Yesterday for submarines...
The marine orientation of the site is not new. The most recent traces of its oceanic vocation are very visible! It is the huge blockhouse that makes up much of the heart of this district: huge since it was built by the Germans between 1941 and 1943 to house their underwater fleet. Thus, 650,000 m3 of concrete was poured over 11 hectares to create three blocks. And as these buildings had to resist Allied bombardments, they were equipped with exterior walls 2.50 metres thick, and roofs 3.50 to 7 metres thick!
... today, for the sailors of heart!
After the war, rather than destroy, an almost impossible mission..., we choose to keep them and use them effectively. And it was the French navy, for its own submarines, which, until 1997, occupied the area first. Then followed Lorient Agglomération, which, in 2001, began the conversion process.
Today, tourist sites, ports, hangars, sailmakers, offices, are spread over the three bunkers, called K as Keroman, the name of the district (K1, K2 and K3). With the tourist site of the Cité de la voile opened in 2008 Lorient la Base now has its main public showcase. But there are other elements to discover, more confidential perhaps, but just as exciting!
You submariners?
To discover the sea from another point of view, from below in this case, go between the K2 and the K3. This is where the French submarine La Flore, well placed on land, opens its airlock for you. But before entering, explore the bowels of K2... A museum, introductory and interactive, has been cleverly set up. First, it presents you the inside of a submarine thanks to a stylized and imaginative reconstruction enhanced with videos, objects, sounds, panels... Thus, you understand all of these extraordinary boats! Then, you immerse yourself in their history, and in particular their use during the period 39-45... To do so, make way for a multimedia show on large removable screens that tells the story of the Second World War under the sea. It is time, then, to take you for experienced submariners and to enter this narrow tube that was inhabited... That submarine enthusiasts do not miss the rare because sharp bookstore of the museum!
An unusual museum on... wrecks!
This is the only opportunity in Europe to visit an "Individual Rescue Training Centre", in the submarine field, of course! This is where submariners came to learn how to avoid disasters as much as possible. It is housed in a 15-metre high bunker known as the "Davis Tower", in honour of the first inventor of an autonomous survival suit. Inside, a tank and in it, immersed in water and black, soldiers, who had only one purpose: to climb up! Active until 1995 and now open to the public, you climb to the top of this building by discovering throughout your journey, photos and videos showing the many wrecks nestled at the bottom of the bay of Lorient. Choose the interesting guided tour!
From land to sea...
The K3 with an open heart: this is the theme of the original guided tour that takes you on a discovery tour of the submarine base where up to 27 vehicles were housed in total! From its construction to its transformation into a pillar of sailing, its entire history is detailed. And from its roof, you can see the Lorient harbour and the Pôle Course au large. You can even see, in summer, below, on the safe water level set up by the Cité de la voile along the quays, see sailing optimistically for the youngest or in Mini JI single-seaters, other visitors.
Through the "Offshore Racing Centre"...
If Lorient la Base attracts so much it is also because we dream there... Thanks, in particular to this pole : it has attracted renowned skippers such as Armel Le Cléac'h, Yann Eliès, Sébastien Josse, Jérémie Beyou, Jean-Pierre Dick, Thomas Ruyant, Tanguy de Lamotte, Isabelle Joscke, Stéphane Le Diraison, Jérémie Beyou, Charles Caudrelier, Sam Davies... in total about a hundred of them have settled there! And with them, they brought of course, their fabulous sailing boats including Banque Populaire, Groupama, Edmond de Rothshild, Gitana Team, Monin, Time for Ocean, Charal, Saint Michel, Initiatives c?ur..
Races abound
Thus also departures, stages, arrivals, training sessions for the Volvo Ocean Race, the Solitaire du Figaro, the Tour de France à la Voile, the Vendée Globe, the Route du Rhum, the Transat Jacques Vabre, the Mini Transat, the Normandy Channel Race, etc. were organised. It should be noted that another type of ship is also represented in Lorient la Base: the exploration ship, since the scientific schooner Tara has its home port there!
In the world of competition
To immerse yourself, in concrete terms, in the world of nautical competition, it couldn't be easier: walk the pontoons of the port in front of the K. Many of these monohulls and racing trimarans are moored here: from the mini 6.50 to the current giants of the seas, the famous "ultimate", but also the historic ones with the Pen Duick of Tabarly. Thanks to the different generations of ships based there, you understand the evolution of techniques, materials and shapes. Prefer the early morning or late afternoon for your getaway in this universe, because during the day, boats can be taken to sea.
The ocean race... guided!
To contemplate and dream, this pontoon is perfect, but to learn and understand too... Opt for the exciting guided tour: during one hour, you interfere in the community of the great sailors, sometimes even you meet them... CV, pedigree, course, victories, skippers' failures, but also damage, specificities, history of their boats, everything is discussed! The relationships that men and machines also maintain, of course, and how they learn from each other through testing... The teams that surround the skippers, and the companies specialized in this sector that have established themselves there, are also mentioned..
Beyond the race, beyond the economy!
Know that if you are a sailor, but also an entrepreneur, you are in the heart of what has been nicknamed the "Sailing Valley"... like, yes, the well-known American "Silicon Valley", dedicated to new technologies. In this area, the concentration of companies whose activity is similar to sailing is therefore strong: production of sailcloth bags, artisanal canneries, resale of freeze-dried and vacuum-packed food products for food on board, shipbuilding, Lorient Grand Large association, equipment on board a boat, on-board computers... in short, an entire economic sector within your reach! And many restaurants and bars, as well as a brand new concert hall, the Hyrophone, housed in an old submarine cell, enliven the district.
