Communauté de Communes de l'Estuaire - Office du Tourisme

The Gironde estuary comprises the confluence of the Garonne and Dordogne rivers with tidal influence from the estuary mouth. It extends upriver from Bordeaux to La Réole, and beyond Libourne to Pessac and Coutras.

More usually, the Gironde estuary is defined as being from the mouth (Pointe de Grave) to the Bec d’Ambès which marks the confluence of the two rivers (Dordogne and Garonne).

Under the influence of the twice daily tides, the water level varies by as much as 5 meters. The salinity of the water is high, particularly during high tides when the ocean water floods into the estuary. However, the sea current is counterbalanced by the river current.

This movement gives the estuary its rythm and strong currents. Each year, two million tons of sediment is carried by the rivers Garonne and Dordogne. This constantly shifting mass gives the estuary water its particular creamy colour.

On the shores of the « Garonne sea », the gently lapping tide, the sea breezes as well as the salty water are the reminders of the proximity of the ocean, blending with and calmed by the gentle, river waters.

Fishing in the estuary

The estuary waters are home to a large number of migratory fish :

Lamprey

The season begins in April with the lamprey (sea and freshwater), an emblematic dish in Bordeaux cuisine. Using its sucker type mouth, the lamprey, a vertebrate creature, grips other fish in order to feed from their blood.

When fishing for lamprey, cone-shaped fishing baskets are placed on the riverbed and, floating fishing lines are also used to catch them when they make their way upstream to spawn in fresh water.

Shad

Shad can be fished as soon as spring arrives. Shad is caught using fishing rods at high tide.

Elver (young eels)

The most profitable fishing occurs in winter when the barely 7-centimeter long elver go upriver to the fresh water in order to complete their growth.

They are caught with special fine-mesh nets fitted to the front of fishing boats, which are raised and lowered by a pulley system.

They are also caught from the banks, using the « pibalour », a type of sieve fixed to the end of a long bamboo.

Sturgeon

The European sturgeon is the fabled king of the estuary, the biggest freshwater fish found in Europe (it can grow to more than 2.5 meters).

The sturgeon or « créac » only reaches maturity at between 14 and 18 years old. It then swims up the estuary from February to May in order to spawn in fresh water. The young sturgeon remains for 2 years in the estuary before rejoining the sea.

Fished for its flesh during the 19th century, from 1920 onwards, the sturgeon became an important river resource with the use of its eggs as caviar. The over fishing and the destruction of the spawning grounds caused by gravel extraction, led to its virtual extinction in the estuary. In 1982, the sturgeon became a protected species.

What to see, what to do

Fishing

« Love paths » lake in Etauliers
« Grande lande » lake in St Aubin de Blaye

Nautical stopovers

« Port de callonges ». Docking port, with a 10-hectare lake, fishing port.
For more information, call the following number : 0557326045 (town hall)

Carrelets

The carrelets form part of the estuary landscape. They are small fisherman’s shacks made of wood and built on stilts. They use a large, square fishing net suspended from the shack, which is raised and lowered by a pulley system.