page_title: Chausey
section_title: Geography
hierarchical_section_title: Chausey / Geography
caption_attribution_description: La Granvillaise Chausey (Manche)
context_page_description: Chausey is a group of small islands, islets and rocks off the coast of Normandy, in the English Channel. It lies 17 kilometres from Granville and forms a quartier of the Granville commune in the Manche département. Chausey forms part of the Channel Islands from a geographical point of view, but, because it is under French jurisdiction, it is almost never mentioned in the context of the other Channel Islands. There are no scheduled transport links between Chausey and the other Channel Islands, although between two and four daily shuttles link Chausey to mainland France through Granville, depending on the season.
  The -ey ending of the name Chausey may be assumed to be associated with the Norse -ey, as seen not only in Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney, but also islands farther away like Anglesey and Orkney.
context_section_description: Grande-Île, the main island, is 1.5 kilometres (0.93 mi) long and 0.5 kilometres (0.31 mi) wide at its widest (approximately 45 hectares (110 acres)), though this is just the tip of a substantial and complex archipelago which is exposed at low tide. The archipelago comprises 365 islands at low tide, compared to only 52 islands at high tide. From a few dozen hectares of ground above the high tide line, the archipelago increases to around 2,000 hectares (4,900 acres) at low water, within an area roughly 6.5 by 12 kilometres (4.0 by 7.5 mi). The tidal range is one of the largest in Europe, with up to 14 metres (46 ft) difference between low and high tide. The islands consist of a granitic geological formation, which has been subjected to erosion by sea and wind. Sandbars connect several parts of Chausey.
  Grand Île is the only inhabited island of the group, with a population of around 30. In summer the population increases, due to the tourism which constitutes an essential activity on the island, with nearly 200,000 annual visitors. Several tourist businesses operate on the island, including a hotel, restaurant and shop. Besides tourism, fishing is the main economic activity. Lobster, shrimp, conger, bass and mullet are caught, while mussels and oysters are farmed. Until 1989, a cattle farm operated on the island. The island's granite was formerly quarried, and the stone exported. Chausey stone was used in the construction of Mont Saint-Michel.
  The typical boats of Chausey are the doris (dory), a flat-bottomed boat traditionally propelled by oars or nowadays an engine, used by the fishermen, and the canot chausiais, a small clinker-built sailing boat used for pleasure. Every August, the Chausey Regatta takes place on the first weekend of the neap tide. The festivities last all weekend, during which several boat races are organized.
caption: Boats in Chausey Sound. The two-master on the right is a traditional type known as a Bisquine.
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