Due to its location and shape, the westernmost of the North Frisian islands has always been particularly exposed to the tides. The west coast of Sylt is a typical retreat coast.
In contrast to all other North Frisian islands, it lacks a natural barrier against the concentrated water power of the North Sea. The neighboring islands have a shallow water area that is traversed by sandbanks. The high-energy waves run like dead on a wide beach.
However, the seabed off Sylt is very deep and only rises steeply just before the island. The sea can thus break unhindered with full force on the coast. It drags huge masses of sand with it, most of which are deposited again off the coast of Amrum.
The two ends of the island in the north and south are particularly badly affected by this process. Without countermeasures, they would soon be cut off from the rest of the island.
Already in the middle of the 19th century, the inhabitants of Sylt started thinking about coastal protection. From 1867 so-called groynes were built in numerous places.
These are wooden poles that are driven into the sea in long rows at right angles to the shore. These are primarily intended to break the waves and keep currents parallel to the shore away from the beach. On Sylt, however, they do not bring the desired success because too many cross currents bypass the groynes.