by Robyn Khorshid
Despite the onset of winter rains turning the deep sand 4WD track into deep mud six sea kayakers arrived at
Big Lagoon campsite unscathed ready to explore this unusual and pristine waterway, the Shark Bay area being one of UNESCO’s World Heritage listings.
We had three days to explore the lagoon and environs. It is about 10km long and consists of a series of birrida which have joined up and become connected to the sea.
Birrida, in geological times past, were small salt lakes in between sand dunes, but times change! Most are now dry, except for a short time after winter rains; the sand dunes are now a series of vegetated parallel low ridges. They are scattered right throughout the Peron Peninsula.
The warm, shallow, salt laden waters on the lagoon periphery are the perfect environment for mangroves to thrive and the perfect habitat for fish, turtles, rays with a shark or two lurking on the edge. Apart from the turtles the marine life was super fast in escaping our intrusions and hence I have no proof of our many sightings, even schools of junior rays!
I do have proof of the amazing colours of this landscape, however! We paddled into one of the perfectly circular side lakes whose waters merge from deepest aquamarine to the palest blue-green with a backdrop of white sand beaches, dull, dark green pindan vegetation and the most amazing red sand dunes and cliffs which border much of Shark Bay.
See below.
