Biscay, BAY OF

Biscay, BAY OF (Fr. Golfe de Gascogne), that portion of the Atlantic Ocean which sweeps in along the northern shores of the Spanish peninsula in an almost straight line from Cape Ortegal to St Jean de Luz, at the western foot of the Pyrénées, and thence curves northward along the west shores of France to the island of Ushant. Its extreme width is about 400 miles, and its length much about the same. The depth of water varies from 20 to 200 fathoms, being greatest along the north shores of Spain. The whole of the south coast is bold and rocky, and great parts of the French shores are low and sandy. The bay receives numerous unimportant streams from the mountains of Spain, and, through the rivers Loire, Charente, Gironde, and Adour, the waters of half the surface of France. Its chief ports are Santander, Bilbao, and San Sebastian, in Spain; and Bayonne, Bordeaux, Rochefort, La Rochelle, and Nantes, in France. Navigation of 'the bay' is proverbially trying to inexperienced voyagers, and is frequently rendered dangerous by the prevalence of strong winds, especially westerly ones. Rennel's Current sweeps in from the ocean round the north coast of Spain.