I, too, was fascinated by Mont Saint-Michel, but it wasn't until my second visit to Nantes that I had a chance to do a day trip there. I think I counted the steps to the top - 300! but it was well worth it. Your photos are so much better than mine! We did the 3pm tour in English and learned so much! I was amazed at the sheer size of everything! What an engineering marvel! We went just before Christmas so there wasn't a crowd.