The Beach at the Ends of the Earth

I posted this photograph of Bawdsey beach recently on social media saying “nice day in the office.” The photo was an accident - I was trying (and failing) to capture the different shingle ridges beyond the high tide line.

Driving to Bawdsey can feel like driving out onto a peninsula - to the ends of the earth. There just seems to be so much sky - even more than the usual huge allocation of firmament we get in Suffolk - and the wonderful feeling that the sea is just beyond.

At high water there is that eerie stillness & silence that comes with the turning of the tide. But anyone who has been at any other time knows this stillness is not usual at Bawdsey. The sea always seems to be rushing in or out, it churns in violent spirals at the ‘corner’ where the river Deben meets the sea, and waves break on the Knolls - the ever-shifting shingle islands.

So you can imagine my shock when one beachcomber told me the story of her grandmother. She would swim from Bawdsey to Felixstowe Ferry every morning to collect the kippers for the breakfast at Bawdsey Manor!

Sadly Bawdsey beach is not my office. I spend far too much time sitting at my desk at home. Who knew beachcombing walks and talks required quite so much admin (and public liability insurance?)

When I retire next April there’ll be no more admin but the beach at the ends of the earth will still be there …