Dunes de l'Ile d'Oléron

The island of Oléron, with about 174 km² and 30 kilometres in length, is the largest island of mainland France after Corsica. It has eight communes, from Saint-Denis-d'Oléron in the north to Saint-Trojan-les-Bains in the south, and nearly 22,500 inhabitants. A bridge of 2,862 metres, opened in 1966, links it to the mainland.

Its west side, the Wild Coast, is swept by the ocean and lined with long beaches and strips of dunes. The most important dune massif is at Saint-Trojan, in the south, where the island's highest point reaches about 35 metres and where a forest of 1,867 hectares extends. The lower east coast is given over to oyster farming: the former salt marshes have become claires, where the oysters of the Marennes-Oléron basin take their colour and texture thanks to a micro-alga. Between Le Château-d'Oléron and Boyardville stretch the marshes, and the Moëze-Oléron nature reserve covers 6,700 hectares. The Chassiron lighthouse marks the northern tip.

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