Although I took my computer to Sylt, we didn’t have much access to the internet or, of course, power from our campsite. Since we’ve been back, I’ve been busy at work, so I have only just now had a chance to write up our log.
After an early start, Tom and I arrived at Westerland at 10.35 on the morning of 1 September. We ate breakfast in the station cafe and then spent a little time wandering. We managed to buy a gas stove in the local department store and stocked up on food in a supermarket. Eventually we got a bus to Hörnum and found our campsite.
It was late afternoon by the time we had lugged our things on to the dune, put up our tent and had a beer. We went on to the beach for a walk.
Hörnum is at the very southern tip of Sylt. As I understand it, the village had not been inhabited until relatively recently because it is at a position so vulnerable to erosion. From the beach, it was clear to see that erosion was a problem as the dunes seemed to have been very systematically planted with marram grass.
We strolled south and came across a number concrete tetrapods forming a revetment at the bottom of the dune along the west-facing beach, and a groyne at its southern end. I read that they were installed during the 1960s to manage erosion, but they haven’t been terribly effective, owing to the island’s geology.
Returning to the tent, we made some tea and prepared a simple pasta dish for our dinner. We were tired and took an early night.
