A beach artist spent six painstaking hours creating this 150-foot drawing of a surfer using a garden rake on a sandy beach.

Claire Eason's huge sand sketch of a sea-lover was only visible for a few hours before being washed away on the tide.

The retired physician recruited dozens of volunteers to help her create the eye-catching figure on the English coast of Beadnell Bay in Northumberland last week.

55-year-old Eason, who took up art after hanging up her stethoscope last October, said: "The area has a lot of water sports all year round and there are several surf schools.

"It always amazes me how hardy these people are; they go out in the winter and go after the biggest waves," said Eason. "I thought it would be nice to do something to acknowledge the water sports there.

"Surfing is something I like because it is non-destructive to the environment and I like promoting an activity that has an ecological feel to it."

Incredibly, Eason designed the picture as she went along by using an aerial drone camera to check up on her progress from above.

"I had to wait until the tide had reached its peak and it was on the way out to leave fine, damp sand," said Eason.

"I had a tiny weather window due to the storms so I had to watch the forecast and go when it isn't too windy and there was no rain as the drone wouldn't fly well. You have to make sure the tide is going out at the right time too.

"Some kind volunteers helped me mark out the area I used and I got to it with my trusty garden rake."

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