The Broomway is an ancient bridleway in Essex, an offshore path which is swallowed each day by Thames Estuary tides. The path serves Foulness Island and for many hundreds of years was the only way to reach the island. The sea around here is shallow, retreating up to 5km offshore, before sweeping back across the Maplin Sands.
The Broomway tracks across an almost featureless landscape, an offshore path some 400m from the nearest land. Between the path and the island, the Black Grounds wait patiently. Their soft, dark mud ready to embrace and hold another victim.
It is estimated that more than 100 have drowned out here, caught by the rising tide. Some will have been snared by the mud, others confused by falling darkness or thick fog, floundering in the rising water. The Foulness Burial Register records 66 bodies recovered from the sands since 1600.