The Mystery of the Pink Sand Beaches

Last month, I had the good fortune of spending some time in Bermuda. In a word, it was lovely. The fields of gemology and geology are related to say the least; not that I wasn’t a believer before, but if you look at the locations of gemstones found throughout the world, it presents a convincing argument for plate tectonics/continental drift and Pangaea. In any case, learning about the geology of an unfamiliar location is one of my favorite parts of traveling.

Bermuda is a bit on an oddity, a chain of over 100 islands in the middle of nowhere (really), all formed volcanically (which is more normal). The country is also famous for its’ Pink Sand beaches. I’ve seen black sand beaches, and know that they’re generally caused by volcanic basalt rock. That’s why you find them in tropical islands; most islands are volcanic in nature. It’s not often I get a chance to show off my GG knowledge outside of work so I got excited when we visited one of the legendary pink beaches. Much of the rock in Bermuda that you see is sandstone, which is a rock made mostly of quartz, one of the most prominent minerals in the world. You might be familiar with the most common gem version, Amethyst. As it were, there is also a reddish pink variety called Rose Quartz. For a number of technical reasons, you tend not to see it polished as a gem, but I digress. Most of the beach sand worldwide is quartz based, so I assumed for whatever reason that Bermuda must be rich in magnesium, the element that can cause reddish tones in quartz. I wasted no time informing my girlfriend/family. Confident and basking in my self-assured worth and intelligence, I smugly returned to my similarly colored Raspberry Daiquiri.

In a shockingly cruel turn of events, it turns out I was wrong, much to my chagrin. Bermudian sand is pink for the same reason you can’t find a good surf spot on the island to save your life; Bermuda is surrounded by an extensive coral reef. It’s my understanding the Coral jewelry was huge in the 80s. I’ve seen enough classic (bad) movies to know that the same pastel shades were fashionable in every article of clothing. You’ve seen the look; odds are we’ll be back to it in another ten years or so. Bermuda happens to be in hurricane alley and coral in shallow seas (such as the seas around the island) are vulnerable to those sorts of stresses. Given adequate time, enough coral will break away and down, providing beaches with a subtle rosey, Vice City-esque, hue. It may be a little grainer than some beaches, but the beauty is breathtaking!