20140507

Caribbean? Maldives?

Caribbean? Maldives? No, it's Britain: These beautiful turquoise waters and idyllic coastlines might look like a tropical paradise but they are in fact the UK's hidden beaches

  • Incredible images show the beauty of the UK's hard-to-reach and secluded coastlines
  • Some of the unspoilt beaches can only be reached by water, or at low tide
  • Writer Daniel Start has spent a decade researching the spots and has written a book about them
By Sam Webb
Published: 12:27 GMT, 4 May 2014 | Updated: 17:16 GMT, 4 May 2014

With their stunning white sands and crystal clear turqoise waters you could be forgiven for thinking these beaches are on an idyllic tropical paradise.
But amazingly each of these incredible seaside landscapes is in Britain - and they're among the country's best kept secrets.
The hidden locations of 400 hard-to-find and hard-to-reach beaches have been revealed in a new book by travel writer Daniel Start.
He has spent 10 years researching stretches of unspoilt sand along Britain's rugged coastline, which at 20,000 miles including its islands is among the longest in the world.
Azure beauty: A new book chronicles the hard-to-reach and awe-inspiring remote beaches throughout the UK. Pictured is Broad Sands on the Exmoor coast.
+18
Azure beauty: A new book chronicles the hard-to-reach and awe-inspiring remote beaches throughout the UK. Pictured is Broad Sands on the Exmoor coast.
The UK, amazingly: A swimmer at a cove near Knockvologan on the Isle of Mull, off the west coast of Scotland
+18
The UK, amazingly: A swimmer at a cove near Knockvologan on the Isle of Mull, off the west coast of Scotland
Stunning: A beach at Crackington Haven, a coastal village in Cornwall, located at the head of a cove on the Atlantic coast
+18
Stunning: A beach at Crackington Haven, a coastal village in Cornwall, located at the head of a cove on the Atlantic coast
His book, called Hidden Beaches, lifts the lid on beautiful bays and tranquil hideaways from every corner of the country.
Some of the beaches are just off the tourist trail while others, such as Sandy Bay near Tenby, Wales, can only be accessed by water.
Losgainter, on the Isle of Harris in the Outer Hebrides, is so idyllic that Thai tourism officials once mistakenly used a picture of the beach in one of their holiday brochures.
 

Keynance Cove on the Lizard, Cornwall, can only be accessed at low tide but those who make the effort are rewarded with a scene on a par with the Caribbean.
The turquoise water gets its colouring from green minerals from the rugged rocks that surround the sandy cove.
Abereiddi Blue Lagoon in Pembrokeshire, formerly a small slate quarry, now flooded by the sea having broken in
+18
Abereiddi Blue Lagoon in Pembrokeshire, formerly a small slate quarry, now flooded by the sea having broken in
Sandy Bay in Pembrokeshire. Sandy Haven is a secluded bay, near to the oil refineries of Milford Haven, which can be reached along a single track lane from the village of Herbrandston
+18
Sandy Bay in Pembrokeshire. Sandy Haven is a secluded bay, near to the oil refineries of Milford Haven, which can be reached along a single track lane from the village of Herbrandston
Fooled you: With their stunning white sands and crystal clear turqoise waters you could be forgiven for thinking these beaches are on an idyllic tropical paradise
+18
Fooled you: With their stunning white sands and crystal clear turqoise waters you could be forgiven for thinking these beaches are on an idyllic tropical paradise
The 'wonderful white cove' of Moor Sands at East Prawle in south Devon requires a two mile walk from the nearest car park.
A disused quarry at Abereiddi on the north Pembrokeshire coast is now a little known but incredibly picturesque blue lagoon perfect for swimming in.
Those who wish to reach the 'Robinson Crusoe' deserted beach of Sandy Cove near Tenby must endure a 200 yard swim as it is totally inaccessible by land, with no route down the cliffs.
A tip-off from a friendly local led Daniel, 41, to a little-known plunge pool in the foot of the cliffs Llangannith on the Gower peninsula.
Further north is one of the most stunning beaches to feature in the book - Traigh Gheal on the Isle of Mull.
The rocky cove's white sandy beach and turquoise sea would not look out of place on the front of a holiday brochure for the Maldives.
Mr Start quit his job at a London council to pursue his dream of writing a guide to Britain's best but least known beaches.
The writer has spent 10 years researching stretches of unspoilt sand along Britain's rugged coastline, which at 20,000 miles including its islands is among the longest in the world
+18
The writer has spent 10 years researching stretches of unspoilt sand along Britain's rugged coastline, which at 20,000 miles including its islands is among the longest in the world
Scenic: Losgaintir Sands on the island of Harris, Outer Hebrides. It has widely-regarded as one of the UK's most spectacular beaches
+18
Scenic: Losgaintir Sands on the island of Harris, Outer Hebrides. It has widely-regarded as one of the UK's most spectacular beaches
Kynance Cove, Lizard, Cornwall. The cove became popular in the early Victorian era, with many distinguished visitors including the poet Alfred Tennyson
+18
Kynance Cove, Lizard, Cornwall. The cove became popular in the early Victorian era, with many distinguished visitors including the poet Alfred Tennyson
He has visited all of the beaches featured in the book, either alone, with friends, or with his wife Tanya and three-year-old daughter Rose.
Mr Start, who lives near Bath, Somerset, said: 'I was sat in my office in London on a hot summer's day a few years ago feeling very frustrated and longing for the sea.
'I had been toying with the idea of writing a guide book to Britain's best out-of-the-way beaches for a few years.
'I found there wasn't anything on the market so I decided to do it myself. I took the summer off work with a view to possibly going back to my job but I never did.
'It took me a year to put the book together but really it is the culmination of 10 years of research - it's a lifetime's passion.
'To find the beaches I have studied maps and satellite images of the coastline to find stretches of sand that aren't so well known, then visited them myself.
'Also, you can't beat a tip-off from a local, especially if they are a surfer, because they often know the best spots.'
Seclusion: A cove near Porth Iago, located on the Llyn Peninsula West Wales. The writer has visited all of the beaches
+18
Seclusion: A cove near Porth Iago, located on the Llyn Peninsula West Wales. The writer has visited all of the beaches
Blue Pool at Blue Pool Bay, North Gower, located at the southwestern tip of the Gower Peninsula in Swansea
+18
Blue Pool at Blue Pool Bay, North Gower, located at the southwestern tip of the Gower Peninsula in Swansea
Mr Start quit his job at a London council to pursue his dream of writing a guide to Britain's best but least known beaches. Pictured, Port Gaverne in North Cornwall.
+18
Mr Start quit his job at a London council to pursue his dream of writing a guide to Britain's best but least known beaches. Pictured, Port Gaverne in North Cornwall.
Fancy a dip? Swimmers descend to the enticing waters at Port Gaverne in North Cornwall
+18
Fancy a dip? Swimmers descend to the enticing waters at Port Gaverne in North Cornwall
Idyllic: Beaumont Quay in the parish of Beaumont-cum-Moze, Tendring, Essex
+18
Idyllic: Beaumont Quay in the parish of Beaumont-cum-Moze, Tendring, Essex
Chapman's Pool in Dorset. The writer says the only drawback to the beaches is the water can be a little chilly
+18
Chapman's Pool in Dorset. The writer says the only drawback to the beaches is the water can be a little chilly
He added: 'Until I started researching this book I hadn't really realised just how beautiful Britain is. Now I think it is home to the most beautiful beaches in the world.
'The book features everything from beaches that are slightly off the beaten track to some which you can only access by swimming to.
'There is something magical about swimming onto a deserted beach and sitting on the sand feeling like Robinson Crusoe.
'Previously I had thought about moving abroad and finding my own little piece of paradise but putting this book together has made me realise paradise is here at home.
'The only problem is that the water can be a little chilly!' 
Elender Cove in South Devon
+18
Kingsgate Bay in Kent
+18
Epic landscape: Elender Cove in South Devon (left) and Kingsgate Bay in Kent (right). Mr Start has previously written a book about wild swimming 
Three Cliffs Bay is a bay on the south coast of the Gower Peninsula in Swansea, Wales. The bay takes its name from the three sea cliffs that jut out into the bay
+18
Three Cliffs Bay is a bay on the south coast of the Gower Peninsula in Swansea, Wales. The bay takes its name from the three sea cliffs that jut out into the bay
As well as a guide to the 400 secluded beaches, the book also recommends the best beaches for skinny-dipping, the best for sunset views and the best for 'jumps'.
Hidden Beaches is published by Wild Things Publishing and costs £16.99.
The book is the follow-up to Wild Swimming, his expert guide to lakes and rivers to swim in around the country.
at