The Jade Coast ( ) constitutes the coastal fringe of the Pays de Retz in

Loire-Atlantique Loire-Atlantique (; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Louére-Atantique''; ; before 1957: ''Loire-Inférieure'', ) is a departments of France, department in Pays de la Loire on the west coast of France, named after the river Loire and the Atlantic Ocean. ...

, extending from the

Loire The Loire ( , , ; ; ; ; ) is the longest river in France and the 171st longest in the world. With a length of , it drains , more than a fifth of France's land, while its average discharge is only half that of the Rhône. It rises in the so ...

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime enviro ...

in the north to the Marais breton in the south, thus bordering the Bay of Bourgneuf on its southern part. Its jagged coasts and its numerous beaches are of summer tourist interest.

Description

There is a notable disparity between the coasts north and south of Pointe Saint-Gildas. To the north, from Mindin ( Saint-Brevin-les-Pins) to Cormier ( La Plaine-sur-Mer) stretch long fine sandy beaches with vast foreshores, bordered by pine-wooded dunes or low cliffs. To the south, from La Plaine-sur-Mer to La Bernerie-en-Retz, the coast is wilder and presents a succession of coves and more or less reduced beaches, separated by rocky areas with larger

schist Schist ( ) is a medium-grained metamorphic rock generally derived from fine-grained sedimentary rock, like shale. It shows pronounced ''schistosity'' (named for the rock). This means that the rock is composed of mineral grains easily seen with a l ...

cliffs. These then fade into the

mudflat Mudflats or mud flats, also known as tidal flats or, in Ireland, slob or slobs, are coastal wetlands that form in intertidal areas where sediments have been deposited by tides or rivers. A global analysis published in 2019 suggested that tidal ...

salt marsh A salt marsh, saltmarsh or salting, also known as a coastal salt marsh or a tidal marsh, is a coastal ecosystem in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and open saltwater or brackish water that is regularly flooded by the tides. I ...

es and

polder A polder () is a low-lying tract of land that forms an artificial hydrology, hydrological entity, enclosed by embankments known as levee, dikes. The three types of polder are: # Land reclamation, Land reclaimed from a body of water, such as a ...

s of the around Les Moutiers-en-Retz.

Development

Tourism in the Pays de Retz developed from the late 17th century with the fashion for therapeutic bathing leading to the development of beach facilities in Pornic.

Toponymy

The Côte de Jade was named from

jade Jade is an umbrella term for two different types of decorative rocks used for jewelry or Ornament (art), ornaments. Jade is often referred to by either of two different silicate mineral names: nephrite (a silicate of calcium and magnesium in t ...

-green colours of the sea during the expansion of tourism during the 1930s. Littoral stBrevin

Resorts

The principal resorts of the Côte de Jade are: * Saint-Brevin-les-Pins * Saint-Michel-Chef-Chef * Tharon-Plage * La Plaine-sur-Mer * Préfailles *

Sainte-Marie-sur-Mer Sainte-Marie-sur-Mer (; ), officially Sainte-Marie, is a former Communes of France, commune in the Pays de Retz, situated in the Loire-Atlantique ''Departments of France, département'' and in the France, French Regions of France, région of Pays ...

Pornic Pornic (; ''Pornizh'' in Breton, ''Port-Nitz'' in Gallo language, Gallo) is a Communes of France, commune in the Loire-Atlantique Departments of France, department in western France. In 1973 the commune of Pornic absorbed the neighbouring munici ...

* La Bernerie-en-Retz * Les Moutiers-en-Retz.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cote de Jade Seaside resorts in France Landforms of Loire-Atlantique Coasts of France