Dune du Pilat | The Highest Dune in Europe

Last year while visiting Bordeaux, France I drove with my cousin to the stunning Great Dune of Pila (or Pilat), Dune du Pilat in french, located at 60Km from Bordeaux, in the South of the Arcachon Bay. The dune is around 500m wide from east to west and 2.7 km in length from north to south. Its height is currently 110 metres above sea level, the highest in Europe and is a national listed landscape. At the summit, the view is spectacular with the ocean coast, the inlet of the Bay, the large pine forest and, when the sky is very clear, the Pyrenees Range.

This photograph was taken very early in the morning as we were aiming to see the sunrise from the top of the dune. I had the “good” idea to remove my shoes before starting my way up. It was when I was half way to the top that the sand started to get so cold that at some point I could barely feel my feet lol. Lesson learned! But it was really worth the “trouble”, the views are truly awesome from the top of the Great Dune of Pila.