Noirmoutier (island)
Noirmoutier Island image from satellite Spot
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 Noirmoutier
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| Geography | |
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| Location | Atlantic Ocean |
| Coordinates | 46°58′N 2°13′W / 46.967°N 2.217°WCoordinates: 46°58′N 2°13′W / 46.967°N 2.217°W |
| Area | 49 km2 (19 sq mi) |
| Length | 19 km (11.8 mi) |
| Width | 6 km (3.7 mi) |
| Highest elevation | 20 m (70 ft) |
| Highest point | No named |
| Administration | |
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France
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| Region | Pays de la Loire |
| Department | Vendée |
| Arrondissement | Les Sables-d'Olonne |
| Demographics | |
| Population | 9,590 |
| Pop. density | 195.76 /km2 (507.02 /sq mi) |
| Ethnic groups | French people |
Noirmoutier (also in French : Île de Noirmoutier) is an island off the Atlantic coast of France in the Vendée department.
The island comprises ten localities and four distinct Communes of France. Its length is approximately 25 kilometres, while its width fluctuates between 500 metres at minimum and 15 kilometres maximum, with a surface area of 4.877 hectares.
Noirmoutier is referred to as the Island of Mimosas, due to the temperateness of its climate, which allows for the flowering of Acacia debealta (mimosa) year-round. The island is predominantly salt marsh and salt banks, sand dunes and evergreen oak forests.
The communes of the island are grouped into a communauté de communes. The communes are:
The island has been a site of uninterrupted human inhabitation since prehistoric times, and is a popular tourist destination.
Parts of the island have been reclaimed from the sea. In 2005 it served as the finish of the Tour de France prologue.
Noirmoutier has been connected to mainland France by bridge since 1971. The island is most notable for the Passage du Gois, a paved-over sandbank with a length of 4.5 kilometers, one of the routes that connect the island to the mainland. It is flooded twice a day by the high tide. Every year, a foot race – the Foulées du Gois – is held across it, starting at the onset of the high tide.
Noirmoutier was the location of the first recorded Viking raid on continental Europe, when raiders attacked the monastery of Saint Philibert of Jumièges in 799.
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Wikipedia