There was no wind whatsoever. So we had a very long boring motor from Hoëdic to the small marina on the tip of Ile de Noirmoutier called L'Herbaudiere. We crossed the mighty Loire dodging a tug that looked like it was towing half a ship! The entrance is quite tight for a cat but we only had to reverse out for one boat. Once in, we found a hammerhead but were reluctant to go there until a HM appeared. Just as we were deciding to go onto it anyway and argue later, the HM appeared and gave us the go-ahead. It was incredibly touristy in the marina, but the island was great fun to cycle around. I managed a 25mile round trip down to "le Gois" - the 3 mile causeway that connects the island to the mainland at low tide. When the tide is out the hordes descend to dig out anything edible from the mud. The scale of the endeavour is something to behold! The cycle paths were part of the Vendée cycle route. Some were very nice paths segregated from the traffic along roads. Others were stone tracks which were less pleasant. Oysters are one of the islands specialities, but most guide books do not rate the restaurants on the island and we didn't disagree. We stayed a couple of nights (€64/night!) with one boat rafted on us the first night, but none on the second, making for an easy get away. There was the promise of some wind!