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The World's Best Beaches

The beaches listed below are confined to those personally visited by me.  If you have other places you recommend (and are willing to share) let me know!  My list:
1. Seaham Beach, Seaham, England, U.K
2. Vieques Island, Vieques, Puerto Rico, USA
3. North Bimini, Bahamas
4. Inverness, Nova Scotia, Canada
5. McCurdy Point, Port Townsend, Washington, USA
6. Texas Gulf Coast
7. Maine Coast (USA)
8. Souris, Prince Edward Island, Canada

Seaham, England (U.K.)

Seaham has a reputation as the world’s best sea glass beach, and from my own experience I can't disagree.  A glass factory situated here dumped its waste into the ocean until the early 1900’s and we also learned that a ship fully laden with glass products was sunk offshore during WW1. My husband surprised me with a trip to Seaham for our anniversary in March of 2018.  Since we are in the Houston area, we were able to fly directly to Manchester on Singapore Airlines, which had the dual advantages of avoiding London and getting us closer to our destination.  His plan was to spend the night in Manchester and then travel to Seaham, but I would have none of it and we left the airport and headed directly for the beach. We had no problem finding accommodations without reservations in the town at one of the hotels, which we accomplished on the way.  Driving in the UK takes a little getting used to, but it is much easier with Google Maps relieving the pressure of following directions so that you can concentrate on staying on the left side of the road. We drove directly to the Seaham Beach Car Park (Google “Tonia’s Café”) and arrived at high tide in the middle of a full gale with intermittent snow flurries – ideal beach glass conditions!

The beach was deserted because of the bitter cold and wind, but we were rewarded with the largest piece of sea glass I have ever found, and many other pieces of large size and quality.  During the rest of the week, we returned every day, always timing our arrival at high tide.  Each receding tide uncovered more glass.  We scoured the internet and tried other nearby, less accessible sites, and had good luck, but the easily-accessible Seaham Beach near Tonia’s provided the best finds.

From the car park there is a long stairway down to the beach.  I had purchased a rake and a shovel from a local hardware store and had good success digging and raking but did just as well walking back and forth along the beach as the tide receded.  Plan on getting wet feet if you use this approach – unless you are both alert and nimble you will be surprised by the occasional bigger wave, so rubber boots and spare (dry) footwear are a plus. If you go to the less accessible beaches, remember to check the tide, so you won’t get cut off when the tide comes in.  I also recommend a carrier for your sea glass that keeps your hands free.  A handful of sea glass found on a cold day feels like a handful of crushed ice, so carrying it in your pocket is not the best approach.

At Seaham, if you stop anywhere on the beach where there are small pebbles and focus on the area within your reach, you will almost always find one or more pieces of glass.  By the end of a week, we weren’t getting excited over small pieces that we would have prized at home.  In addition, Seaham is the only place where I have found “multis,” multi-colored pieces of glass which are rare and prized by collectors.  Other finds included unusual colors and a quantity of wire-reinforced glass pieces. Later in the week the weather moderated, and we met many locals who come out and search for glass daily.  They were unfailingly friendly and showed off their finds (some horse-trading took place).  It was interesting to see their techniques: some carried sticks that they used to flip over stones, while others walked back and forth, zombie-like, in a precise pattern over areas that they have found to be unusually productive.  There was no problem with “personal space” in March, but we understand that during the peak season the beach is covered with glass-seeking tourists. By the way, after our first night we stayed at the Seaham Hall Resort and Spa, which is a luxurious fully appointed spa with all the amenities situated on beautiful grounds within walking distance of the beach.  I am afraid that we did not do it justice because I wanted to hit the beach every day.  I only mention it in case you want to travel with a friend who is not a sea glass nut – they can have a luxury vacation while you go do the important stuff.

Please come to one of the venues and we can trade information on our glass hunting trips!

Other beaches I have visited:
1. Seaham Beach, Seaham, England, U.K
2. Vieques Island, Vieques, Puerto Rico, USA
3. North Bimini, Bahamas
4. Inverness, Nova Scotia, Canada
5. McCurdy Point, Port Townsend, Washington, USA
6. Texas Gulf Coast
7. Maine Coast (USA)
8. Souris, Prince Edward Island, Canada
 
nancyb@sanddollarseaglass.com

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