In mid-2016 a visit was made to some beaches on the south coast of England. One of these beaches was Slapton Sands, about 45 kms east of Plymouth. Driving through the village of Slapton, you come out to the coast just north of Slapton Ley, the largest natural freshwater lake in south-west England, being 2.4 kms (1.5 miles) long. The Ley is separated from the ocean by a bar of shingle, known as the Slapton Line, with Slapton Sands being the 4.8 kms (3 miles) long shingle beach on the ocean side.
Below are two views northwards of Slapton Sands from the village of Torcross, just a couple of kilometres south of where the above photos were taken. The first photo was taken in 2012 and is from the Flickr account of Mark Coleman, with the second photo being from the “Essentially England” website page on Slapton Sands:
A two minute YouTube clip of Slapton Ley, Slapton Sands and its local region, mainly from an aerial drone, produced by the Field Studies Council. It includes views of the Field Studies Council’s Slapton Ley field centre, the Start Bay field centre, and Slapton Ley Nature Reserve.
A two minute YouTube clip posted in 2016 by Cornwall and Devon TV, on Slapton Sands for tourists – very beautiful.
A six minute YouTube clip of a person’s visit to Slapton Sands in 2011, showing Slapton Ley and its birdlife, the beach, and surrounding features.
The history of the Slapton Ley and Sands area is presented on the website of the Slapton Line Partnership, going back 100,000 years – click on the small circles under the timeline.
See also the following Tumblestone Posts: Slapton Sands, Part Two: The Protective Significance of the Shingle Beach; Slapton Sands, Part Three: The Historical Significance of a Shingle Beach – The 1943-44 Evacuation; Slapton Sands, Part Four: The Tragedy of “Exercise Tiger”; Slapton Sands, Part Five: Beach Stones in the Rough; Slapton Sands, Part Six: The Beach Stones Polished.
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