© Shutterstock

The world's most spectacular coastal spits

© Shutterstock

Curonian Spit, Lithuania/Russia -

The Curonian Spit separates the Curonian Lagoon from the Baltic Sea coast. Known as an important bird migration corridor, the sand dune peninsula is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

© Shutterstock 

Hel Spit, Poland -

Also referred to as Hel Peninsula, this sand bar spit in northern Poland separates the Bay of Puck from the Baltic Sea.

© Shutterstock 

Zlatni Rat, Croatia -

Called by locals the Golden Horn, Zlatni Rat is one of the best-known landforms in Croatia. Its beautiful golden beach is regularly voted one of the best in Europe.

© Shutterstock 

Farewell Spit, New Zealand -

Distinguishing the northern end of the Golden Bay on South Island, Farewell Spit, seen in this NASA image, is a protected nature reserve. Access is only provided through organized tours.

© Public Domain

Vistula Spit, Poland/Russia -

The Vistula Spit is a narrow strip of land that separates the Vistula Lagoon and the Gulf of Gdańsk. The border between Poland and Russia dissects it.

© Shutterstock 

Southport Spit, Australia -

This spit is named for the resort neighborhood of Southport on Queensland's Gold Coast. It's one of the region's most popular vacation destinations.

© Shutterstock 

Sidney Spit, Canada -

Sidney Spit fringes the north end of Sidney Island in British Columbia. The sandy, narrow strip of land is part of the Gulf Islands National Park Reserve.

© Shutterstock 

Dungeness Spit, USA -

Dungeness Spit juts out 8 km (5 mi) from the Olympic Peninsula in Washington state to claim the title of the longest spit in the United States.

© Shutterstock 

Olu Deniz, Turkey -

Olu Deniz is the name of the sun-soaked beach resort in southwestern Turkey that nestles on a long sandy spit where the Aegean and Mediterranean seas meet.

© Shutterstock 

La Manga del Mar Menor, Spain -

The resort of La Manga del Mar Menor in Murcia occupies an entire seaside spit. It separates the Mediterranean Sea from the Mar Menor (Minor Sea) Lagoon. La Manga del Mar Menor, which translates into English as "The Sandbar of the Minor Sea," has been attracting beachgoers since Roman times.

© Shutterstock 

Homer Spit, USA -

Alaska's Homer Spit is a long, narrow finger of land jutting 5 mi (8 km) into Kachemak Bay. A paved trail along the east side of the spit is used year round by walkers, runners, cyclists, and skaters.

© Shutterstock 

Spurn Head, England -

Spurn Head in the East Riding of Yorkshire in northern England is a spit designated as a national nature reserve.

© Getty Images 

Clatsop Spit, USA -

The treacherous waters around Clatsop Spit in Oregon are notorious for claiming numerous seagoing vessels, among them the steel barque Peter Iredale (pictured), which ran aground in 1906.

© Shutterstock 

Hurst Spit, England -

A shingle bank the point of which is landmarked by a castle and lighthouse, Hurst Spit is set at the western end of the Solent, on the south coast of England.

© Getty Images 

Ocean City, USA -

Ocean City in Maryland serves as a favorite vacation destination for holidaymaker visiting America's Mid-Atlantic region. The entire community is set on a strip of land that supports hotels, motels, apartment blocks, shopping malls, and condominiums.

© Shutterstock 

Blakeney Point, England -

Blakeney Point in Norfolk is a national nature reserve of considerable repute. It consists mainly of a spit of shingle and sand dunes, but also includes salt marshes and tidal mudflats.

© Getty Images 

Kotzebue Spit, USA -

The city of Kotzebue in Alaska is effectively set on a gravel spit at the end of the Baldwin Peninsula in the Kotzebue Sound. Kotzebue is a gateway to Kobuk Valley National Park.

© Shutterstock 

Whitehaven Spit, Australia -

Whitehaven Spit falls within the boundaries of the tropical Whitsunday Islands National Park in Queensland, itself part of the Whitsunday Islands group.

© Shutterstock 

Conwy Morfa, Wales -

Conway Morfa forms part of the sandy beaches and mussel banks of Conwy Bay, at the southernmost point of Anglesey in north Wales.

© Public Domain 

Long Point, Canada -

Jutting out from the north shore of Lake Erie in Ontario is Long Point, part of a World Biosphere Reserve designated by UNESCO.

© Shutterstock 

Minnesota Point, USA -

Minnesota Point extends out from the Canal Point recreational hub of Duluth, in Minnesota. The Aerial Lift Bridge provides an impressive point of focus.

© Shutterstock 

Kinburn Spit, Ukraine -

The war in Ukraine has impacted Kinburn Spit environmentally, affecting not only wildlife but the  sensitive ecosystem, too.

© Shutterstock 

Islas Cíes, Spain -

The Galician Islas Cíes are three islands in the mouth of Ria de Vigo. Monteagudo Island and Do Faro Island are linked by a tombolo, a sandy isthmus shaped much like a spit.

© Shutterstock 

La Dune de Bouctouche, Canada -

This 12-km (8 mi) sand spit in Saint-Édouard-de-Kent, New Brunswick, is maintained by the Irving Eco-Centre. The facility is also responsible for protecting the beach and the coastal habitat.

© Shutterstock 

Cadiz, Spain -

Spain's southern port of Cadiz is very likely Europe's oldest inhabited city. Part of Cadiz runs along a spit, which also serves as a sea wall, or barrier, against the Bay of Cadiz.

© Shutterstock 

Minnamurra Spit, Australia -

Minnamurra Spit in New South Wales forms part of a beach, known as the "Mystics," which fronts the estuary of Minnamurra River.

© Shutterstock 

Lake Baikal Spit, Russia -

Siberia's sacred lake is landmarked by a rocky spit and a long narrow sandbar. In winter, this extraordinary body of water⁠—the world's oldest and deepest lake⁠—is transformed into an intensely cold but totally unique habitat.

© Shutterstock 

Laem Talumphuk Spit, Thailand -

Thailand's Laem Talumphuk Spit, or Cape Talumphuk, in the country's Nakhon Si Thammarat region, is a spectacular half-moon bar of sand embroidered with scrubby forest and mangrove swamps.

© Shutterstock 

Point Pelee, Canada -

Ontario's Point Pelee National Park extends into Lake Erie as a narrow spit of sand fringed in places by marsh and woodland habitats. 

Sources: (The Independent) (CBC) 

See also: Amazing facts about the Great Lakes you probably didn't know

© Shutterstock