Going ashore:
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Horseshoe Bay
The bus stops at a lay-by on South Road at the top of a hill,which slopes down to Horseshoe Bay. It is not an inconsiderable hill but a sidewalk and roadway lead to the beach so it is easy to walk down. A local entrepreneur operates a shuttle service that will take you up the hill, if you decide to return this way.
Dense vegetation covers the slopes so there is no view of the shore. However, at various points, the vegetation erupts into colorful floral displays. At the bottom of the hill, you pass through a relatively narrow opening that leads to the beach. A building with shower and bathroom facilities stands on the right hand side and on the left there are pavilions offering various things to eat and drink. |
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The beach is a long, wide crescent that terminates with towering rock formations at the ends. Horseshoe is the most developed of the South Shore beaches and the only one with lifeguards on duty. It is Bermuda's most popular beach. Even on a weekday when there are cruise ships in port, there is a forest of umbrellas with people lying under them. Kids climb the rocks or crash into the surf.
But the forest thins out the further you walk from the beach's facilities. Indeed, by about half way around the crescent, there are only isolated pockets of people. By the time you reach the rock formations at the eastern end of the beach, there are only a few young people frolicking in the shallow water among the rocks. |
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There are two ways of walking across the beach. First, you can walk along in back of the umbrellas and deck chairs and then across the sandy expanse once the vestiges of civilization taper out. However, the sand here is a fine, fluffy sand, which requires more muscle power to walk across than normal walking.
Alternatively, you can walk along where the land mixes with the sea. Here, the sand has been packed down by the waves and so provides a firmer footing. But, of course, you have to be mindful that the next wave that rolls in may cover that area again along with your feet. Speaking of sand, Bermuda is known for its pink sand. If you look closely at the sand, it is a mixture of red particles and white particles. The red particles are the skeletons of tiny creatures called red foraminifera, which grow on the underside of coral ledges. When they die, they fall to the sea floor and mix with the white skeletons of other marine organisms. The sea crushes them and washes the mixture ashore as sand. Red and white mix together to form pink. The pink-ness of the sand is not uniform around Bermuda. At Horseshoe Bay, the sand strikes me as mostly white although near the water, it has more of a pinkish hue. However, walking further along the South Shore towards Warwick Long Bay, the sand looks much pinker to me. What makes the pink sand outstanding is its contrast with the water. All along this stretch of shoreline, the water is an impossible turquoise. On a sunny day, the water close to shore is a bright bluish green that is markedly different than the dark blue of the deeper waters further offshore. |
Above: Grains of dark red sand mix with the white to give the sand a pink hue.
Below: The dark red line on the beach is where the waves have deposited additional red grains. Note the turquoise color of the water just offshore. 
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Cruise destinations - - Walking Along Bermuda's South Shore Beaches - page two