A small stretch of West Mersea’s beach is known by the strange moniker, Monkey Beach. The reason for this curious name, as well as its adjoining Monkey Steps, is believed to have stemmed from the beach’s past. It’s believed by some that at the bottom of the steps, where it meets the beach, sat a lookout post used by a customs officer or coast guard who oversaw boats coming and going from the island. The locals, amused by the sight of these lookouts in their small turret-like building, compared them…
