A supertide turned France's famed Mont Saint-Michel into an island Saturday and then retreated out of sight, delighting thousands of visitors who came to see the phenomenon.
The so-called tide of the century actually happens every 18 years. Although it rushes in and out along the whole northern French coast, it's especially dramatic at the UNESCO world heritage site, an ancient abbey normally linked to the mainland only by a narrow causeway at high tide. But the supertide, said to rise at the pace of a horse's gallop, turned the Mont briefly into an island, while the day's low tide allowed people to walk on the expansive flat seabed. An even higher tide was predicted for Saturday night and the abbey was staying open late for visitors. - AP