner since August 2019 of the manor, now her home, where she operates guest rooms all year round.
“We are inland but we had, surprisingly, wind corridors where the hurricane was more violent than elsewhere.
» For her, this oak had always been part of the history of the property.
“There is a large vein of water under the land (Pen ar Vroas means the head of the source in Breton) and it precisely bordered this water point,” she sighs.
It hurt us terribly to see him on the ground.
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So she wanted, with her husband, to give this almost “sacred” wood a second life, “preferably as part of our heritage”.
“I contacted carpentry and sawmills labeled Living Heritage Companies (EPV) in Brittany,” says Aude Sengélé.
But it was a miraculous phone call that finally convinced her”: that of François Breton, a stonemason recognized in the country of Abers and his son Yazdan, who bought, in 2018, another manor, from the 15th , this time, in Plouguerneau.
Coat Kenan, as it is called, was built on the ruins of a 13th century fortified house, which itself had been built on the ruins of a 10th century feudal mound.
Recognized as having heritage importance by the municipality, the place can be visited on certain occasions during the year through the Abers tourist office or the Plouguerneau town hall.
“We took three or four days to cut everything up and transport it,” says the young man.
We have sheltered it well and we will use it as lumber, particularly for framing and carpentry, depending on the parts of the tree).
» A “relief” for Aude and her husband and the pride of seeing their magnificent tree return to History.