Gironde: less well-known than the dune, the beautiful Pilat beach reveals its many faces

Somewhat overwhelmed by the fame of the eponymous dune, Pilat Beach is nevertheless well worth the detour. Touristy in the north, almost deserted in the middle, primal in the south, it offers many faces

I don't like the rankings the media are so fond of. They often talk nonsense and most of the time only serve to sell papers or clicks. But the one from the British daily The Guardian, which in 2016 ranked the beach at the foot of the Dune of Pilat as the second most beautiful beach in the world, is serious. Second only to the beach of La Source d'Argent, in the Seychelles, if you please.

Second, first, tenth, it doesn't matter. The dune beach is ranked among the most beautiful in France every year, all media combined, and this is no coincidence. It offers bathers a calm lake-like body of water, walkers a journey in a grandiose setting, sailors can land there without fear, and even geologists, who sometimes get bored in our less rocky regions, find a fascinating field of observation there.

This 2,700-meter-long beach is accessible from all four cardinal points. To the north, via a large staircase; to the east, via the tourist access to the Dune of Pilat and the campsites located at its foot; to the south, via Petit Nice Beach; and finally, to the west, via a boat. There is also access by air, as Pilat is a major spot for paragliders. Each access point is more or less selective, especially the last one.

Each access point seems to correspond to a social typology. At the bend in the Corniche, to the north, with its British lawn and perfectly maintained street furniture, the Pyla district takes on the air of Paris-Plage, without Le Touquet, but with the big SUVs, the sweaters over the shoulders, the chic outfits. Many admire the view, very few venture down the stairs. Below, it's the so-called Corniche beach. A change of category: it's touristy, popular, family-oriented, and colorful. Here arrive the visitors of the dune who have had the courage to walk down, without always realizing that they'll have to go back up. The supervised beach gathers the troops between two flags with a soundtrack from a municipal swimming pool.

A few hundred meters south, another change, the population density suddenly decreases. Beachgoers maintain a large space around their towels, reading on the sand, while on the Corniche, people barely lift their noses from their smartphones.

Even further south, directly above the Yelloh! Village Panorama campsite, visible on the summit ridge, is the end of the dune and yet another population. The setting is sublime, primal: sand, sea, sky, almost no one. With its steep slopes and still substantial height, the dune belt that follows Pilat seems untouched. Footprints are rare. The bathers are often German, English, and Dutch. Some venture into naturism; it seems to be a matter of course here.

We meet Ute, a sixty-year-old German woman who's just come down from the neighboring campsite. She's walking slowly along the water's edge. "We've been coming to France for forty years; we usually always go near Saint-Tropez. But it's, as they say, overcrowded. It's truly magnificent here."

A little further on, Kader beached his boat on the sand and took out his fishing rods. This Bordeaux native is a regular here. "People often go to the top of the dune but don't come down here; they're afraid of the return journey, of coming back up with the sun, the children, the cooler... That's why it's not only beautiful here, but also peaceful, ideal for children. We've brought the picnic, and they're having fun while I fish. As soon as the tide lifts us off the sand, we're off again!" he laughs, his ankles gently tickled by the waves.

Behind him drift boats with their engines off. Passengers bathe, chat, some take a nap. Are these really the formidable passes of the Arcachon basin, that unruffled stretch of water where time seems to stand still? A small speedboat delicately docks not far from Kader. Four people get out, dressed as if they were in the city. "We took this water taxi to go to Hortense's for lunch at Cap-Ferret. It brought us from Pyla this morning, it's bringing us back, 200 euros round trip, we couldn't have done that by road!" explains one of them, delighted with their escapade.

We have to go back, back to the Corniche beach. Mireille will be our last witness. She is 70 years old, was born on the bay, and returned "home" after a career in the Paris region. She returns to "her beach" every day, far from the overcrowded area. "When I was 14, I used to come here every evening, we saw the porpoises coming into the bay, it was fabulous." One of the spectacles of Pilat beach.