Channel Island Walks
Channel Island Walks
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Walk 13 - Bouley Bay & Rozel
Distance: 6 miles (10 kilometres).
Start: Bouley Bay - 669545.
Terrain: Cliff paths, with some steep sections, followed by quiet and busy roads.
Transport: Buses serve Bouley Bay only in the summer. Bus 3 serves Rozel, while buses 3a, 3b & 23 serve Jersey Zoo.
An interesting and varied roller-coaster coastal path can be followed between Bouley Bay and Rozel. In summer there are buses running down to Bouley Bay, but at other times walkers relying on buses would need to restructure the route to start at Jersey Zoo. The zoo is a popular destination and is not at all for the display of captive animals. Founded by the late Gerald Durrell, the ethos is on the preservation of endangered species and an important captive breeding programme has been established. Bear in mind that plenty of time is needed to explore the zoo and an interested visitor could easily spend all day there.
The Route
In summer there are buses running down the hairpin road on Bouley Hill to reach the Water’s Edge Hotel beside Bouley Bay. There are toilets and a beach café, with boats sheltering behind a stout stone harbour wall. Walk in front of the Water’s Edge Hotel, but turn right up some steps before reaching the beach café. The steps actually take you through the hotel grounds, then the coast path runs along a low cliff-line overlooking the small rocky island of l’Islet. Climb up a flight of steps, then continue along a roller-coaster path, with fine views back to Bouley Bay. Follow the path downhill a short way, then uphill and through a wooded valley. The main road is never far inland, but there are only a couple of access points for it. Walk behind the cliff-top cottage called Son de la Mer.
La Tête des Hougues is a rugged, flowery headland with fine cliff views in both directions. A fort can be seen ahead, perched on the cliffs at L’Étacquerel. A path zigzags down into a little wooded valley, then runs round a point where there is a lichen-encrusted rock offshore from the ruins of the fort. The path is flanked by bushes and there are a couple of conglomerate rocksteps along the way. One prominent building standing just above the cliff path is a hotel. The path climbs up a wooded slope and runs beside some potato fields at a higher level. There is an exit onto the main road if required, before the path runs through bushes and turns around an attractive bay. A headland is reached which has a fine view of the White Rock. This is not quite an island, although only a narrow neck of rock is left to walk across at high tide. A visit is optional, as steps have to be retraced afterwards to a nearby car park. Note also the impressive house called Fort Rozel which is on the next headland, though there is no access along the coast in that direction.
Follow a narrow road inland from the car park, then a stout earthwork is passed which is called Le Câtel de Rozel. When some farm buildings are reached turn left as marked for Rozel. The road runs along, then descends on the Rue du Câtel, which bends to the right. Turn left at the bottom along La Breque du Nord, where a notice usually proclaims: ‘Tired walkers. A warm welcome and a cold drink awaits you on the Mimosa Terrace’. There are plenty of other places to eat and drink around Rozel. There are also toilets by the harbour.
Walking back up from the harbour, turn left at the Mimosa and follow the road until a right turn can be made at the Rozel Bay Inn. Anyone wishing to follow the coast further should switch to Walk 14. There is a bus stop near the Rozel Bay Inn, at the bottom of a wooded valley. Follow the road, which is a green lane, uphill though La Vallée de Rozel, passing through exotic woodlands around Château Le Chaire Hotel. Turn left later to continue uphill more steeply, then keep straight on at a junction. This is Rue du Moulin, and if you look carefully to the right you will see the stone tower of a former windmill in the grounds of a house.
Turn right at the end of the road, which can be quite busy at times. The only option for avoiding the traffic is to turn right along the green lane called Rue des Muriaux, then keep turning left until the main road is joined further along. Turn right at the end of Rue de la Ville Brée, following signs for the zoo at the next main road junction. Visiting Jersey Zoo is highly recommended, but it takes at least a few hours to explore, and if it is to be included in this walk then be sure to allow ample time. Buses visit the zoo quite regularly, so the walk could easily be cut short at this point.
Leaving the zoo, walk further along the main road, then turn sharply right as signposted for Rozel Harbour along Rue du Becquet. A sharp left turn along Rue des Bouillons follows. When a crossroads is reached, turn right to walk along Rue de la Falaise, turning left to reach a car park at Jardin d’Olivet. The ‘jardin’ is a rugged common of gorse scrub overlooking Bouley Bay. The French invaded Jersey by way of Bouley Bay in 1549, but were heavily defeated in this area. Exit left at the bottom corner of the car park to follow a path downhill just inside a woodland edge. This path turns left and cuts across the wooded slope, passing beneath a curious arched ruin or folly. Emerging on a hairpin bend, turn immediately right down a steep woodland path, then turn right along the bottom road to pass the Undercliff Guest House on the way back to the harbour at Bouley Bay.
Rozel
Looking no more than a little fishing village which has been dragged into the world of tourism, it’s hard to imagine that there have been military moments in Rozel’s past. On the way from the cliff path to the village, a stout earthwork is passed which is called Le Câtel de Rozel, marking the limits of an Iron Age promontory fort. In the village, an old barracks building of 1809 is now the Beau Couperon Hotel. When leaving Rozel, the old windmill tower, dating from the 16th century, was used as a German observation post.
Jersey Wildlife Preservation Trust
Popularly known as Jersey Zoo, this place was founded by the late Gerald Durrell in the grounds of Les Augrès Manor in 1963. Note the ‘dodo’ gateposts and the dodo skeleton as you enter. There is an entrance charge. The zoo was founded specifically for conservation of endangered species, to prevent them becoming ‘as dead as a dodo’. The grounds are quite hilly and well watered, with wooded areas and a variety of habitat types. While many visitors may wander round and simply look at the animals, few can fail to notice the subtly worded messages preaching the message of conservation at every opportunity. The lowland gorillas are hugely popular, and there are nice touches, such as having a children’s climbing area immediately alongside the climbing area used by orang-utans! The zoo features an impressive range of new world monkeys, lemurs, bats, reptiles and birds. A maze of paths leads through the different habitats, while out of sight there is a hospital and veterinary laboratory. Keepers give regular talks about the animals and are on hand to answer any questions that visitors might pose. There is an audio-visual centre, bookshop, gift shop and a restaurant on site. The grounds offer an interesting botanical tour and the stone buildings of Les Augrès are also to be admired. Nextdoor at Les Noyers, students from around the world attend courses which are specific to their needs, whether they have responsibility for managing the resources of an entire country, or simply look after a small part of a zoo. An important captive breeding and release scheme is in operation, networking with zoos and reserves around the world. Visitors are invited to support the work of the Jersey Wildlife Preservation Trust.
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