\paperw4260 \margr0\margl0 \plain \qj\li105\ri105 \f1 \b The Bay of Somme\par
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\b0 The Somme is a medium-sized river (245 km / 152 miles long) with a regular flow, like man
y others in France. It crosses the varied landscape of Picardy and flows into a vast bay that requires frequent dredging. This bay, visited by migratory birds and with a broad opening onto the sea between the headlands of Le Hourdel and Saint-Quentin, co
nstitutes a rare environment and recalls the words that Victor Hugo wrote here, on the shores of the North Sea, in his celebrated \i Oceano Nox\i0 . Staying at Saint-Valery-sur-Somme in 1849, he dedicated these lines to Juliette Drouet:\par
\fi705 \i O
memory, fine days, sweet hours we have passed\par
Remember that sky, those seas, those great views\par
When we let ourselves wander, mingling our thoughts\par
Our steps on the rocks, our souls on the waves.\par
