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Corton cliffs
8 April 2010
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North Norfolk and Happisburgh Index |
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Entry to the beach was just to the south
of Pleasurewood Hills, parking just 0ff-road. The sweep of beach to the
south, and Lowestoft, was backed by a gentle and vegetated rise to the
road, steepening to the north and graded cliffs behind hard sea
defences. |
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A roadway gives vehicular access
to the beach, but was only used by a single scooter! A low sea
wall defends the roadway with a concrete glacis. |
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Slope failure was evident behind
the concrete works, and as the cliff is probably a mixture of
clays and sandy crag (visible) the flows are probably quite
mobile. On the right the groyne displays an erosion notch on
each leg, indicative of a sandy or shingly beach. |
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A trio of views of the beach profile, and
a mobile part of the slope behind, where moisture is seeping over the
concrete wall and the slope becomes a slide, exposing the sandy free
face at the top of the cliff. |
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The groyne system may be a
declining force, due to lack of maintenance, but is still a
major influence on the beach landscape. |
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The shoreline, of steel sheeting
and rock armour, is now separated from partially-demolished
concrete pillboxes and incomplete groynes. |
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The walkway has been subjected to
slumping and even, as here, concrete blocks from above. Steel
sheet-piling and concrete tetrapod armour completes a
comprehensive defence. |
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More views of the concrete
glacis, sheet-piling and rock armour. Where the concrete above
the walkway has been damaged, rock armour has been substituted. |
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Continued slope failure has
invaded the walkway and collapsed the concrete glacis above.
Here, the groynes have been separated from the land and are
all-but useless now. |
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At the end of the walkway at its
northern end, steps take you up to the village of Corton. Views
to the north start with the massed ranks of rock armour, and
even a substantial gabion slope ... quite possibly replacing the
concrete, but more flexible in dealing with earth movements. |
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Suffolk Norfolk Great
Yarmouth Lowestoft Corton coasts cliffs
erosion beaches groynes clay sand defences revetments gabions tetrapods
rock armour rip-rap mobile
slides slumps tourism caravans
wind farms offshore concrete blocks |
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