When I use to have conversations of France, I would envision people sitting at a cafe, eating a baguette, and the Eiffel Tower in the background. I know it's a cliche, but that is the information I was fed with. This happens with a lot of other countries too... until you visit them; until you explore the world and see how different everything is. It's not all city and baguettes, but France has a lot of beautiful hills and hiking trails too.
I had such a beautiful hike around Fecamp & Etretrat. Lots of green hills, fresh air, and the ocean clashing against the cliffs. It felt so good and refreshing, especially if you want to get away from noise. The hike wasn't that long and it wasn't all too special, but it was still so beautiful to see a different part of France. We are always too busy sight seeing cities that we forget to take hikes through nature and see how special and different each place is.
Had a good time hiking down the path, enjoyed the company of a few other people and had a few good talks. We took several stops, enjoyed the view, and listened to some folks talk about it's history:
Étretat is known for being the last place in France from which the 1927 biplane The White Bird (L'Oiseau Blanc) was seen. French World War I war heroes Charles Nungesser and François Coli were attempting to make the first non-stop flight from Paris to New York City, but after the plane's 8 May 1927 departure, it disappeared somewhere over the Atlantic. It is considered one of the great unexplained mysteries of aviation. A monument to the flight was established in Étretat, but destroyed during World War II, during German occupation. A new and taller monument was constructed in 1963, along with a nearby museum.
-wikipedia
If you're around town near Le Havre, you should check out Etretrat and hike along the trail. Enjoy the time there, have a picnic and enjoy the company of your friends. Bit further down the trail is a small sweet town and a small beach; grab an ice cream and chill at the beach.
