Walking on the beach with the sparkling azure waters of the Caribbean at your feet: it is a holiday that many can only dream of.
But now it can also be much closer to home: in Norfolk.
Visitors to the seaside resort of Cromer are impressed by the dazzling light blue colour of the sea and compare it to a tropical paradise.
Officials have revealed that the extraordinary transformation from the usual dull grey colour of the North Sea is due to work on the area’s coastal defences.
Workers digging into the seabed beneath the beach have uncovered a layer of chalk sediment, which mixes with the water above and changes color.
Visitors to the holiday resort of Cromer are struck by the dazzling light blue colour of the sea
Officials have revealed that the extraordinary transformation from the usual dull grey colour of the North Sea is due to work on the area’s coastal defences
Visitors who were stunned by the spectacle included Suzanne Allsopp-Franklin, who was on a day trip to the resort with her family. She said: ‘The water looked amazing… so beautiful and I’ve never seen it before.’
Another tourist, Joanna Durdell, added: ‘I spent a lot of time there as a child with my grandparents and I have never seen the sea such a rare blue colour.’
Contractors are building a bank defence, or retaining wall, to strengthen the coastline between Cromer and Mundesley, a few miles away.
The sloping structure is made of boulders brought by ship from a Scottish quarry. They absorb the force of the waves and protect the sea wall behind them.
The workers are digging a hole up to 15 feet deep to create a solid base for the revetment, which is located in an area known as the Cromer Shoal Chalk Beds, the world’s longest chalk reef, stretching for over 20 miles along the coast from Weybourne to Happisburgh.
Pictured, a general view of the coast at Cromer, Norfolk. Visitors and locals are struck by the blue waters
Workers digging into the seabed beneath the beach have uncovered a layer of chalk sediment that mixes with the water above and changes color
The rugged bed, which was designated a Marine Protected Area in 2016, is the perfect habitat for Cromer’s famous crabs, providing a source of income for local fishermen and hours of fun for enthusiastic children with buckets and lines.
Although the Caribbean feeling of the sea this weekend will be complemented by blue skies and temperatures of 25 degrees on Monday, this will unfortunately not last long.
A spokeswoman for North Norfolk District Council said: ‘The change in the colour of the sea at Cromer is due to the chalk layers beneath the beach.
‘The stone is dug into the chalk layer. In order to place the stone, excavation work up to 4.5 meters deep is required.
Cromer became a fashionable seaside resort in the early 19th century with visitors such as Edward VII
“This is natural sediment, which does not negatively affect the water quality. It just makes the water lighter in color, which is especially noticeable in the recent sunshine.”
Cromer grew into a fashionable seaside resort in the early 19th century, with visitors including Edward VII.
The area features in novels such as Jane Austen’s Emma and Elizabeth Gaskell’s North and South. Famous people from the area include inventor Sir James Dyson, who was born there.
Places of interest include the 151-metre-long, late-Victorian pier, home to the Pavilion Theatre.
