The supertide that hits areas of northern France and southern England once every eighteen years swept through again over the weekend.
As the waters ebbed and flowed at extreme levels, thousands of tourists gathered at France's Mont Saint-Michel world heritage site on Saturday for the occasion. High watermark saw the historic 11th-century abbey separated from the mainland as the bay around the island commune rose to engulf its connecting bridge.
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The tidal surge is linked to the rare alignment of celestial bodies that also resulted in a solar eclipse on Friday, NBC News explained. The unusual gravitational pull caused waters to rise just shy of the 46 feet that was predicted.
Since time and tide wait for no man, the abbey's isolation lasted just a few minutes but held long enough to capture these amazing photos.
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An aerial view as a high tide submerges a narrow causeway leading to the Mont Saint-Michel, on France's northern coast, Saturday, March 21, 2015.
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People wait for the wave named 'Mascaret' in front of the Mont-Saint-Michel, on March 21, 2015. Thousands of people flocked to Mont Saint-Michel, a Gothic Benedictine abbey perched on a rocky island, to watch what they hoped would be a 'tide of the century' surround the picturesque landmark on France's northern coast.
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People pick shells at low tide on March 21, 2015 on Chausey island, off Granville. Driven by the effects of the solar eclipse on Friday, this year's spring tide is considered the 'tide of the century' with a coefficient of 119 out of a possible maximum of 120.
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Surfers limber up as they wait to ride the wave of the tidal bore called Severn bore on the River Severn at Newnham in Gloucestershire, South West England on March 21, 2015. The Severn bore is an annual 'supertide' phenomenon on the River Severn.
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Surfers ride the wave of the tidal bore called Severn bore on the River Severn at Newnham in Gloucestershire, South West England on March 21, 2015. The Severn bore is an annual 'supertide' phenomenon on the River Severn.
GUILLAUME SOUVANT via Getty Images
People walk at low tide around Mont-Saint-Michel, on March 21, 2015 as thousands of people flocked to Mont Saint-Michel to watch what they hoped would be a 'tide of the century' surround the picturesque landmark on France's northern coast.
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People watch the waves on the sea wall of the Port of Les Sables-d'Olonne, western France, during high tide on March 21, 2015
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Men on paddle boards ride the tidal wave called 'mascaret' on March 21, 2015 in Vayres.
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People gather to watch waves breaking on the dyke on March 21, 2015 in Wimereux, northern France. The high tide due on Saturday evening is expected to be exceptional because of the effects from Friday's solar eclipse, with predictions that it could reach as high as 14.15 metres (46 feet).
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A wave rushes to the coast as people gather on the boardwalk in Saint-Malo coast for 'Tide Of The Century' on March 21, 2015 in Saint-Malo, France. Saint-Malo is famous for its tides which are known to be the biggest in Europe.
ERIC FEFERBERG via Getty Images
People walk on the beach to pick shells at low tide on March 21, 2015 on Chausey island, off Granville. Driven by the effects of the solar eclipse on Friday, this year's spring tide is considered the 'tide of the century' with a coefficient of 119 out of a possible maximum of 120.
IROZ GAIZKA via Getty Images
A man jumps above water at low tide on Biarritz' Great Beach, southwestern France, on March 21, 2015. France kicked off nearly a month of exceptionally large spring tides, as people flocked to coastal areas to witness spectacularly high water levels ahead of the so-called 'tide of the century'.
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IROZ GAIZKA via Getty Images
People stroll at low tide on Biarritz' beach, southwestern France, on March 21, 2015. France kicked off nearly a month of exceptionally large spring tides, as people flocked to coastal areas to witness spectacularly high water levels ahead of the so-called 'tide of the century'.
ERIC FEFERBERG via Getty Images
View of the Mont Saint-Michel and its Gothic Benedictine abbey on March 21, 2015 at sunset, as driven by the effects of the solar eclipse on March 20, this year's spring tide is considered the 'tide of the century' with a coefficient of 119 out of a possible maximum of 120.
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