Twice a day on Mayungu Bay, the Indian Ocean draws back from the shore. As the water drops, ribbons of white sand rise offshore, bright against the turquoise sea.
The walk out
From the beach club, the walk begins in warm, shallow water over rippled sand. Small fish dart around your ankles. At the sandbank the bay opens on every side: the reef line to the south, the fishing dhows out at sea, the palms of the beach club behind you.
An hour of stillness
A sandbank asks only that you sit a while. Watch the light change on the water, listen to the tide begin to turn, and swim back when it does.
Timing it
Low tide comes a little later each day, so the beach club team keeps the times and can arrange a local guide for the walk. Water shoes help on the way out, and a hat helps everywhere.
