Blauort is one of Germany's uninhabited

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian S ...

sandy islets off the coast of

Dithmarschen Dithmarschen (, Northern Low Saxon, Low Saxon: ; archaic English: ''Ditmarsh''; da, Ditmarsken; la, label=Medieval Latin, Tedmarsgo) is a district in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is bounded by (from the north and clockwise) the districts of ...

(near

Büsum Büsum () is a fishing and tourist town in the district of Dithmarschen, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is situated on the North Sea coast, approx. 18 km southwest of Heide. Büsum is also the administrative seat of the ''Amt'' ("collec ...

), and measures about 1,200 m from north to south and 500 metres from east to west. It is surrounded by the sandbank of ''Blauortsand'', which is bounded to the north by the creek of the Wesselburener Loch and to the south by the Piep. According to the Schleswig-Holstein National Park Office in

Tönning Tönning (German; Low German ''Tünn'', ''Tönn'' or ''Tönnen''; Danish: ''Tønning''; North Frisian: ''Taning'') is a town in the district of Nordfriesland in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein. History Tönning was destroyed in the Bu ...

, Blauort, like the sandbank of Tertius to the south, belongs to the parish of

Hedwigenkoog Hedwigenkoog is a municipality belonging to the ''Amt'' ("collective municipality") Büsum-Wesselburen in the district Dithmarschen in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. Hedwigenkoog is situated on the North Sea coast north of Büsum and Westerdeichs ...

. However, the state government of Schleswig-Holstein has not yet officially confirmed and authorised this. The islet of Blauort is migrating steadily eastwards, like all sandy islands on the west coast of Schleswig-Holstein. From 1938 to 1962, the sand moved towards the land at a rate of about 32 metres per year and, at present, it is about six miles from the coast. Blauort's highest point lies above the average high tide (which is about ) and is only completely submerged by

spring tide Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon (and to a much lesser extent, the Sun) and are also caused by the Earth and Moon orbiting one another. Tide tables ca ...

s or

storm surge A storm surge, storm flood, tidal surge, or storm tide is a coastal flood or tsunami-like phenomenon of rising water commonly associated with low-pressure weather systems, such as cyclones. It is measured as the rise in water level above the n ...

s. There is no vegetation on Blauort. Blauort is one of the few, largely unspoilt habitats on the coast and of great importance for

seabirds Seabirds (also known as marine birds) are birds that are adaptation, adapted to life within the marine (ocean), marine environment. While seabirds vary greatly in lifestyle, behaviour and physiology, they often exhibit striking convergent ev ...

and

common seals The harbor (or harbour) seal (''Phoca vitulina''), also known as the common seal, is a true seal found along temperate and Arctic marine coastlines of the Northern Hemisphere. The most widely distributed species of pinniped (walruses, eared se ...

,holstein.de/servlet/is/5639/dithmar1.html (html)
Organic Guide Schleswig-Holstein Since 1985 it has been part of protection zone ''I'' in the

Schleswig-Holstein Wadden Sea National Park The Schleswig-Holstein Wadden Sea National Park (german: Nationalpark Schleswig-Holsteinisches Wattenmeer) is a national park in the Schleswig-Holstein area of the German Wadden Sea. It was founded by the Parliament of Schleswig-Holstein on 1 O ...

. Blauort is marked by a

daymark A daymark is a navigational aid for sailors and pilots, distinctively marked to maximize its visibility in daylight. The word is also used in a more specific, technical sense to refer to a signboard or daytime identifier that is attached to a ...

, the ''Blauortbake'' ("Blauort daymark"). In the summer months, guided mudflat walks of the ''Blauortsand'' are offered which depart from

and

Wesselburen Wesselburen () is a small town in the district of Dithmarschen in the German Federal State of Schleswig-Holstein. It is situated near the North Sea coast, approximately west of Heide. Wesselburen is part of the ''Amt'' ("collective municipality ...

. The Büsumer writer, Stefanie Bach Stein, called one of her books of poetry ''Blauort''.

References

External links

Aerial picture at www.kuestenforum.deGezeitenkalender
{{authority control Frisian Islands Wadden Sea Dithmarschen Uninhabited islands of Germany Islands of Schleswig-Holstein

See also

References

External links