![Icone Fleche](https://www.geoparc-lahague.fr/wp-content/themes/highfive/src/img/fleche-bleu.svg")
The Hague peninsula forms the northwesternmost point of the Cotentin peninsula. Its vegetation and topography, in particular, allow for the distinction of five very different landscapes. These landscapes are recognized and protected at the national level.
To the east, the coastline of Jean-François Millet.
Above a narrow foreshore, the cliffs are covered with vigorous vegetation of tall ferns, varying from green to russet depending on the season, and meadows on the higher ground. They reveal a few rocks, including the Castel Vendon, immortalized by Jean-François Millet.
To the north, a low coastline crisscrossed by stone walls.
Here, the fierce winds prevent trees from growing. Villages and hamlets cling to the barren cliffs. The horizontal line thus extends from the villages to the sea, dotted with islets and reefs. Other built features are also present: a lighthouse, a signal station, harbors, and of course the dry-stone walls which, along with the buildings, underscore the omnipresence of stone. Lined with sea kale, the coastal path follows the shingle beach along small crescent-shaped beaches and rocky headlands. Like a dike, at Goury, a natural shingle beach separates pools of land from the sea and testifies, if the various maritime observation and intervention systems were insufficient, to the force of the Raz Blanchard offshore.
To the west, a coast with steep cliffs
Wild in appearance, this coastline with its high cliffs only offers a continuous view of the shoreline from the coastal path. Low-lying grasslands and heaths of gorse and heather cover them. The subtle traces of smuggling are also visible: large caches, hidden by vegetation or nestled among the rocks in caves accessible only at low tide; gabions built by the customs officers themselves as shelters. In the heart of the villages, small domestic caches once also housed goods intended for family consumption. The plateau, meanwhile, is mostly grazed by herds of suckler cows.
To the southwest, the Anse de Vauville.
Stretching for 12 km, the Vauville cove takes the form of a long dune ridge, behind which lies the Vauville pond national nature reserve, followed by enclosed fields bordered by low walls. In the background, ancient sandstone hillocks with gently rounded tops, draped in gorse and heather, give way to villages sprawl at their base. The cove extends southward into the vast La Hague dune system. This dune system, one of the oldest in Europe, offers a unique, lunar-like spectacle of dunes perched atop nearly 700 hectares.
Inside, a hedged plateau
Characterized by dense agricultural plots, the plateau reaches an altitude of 180 meters and offers almost continuous views of the sea. Sheltered from the winds and receiving more rainfall, trees thrive here: beech and ash mingle with pedunculate oak, while the shrub layer sees the growth of elder, and, as always, blackthorn and hawthorn. The hedgerows of the hinterland are taller than those on the coast, but many remain wind-shattered. The embankments are often reinforced by stone walls, upon which trees have grown. Grass and plowed fields share the agricultural land. Woods nestle in the valleys. The dispersed settlement pattern characteristic of La Hague and northern Cotentin is only revealed up close due to the hedgerows. The sunken lanes, or "chasses," create a sense of intimacy. The sturdy houses, farms and manor houses firmly clinging to the folds of the terrain, where blue schist, slate or tile roofs mingle, translate in this picture with its deceptively wild appearance, an inhabited and secret landscape.
Also discover
Remarkable biodiversity
