Backshore

The backshore is the upper beach zone between the berm crest and the coastline or dune toe, lying above the reach of ordinary high tides and wetted only by storm surge and the largest spring high waters. Its surface is the berm, often nearly horizontal or sloping landward, and it can carry wind-blown sand feeding incipient dunes. Because it is rarely reworked by daily swash, the backshore stores sediment between storm events and acts as the buffer cut back during the storm or winter beach profile. It sits landward of the foreshore in the standard beach-zonation ladder.