Cultural outings

Botanical walk in Porquerolles with Vincent Blondel

Meeting point

Quai Lélia Le Ber
83400 Porquerolles
France

Vincent Blondel

PNPC

Port-Cros National Park

Botanical walk in Porquerolles with Vincent Blondel

1 half day

Very easy

This 2h30 walk dedicated to the plants of Porquerolles allows you to discover the richness of its plant heritage in a preserved environment, the Var being one of the richest departments in France in terms of the number of plant species (3000 out of the 6000 listed on a national scale).

From the port and the village, you'll walk through fallow land and vineyards, past the variety collections of the Conservatoire Botanique National, then back to the coast and along the Plage d'Argent to the village.

Along the way, you'll observe plants according to their environment: dune, rock, forest, wasteland, rare and endemic plants. Your guide will explain how plants adapt to fire and drought, providing an opportunity to discuss climate change and its effects on the environment. You'll also discover what ethnobotany - the use of plants by man - is all about. On the one hand, there's domestication, with wild plants becoming domesticated, such as bitter chicory, the ancestor of chicory and roasted chicory. But there were also medicinal and dyeing plants, and textile plants such as flax and sparerib, from which Spartans were made. And let's not forget pollinating insects, many of which are on the verge of extinction. A chapter that explores the relationship between plants and animals.

Crossing (1/4 h) from the port of La Tour Fondue in Hyères and parking for the day.

Public: families, adults, children, schools

Walking time and altitude difference: 45 mn - 34 m

Level: easy

Period: All year round

For groups only. Contact Vincent Blondel directly to schedule an outing.

Prices

Half-day package price: €230.

À la rencontre de...

Vincent Blondel, a native of Var, has been living in France for the past 30 years. After studying mathematics and physics, he began his professional life as a computer scientist employed by the American government.

Passionate about nature since childhood, I have always traveled. It was after returning from a long trip that made me open my eyes to the beauty of the world that I made my decision: I had to work in nature.

At 33 years old, he trained for a year as a naturalist guide. He has been practicing this profession for 21 years.

From then on, I never stopped learning.

His latest studies to date: a one-year correspondence course at the Lyon School of Medicinal Plants and another at the Office for Entomological Information But the best training, he says, is in the field!" Vincent Blondel has created many discovery tours throughout the Var.

He gives lectures, leads workshops in schools, collaborates with the Toulon Natural History Museum, which he visits, works on trail signage, and, specialized in ethnobotany, leads training courses on medicinal and edible plants.

Very attached to the spirit of the naturalist guides "We work together and it is a strength", he also defends "and since always" the National Park and its brand.